“All right, we’ll stop, grab your bag, and then head to the pharmacy.”

  “Right,” I concur, figuring I can leave him in the car and run into the drugstore on my own.

  Lucky for me, the gods were feeling generous, because he was going to come inside with me but got a call right as we pulled up to the store. While he took his call, I was able to go in and quickly buy a couple tests and a few random bits from the aisles I walked down. I hid the test at the bottom of my bag, telling myself I wasn’t really keeping anything from him; I was just waiting until I had something to say before I brought the situation to his attention.

  Not Pregnant.

  Seeing those two words, my chest hurts. I know it’s for the best, but between last night and this morning, I had gotten used to the idea of being pregnant and what that would mean. Tossing the test in the trash under the sink, I wash my hands while fighting back the tears suddenly blurring my vision. It wouldn’t have been good if I were pregnant. I know that realistically. But hope can sometimes be a dangerous thing.

  I shake my head and leave the bathroom, heading for the kitchen, where I make myself a cup of tea. Then I take it out to the sunroom, where Sage and I had been lounging in one of the hammocks until a few minutes ago, when I went inside to take the test. Seeing his eyes are closed, I set my cup of tea on the floor then fall-slash-roll into the hammock next to him, resuming my position with his arm around me, my head against his pec and my thigh over his hip.

  “I’m not pregnant,” I whisper, and his abs under my hand tense. I feel his chin tip down, but I don’t look up at him.

  “Pardon?”

  “I… I realized yesterday that I hadn’t had my period since we got together, and I thought…” I let my words taper off as my eyes close. “It doesn’t matter. I’m not.”

  “That’s why you wanted to stop at the drugstore last night,” he accuses, and it’s my turn to tense.

  “Yeah.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “I didn’t want you to freak out and go all weird on me the way you tend to do when anything happens.”

  “I don’t go weird.” His arm tightens. “I love you. I worry.”

  “I didn’t want you to worry until there was something to worry about.”

  “Look at me,” he rumbles as the energy around us changes. My eyes fly up to meet his, and I swallow at the intense look in his eyes. “You do not get to do that.”

  “What?”

  “It’s my job to protect you. You do not get to keep shit from me under the pretense that you’re trying to protect me. That is not okay with me.”

  “But—”

  “No buts,” he cuts me off. “I love you. I love that you want to do that for me, but no. Next time you have something like that happen, you tell me straight up. You do not wait until after the fact to talk to me.”

  “I—”

  “No. Tell me you get me.”

  “Okay, I get you,” I agree, and he shakes his head before cupping my jaw.

  “You wanted the test you bought to be positive, right?” he asks, and my shoulders tense along with the rest of my body.

  “I….” I shrug, unable to form words.

  “I know you did. I can see it in your eyes and hear the disappointment still lingering in your voice. I can’t say I’m not happy you aren’t pregnant, baby,” he says, and my heart cracks. I start to bolt from him, but his arms tighten and he continues talking. “I know from what I’ve read that pregnancy at your stage could be complicated for not only the child you’re carrying, but for you, too. And I do not want that.” His lips rest against my forehead as he whispers there. “What I want is that long life you promised me.”

  “You read up about it?” I breathe, and his fingers move to my chin and he lifts until my eyes meet his soft ones.

  He turns toward me, resting his leg over mine as he sifts his fingers through my hair. “You’re not the only one who wants a family, Kimberly. I want children with you. I just know we will probably have to adopt or get a surrogate to carry that child for us. I will never put you at risk. Never.”

  “You’ve really thought about this.”

  “After I fucked up with you, I spent a lot of time thinking about the things I’d do if given a second chance. I’ve definitely thought about our future and what that future would entail.”

  “Oh my God. You’re going to make me cry,” I whisper, right before I start to cry and bury my face against his chest, swearing I hear him laugh. But I ignore that, because it will annoy me. Instead, I focus on the fact this amazing man is mine.

  “When the time is right, we’ll talk about babies and figure out what we should do.”

  “Okay,” I agree as his hand moves down my spine then back up, wrapping around the back of my neck.

  “I’d give you the world,” he says quietly, and even though those words are spoken softly, I can still hear and feel the depth of emotion they contain.

  I know he would. If he could give me the world, he would do it. But like I said before, I don’t need the world.

  All I need is him.

  Chapter 17

  Sage

  “BABE, WE WERE supposed to leave fifteen minutes ago,” I shout, walking back into the bedroom, where I left Kim over an hour ago to get showered and ready.

  “Don’t you dare start with me. Us being late is your fault. You should have kept your hands to yourself and let me get into the shower earlier… alone!” she shouts the last word back and I smile, thinking about what I did to her in that shower as I walk around the corner into the bathroom.

  Seeing her standing in front of the vanity applying mascara, her upper half bent over the sink with her ass in the air while wearing nothing but a pair of high cut sheer panties, my cock twitches. I cannot fucking believe that tomorrow she will be my wife. Between her, her mom, and my mom, aunts, and cousins, they got our wedding planned in nine months instead of a year, which worked for me, because I was starting to get impatient. Her living with me has been good—no, better than good—but it hasn’t been enough. I want her tied tight to me so that nothing will ever separate us.

  Stepping up behind her, I wrap my hand around her waist, pressing my hips into her ass.

  “Don’t,” she hisses as my hand slides around her stomach.

  “Don’t what, baby?”

  “Don’t look at me like that,” she says, then her eyes flare and her pupils dilate as my hand slides down.

  My fingers slip into her panties between her legs and through her folds. “How am I looking at you?” I circle her clit, and her ass presses back into my erection while her eyes hold mine in the mirror. “Tell me?” I pinch her clit, causing her hips to jerk back and her neck to arch.

  “Like you want to devour me.”

  “I like the idea of devouring you.”

  “We are going to be so late,” she pants, trying to stand, but before she can, I slide my free hand up her back and hold her in place bent over in front of me while I work her over.

  “Hold onto the edge of the sink,” I murmur, and her wild eyes meet mine as she does as I asked. Pulling my hand out of her panties, I take a step back and slide the silky material down her legs. “Bend over a little more,” I instruct, while smoothing my hands over her ass cheeks. Complying, she bends at the waist, causing her ass to tilt even farther and me to get a glimpse of the swollen lips of her pussy from behind. Getting down on my knees, I spread her open and blow across her wet sex.

  “Sage.”

  “Shhh, I want to eat in silence.” I lick through her folds, listening to her moan deep in her throat. I love the way she tastes, but I love the way she lights up every fucking time I get my mouth on her more. Keeping her open, I lick and suck every inch of her pussy but her clit.

  “Sage.” She twists at the waist and grabs onto the top of my head.

  Smiling, I give in and pull her clit into my mouth. The second I do, she goes up on her tiptoes trying to get away, but I keep a tight hold on her ass, so tight I know she will have marks from my fingers. Sucking her clit into my mouth, I flick my tongue over the tight bundle of nerves until the sound of her coming bounces off the walls in the bathroom. She falls forward, her forehead resting against the top of the vanity, and I stand, keeping one hand around her waist while I use the other to free myself from my slacks.

  Wrapping my hand around my painfully hard cock, I press the swollen head against her slit then slide into her slowly, inch-by-inch, feeling her walls tighten, and ripple. Her head flies back, causing her mass of hair to hit my chest.

  “Sage,” she breathes again. My mouth goes to her shoulder and I nip there, listening to her moan as I pull out and slide back in.

  Lifting my head to look at her in the mirror, I watch my hands slide across her creamy skin, one down to her clit, the other up to her breast, cupping and squeezing her roughly. “Take me there,” I growl, and she does. She fucks back onto me, matching me stroke for stroke until my spine tingles and her pussy pulses around my cock, sending me over with her.

  “I can’t move,” she whispers as I lift her up with my arm around her middle, and rest my chin against her shoulder, catching her smile. “I don’t even know if I will be able to walk.”

  “I’ll carry you.” I tip my head to the side and kiss her neck, and then my cell rings and I groan against her skin.

  “We’re probably in trouble for being late.” She laughs then whimpers as I carefully pull out of her and turn her in my arms.

  Taking her face in my hands, I kiss her wet, deep, and hard then pull back, muttering, “I don’t give a fuck” as my phone stops ringing, only to start back up again a second later.

  “That can’t be good,” she says, I don’t agree even though she’s right. I bend down, jerk up my pants, and grab my phone.

  Seeing my dad is calling, I put my cell to my ear. “What’s up?”

  “If you’re on your way, don’t stop. And if you’re not, keep Kim home,” he tells me, and my muscles get tight.

  “Why?” I bark, causing Kim, who is pressed against me, to jump.

  “Ginny just showed up.”

  “Come again?” I growl, but I know Kim heard, because her eyes lock with mine while pain and anger fill them.

  “She’s here at the restaurant. She’s drunk. Bax and Talon are trying to get her to leave, but she’s refusing and keeps saying she needs to talk to Kim.”

  “Fuck.”

  “I’ll call and give you an update,” he says, and Kim, who I had been trying to hold onto, pulls from my arms and runs out of the bathroom. Clicking off my phone, I follow her across the bedroom and into the closet, where she’s yanking on a pair of panties similar to the ones she had on earlier before grabbing a dress off the back of the door.

  “We’re going,” she says as she pulls the dress down over her head.

  Shaking my head, I cross my arms over my chest and plant my feet apart, blocking her exit. “We’re not,” I tell her softly, and her eyes meet mine.

  “We are, and either you’re taking me, or I’m going by myself.” Seeing the pain in her eyes, mine close against it. “Please,” she whispers, wrapping her hand around my forearm, and my eyes open.

  Fuck, I do not want her around that woman, but I can see she needs this. A war rages inside of me, a battle between keeping her safe and giving her what she needs.

  “Please,” she repeats, and my hands clench into fists.

  “Fuck.” I uncross my arms and pull her tightly against me. “You stay with me, right next to me, and if shit goes south or if I feel like you’re in danger, you do as I say when I say it.”

  “She’s not dangerous.”

  “Has she hurt you before?” I question, and her face answers for her. She might not have hurt her physically, but she has hurt her emotionally. “Right, like I said before, you stay with me and do what I say.”

  “Okay,” she agrees, and I give her a nod then a quick kiss before I move back to the bathroom. Meeting her in the kitchen a few minutes later, I curse under my breath and vow that bitch will not ruin our rehearsal dinner. I know tonight is important to Kim. She looks beautiful wearing the simple white sleeveless dress she has on. It hits her just above the knee and high around her neck with silver and gold beads around her throat, and taupe-colored platform heels on her feet.

  “You sure about this?” I ask when she looks at me.

  “Yes.”

  Placing my hand against her lower back, I lead her out of the house to my car and help her in before slamming the door and jogging around the hood. As soon as I’m in and buckled with the engine running, I look over at her, taking her hand. “No matter what happens, she is not allowed to hurt you.”

  “She’s never harmed me, honey,” she says quietly, and I shake my head.

  “I’m not talking physically, baby. I’m talking about emotionally. I was there when you met her. I saw the pain she left you with when she didn’t give you what you needed her to,” I explain, and her hand spasms in mine. “I’m giving you this because you need it, but you need to prepare yourself for whatever she is going to say to you. You can hear her out, and you can say whatever it is you need to say to her, but when she’s gone, you let that shit go and we continue moving on with our lives the way we have been.”

  “I promise,” she agrees, and I bring her hand up to my lips, kissing her fingers before placing her hand on my thigh and maneuvering us away from the house, down the driveway, and into town.

  Pulling into the parking lot of the restaurant thirty minutes later, I park in an empty space while Kim’s grip on me tightens. I know she saw the same thing I just did. Ginny sitting on the ground outside the entrance to the restaurant, with my family and hers gathered around her in a semicircle. “Are you ready for this?”

  “Yes,” she answers immediately. Unhooking her belt, I pull her into my lap. I don’t want her to do this; it’s going against every instinct I have to let her. “After this, she doesn’t get anything else,” she assures, and I nod, pulling her face toward mine to kiss her. I then open my door and step out with her in my arms.

  Letting her feet touch the ground, I study her in the dim streetlight for a moment before releasing her, taking her hand, and shutting my door. Walking through the parking lot toward the entrance, I can hear the murmur of voices and the sound of a woman crying. When we hit the edge of the building, Kim’s steps slow as we see everyone’s eyes come to us.

  “Honey,” Pattie says, walking quickly toward us. “You guys shouldn’t be here.”

  “It’s our rehearsal dinner. So yes, we should be here,” Kim corrects her mom before looking at Ginny, who is staring up at her with tears in her eyes. “You shouldn’t be here, though.”

  “You’re my daughter,” Ginny replies as she puts her hands to the cement to heft herself up off the ground. Instantly, I pull Kim closer, but it’s not necessary. Talon, Bax, Jax, Evan, Wes, and Cobi all push forward, blocking the older woman from getting close.

  “I’m not your daughter. You gave birth to me, but you’re not my mom. You never wanted to be my mom,” Kim says quietly, and anger flashes in Ginny’s eyes as she looks from Kim to the people gathered around her.

  “You think you’re too good for me. Just like your sister, you think you’re too fucking good for me,” she hisses, and Kim’s body tenses at the mention of Kelly.

  “I wish…” Kim closes her eyes then opens them back up, dropping her voice. “I wish Kelly had thought she was too good for you. I wish the second she had the chance that she would have left you and never looked back.”

  “You bitch.” Ginny lunges, and I pull Kim behind me as Jax and Talon catch her by her arms. “Fuck you!” she screams.

  “Why are you here? How did you even know about tonight?” I ask, and her eyes come to me.

  “Her gay friend told me,” she hisses, and I look at Chris, who is standing with his boyfriend, looking completely freaked out as he takes in the scene.

  “What?” Kim whispers, looking over at Chris, who is now pale.

  “I… I called to her to ask for the ashes. I wanted to give them to you. I told her you were getting married and that… fuck….” He jerks his hand through his hair.

  “Chris,” Kim whispers, and his eyes meet hers and fill with tears.

  “I swear I didn’t know she’d do this. She was just supposed to come and meet me. I wanted you to have them.”

  “It’s okay.”

  “It’s not.” He shakes his head.

  “You will never have any piece of her,” Ginny yells, and Kim’s body jolts. “You don’t deserve to have a piece of her, so fuck you.” She points at Kim then she swings her hand around, pointing at everyone else. “Fuck all of you.”

  “Are the cops on the way?” Talon asks, looking at my dad, and I see him nod before watching Ginny’s eyes get wide.

  “You called the cops on me?”

  “You’re wasted. You drove here wasted. No fucking way am I gonna let you get behind the wheel of a car in the state you’re in,” Dad mutters, and she starts to fight, but with six giant dudes holding her, she is barely struggling when the cops pull in and put her in cuffs.

  “Well, now that’s done, how about we go celebrate?” my mom suggests with a smile fifteen minutes later as the cops load a still screaming Ginny into the backseat of the squad car.

  “Seriously, babe?” my dad scolds with a grin twitching his lips.

  “What?” My mom frowns at him.

  “Nothing,” he mutters, pulling her in to kiss the side of her head.

  Leading Kim away from everyone, I wait until we’re out of earshot then tug her into my front and rest my hand around the side of her neck, dipping my face close to hers. “You okay?”

  As she pulls in a breath, her head tips back and her hands move to rest against my chest. “I’m okay.”

  “You sure?”

  “Yeah, I think I needed that. I used to wonder why Kelly cared about her so much and why she kept going back. I thought maybe I was missing something or that I was missing out on something,” she confesses, dropping her forehead to my chest. “I’m glad I know now there is nothing for me to mourn. She’s just a person. Yes, she gave birth to me, but she will never be a part of my life, and I will never be a part of hers.”