“King.”

  “Sweets,” I responded, reaching for her hand and threading my fingers through hers. “Talk. I’m listening.”

  She took a deep breath, and that only made her tits bounce.

  Fuck, concentrate. Not on her tits either.

  “I didn’t mean to get pregnant. I was taking the shot. I didn’t lie to you to trap you,” she said.

  “I never thought you did.”

  Where was she going with this? I watched as she chewed her bottom lip so hard that I was about to save it before she hurt herself.

  Thankfully, she let it go. “And you are okay with this? You don’t feel trapped?”

  Trapped? What the fuck did she mean?

  I shook my head.

  Her dainty shoulders lifted and fell.

  Was she frustrated? What had I said wrong?

  “King,” she said, looking at me pointedly this time, “I want this baby. But that doesn’t mean I intend to lock you into anything. I know this is a for-now thing, until we are … done. But with a baby, sometimes, it can feel like you are trapped. I want you to be a part of her life, but I am not demanding it. Or anything of you.”

  I couldn’t sit here and listen to any more of this. “Stop.”

  Rumor closed her mouth, eyes wide as she looked at me.

  I shifted so that I was facing her. “What the fuck are you trying to say? Because right now, it sounds like you’re trying to tell me I’m not required in your life or our child’s life. And I’m telling you right now, that shit ain’t gonna fly.”

  She opened her mouth and closed it again. I was tempted to pin her to the sofa and fuck her into submission. Make her scream my name and tell me who she belonged to until I had her so damn full of my cum that it was running down her legs like a motherfucking waterfall.

  “I don’t want to trap you.”

  “You mentioned that,” I pointed out.

  She nodded and licked her lips. I wanted to lick those lips.

  When she threw up her hands and stood up abruptly, I leaned back, ready for the rest of whatever this was she was trying to say.

  “YOU are and will always be this baby’s father,” she said, placing a hand on her stomach. “But that doesn’t mean we are a package deal. You can be the father and not be my … whatever … boyfriend?” She shook her head, looking frustrated. “I will not use our baby to control you. You can come and go as you please. When I’m not here anymore, that is, and we are somewhere else. The baby and me.”

  What the actual fuck?

  I dropped my wounded leg to the ground and leaned forward. “You saying you’re gonna leave me, sweets? Because I’ll hunt you down. I’ll tie you to my goddamn bed.”

  I stood, ignoring the crutch, and took a step toward her, feeling the urgency to tie her up now and not give her the chance to go anywhere. Fuck her until she realized she wanted me. She wanted to be here with me.

  “I can make you want to stay,” I warned her. “You start talking about leaving, and I’ll never let you out of my sight again. What the fuck did I do that made you want to leave? Consider leaving? You think you’re gonna get bored of me? Because I can rip those fucking shorts off right now and bury my face between your legs until you’re begging me to never stop.”

  She blinked. “I don’t want to leave.”

  “Then, why are we talking about it? You’re clearly thinking about it!” I shouted, feeling the panic that she might actually want to leave me one day.

  I couldn’t lose her. She couldn’t leave me.

  “YOU!” she said, pointing at me. “You will get tired. You said this would end. That relationships didn’t work. Love wasn’t real.”

  I paused. Fucking hell. I had said all that. Before. All before I got so damn addicted and obsessed with her that I didn’t realize I would never allow her to leave me.

  “Love is weak,” I said, taking another step toward her. “It fades.”

  She looked stricken.

  Reaching up, I cupped her face in my hand. “So, it’s a fucking good thing that you possess my soul, sweets. You’re under my skin, in my blood, locked so damn deep inside of me that I could never let you go.”

  Her lips parted as she looked astonished.

  Had she not already known this? What more could I have done to show her?

  “This isn’t about me being pregnant?” she asked softly. As if she was afraid to know.

  Damn, I had failed at this already, and we were just getting started. She had no idea.

  “I got shot before I knew you were pregnant. I told Blaise and the rest of the family to fuck themselves and turned to come find you, not having any idea you were carrying my baby. All I could think was, I had to get to you. I didn’t give a damn about anything or anyone else. But you were gone, and YOU are mine. My reason for waking up in the mornings. So, no, sweets. This isn’t about you being pregnant. But right now, I’d be lying if I said I’m not fucking relieved you’re tied to me because, apparently, you’re not as sure about the future as I am.”

  She closed the space between us, grabbing my face and pressing her soft lips to mine with so much force that I had to put weight on my bad leg to keep from falling backward. I wasn’t gonna let her know that though. Not when she was kissing me like she couldn’t get enough.

  I held her, giving her back as good as she was giving and relishing the sweetness that was only Rumor. I’d called a lot of women sweets, but until her, none of them had really owned the title. She did. It was hers.

  Moving my hands down to grab her ass, I squeezed, pushing her up until I had my hard dick rubbing against the crotch of her shorts.

  “Makes me think you want to keep me,” I said against her lips.

  “Yes,” she said breathlessly.

  “That’s my girl,” I said, smiling as I took her mouth again.

  She broke free and stepped back suddenly, confusing the fuck out of me.

  “Your leg!” she squeaked. “I am so sorry! Sit down.”

  “I’m fine.”

  “SIT DOWN,” she ordered, surprising me.

  I backed up, grinning as she looked at me sternly. When I sank back onto the sofa, she moved to take my leg and prop it back up.

  “You have to be more careful.”

  “I’ll do whatever you want—on one condition.”

  She narrowed her eyes. “What?”

  “Take off those clothes and sit in my lap for the rest of the day. I swear I won’t get up again.”

  A laugh burst out of her. “Seriously?”

  “Deadly,” I assured her.

  “Do you always think about sex?”

  I nodded. “Yes. I think about fucking you every waking minute, sweets.”

  “You won’t be thinking about it when my stomach is big and round.”

  I reached out and grabbed her hand, tugging her to me. “You’ll have my kid growing inside of you. My own fucking baby mama. Yeah, I’ll think it. I’ll worship you like the goddamn queen you are.”

  The musical laughter that trickled out of her as she fell onto my lap made every damn thing that was wrong in my life right.

  “King,” she said softly.

  “Yeah?”

  “I love you, and it doesn’t feel weak. It feels like the most powerful, real thing I’ve ever known.”

  • Thirty-One •

  I’m just trying to keep the man from going feral on anyone.

  Rumor

  One would assume a week of being fucked several times a day and treated like the sun rose and set at my feet would give me enough confidence to face the fake engagement party being held tonight. But it was with the man I loved. The father of my child pretending to be engaged to another woman. That was hard. Very, very hard. Perhaps if I didn’t have all these pregnancy hormones racing through my body, I could focus. Be the support he needed to handle the job. Keeping it all in and not making this difficult for him was all I could do.

  The knock on the door was a welcome interruption from the thoughts haunting me. I took one last look in the mirror. The dress that Annette had sent to me through Maeme was unlike anything I’d ever worn. The wedding dress that Hill had chosen for me was simple. He’d called it elegant, but I’d thought it was kind of plain. This was elegant. Not to mention expensive. The tag that had still been on it when I opened the hanging bag caused me to rub my eyes and squint to make sure I’d seen that correctly.

  I picked up the silver clutch that Maeme had brought with the dress, but all that was inside of it was my phone and some lipstick. Then, I walked over to open the door to the bedroom I’d gotten ready in at Maeme’s. It was no longer called the blue room. She referred to it as my room, and something about having a room that was considered mine warmed my heart. Sure, I missed the cottage, but I also didn’t feel safe being alone. Even if the Insantos had been … wiped out.

  Sebastian smiled at me, then let out a low whistle. “Damn, Rumor. He’s gonna fucking kill me.”

  Yes. I was afraid of that too. Not because of how I was dressed, but because Maeme had insisted that I not go unattended to the engagement party. Of course she had waited to share this with me until after King left to go to the Kingstons’ house to prepare for the party. They were setting up extra security and planning a course of action if the man who was stalking Scotlin decided to show up. Their hope was he would, and they’d be ready for him. King had told me last night that they believed he was someone on her father’s political campaign.

  “You sure you don’t want to change?” Sebastian asked, rubbing the back of his neck.

  I shrugged. “I have nothing else. Annette sent this dress for me to wear, and Maeme approved it.”

  He simply nodded and let out a nervous, clipped laugh. “Of course they did.”

  I waved a hand at him. “You look good in a tux.”

  A crooked grin curled his lips. “Thanks.”

  It was the truth. He was an attractive man, and I was sure he was well aware of it. Seeing him like this made me anxious about seeing King. He’d be dressed in one too. Remembering how he looked in a tux made my heart flutter. Scotlin would be clinging to him, and that was going to be painful, but I would be the one he came home to.

  “You’re ready then?” he asked.

  “Yes. Might as well get this over with.”

  “My thoughts exactly.”

  He stood back so that I could lead the way. Maeme was standing at the bottom of the stairs as we descended, and a big, bright smile lit her face when she saw me. She was dressed in a pale blue satin dress that hung to the floor. Maeme was a beautiful woman, but seeing her like this had me awestruck.

  “Good Lord, you are a sight. I knew that green would match your eyes. You are breathtaking.”

  I started to thank her when Sebastian spoke up.

  “No shit. I thought you loved me, Maeme. King is gonna lose his shit when he sees her, and I’m the one he’s gonna murder when he does.”

  Maeme rolled her eyes. “Don’t be so dramatic. If she has to go watch King pretend to be engaged to Scotlin May, then she needs to feel confident, beautiful, and know she’s the one he can’t stop looking at.”

  “Tonight, he needs to be looking at Scotlin and be on alert in case the stalker is there.”

  Maeme shrugged. “He will do his job. Besides, there is so much security there that no one is going to be stupid enough to make a move.”

  “We need them to. This fake shit with Scotlin has to end soon. Especially with Rumor pregnant. King has become more unhinged. He can’t keep this up.”

  Maeme nodded. “Yes, I know. I’m going to speak with Stellan about it.”

  “Oh, he fucking knows,” Sebastian drawled behind me.

  When I reached the bottom step, Maeme hugged me, then took my clutch. “I have something for you.”

  She put her hand into her pocket and pulled out a small wand-like thing.

  “Maeme, seriously?” Sebastian said beside me.

  I glanced up at him, seeing his brows drawn together. He didn’t look like he agreed with whatever that was she’d put in there.

  “I can’t give her a gun yet. We gotta teach her how to handle one first.”

  “If someone gets close enough that she needs to use that, then King’s gonna gut him anyway.”

  She shrugged, handing me my purse back, then patted my cheek. “It’s a Taser. An illegal one. Very effective. It’ll have a grown man three times your size on the ground in less than a second. Use it if needed. At any time you feel threatened or unsure about your safety, get it out and have it ready.”

  All I heard was illegal. She’d put something illegal in my purse.

  “We should go. Don’t want to be late,” she said, turning for the door.

  I followed her with Sebastian coming out last and locking up behind us. The limo that was parked in the driveway shouldn’t have been surprising. A tall man with wide shoulders and an intimidating expression stood beside the vehicle. He opened the door as we approached, and Maeme said something to him that caused a small smile to tug at his lips before she climbed inside. I just hoped tonight went the way they all wanted it to and that I never had to use the illegal Taser in my purse.

  The Kingstons’ home was even more lovely at night, all lit up. I felt as if I had stepped back in time and was walking into a party among the elite in the deep South. Maeme turned to us as we approached the steps to the entrance.

  “You’re her date,” she scolded Sebastian. “Give her your arm, for goodness’ sake, boy.”

  Sebastian glanced down at me and smirked, then held out his arm for me to take. “I’m about to die, and she doesn’t give a shit,” he whispered, causing me to press my lips together to keep from laughing.

  We stepped inside the house behind Maeme, and the man standing just inside, greeting people, I had never met in person, but I knew his face. All of Georgia knew his face. Jefferson May. And his wife, Marigold, stood beside him. They were the solid, church-going Republican family of the South. There had never been a tarnish on their name. People adored them. I wondered what all the folks of Georgia would think if they knew he was connected to the Mafia.

  “Maeme Salazar.” Jefferson May beamed with a big smile on his face. “It’s been too long.”

  Maeme stepped forward and shook his hand, agreeing, then hugged his wife, Marigold. When she stepped back, she held out a hand toward me and Sebastian. “You both know Sebastian,” she said. “The lovely lady at his side is Rumor Beauregard. She’s a close family friend.” The way she said it made it very clear that I was important to her and the rest of the family.

  Sebastian stepped forward and shook Jefferson’s hand, but his smile looked less cheerful and more forced as he cut his eyes over to me. There was an odd expression in his perusal. As if he was studying me while trying not to be obvious. Was it because of King? Did he find me a threat to Scotlin? I hoped I was reading this incorrectly. When he shook my hand though, I could see a flicker of unease in his eyes. I wanted away from this man. My internal warning was on high alert, and when we turned to leave them, I took a deep breath, thankful that was over.

  It could be that I had made that all up in my head, but I couldn’t get past the way he’d stared at me, as if … he knew me. And he didn’t want to. My thoughts were so focused on the odd encounter that when we walked into the ballroom, I didn’t immediately notice King standing beside Scotlin. Not until Sebastian’s arm flexed underneath my hand as he tensed.

  King was everything I had remembered in a tux and more. The flutters in my stomach at the sight of him caused me to suck in a breath. He was beautiful. When our eyes met, I wanted to see him smile. Have that reassurance that he was mine. But there was no smile. No secret exchange of affection. The glower on his face made it very clear he was angry. Perhaps furious was a better word.

  “And here we go,” Sebastian muttered.

  I slipped my hand from his arm and took a small step toward Maeme, who was speaking to Scotlin. King’s eyes held mine while his entire stance went rigid.

  “King, dear, you need to smile. It’s a party,” Maeme said, squeezing his arm tightly, as if to warn him to behave. When he didn’t even acknowledge her, she turned toward me, smiling as if all was well in the world. “Sebastian was kind enough to escort Rumor so she wouldn’t be alone. Isn’t the dress Annette sent perfect on her?”

  King cut his eyes toward Sebastian, and the threat was there in his eyes for anyone who was looking to see.

  “Honey,” Scotlin cooed at him, touching his arm and leaning into him, “if you want a break from greeting people, we can take one. Just say the word.”

  He didn’t budge or respond to her. His eyes shifted back to me. I smiled nervously, not sure what I was supposed to do now. He didn’t want me here, but I hadn’t asked to come. Maeme had insisted. Otherwise, I would be at home with guards I didn’t know.

  Right now, that option was looking like a much better idea than this. My eyes stung, and I knew it was silly, but I wasn’t reacting well to the glare from King, directed at me. He never looked at me like that.

  “Sebastian, why don’t you take Rumor to meet some people and get her something to drink?” Maeme said with a happy tone, turning from King. She patted my arm as she walked past me with a swish of her long skirt, not saying anything more to King or Scotlin.

  I dropped my gaze to the floor, wanting to find somewhere to hide and stay there.

  “Of course,” Sebastian replied, giving King one last look before touching my elbow.

  “Don’t.” King’s voice was so cold that it caused me to shiver. “Don’t touch her.”

  Sebastian’s hand dropped away from me immediately.

  “Got it,” he replied with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

  Then, he nodded at me to come with him. I didn’t look back at King, but I could feel him. His eyes felt like a hot flame, following my every move.