Franco flinches. For a second, I see the scared boy in his eyes. The years slide away. Beside him, Lyndsey’s eyes flash between me and Aida. Pearls glint proudly around her neck, and her ears sport two diamonds. But her eyes are the brightest thing about her as she stares, seeing something between us.
And how can she not?
After saving my woman’s life, I can’t hide it. I can’t even try.
Every sinew in me strains for her every second, every heartbeat, of every day.
I need her.
I need to claim her.
Always, forever, spanking that ass until it’s red and hot and rivers of come are creaming down between her chunky bite-me thighs—
I can’t let myself think about her – about that sexy body – right now.
We need to end this.
“Franco,” Lyndsey says softly. “Sit down, dear. This isn’t about Elmo.”
Franco blinks. “What?”
“It’s about something else,” she says, eyebrows raised at the pair of us. “Isn’t it?”
“Yes,” Aida sighs, shooting me a look of near panic.
I give her one back of reassurance. I tell her with my eyes, We’re in this together, the same way a lion does to his lioness.
My word is law and my princess immediately nods, biting her lip.
Fuck, I wish she wouldn’t do that right now.
Everybody sits down. Jackal perks his head up from his place beside me, regarding the guests with his ears pointed up in curiosity. It pains me when he doesn’t recognize Franco, even if it makes sense.
They never met. But it seems odd that these two, Franco and Jackal, they should know each other. They both meant the same thing to me once.
Security, loyalty, trust.
But then he left.
Even if that FBI scumbag made him do it, it still makes me want to roar.
But for Aida, I hold myself back.
“It’s about us,” Aida says, wringing her hands together.
Franco pauses whilst pouring a glass of whiskey. I made sure the table was well stocked before we arranged this meeting. The Peacekeepers are gone, the Cartel has been warned by my contact in the FBI, the only loose end is Elmo … so let’s have a goddamn drink, get merry with the man who stabbed me in the back.
But he’s my oldest friend.
He’s Aida’s father.
I have to make this work.
Whiskey drips from the end of the bottle, and Franco frowns.
“What do you mean, us?” he says. “Us as in the three of us, your mom, me … What, Aida? What do you mean?”
I sit forward, laying my forearms against my knees. My body feels cool and well-worked after the scene with the Peacekeepers. Flowing between them like a shadow of death, I felt complete calm falling over me because I know, bone-deep now, that I have what it takes to protect my family if the wolves ever come to our door.
“She means her and me, Franco,” I tell him. “Your daughter and I are together. And we’re going to stay together. Forever.”
Franco chuckles, shaking his head.
“Yeah, yeah, you always were funny, Arty.”
Arty.
Now there’s a name I haven’t heard in decades.
“Aida?” Franco goes on, growing serious when nobody joins in with the laughter.
Not even Lyndsey, I note. She’s watching the whole exchange carefully, eyes narrowed, paying special attention to her daughter. It’s like she’s picking her apart in real time with her eyes.
“I wouldn’t have put it that bluntly,” Aida says. “But he’s telling the truth. This last week—”
“This last week,” Franco blusters, almost tipping over his whiskey glass as he waves his hand, “you’ve been his prisoner. What the fuck are we even talking about here?”
“We’re together, Dad,” Aida says. “I’m sorry if you can’t support us, but something magical happened between us. I know how that sounds. You think I’m just being silly. But I’m not. I really, really want this. We both do. Don’t we?”
She turns to me, cheeks blushing fiercely, her eyes wide as though in fear. It’s like my horny princess thinks that I’ll leave her hanging now, as though I don’t want her as badly, as achingly as she wants me.
I’d die for her every day.
For the rest of our lives.
Because she’s mine.
And I love her.
“We need each other,” I say fiercely, staring back into her gorgeous eyes. She’s so damn pretty, it hurts. “I’ve never believed in fate or anything like that, but then I met you, Aida. And I really didn’t know who you were at first. I didn’t know how funny, how talented, how caring, how smart you were. But I already knew you were mine. I already knew we belonged together.”
Tears glint in her eyes. She reaches across and grabs for my hand, her touch trembling. I take her hand in mine, using it for love now and not violence, but ready to use it for battle any moment somebody tries to take our love.
Everybody turns to Lyndsey when she makes a sniffling noise.
“Oh, how wonderful,” she says.
Franco glances at her. “Wonderful? How’d you get there?”
“Look at them, listen to Arturo. You can hear how much they want each other. You’ve always said that Arturo is a good man. You’ve always said that if you had it your way, you never would’ve left him.”
That hits me hard right in the gut.
Fine, Franco left, but somebody was threatening Aida.
What would I do for Aida?
Anything.
“You really said that?” I mutter, smirking a little.
Franco half-smiles, and then turns to the estate and shrugs.
“I mean, shit. Maybe. Sometimes.”
“Look at you two,” Lyndsey says, laughing. “Trying to fool the world into thinking you hate each other. The fact is, you’re both going through a whole lot of emotion right now and you’ve never learned how to express it.”
“Emotion?” Franco chuckles. “Last time I checked, I was a man, my love.”
“Yeah, no emotion here,” I laugh grimly.
Franco’s eyes meet mine, and then it’s like we’re kids again, me, him, and Elmo pulling some stupid prank on the older kids, laughing our assess off whenever it went wrong or right. Franco explodes into laughter, and I join him.
Aida starts to giggle, too, a sweet musical sound. I think hers comes mostly from relief.
“This is weird, though,” Franco murmurs. “I don’t understand how it happened. The only reason I’m not going crazy here is because you’re saying you want to be together forever. So you want to start a family together?”
“Yes,” I growl, “I do. More than anything.”
“That means grandchildren,” Lyndsey grins, jabbing Franco in the belly with her elbow, excitement bubbling out of her.
“I know what it means,” Franco growls, and then knocks his whiskey back in a gunshot slam. “So, marriage? Is that what you’re saying?”
“Dad, let’s not jump to conclusions,” Aida says quickly.
“No,” I tell her, giving her a be-silent look.
She huffs, causing her breasts to jiggle and bounce alluring.
She knows to keep that pretty mouth shut when I want her to by now … and she knows when to open it to do whatever the fuck I want. I hope my horny little minx isn’t so naïve as to think the nonstop fucking and pleasuring of her body is going to stop once I make a lady out of her.