I turn to him too, looking him straight in the eyes to get a read on him. He doesn’t look away. Nothing else is in his line of sight except for me, and I have his complete attention. “Do you want me to?” I ask, expecting him to throw my question to his question back in my face.

  “Yes. Of fucking course I do,” he answers firmly, shocking the ever-loving hell out of me.

  “No divorce.”

  I shake my head.

  “Staying married?”

  I nod this time as my stomach twists in case he doesn’t feel the same.

  “Forever?”

  I shrug. “Yeah, unless you start pulling out all the goodies from your Don’t Be a Douchebag folder…then we’re going to have issues. And I really love your family.”

  “And what about me?” he asks as he leans into my space, his eyes pinned on me.

  I swallow, hating to talk about my feelings but knowing I must make him believe me. “You too.”

  “You don’t want to go back to your oceanfront property in Miami?”

  “No,” I answer firmly.

  “You sure?”

  I nod. “I like it here. I like it here with you. If you want to go with me back to Miami, I’m sure we could be happy there too, but I’d rather be here with your family and this place. It’s calming and has been good for my soul. I want to forget everything that happened to me before the moment you walked into my life.”

  “I didn’t walk, Ace. I was snatched and dragged, and none of that involved using my own two feet.” He smiles, and it takes everything in me not to smack his arm. “I wouldn’t be alive if it weren’t for you. And I’ll never forget that you risked your life to save my own. I’ll forever be in your debt.”

  It occurs to me that maybe he doesn’t love me. Maybe he’s staying with me out of some sense of gratitude and having to make good on my saving him. “You don’t owe me, Trace. You helped me too. Saved me from a world of grief. Don’t stay with me because you feel you have to because I untied a few ropes.”

  His hand comes up, and he touches my chin, holding my gaze to his. “I’m with you because I want to be. I’m with you because you’re the one person who’s brought me joy and given me a sense of home and comfort. You feel like you’ve been in my life forever, Ana. Everything before you doesn’t feel real. It’s like a dream. Something distant. But everything about us, about you, about this moment…this is the real stuff. This is what I want. I’ve never been in love, but what we have is different from anything I’ve experienced. Would I step in front of a bullet to save your life and give up my own? Abso-fucking-lutely. You’re my world now, Ace. Do I love you? I think I fucking do, and that scares the hell out of me. You’re mine, baby.”

  I’m stunned into silence. Something that doesn’t happen very often for me unless I’m around my brother and my father. They have a way of sucking any signs of life out of a room. “You love me?” I whisper, my eyes blurry.

  “I do,” he says, leaning a little closer. “More than anything. And I don’t know how that’s possible, but here we are. I’m head over heels in fucking love with you, and I’ve never been so completely terrified in my life.”

  I smile, loving his ability to be sweet and use profanity at the same time. “How did I get so lucky?”

  He tilts his head, moving in for what I know is going to be a toe-curling kiss. “I ask myself the same question every single morning.”

  No other words are spoken. Trace bends his neck, placing his lips on mine. All I can taste is the sweetness that’s purely him—with a hint of sugar cookie.

  24

  TRACE

  I cut the ignition to my truck as soon as I’m in my parking spot. I squint, trying to make out the figures in front of my door. There are two men flanking each side, wearing dark clothes and setting off every internal alarm bell.

  My feet are on the pavement immediately. I don’t even know if I closed my truck door, but right now, it doesn’t matter.

  The men stare at me as I approach, but neither of them stops me or bothers speaking to me. I take a deep breath, trying to control my anger at her father being in our home and tainting the serenity we’ve created.

  When I open the door, Ana’s standing, and her father is sitting on the couch with his hands on his knees and looking very uncomfortable.

  Ana’s gaze moves to me before I’m inside. “Good. You’re here,” she says calmly. “I was just showing him out.”

  “Him?” he says with an air of arrogance and disdain. “I’m your father.”

  Ana laughs sardonically. “You’ve never been a father…at least not to me. To Sean, sure, but never me. Don’t flatter yourself.”

  My eyebrows rise, surprised she’s mouthing off to her father, no longer taking his shit.

  He curls his fingers around his kneecaps, gripping until his knuckles turn white. “Where did my daughter go? You are not her.”

  “Your daughter is right in front of you. But you know who isn’t?” she asks as she pauses and taps her foot. “The whipping post you’ve spent years beating down with your misogynistic comments. The little girl who thought you were a good man is gone. She vanished the moment Mom died and you turned into an even bigger wretch of a human being. She died along with my mother, a woman you didn’t deserve and I doubt you ever loved.”

  Mr. Kelly’s head snaps back as if the words Ana spoke caused him physical harm. “Well, I… You…” He clears his throat and straightens his back. “You will not speak to me like that.”

  “This is our home. I can speak to you any way I see fit. You have no problem worrying about what you say to me or about my mother. Why should I care how I speak to you?” She stares at him, piercing him with her eyes.

  I’m stunned speechless. The woman I met at the hotel is back, but she has a bite. One that is surprisingly sexy in her power and attitude. I want to clap from the doorway, cheer her on for the bravery…and maybe a little stupidity too.

  She crosses her arms, tilting her head like she’s telling off a little kid instead of one of the biggest crime bosses in Miami. “You do not get to come into our home and shit all over everything. You’re not the boss here, and I’m a grown woman. I’ve tried too many years to win your favor, hoping you’d turn into a man I could love or who would love me. But I know now that was all a dream. I can’t make you into the man you should be for your kids. It’s not in you. It never was. You probably didn’t even want us.”

  My gaze moves away from my beautiful wife to her father. He hasn’t moved an inch. His breathing is so labored his back expands and contracts with each suck and release. “You’re here, aren’t you? You were wanted.”

  “Sure,” she snaps, nodding in a mocking way. “Your religious beliefs didn’t leave you any other options. If either of us had been truly wanted, we would’ve had a father who was more involved with us than his hired men were.”

  Her father bristles. “That’s not true. I was involved.”

  “And no father tells his only daughter that she’s a whore like his dead wife either.”

  He flinches, deserving far worse than her verbal lashing, but doesn’t say anything back to her.

  I should step in, help out. Take the brunt of whatever is coming so she doesn’t have to deal with it again. She’s already taken the impact for decades. But she’s in command, looking every bit as radiant as I’ve ever seen her.

  My pride in her grows more than I ever thought possible. Not because she’s telling off her own blood—Lord knows he deserved it. But the woman is sticking up for herself, getting out the things that have weighed her down her entire life.

  “I’ve known Trace’s family for a microsecond, and they’ve been more welcoming and loving than my own father has been since the day I was born. It shouldn’t be like that. No one should have to feel as unloved as I do when I’m with you. I feel your judgment in everything I do. You’ve scrutinized my every action, trying to control all aspects of my life, from behind the scenes and sometimes right in front of my face. What in the world made you think I’d become a nun? It’s not the nineteenth century, Dad. Women aren’t sent off to the nunnery against their will anymore.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with being godly.”

  “How would you even know what being godly is? I’m pretty sure God wouldn’t approve of you having men killed or selling drugs to the vulnerable and young.”

  He twists his lips as his face turns an awkward shade of red. “Sometimes good people have to do bad things.”

  “Who’s a good person…? You?” She laughs again, and it’s biting.

  I blow out a breath, wondering if I should stop her and step in. She shouldn’t have to deal with him, but then again, she has a lifetime of hurt to get off her chest.

  “I was pregnant,” she tells him, knowing damn well it’ll sting him. “You would’ve been a grandfather, but I never would’ve let you near the child. I won’t allow you to hurt any baby of mine the way you wounded me and Sean. It’ll never happen. I’d rather die, or worse yet, that baby never be born than to have such a wretched man be their grandfather.”

  Those words hit me straight in the heart, and if her father has any feelings at all, those words must hurt.

  I take a step forward, wanting to be closer to her, to shield her from whatever his comeback is going to be. She lifts a hand and glares at me, stopping me in my tracks. The glare isn’t for me and I don’t take it personally, but damn…it’s icy.

  “You were pregnant?” he whispers with flaring nostrils.

  Ana nods, tightening her arms in front of her chest. “I lost the baby, though. They weren’t meant to be. God had other plans for that soul, and none of them included being born into this cruel, loveless world.”

  “When? How? Who? What happened?” he asks, moving to the edge of the couch.

  Ana holds her head high as she looks down on him, both physically and emotionally. “None of that matters now.”

  His eyes slice to me, and Ana immediately says, “It wasn’t his, but he was willing to be a father to a child he didn’t take part in conceiving. He’s an honorable and good man from a loving family, which is more than I can say for you.”

  “Enough,” Mr. Kelly says, pushing himself to a standing position. “I’ve had just about enough of your disrespectful words, insolent tone, and misplaced anger. I’ve done nothing except provide for you and your brother. You’re both spoiled brats who didn’t deserve a damn thing I gave you. Two good-for-nothing…” He shakes his head before he adjusts his red tie against his crisp white dress shirt. “I think we’re done here.”

  “We’re done forever,” she says simply and calmly. “I have a new family now. One that loves me without expecting unquestioned obedience in return. I’ve always been an albatross around your neck, but I won’t be any longer.”

  “I deserve your respect.”

  I suck in a breath again, knowing this is going to go from bad to worse in a split second.

  “Who the hell told you that?” she snaps.

  “I’m your father.”

  “You were a sperm donor. You had sex for a few minutes, and poof, a baby. That doesn’t mean you deserve my respect. You must earn respect, and that, you did not.”

  He runs his hand over his gray hair, making sure no strands are out of place. “I mean it, Ana. Apologize, or I’m gone forever.”

  Her eyes move to the door, and she says, “Bye.”

  Ice.

  That was cold.

  All of it was, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t deserved. The man was probably more nightmarish than I could ever imagine. The few interactions I’ve had with him and witnessed between the two of them have been awful to say the least. I can’t imagine how I would have been if I’d been born into the same family. I’d probably be worse than Sean if I’m honest.

  Mr. Kelly’s eyes turn toward me before he comes my way. “This is your fault,” he says with a curled lip. “You tainted my daughter. She was a sweet and good girl before…”

  “Stop!” Ana yells above his voice. “Trace did no such thing. He’s a good man. He’s loving and kind. I’ve always been this person, Dad, but you’ve never bothered to see me and I’ve always been too scared to show her to you. But I’m done trying to be the perfect daughter to a flawed father. You will not disrespect my husband in our home. Go. Just go,” she says.

  His eyes never leave mine as he says, “I came here to do what I needed to do. She’s your problem now, but she’ll come crawling back to me when you scrape her off like the pile of shit she is.”

  I stand straighter as he gets closer, blocking his exit. “I’ve never been prouder of her, Mr. Kelly. She’s an amazing woman, and it’s a shame you can’t see the absolute perfection that she is. Do not call her. Do not write her. Do not even think about her. She’s mine now. She’s not your responsibility or worry, if you ever worried about her before. I take care of my family, and nothing is more important than that. You’re not welcome here again, or else you’ll have to deal with me and my family. Your reach may be big, but ours has something yours doesn’t.”

  He laughs. “And what is that?”

  “Love and devotion. We don’t need to dangle money in front of people to make sure we’re safe. Can you say the same?”

  He grumbles a slew of curse words under his breath before he reaches for the door handle. “You two deserve each other with your fairy-tale bullshit and rainbow outlook,” he says before he steps out, slamming the door behind him.

  Ana nearly collapses as I rush to her side, sliding my arms underneath her to stop her from hitting the cold floor. “Are you okay, baby?” I whisper against her hair as I hold her.

  “He did it. He fucking did it,” she says, clutching my arm like she’ll slip away into the void if she lets go.

  I hold her tighter, wanting her to know I have her. “He did what?”

  She ticks her chin toward an envelope I’d missed that’s lying on the coffee table. “He…” She swallows, and the words get lodged in her throat. “He… I can’t say it.”

  Fuck. How can a man cause so much destruction in his own child’s life? Why would he? The man is heartless and self-serving, and it boggles my mind.

  “Tell me, Ace. I don’t want to let you go to find out.”

  She looks up, her eyes filled with tears. “He had our marriage annulled.”

  My head jerks back as I try to process what she said. “He what? How?”

  “He has a man inside the records office and money to buy anything, even an annulment. We’re no longer married, Trace. We’re nothing,” she says with a quivering lip. “It’s like we never existed.”

  “Ace,” I whisper. “It’s just a piece of paper. We’re not nothing. We exist. We’re here. I’m here. You’re here. I can feel you in my arms. In my heart. In my soul. I don’t care what that document says or what your father did. You’re still mine, sweetheart. We’re everything, and I don’t need a piece of paper to tell me what we are.”

  She peers up at me, tears falling over the edges of her lids. “Do you mean that?”

  I brush her hair back from her face before running my fingers down her cheek through her tears. “I mean every single word. I love you, Ana. In a short amount of time, you’ve taken hold of my heart and my life. I can’t imagine not waking up with you here by my side.”

  “Same,” she breathes as her body relaxes in my arms. “I thought you’d…”

  I shake my head and shush her. “You thought wrong. You love being married to me that much? It’s the cock, isn’t it? Can’t live without it, can you, Ace?”

  She snorts through her tears. “You’re a jerk.”

  “A jerk with an amazing penis.”

  She slides her hand up my arm to my neck. “Fine. Fine,” she says with a sigh. “It’s a great penis, but that’s not the reason I love you.”

  I tilt my head, calling bullshit. “It’s the best thing about me.” Or at least, that’s what I’ve been told by other women. It’s the reason they always beg for seconds even if I made it clear it would never happen again.

  She moves her palm to my chest and flattens it. “This is why I love you.”

  “My pecs are good, but not the biggest.”

  She rolls her eyes. “Your heart, sweetheart. I love you for your heart. No one has ever been as kind to me as you have. It’s so damn big and giving. I don’t know what I did to deserve you in my life, but I’m thankful for it every day.”

  “We were put in each other’s path for a reason,” I whisper as I gaze into her blue eyes. “I was lost without a purpose, and you were in need of rescue and a home.”

  “I had a place.”

  “I mean a family. Mine loves you, and they barely know you. Once they learn how badass you really are, the way you’ll stick up for yourself and me, they’re going to suck you up and make you one of them forever.”

  “You promise?” she asks me, so filled with hope.

  “Without a doubt. But there’s only one question…”

  “What’s that?” she whispers as I lean forward, bringing my mouth close to hers.

  “Will you do me the honor and marry me again?”

  “Yes,” she breathes, throwing her arms around me and crushing her body against mine. “Yes. Yes. Yes.”

  I tip my head down, taking her mouth with mine, along with the promise that she’ll be my wife now and forever.

  EPILOGUE

  ANA

  Six Months Later

  The sun is bright overhead, kissing my exposed shoulders with its warmth. I have a fine sheen of perspiration all over my body, but it has more to do with my nerves than the weather.

  “Oh. My. God,” Mrs. Caldo says, walking up behind me as I look into the full-length mirror. Her cool hands touch my shoulders and offer me some much-needed relief. “You’re stunning. James, isn’t she stunning?”

  Trace’s father’s face comes into view next to my reflection. “Absolutely beautiful,” he says with the sweetest smile.