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She laughed. “On the road here. I thought it might have been motion sickness, that was wrong. I almost called you then.”
I leaned down and kissed her lips. “You did the right thing. I’d rather miss a few months than a lifetime.” When she smiled, I said, “Marry me.”
“Are you sure? You’re giving up everything. You won’t get to have the King name.”
“I don’t need the name to know who I am. I’d rather you king me by being my wife.” The rest we’d figure out later.
“Will you?”
This time she didn’t hesitate. “Yes. I think forever has been long enough.”
“Not when it means forever with you.”
Kissing her was my favorite pastime and I had a lot of making up time to do. When we finally pulled apart, she asked, “What’s in the envelope?”
I shrugged. “And I don’t care. I’ve missed you both too long.”
“Kiss me, handsome.”
“You kiss me, wife.” I winked at her before stealing another kiss.
Our son used that moment to blow bubbles and I wouldn’t have changed a damn thing.
Forever, I thought. It was only the beginning to our forever. That was the first time I truly felt like I was king of the world.
Twenty-Five
Matt
It had been a month since Nicolas Cortez had been arrested and I was still being watched. My handler advised that I would be fired from the Chicago Police Department and labeled a dirty cop for my safety. And as of now, I was officially on vacation and strongly advised to leave the area. But I’d made promises to my brother-in-law, Connor, and to someone else.
I walked into the small restaurant in the business district. I spotted him in a booth in the back that had good views of all access points. I walked over and sat.
“Shawn, if that’s your name,” David Royal said.
I nodded.
“You worked for Cortez and the PD. You have a lot of nerve asking for this meeting.”
“I think we both know some stories are just fiction.”
“I want to believe you.”
“If you want me to find your sister, you will. Tell me everything.”
“Liam came through,” he muttered. Liam, with Connor’s help, had found a way to loan David the money he needed to keep the Royal family business from bankruptcy. “This is my sister’s life…”
“Half-sister, right?”
“As if that matters.” His eyes were cold on me.
“Tell me everything about her,” I said.
He did and even showed me a picture. She was stunning. A beautiful captive that would likely earn a high price. Just looking at her picture made me feel protective of her. I couldn’t imagine how she’d fared all this time in the hands of Connor’s tormentor. I had to hope she hadn’t been sold yet. Either way, I’d find her. I vowed on my life to David I would.
When I left, I had what I needed. Based on the research I’d done on her earlier, I knew she was tangled in a dangerous game run by a man that had been ruining lives since he was a kid. Connor was one of those lives. It was time the man who’d named himself Ruin was destroyed. And since I wasn’t hiding behind a shield, all bets were off.
Epilogue
Liam
The air was warm, and the water was a clear blue just as the Caribbean boasted. The house we walked toward was the only one on the island we found ourselves on. It was a rich man’s fantasy. Since it was owned by my cousin, Connor, I wasn’t surprised. Natalie and I walked into the great room which was bigger than the width of my house. Given all the people that were congregating here this week, it was needed.
“Liam,” Bailey said. She came over and was the first to greet me. “It’s so good to see you.”
“You too.”
Then, she went to greet my wife as Lizzy came over. “It’s my baby brother,” she said.
Lizzy had adopted me as such and though she wasn’t my legal sister, it felt good to have more family, blood or not.
Connor and Kalen came over. They were unofficially my brothers as well. Though we were cousins, they’d treated me like I’d been a part of their family since the beginning.
Grant came in and handed his newest child to his wife Jo before coming in for the big brother hug.
“I missed you, bro,” Grant said.
“Me too.”
It was hard being away from everyone, but they kept finding ways to see us. In fact, they’d come to Montana for what was supposed to be a small wedding at the lake house my dad had rented.
Natalie, her mom, my son, and I had driven up to the hideaway. It hadn’t been an enjoyable ride as we’d been watching our back for the ride.
Grant and his family had flown into northern California. They’d driven up to Oregon and across to Montana to come. It was supposed to be an annual road trip that reminded them of when they met.
