Dirty Sweet Cowboy

I search her face, meeting her eyes. She lets out a long breath and looks up at me, smiling. As soon as I see that she’s okay, I dare to look over my right shoulder .

Dr. Lopez stands up just as a nurse brings a blue blanket underneath the tiny body that she holds in her blue-gloved hands. A swirl of dark hair crowns the head, and the tiny arms box at the air .

“Which one is that?” Ava pants .

“I think that’s our son!” I say, choking back a wave of tears .

“Sure is!” Dr. Lopez announces. “And he is perfect. Absolutely perfect! You ready for his little sister ?”

Ava steels herself, nodding determinedly. I can’t believe she is going to go through it all again, but she is. Everyone readies themselves, and she bears down, grunting and moaning, using every ounce of strength to bring our daughter to the world .

She lies back, exhausted, sweating, and relieved. I wipe her forehead with a cool cloth, stunned beyond words .

“Go,” she whispers hoarsely. “Look at them. Tell me they’re okay .”

“Oh, they’re completely okay,” Dr. Lopez interrupts. She rolls two plastic-walled bassinets next to the side of the bed. “See? Totally okay. You did good, Mama !”

Ava shifts to one side, somehow finding the strength to gaze upon our beautiful children who are already sleeping, snug in tightly swaddled blankets .

“You can hold them,” the delivery nurse suggests .

Ava looks startled. “We can? Just like that ?”

The nurse chuckles, lifting the little girl from her bassinet and placing her gently in Ava’s arms. Ava cradles her automatically, stroking the edge of her face with the tip of her finger. She looks up with me with expression of surprise and delight .

“We made this, Ethan. Isn’t it amazing ?”

The nurse appears in my side, bouncing my son gently in her arms. She nods at me encouragingly .

“Go on. Take him. He’s been waiting a long time. You can hold him .”

I hold out my arms, but then I’m suddenly unsure. “What if I drop him ?”

The delivery nurse rolls her eyes. “Big strong guy like you? I think you can handle it .”

“They never trained us in this in the Marines,” I grin. She holds my son out, placing him in my arms. I curl him against my body, not too tight, as a rush of love and fear floods every cell in my body .

“Oh, wow,” I say .

“Right?” Ava a

sks me .

We stare at each other for a long time, silently exchanging a wordless conversation about how strange this is, how wonderful it is. How there could be nothing more perfect in the whole world than this love here, today .

I’ve been a lot of places, and I’ve done a lot of things. But I’ve never had a family like this. I never really knew was possible. Now that I have found this kind of love, everything is perfect .

ONE NIGHT STAND

Chapter 46

“C an I get you another one, Harlow ?”

I look up from my glass and nod a quick yes. Ben, the bartender at my favorite dive bar in Chelsea, was already pouring me a fresh gin and tonic before I had a chance to answer. This was the first night I made it out of the office before midnight in weeks, my latest trial finally complete. I was exhausted, because I’d been working sixteen-hour days for the last three months. But when you’re an Assistant District Attorney for the Violent Criminal Enterprises Unit in New York City, every case is the most important you’ve ever had .

This last case has had our office in a panic for almost a year. My entire team has been focused solely on bringing down the Adelardi crime family, and we just officially prosecuted one of their major players, Carlo Adelardi. The district attorney has given us two days to recover because all too soon we’ll start over again on the next scumbag, and I’m planning on using my time off to get good and drunk. I need some time to myself. It’s been ages .

This isn’t the kind of novelty I usually get to enjoy. As Harlow Bullock, daughter of a state senator and rising ADA in one of the most respected divisions of anti-crime in Manhattan, I’m expected to always be on my best behavior. But sometimes, a girl just needs a damn break. And tonight, this dive bar of questionable repute is going to be my break .