My cheeks flushed at what he was asking. “That’s a big deal,” I murmured. “Your sister’s wedding. Uh, I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
Remy kissed me softly on the lips. “I think it’s a great idea.” He kissed my nose. “The best I’ve ever had, actually.” He kissed my forehead. “It’ll show everyone that you’re finally mine.”
I stilled, my heart thudding painfully against my ribs as I thought about the ridicule I’d face, again, at the hands of our community if I showed up with him.
“No,” I told him while shaking my head. “I’m not going, Remy. There are some things you don’t know about when you were gone…” I trailed off, not wanting to tell him what had happened.
“I know.” He swallowed deeply. “And I swear to you that I will do whatever I have to in order to make it right.” Remy’s answer spoke volumes, and the look in his eyes as I stared at him questioningly told me that he meant it too. Somehow, he knew more than he should, and his silent fury vibrated off him in waves. “You’ll come with me.” He wasn’t asking any longer; he was telling me what I’d be doing, and I’d be lying if I denied the thrill of anticipation that filled my veins at the thought of following his orders.
“It’s not a good idea.” My resolve was waning, though, because in my mind I could see myself dancing under the moonlit sky with Remy.
“It’s still gonna happen.”
We spent the night like that, arguing back and forth about whether or not I’d be his date to Casper’s wedding. And when I curled into his arms later that night, Remy didn’t let it go.
“Parker, I want you to go with me. I want you to stand at my side. I want to dance with you. I want to kiss you with all of our friends and family watching, and I want to make sure that every single person there knows that you’re mine. Because you are. You always have been, even if I didn’t say it. Even if I didn’t show it.”
How could I say no to those words?
“Okay,” I whispered as he pressed a rough kiss to my neck, his hands moving down to my hips. “I’ll do it.” He guided me underneath him and I felt his cock press against my body.
“You’re mine, Parker. You know that, right?”
When I nodded, he slid into me, wrapping his hands around my neck and then pulled me so that my lips met his.
He made love to me, and it was unlike anything I’d ever experienced before. Every movement was slow, meaningful, powerful. Every thrust, he pushed deeper into my body, and my climax was slow to start. Like a roller coaster, we rolled through the highs and lows as one, until I lost complete control. The orgasm that moved through my veins was more powerful than anything I could have imagined.
“You’re perfect.” Remy kissed me again as I tightened around him, coaxing the release from his body until we were both breathing heavily and struggling to catch our breath.
“You’re only saying that because I haven’t invaded your closet yet.” I brushed my hair out of my face and wrapped it in a bun so I could sleep without it wrapping around my neck.
Restless, I couldn’t sleep. After Remy started to snore, I wrapped a blanket around my shoulders and went to the front porch to rock on the swing that I’d commandeered as my thinking space.
I’d barely stepped onto the porch when I saw the yellow manila envelope sitting there on my seat. My name, scrawled in a heavy hand, stared up at me as my heart started racing.
In the dim yellow light from the porch, I looked to see if anyone was there in the dark. But I couldn’t see anyone or anything.
The envelope crunched as I picked it up, and my breathing was shallow as I took it into the house and locked the door behind me.
“What is it?” Remy apparently hadn’t been sleeping, because he stood at the bottom of the stairs, dressed only in a pair of gray sweatpants that hugged his muscular hips.
“I don’t know.”
When I spilled the contents out of the envelope, I saw pictures of Remy, and Remy and Nox together running down the street. And they were covered in red slashes and marks, all scratching out both of their faces.
“What the actual fuck?” My heart stuttered, and my vision started to swim as I stared at my worst nightmare, right in front of me.
“Someone’s threatening Nox.”
And Remy.
22
Remy
I didn’t bother calling dispatch. Instead, I called Dom directly, and then Linc just for good measure. While Dom came to us, Linc headed to his mother’s house to make sure that Nox wasn’t in any imminent danger.
After sending Parker upstairs to take a bath and try to relax, which for her meant to clean something, I sat down and waited for Dom. While I waited, I stared at the images in front of me and tried not to scream.
Nox and I were running together, playing and chasing Daisy, and they had been taken that morning. Someone was stalking us, not just Parker. I didn’t give two shits about myself. I’d lived through war and hell in another country. Nox was just a child, though, and didn’t deserve any of the negativity in the world to touch his gentle head.
My eyes caught on the only image where I could see both our faces, and my gut churned. Nox was staring up at me with the biggest smile I’d ever seen. I remembered the moment immediately. Daisy had run off and started rolling in the grass, over and over again. And he’d stared up at me and said she was the best dog ever and that he couldn’t believe that he finally had a dog in his life.
“Danny,” I said for the first time in a long time. “I don’t know what the fuck I’m supposed to do here, man. I could use a little guidance. There’s someone after them, after us, and there’s nothing I can do. If I interfere with the case at all, it could jeopardize any case against the person responsible. If I don’t do anything, I’m not sure if I can live with myself. Especially if anything happens.”
Danny smiled at me from the photo on the wall, and I cursed. Thankfully, before I could talk to myself any further, someone knocked on the front door.
Parker practically sprinted down the stairs, screeching to a halt with her chest heaving way too much for someone who’d just walked down the stairs. She had a hand on the doorknob before I even made it halfway to the door.
“Dom, thank fuck.” Parker breathed when she opened the door. “Did Remy tell you what happened? Nox is safe. Linc is there and I’ve already called Rose about a dozen times. They’re not going to let him out of their sight.”
“You know,” I piped up. “I suddenly feel like chopped liver. Parker, you know that we’re both cops, right?”
“Yeah.” Parker waved me away. “But you don’t count because you can’t work on the case and Dom can. Which means that I’m glad to see him.” She raised an eyebrow at me, challenging me to say anything about it.
I didn’t because I’m not a fuckin’ idiot. We had some heavy shit going on. The only way to get through it would be to man up and admit that I couldn’t handle it. Which is why he was currently standing in my living room and Linc was undoubtedly sitting at his mother’s house keeping an eye on Nox.