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Abel scoots over to me and curls his hands around my bicep, laying his head on top of them. “Thank you for this, Sav. For being here, for Pogo, for wherever you’re taking us this weekend. You don’t know how much it means to me. I didn’t think …” He pauses, then looks up at me. “I didn’t think anyone was going to be there for me. And I know what it could have cost you to come. So, thank you. So much.”
I kiss the top of his head. “You’re welcome, baby.”
We pull up to the penthouse about an hour later. We’ve left the city behind and are in a more suburban area, a place I bought a few years back when I wanted to get out of the city. A place that I barely use. While we have everything we need at the mansion, the penthouse is cozier, even with all its amenities.
The windows are all floor to ceiling with retractable curtains that blend into the wall. The terrace has a hot tub and a few comfortable lawn chairs, so we can lie out when we’re in the mood. There’s even a small space of grass where we can take Pogo out on, we just have to clean up after him immediately. Since he’s so young, we have to confine him to the small square until he gets his shots. With a loft style design, the circular stairs lead up to the only bedroom. The living room has a big, comfortable sectional I picked out and across from it are built-in bookshelves with some of my favorites on its shelves. The kitchen has all new appliances and is fully stocked for the weekend.
I packed things for Abel so we could head here directly after the ceremony. After Quin and Michael see us upstairs, they congratulate Abel again and take their leave, giving me a weekend with my man. And I plan to use it to get to know him more. Hopefully ask him if he’d like to come with me when I leave in a few months. We moved our timeline up since Quin has the supplies we need, and our IDs will be available in a few weeks. My money for the guns and drugs has been sent offshore for years and I’ve already started a soft transition from the company, letting my VP attend all the meetings in my place to get him ready for when I’m gone.
We get settled in, then take Pogo out and let him do his business. Abel can’t stop staring at him, that soft smile on his face. I stand back and watch, loving the look of love shining from his face. His eyes are shiny and he wipes under them once more. “You okay?” I ask.
Without turning to look at me, he nods and says, “Happy. Overwhelmed. Glad to be finished with school. Scared of the future. Loving my puppy and my surprise getaway.” He turns then to meet my eyes. “I’m just … I didn’t think I could be this happy. I feel like I have everything I’ve ever wanted.” Turning back to Pogo, he bends down and the fat pup hustles over to him, rolling on his belly so Abel can pet him.
Later that evening, Abel cooks us some dinner while I lay Pogo on his doggy bed and I go sit at the kitchen bar, watching Abel move around fluidly. We don’t talk, but the silence isn’t uncomfortable. It’s natural, like we’ve always kept each other company like this, not needing to fill the silence with anything.
When he’s finished, he slides a plate over to me and climbs on the stool beside me. We eat and I listen to Abel tell me about graduation, how he felt and what he thinks he wants to do in the future. I give him my full attention, soaking up what he’s saying and wondering if he’ll want to go with me since he just got his degree.
Fuck, I didn’t even think about that. Hejustgraduated. He’s going to want to get a job in his chosen field. And he can’t get a job without a degree. Dammit. Maybe I shouldn’t ask him. I don’t want him to feel obligated to come with me or feel guilty if he says no.
Unfortunately, I’m a selfish fucker, so I know I’ll ask, even if it’ll hurt one or both of us.
After dinner, we sit on the couch with a fuzzy blanket and Abel reads to me while I lay on his leg. He rubs a hand in my hair absently, calming me and relaxing me more than I’ve ever thought I would be. For the first time in my life, I’m content. I have a man that I love who’s obscenely happy about something I did for him, a new future on the horizon, and will soon have a new lease on life. I’m not sure it can get any better.
I doze off, listening to the sound of Abel’s voice and the feel of his fingers in my hair. He shakes me gently and I blink up at him, enjoying the smirk on his face. “It’s time for bed, baby.” I nod and sit up, stretching and yawning widely. I stand and take his hand, leading him up the stairs. “Should we leave Pogo? Will he be okay?”
“We’ll hear him if he whines. He’ll probably be asleep for the next few hours. He’ll need to go out when he wakes.”
“I’ll take him,” Abel says quickly and happily. I smile at him and nod, feeling like I’m sleepwalking, I’m so tired.
We undress and slide between the sheets. Abel scoots close to me, wiggling a bit to get comfortable, making me chuckle sleepily. “Good night, Sav. Thank you again for today. You’re the best person I know.”
Thrilled that he thinks so highly of me, I close my eyes and sleep, loving how Abel feels in my arms.
Chapter Seventeen
Abel
Savwasn’tlyingwhenhe said Pogo would be up in a few hours to go out. I hear him whining downstairs and I groggily pull myself away from my man to go see to my puppy. I can’t believe he got me a puppy. And one that looks so much like Gogo. When I saw him in that box, I almost thought itwasGogo.
I remember the night I told Savage about what happened to my puppy and my parents. I knew he was listening, but I didn’t think he would commit to memory what Gogo looked like. An almost perfect replica. Though I don’t remember him whining like this during the night. Then again, my parents probably took him out at night, while I was on duty during the days.
At the bottom of the stairs, Pogo is waiting for me, looking adorable. Even though I’m fucking exhausted, I can’t help but smile down at him. “Come on, you crazy puppy.” I open the sliding glass door and he hurries out, going to the small patch of grass that’s weirdly on the roof and does his business. I rush back inside to get the doggie bags, then grab a blanket from the back of the couch. After I clean up after him, I let him walk around the terrace, stopping to smell something now and then. I watch him, feeling this crazy, light feeling in my chest.
Sitting on one of the lawn chairs, I wrap the blanket around my shoulders and put my head on the knee I have raised. I’ve had boyfriends before, but Savage is outstripping them all by millions of miles. There’s so much more to Savage than I thought there would be the first time I saw him. I remember how cold and empty his eyes were. Now, when I look at him, all I see is warmth and happiness. He’s constantly smiling at me. He always seems to be in a good mood. I’m not going to take credit for that—that’s work he had to do on his own. But I’d like to think I had a hand in it. Because he’s certainly had a hand in what I’m thinking.
If he doesn’t soon, I’ll say fuck it and ask him if I can go with him. I know I just got my degree and I want to use it, but if I have to use it without Savage, fuck that degree.
I pull the blanket tighter around me and my eyebrows dip. What if Savage doesn’t want me to come? Maybe that’s why he got me Pogo. To have something to remember him by. Or so I won’t be lonely when I have to go back to Cris, because God knows my brother pays me zero attention and pretends I don’t exist half the time.
I can understand why he wouldn’t want me to come. It wouldn’t be safe, and I would be extra baggage that he would have to worry about if the Russians find out where he is, worried he would reclaim his territory. I don’t quite understand the criminal underworld, but from movies and TV shows, they don’t like their leadership tested or contested. If Savage disappears and they find out where he is, they’ll kill him just to make sure their newly acquired empire is safe.
If Savage leaves, he’s gone. I can tell by how he talks about it he will not change his mind and want to come back. But there’s always that possibility and if I’m with him, it will be harder for him to stay safe. I would be a liability. But fuck, I don’t want him to go without me. I love him. I’ve loved him for a while. I’ll never find anyone else like him. Not even close. Yeah, we didn’t come together in the best of circumstances, but wedidcome together. It wasn’t just me making the best of my situation—it was Savage allowing me to get to know him and me seeing the change in him. A change that I love.
Pogo starts to whine and jumps on the side of the lawn chair, pulling me out of my thoughts. I bend down to pick him up, laying him on my chest. I pet him, rubbing my hand over his squishy belly, tears filling my eyes again.
I remember doing this exact thing with Gogo, loving how his leg would twitch when I got a good rub going. And thinking about that makes me think about my parents. They had me later in life, when they didn’t think they would have more kids after trying for so many years after Cris. I was the definition of an “oops baby,” my mother thinking she was going through menopause. Nope, a baby. I smile at that, remembering that’s the story my mother told me a few times. Way before I knew what menopausewas.
Rubbing my pup, I close my eyes and picture my parents. It’s been so long since I thought of them—it was always too painful and Cris would bring them up to hurt me. Now, after being around Savage, for some reason, it doesn’t hurt to think about them. My big strong, dad, with his long brown hair, almond eyes, slightly tanned skin that stayed that way, even when the sun wasn’t out. He always had a bushy beard, making him look like a lumberjack.
