The Kingdom (Preacher Brothers 1)

They were my baby brothers, and I’d do anything for them, but I couldn’t keep them under my wing forever.

I took another turn, should’ve slowed down. In fact, I should’ve just pulled off to the side of the road and waited the storm out. But my mind was racing, my thoughts cloudy. And I took the next turn way too fucking fast, my car hydroplaning, everything moving in slow motion. I tried to get the steering wheel corrected, tried to straighten out the car. But everything was spinning, the vehicle turning around and around before slamming into a tree and rolling into a ditch.

And right before my head smacked against the steering wheel, right as I knew what was going to happen, I thought about how I should’ve fucking turned around.

Epilogue

Amelia

Several months later

I looked down at the blueprints of the Wilson Estate then glanced up and stared at Dom. “Are you sure you’re ready?” I didn’t miss the tremor of nerves that came through in my voice.

Dom leaned against the far wall, looking down at the blueprints, even though I knew he couldn’t see them clearly enough to decree what the layout was. “We got this, babe,” he said in a deep, masculine voice then lifted his gaze to look into my eyes.

I swallowed, my throat tight, dry. I was nervous, worried for him, Frankie, and Wilder. I always got worried when they went on a job. This wasn’t about them getting caught and thrown into prison. No, this was me imagining the worst-possible scenario, where they were shot and killed, taken from me.

Over the last half a year, I’d become part of this family, realized what I’d been missing in my life wasn’t a family unit per se, but Dom’s family unit. The twins were like brothers to me, Frankie and Wilder clearly the more easygoing out of all four of them, the two who genuinely enjoyed life and probably partied too hard. And as much as I wished I could say the same thing about Cullen, the truth was, he’d left months ago and hadn’t come back.

To me, that screamed worry and uncertainty, but Dom assured me that he occasionally did this. He needed to be alone. He needed to work out his life, and when he was ready, he’d come back and they’d be there.

A solitary creature didn’t need comfort or love. It just needed to survive. And that was Cullen.

I looked back down at the blueprints and started worrying my bottom lip. Over the last six months, I’d moved in with Dom, stopped working at the jewelry store, and was all-in where this “business” was concerned. I was insane—that was a given for how this entire situation played out, but then again, when something felt right and perfect, you just jumped in with both feet.

And that’s what I had done and hadn’t looked back, hadn’t regretted a single moment of this journey.

“You talk to Richard?” Dom’s voice was right behind me, deep and thick, washing over me and nearly having my eyes close in pleasure.

“Earlier this week.” I thought about all that happened in the last few months. Richard had sold the jewelry store—not because of the robbery or anything like that, but because it had been time for him to move on to greener pastures, so to speak.

I told Dom how Richard had decided to enjoy his golden years, to try to make peace with the fact that he didn’t have his wife anymore. He needed to do something to find pleasure in living again.

He’d officially retired, moved to the country, and was just enjoying fishing every day and sitting by a fire at night, drinking whiskey. I talked to him weekly, something I wanted to do, and not because I had to. He was my family.

And despite the fact that he might not agree with everything that happened, my choice to stay with Dom, the fact he had no love for the man who I was in love with, I knew he cared about me and knew I could make my own decisions.

Maybe he didn’t think it was smart or realistic to be with a man who robbed people for a living and who had kidnapped me, and I guess it wasn’t, if I really thought about it. But that didn’t change the fact that this was how I wanted my life to be, who I wanted to be with.

I was a firm believer that everything happened for a reason.

I felt Dom slide his hands around my waist, curling his fingers against my hips. He pulled me back slowly, gently, the hard length of his erection prodding my back, my eyes closing as I made a sound of pleasure. I was instantly wet for him, primed, and all it took was the sound of his deep voice, the touch of his fingers along my arm.