“I guess I can’t be sure, but Langston and Thomas have been spreading the word that I’ve been in there for a separate investigation, so I’m hoping they buy it, but if not, the only way they can get evidence is if they physically take it from Langston and Thomas. Besides, if someone has told Anton that they suspected I was ratting, I doubt I’d be here right now. I’d probably be hanging by my ankles in some dirty meat locker.”
My face scrunches up and I do my best to ignore those last comments. “What about when it comes time to raid his warehouses? Surely, they can’t keep that quiet. Someone is bound to give Anton the heads up.”
“It’s possible, but they told me that they’ll be using the SWAT team from Broken Hill because they don’t want shit like that getting out. Besides, they already have their suspicions on who the dirty cops are and it’s exactly the same as who I thought. They’ve already opened investigations on them too. Even dirty judges, lawyers, and half of the city council.”
“Really?”
“Uh huh.”
“This is going to get messy isn’t it?”
“Nothing worthwhile is ever easy, Spitfire,” he murmurs. “But once this is finally over and Anton’s put away like he deserves, you and me will be free to live the rest of our lives how we see fit.”
I grin up at him. “You’re planning for our future?” I question, getting way too giddy over the idea and grabbing my cocktail that I’d nearly forgotten about.
“I’m always thinking of our future,” he tells me, taking the drink from my hand and quickly tipping it down his throat before grinning wide in his own irritating way of letting me know that I’ve probably drunk more than my fair share.
Noah grabs me and hauls me up onto his lap and I shuffle around so I’m straddling him with my arms wrapped securely around his neck, terrified of letting go because one tiny movement backward could have me sailing down into the depths of the lake to be swimming with the fish.
“I fucking love you, Spitfire,” he murmurs, curling his hand around the back of my neck and holding me close. “One of these days, after all this Anton shit is over and we have our lives figured out, I’m going to make you mine.”
I lean into him, resting my forehead against his. “I thought I already was.”
“Not even close,” he tells me. “I want you in every possible way and I don’t just mean the way we are now. I want a ring on your finger and I want to come home from work every day knowing that I’ll be coming home to you.” He pushes hair back off my face, curling it behind my ear and making sure to skim his fingertips across my skin in the process, spreading goosebumps all over me. “I’ve never wanted anything more, Henley. You’re it for me.”
My heart races and I can’t resist him any longer. I press my lips to his, closing my eyes with the satisfaction of having his lips on mine.
I don’t know what it is about this man, but he owns me completely. Every little fiber within me is his. My heart beats for him, I breathe for him, I wake up every day purely for him, and I’ll never get enough of it.
He’s the light in my sky and the warmth in my heart. He’s the whole fucking world and I’m the luckiest girl on earth to be blessed with his love and affection. I’ll never do a damn thing to risk that because that future he speaks of, the one where I have his ring on my finger and share his bed every single night is the future that I crave. It’s the life I want to live and I couldn’t possibly bear it without him beside me.
Noah Cage is going to be my husband one day and despite us being only eighteen years old, it’s our absolute truth; one that I will stand by until my dying days.
Chapter 14
I push the cart down the aisle, stopping by the huge selection of pastas and groaning impatiently as dad goes over all the labels, checking to see which is the healthiest option and has the best value for money when we all know that in the end, he’s going to pick the one that he picks up every week; the unhealthy one that cost a bomb but is certainly the yummiest.
I have to commend him though; he’s trying to make healthier choices. He’s still exercising and eating better foods, but I’m not going to lie, there’s been more than a few times where I’ve watched him unload the garbage from his truck to hide the evidence from me, but I catch him every time. Old habits die hard.