He shook his head along with her. “I don’t want to be broken up either, baby, Jesus, I don’t want to either. I didn’t sleep all night. Couldn’t get a damn thing done at work. Forgot to even charge my fucking phone, which is why I haven’t been answering it all day.”
“It’s okay,” she squeezed his hands again. “Devereux’s dead. The motherfucker’s dead. That’s all that counts.”
“Yeah, and now our fingerprints are all over the room. Our faces all over the security footage—”
“Which was why we called Justin and got ahead of it. He said he’s handling it, so we have to trust him on that.”
“Tonight’s the first time he’s spoken to me since DJ told him about us kissing in the study. Ignored my ass completely when we switched shifts at work. So I’m not sure I have as much confidence in what he means by ‘handling it’ as you do.”
She smiled softly. “You know that’s not his style.”
His eyes ran her face, taking a deep breath as he entwined their fingers. “Stella, I didn’t re-apply for the FBI to hurt you. I did it for us. Hell, when I put the application in, I didn’t even think it would go anywhere. Not the third time around. But every time I thought I was getting a rejection email, it was another step forward. I never looked at them as steps away from you, but steps forward for us. Stella, if I get it, I want you and Blue and to come to Quantico with me.”
Tears stung her eyes. “You do?”
“I’m not going anywhere without my girls. How can you even ask that at this point is completely beyond me.” He went into his pocket and came back up with her engagement ring trembling between his fingers. “You and Blue are my family, baby. Forever.”
Stella held out her ring finger with one hand while clapping the other over her mouth.
He began sliding it on. “Can we please not make a habit of taking this off every time you wanna throw a tantrum?”
She swatted him with her free hand.
He grinned. “Because, otherwise, we got a long way to go. Not sure my heart can take it.” He finally managed to get it on her finger. “Look at that. Fits.”
She laughed softly before leaning deeper into the table and catching his lips in a tender kiss. He groaned, returning the kiss with equal fervor, sinking his fingers into her hair, curling them into claws, and pulling her closer.
The sound of someone clearing their voice at the door of the shop made them tear their lips apart, and they both straightened at the sight of Justin lingering in the entrance, watching them as if he couldn’t decide whether the sight of them before him or the sight of Mr. Devereux dead upstairs was more upsetting.
He cleared his throat again before nodding towards the sidewalk, motioning for them to follow.
Rocco and Stella shared a look before they both stood and followed Justin outside. Since their police precinct was one of the smaller ones in Jersey, most members of their SWAT team also worked as regular police detectives, which was why Rocco had called Justin that night instead of 911, making sure he’d be the first detective on the scene.
“All good?” Rocco said once he, Stella, and Justin met in the corner of an alley next to the ice cream shop.
Justin nodded. “Pretty open and shut. Manager’s worried about his bottom line. Billion dollar hotel, a suicide is a lot easier for a PR team to clean up than a murder.”
“But we didn’t kill him,” Stella said.
“Yeah, you didn’t.” Justin’s eyebrows shot up.
Hers did too.
“And the tapes? The concierge that spoke to Stella?” Rocco asked.
Justin’s jaw tightened. “Owner of the hotel is wrapped up in enough dirty shit to put him away for life. I’ve turned a blind eye more than once. He owes me the favor.”
“He scrubbed the tapes…” Stella spoke her realization out loud, catching both of their attention, amazed at how easily she let herself forget, not just how much cops stuck together, but how dirty they themselves could be when it came to protecting their own.
“And he’s got a bonus for the blonde behind the desk that’ll ensure she’ll become mighty forgetful. It won’t come back to you.” Justin turned and began away from them without another word, clearly still wrestling with seeing the two of them locking lips a moment earlier.
“What about the prints on the door handle?” Rocco called.
Justin didn’t even look back. “What prints?”
“Justin!” Stella hurried forward.
He froze just as he was about to step off the edge of the sidewalk, paused, and then cut his blue eyes to her over her shoulder.
Stella swallowed. “Thank you. I dragged you into this whole mess, the night of the raid, and you and Rocco protected me the whole way… and you never once… well, I guess what I’m trying to say is…”
He gave her a moment to find the right words, and when he realized she couldn’t, he spoke out. “We’re family, Stella.”
She froze in the midst of trying to find the perfect words to say to Justin, and realized, once again, that he’d already said them for her. She couldn’t help the gentle smile that spread on her lips, emotion blurring her vision.
They gave each other a sharp nod, and she waited for him to move across the street, disappearing amongst into the police cars, ambulances, and utter chaos that had encased the street from all around before turning back to Rocco.
“I think everything’s gonna be okay,” she said.
Rocco smiled softly, eyes still on Justin even as he became but a speck in the distance, approaching Stella and wrapping his arms around her waist.
“Did you hear what he said?” she asked. “Maybe you shouldn’t be in such a hurry anymore to talk about how the Armstrongs aren’t your real family. ‘Cause I sure don’t know too many real family members who would roll around in the mud with us the way Justin has since day one.”
“Guess he does ride, huh?”
“Mmmmm, goes right up to bat alongside you, every single time. Since you were babies. Following you around like a puppy. That boy loves your dirty drawers. He is your family, Rocco.”
“And you,” he said.
“And me.”
“And Blue.”
She giggled, wrapping her arms around his neck. “And Blue too. God, you should’ve seen her bouncing up and down in her crib this morning like a Michael Jackson fan begging for an encore. She must’ve screamed for her Papa Rock for nearly an hour. I wouldn’t be surprised if she blew out a vocal chord.”
“Thank God, maybe we can finally get some sleep.”
“We have our whole lives to sleep, baby.”
The glowing smile that crossed his face pulled another deep belly laugh from her, one he muffled with his lips as he pulled her in for a passionate kiss. One that grew deep in moments. So much so that passersby couldn’t help taking seconds looks as they walked past them on the sidewalk.
Even as strangers stared, probably whispering that they should get a room in the hotel with a dead man inside across the street, Stella and Rocco didn’t care. They tilted their heads deeper, spread their mouths wider and swept tongues unabashedly, even if they pissed off a few bystanders for a couple of fleeting moments.
Because they were family.
And family was forever.
26
Stella cried out against Rocco’s lips as she rode him furiously enough to rip the fitted sheet from the corners of the bed—enough to make her headboard slam against the wall—until she was sure she might rip his dick straight off his body. But it remained intact, the way it always did, as she pressed her slick-soaked chest against his and rode the wave of her fifth orgasm of the night, gasping against his lips in disbelief, the way she did every night—and every morning—at just what this man was capable of doing to her.
Their lips met tenderly as the sun rose through her white-windowed curtains, promising another beautiful day that would lead to an even more beautiful night.
“Can we just live in this bed forever?” she purred, ke
eping his hardness inside her long after they’d both finished.
“Papa Wok! Papa Wok! Papa Wok!” Blue’s screams floated down the hall from her nursery and petered into their bedroom, drawing laughs from both of them.
Rocco raised his eyebrows. “Does that answer your question?”
“Unfortunately.” She went to climb off him, but he took hold of her waist, keeping her in place until she came back to him and wrapped her arms around his neck once more. “What?”
He searched her eyes. “Let’s get married.”
She showed him her finger. “We’re already getting married, silly.”
“No. Let’s get married tomorrow.”
Her mouth dropped open, unable to hide the smile on her face.
His breathing picked up. “We’ll fly your folks in from Philly tonight, call the Armstrongs, and go down to the courthouse tomorrow.”
She covered her hand with her heart. “Baby, are you serious?”
“As a heart attack.”
“But what about—”
Before she could answer, the phone rang from the bedside table. Rocco reached his long arm out to pick it up and handed it to Stella. Still watching him in amazement with one hand over her heart, she used the other to bring the phone to her ear.
“Hello?” she asked as Rocco tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear.
“Hey.”
This time, Stella climbed off of Rocco for real, making his hardness plop against his stomach. “DJ. God, it’s so weird, I was just thinking about you. Literally. I just got chills.”
“I’ve been…” DJ cleared her throat. “I’ve been thinking about you a lot, too.”
Stella curled into a ball and pulled her knees into her chest as Rocco massaged her back. “I miss you.”
A long silence fell. So long that Stella wondered if she’d accidentally hung up.
“If you wanna come by later,” DJ finally said. “And watch the Bachelorette premiere? That might be cool, or whatever.”
“Okay.” Stella nibbled her bottom lip to fight a delighted smile. “Yeah. Cool.”
They hung up without another word, and Stella looked over her shoulder to Rocco, her mouth falling open. “That was DJ. She just invited me over tonight the watch the Bachelorette. It’s the first time she’s spoken to me since that night in the study. I was literally about to tell you that I can’t get married if she’s not there and… and then the phone rings.”
“Must be a sign, huh?” Rocco rolled his eyes. “Should’ve known that stupid-ass show would be what brought you two knuckleheads back together.”
“Hey, the Bachelorette is a brilliant feat of television, so you can take your elitism elsewhere.”
“Should I take your early birthday present elsewhere too?” he asked, pulling out an envelope from the pillow behind him and holding it up for her.
“What? How long have you been hiding that back there?” She cried, reaching for it, gritting her teeth when he snatched it away before she could grab it.
“Rocco! Stop!” she cried, seizing it greedily when he offered it once more, scared he would pull it away from her again. She ripped it open while gazing coyly up at him. “Been a long time since I’ve gotten a birthday present in an envelope. There better be a lot of green inside this card I know… that…” Her words slowed to a stop when she found a thick stack of papers inside instead, stapled and folded together.
She looked up at him after pulling the papers out, pausing before she could unfold it.
He nodded toward it. “Open it.”
She looked down and unfolded it hastily, her greedy fingers ripping the thick stack apart in seconds, eyes dancing over the words that greeted her from the top of the page.
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
REPORT OF ADOPTION
Tears filled her eyes as they flew back up to Rocco’s, her heart squeezing in her chest to the point of pain.
“Rocco…” she breathed.
Emotion filled his eyes as well as he massaged her arm. “I love you, baby. I love my girls. There’s nothing I could ever love more. Will you marry me tomorrow?”
“Yes!” Stella launched at him and covered his lips with hers, moaning into a deep kiss as Blue continued shouting “Papa Wak” in the distance. Stella placed what felt like a million kisses on his lips, shouting ‘yes’ between each one. “Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Oh my god, baby, yes!” She pulled away and pressed her forehead to his, searching his eyes.
He raised his eyebrows, green orbs filled with happiness and peace. “So tomorrow? You mean it?”
Stella went to answer, but the phone rang in her hand again.
“Another sign from God calling?” he teased.
She answered the phone, already speaking rapid-fire. “DJ, you already know I’m gonna stop at Whole Foods for the chips and guac like I always do on Bachelor night—”
“Stella Armstrong?”
She stumbled over her words at the sound of a male voice. “Yes, this is Stella Armstrong. I’m so sorry. I thought you were someone else.”
“This is Neil Hughes calling, Secretary of the Army.”
Stella’s heart ground to a halt, a cold chill racing up her spine.
“Good news,” Neil said. “We’ve found your husband.”
COMING SOON:
ILLICIT
WAR, BOOK 2
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Also by Trevion:
The War Series:
Forbidden
Stereo Hearts Series:
Stereo
Encore
Refrain
The Romanovsky Brother’s Series:
Taming Val
Claiming Roman
Loving Leo
Finding Gary
The Almeida Brother’s Trilogy:
Lila's Thunder
Thunder Rolls
Lightning Strikes
The Revenge Series:
Quiver: Number One
Tingle: Number Two
Purr: Number Three
Yearn: Number Four
Pulse: Number Five
Raw: Number Six
Rouse: Number Seven
Captive: Lincoln Hill’s Story
Stand Alone Novels:
Captive
Dead or Alive
Forbidden (War Book 1) Page 32
