“Warm house tequila, in a dirty shot glass. Cartel special.”
“Ah, big spender.”
Glancing around the room, he sat back in his chair. “So, was this your plan all along? World domination?”
With Mateo’s help, I’d finally figured out how I could be with Val and still keep my identity.
As equals.
I refused to be his dirty little secret or the little woman waiting at home for him to maybe come home, or maybe not. If what we had was going to work, I had to be in on every decision, every strategic move, and every dangerous situation he put himself in.
Sitting beside him at this table.
Bringing my idea to Mateo, he’d grinned and arranged my ambush of Val’s scheduled meeting with his top lieutenants, demanding their compliance by assuring Val’s approval. I knew Val would never agree with a partnership if I’d asked straight out. He was too protective, and if I started asking for his approval for my actions now, not only would that set a precedent in our relationship, it wasn’t how Val and I worked.
Better to ask for forgiveness than permission.
Lowering my lids, I picked up the shot and downed half of it and shuddered. It was eighty proof piss water.
From beside me, Val let out a low chuckle. “All you Americans are alike. You never take time to appreciate the finer things in life.”
Holding the glass by my cheek, I shot him an annoyed look. “You just said it was shit tequila.”
“Not the tequila, Cereza,” he said, his eyes deadly. “What’s at the end of it.”
“Oh, my God, there’s a fucking worm?” Slamming the glass on the table, I pushed my chair as far away from it as I could and scrubbed my tongue with my palm.
His laugh growing louder, Val picked up the glass and shook it, as something made a ting ting sound at the bottom. Curious, I snatched the glass out of his hand and peered inside. Immediately, my heart raced with disbelief and apprehension.
It couldn’t be real.
And yet, there it was, right before my eyes—large, round, brilliant, and very wet.
Taking the glass from my shaking hands, Val dug a finger inside and pulled the ring from the bottom, shaking off the excess tequila. Holding it up, he took my hand in his. “Eden, you’re everything I thought I never wanted. I don’t think there’s anyone else like you in the world, and for the sake of humanity, I hope I’m right. The minute I saw you, you got under my skin. You make it impossible for me to make sound decisions when you’re around, and you disrupt every aspect of my life.”
“Is this your idea of a proposal, Danger?” I whispered.
“I’m getting there,” he smiled. “With all that said, I wouldn’t change a thing. I meant it in Monterrey when I said I couldn’t breathe without you. I can’t, Cereza. You’re my air, and I need air to exist. I need you to exist. So, what do you say? Will you marry me?”
In that moment, I thought of Nash. “There’s no one to walk me down the aisle or give me away.”
“Eden, no one needs to give you away. When I walked into that bar, you became mine. Your heart, your eyes, your smile—they combined to give everything to me, and we’ve belonged to each other ever since.”
“I don’t belong to anyone, Val.” Touching his face softly, I reached in his waistband and pulled his own gun on him. Smiling, he never flinched before pulling another one from inside his ankle holster. Raising an eyebrow, I glanced between our weapons. “This is supremely fucked up, Danger.”
“I agree. But you have no idea how turned on I am right now.”
“You’re such a pig.”
“Ah, but this is the hallmark of how we operate, Cereza. We fight hard and fuck harder. Isn’t that the key to a lasting relationship?”
“We’re some seriously fucked up individuals.”
“You still haven’t said yes.” Thinking over his words, the night he walked into Caliente popped into my mind. “What are you thinking, Eden? You have a strange look on your face.”
“That night at Caliente. It was the worst night of my life and also the best.” My mouth twitched as I mulled over the words I’d just uttered. “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to reconcile the whole dichotomy of it. I’m not the same person I was when you sat down on that barstool. I’ve done things I never thought I’d do, but I don’t feel remorse. What does that make me?”
“Answer me and I’ll tell you.”
“Tell me first,” I demanded, shaking my head defiantly.
“Eden, I was destined to run my father’s empire. I’d be here with or without you. I’ve never needed anyone. I’ve never wanted anyone because a soul was easier not to have. Stoning my conscience and heart made it simpler to rationalize this life, but you’ve become as vital to me as my legacy. There’s no distinguishable factor between them anymore. One can’t exist without the other. I’d be a broken man.”
“Val—”
“Listen to me, Lachey. Most of the world doesn’t see what we see and that’s all right for them. But the moment I saw you, Cereza, there was a fire in your eyes that matched your hair—a hunger for the power you lacked. Power that’d been continually taken from you. I offer you power and more. I never want you weak. I’ve seen what happens to weak women who aren’t informed and aware.” Holding up the ring, he grasped my hand. “Being my wife means being my partner. Not just in stupid meaningless vows people say every day, but in the true sense of our world. The world that’s now yours. My equal. My love. My salvation.”
“What about your precious heirs? Don’t you need a true bloodline to run an empire?”
“I need you, Eden. The rest we’ll figure out along the way. Stop putting everything in a box.”
There was nothing I could say to that. Well, almost nothing. “Yes.”
And just like that, I closed the door on Eden Lachey forever.
I married Valentin Carrera thirty days later on the grounds of our heavily-guarded estate. There was no fanfare or extensive guest list befitting the head of one of the most powerful drug cartels in the world. Just like us, it was private and discreet, with only Mateo and Val’s secretary Janine standing by our side.
After an impressive full cartel gun salute, he slung me over his shoulder, dismissed everyone with a wave of his hand, and threw me onto our bed. His hands trailed my sleek, white dress up the length of my legs, and he paused at the apex of my thighs as his hands brushed against my white elastic thigh holster. He lifted a sleek eyebrow as he traced his fingers over the metal fastened within its confines.
“Is this your old, new, or borrowed?”
I winked. “It was a wedding gift from Mateo.”
“Remind me to kick his ass later.”
I ran my hands through his thick, midnight black hair. He’d slicked it back for the ceremony, but I loved it when it was wild and dangerous—just like him. “Be nice. You know as well as I do, anything could’ve happened today. You’re telling me you weren’t armed?” His lip twitched in a half smile. “That’s what I thought. Mateo just wanted me to have protection too.”
Val’s hand tightened around my thigh. “Speaking of which, now that we’re married, there will be no more birth control, Eden. What happens, happens. I want to feel every inch of you with nothing separating us.”