His eyes softened immediately, like he’d been hoping I would say those magic words to him.
“I know you love us and—”
He cupped my face and bent his neck down to kiss me. It was an aggressive kiss, but it was soft and loving at the same time. His fingers touched my hair, and he kissed me like he loved me, adored me.
I fell into his kiss, feeling all my anger disappear.
He pulled away and looked at me, the love bright in his eyes. Just like when the clouds passed after a storm, the sun was finally revealed. “Let me take care of you.” His hand moved under my shirt to my bare stomach. “Let me protect both of you. Let me lay down my life to keep you safe. That’s all I want, baby.”
Now I actually felt bad for being so angry with him. His only crime was loving me, loving both of us. “I know…”
He moved to his knees in front of me and kissed my belly before he rested his forehead against it. “Please do as I ask. Even if you think it’s ridiculous, just do it for me. We’re a team.” He lifted his gaze to look at me again. “Let me do my job.”
“I will, Griffin. Whatever you want…I’ll do it.” It went against my stubborn nature to say that, but I forced it out for him.
“Thank you.” He kissed my stomach again before he rose to his feet. “And I’m sorry for what I said, baby. I shouldn’t have snapped at you like that. I shouldn’t have spoken to you that way…it was wrong of me.”
I knew he meant what he said, and that was enough for me. “Thank you…”
He stared at me with his hands on my belly, turning back into my husband. He was cold and rough around everyone else, but when it was just the two of us, he was soft in a way no one else ever got to see.
“But we do need to talk about Bosco, Griffin.”
“And what is there to say?” He rubbed my stomach with his hands.
“I don’t think he’s dangerous. I understand why you’re worried…but I don’t think he’s a threat. If you really don’t want me to be around him without you, that’s fine. But…I do think you’re overreacting.”
Griffin didn’t get angry, probably because I was still willing to give him what he wanted.
“You roughed him up pretty badly, and he didn’t do the same to me…and we both know he has the power to do whatever he wants.”
Griffin gave a slight nod.
“I also think you should give him a real chance. Maybe he wasn’t a good guy before…but he clearly is now. Carmen gave you the benefit of the doubt, and you should do the same for her. That’s only fair.”
He nodded again. “If they stay together, I’ll make a better effort. But until then, I’m not sure how I feel about him. And I don’t want my wife and baby around him if I’m not there.”
“Alright. Does that mean you’ll come to lunch or dinner with us?”
He sighed like that was the most unappealing thing in the world.
“Griffin?” I pressed.
He finally gave an answer. “It looks like I don’t have any other choice.”
8
Carmen
The evidence of my black eye was finally gone. The blue and purple colors disappeared, the skin returning to its normal shade. It made putting on my makeup much easier, and it didn’t make me so self-conscious in public.
I stood in the purple gown Bosco bought for me, a deep royal color that I adored. I did my hair in big curls and wore extra makeup for the evening, detailing my eyes to make them look smoky. I wore my father’s necklace and a bracelet Bosco had given me.
Bosco appeared behind me in the mirror, wearing a tuxedo. The material fit him like a second skin, showing his sculpted shoulders and arms. He wore a handsome grin as he came up behind me and presented me with a little black box. “I want you to wear this tonight.”
I stared at the little box in his hands and immediately knew it was jewelry. I was already wearing a necklace and a bracelet, so I wasn’t sure what else he wanted me to wear. I took it from his hands and popped open the box, revealing two diamond earrings.
Enormous diamond earrings.
“Uh…wow.” They caught the light and dazzled like two rainbows. “Jesus, these are huge.”
He grabbed my hair and pulled it back behind my shoulders. “Put them on.”
“They look too nice to wear. They should be sitting in a safe inside another safe…”
He leaned down and kissed my neck. “Put them on.”
I pulled each one out of the box and placed them in my lobes. They possessed a distinct heaviness, but they were also so strikingly beautiful that they pulled my outfit together perfectly. I’d never cared for expensive jewels, but anytime Bosco gave me anything, I loved it.