Shaking his head firmly, Flint wraps an arm around my shoulders and pulls me close. “Let’s get this straight. If I thought for even a nanosecond I couldn’t keep my boy safe, or keep you safe, I never would’ve let Cash leave you here the first night.” He kisses the top of my head.
“Flint…”
“It’s your choice, but know by staying here, you aren’t pulling anyone deeper into anything. It’s the opposite, Val. I couldn’t let go of that shit in Bali for the life of me before you showed up. I was already pulled in, whether I knew it or not.” His gaze locks on to me, so fierce it makes me shiver. “You gave me a second crack at that evil fuck, and now he’s behind bars. The only person you hurt was a pirate who had it coming.”
“But he still has men out there. The guys you talked about with Wes, henchmen who’ll want revenge for—”
“Honey, trust me, that’s not how this works. Nobody avenges the fallen alpha in the underworld. They pick whatever meat off his bones they can and then scram.” His voice doesn’t waver, not for a second. “Most of those guys are too busy figuring out how to piece together new identities and running from the law in eight different countries. Hell, they were at war with a well-equipped criminal group out of Hong Kong. That’s why the King Heron ships went missing. Got hit in the crossfire of the mafia war. They’re not gonna show up here or at your family’s places. The security upgrades are just overkill, really.”
He squeezes me tighter. I take a long second nuzzling into his massive chest, breathing him in, finding my peace in his strength and his word.
It’s not hard to believe this man knows his stuff when he’s proven it time and time again.
“So that’s what he meant about gambling with things besides money. People’s lives, even the bad men who worked for him,” I say. “It’s so sad.”
“It’s over now. The authorities were working on busting his ass for years, but Cornaro had his fingers in so many pots, every trail was a maze of dead ends. They couldn’t get a clean shot at him.” He twists, looking directly at me. “And nobody’s gonna take Savanny, either. I called the Governor’s office this morning. They’re jumping through a few last hoops to grant you a special exemption so you can keep him. Make it official.”
I sigh, smiling happily. “You’re too good to me.”
His gravity just draws me in. I couldn’t look away if I tried.
“I owe your family big time, honey. If Ray hadn’t pieced together everything he did, the authorities wouldn’t be dismembering the whole network right now. If you hadn’t snuck onto that boat, and if Ray hadn’t thrown you into the skiff, and if I hadn’t nursed you back to your bad, beautiful self…Joel Cornaro would still be out there, turning the Pacific red with blood. Now he’s behind bars, where the fuck belongs.”
I shake my head. “You make it sound so simple, so…” I shrug. “So right. Like it’s meant to be.”
“Because it is.” He kisses my forehead. “Everything happens for a reason. Sometimes that reason just takes its sweet-ass time revealing itself. And you’re the reason I get that now.”
My heart dies then and there.
I nod, going over in my head how everything just went full circle. And how much he demolishes me in the best way when I read between his words.
“Like I said, it’s your choice to stay or go. You know my vote: don’t want you leaving. Want you right here with me and Bryce.”
I’ve never felt so wanted, like I just belong. “I don’t want to go somewhere else, Flint, but having to look after my whole family? That’s a lot to take on.”
“It’s nothing. I’ve already got my guys heading out this evening to install the new systems. Your ma and Ray can pack up and skedaddle in another day or two.”
I love how easy he makes everything sound, and show my gratitude with a quick kiss.
I smile into his eyes. “Bet you never thought this would happen when Cash dragged me in like a stray.”
He grins, touching his nose to mine. “Nah, baby, but I already thanked him. He’s a good friend. Sometimes.”
His lips touch mine then, softly at first. It quickly grows into the exquisite slow-burn I’ve come to love with this handsome giant. It’s hard to keep worrying over every little thing when his tongue delivers pure euphoria.
Then it delivers a whole lot more later that night, when we’re in his bedroom, after the rest of the house is sound asleep. We’d barely slept last night, considering the sun was rising when we’d gotten home this morning, and the house filled up with people a few hours later.