“Knox…” Tears filled Ana’s eyes.
“Listen to me, darlin’. You’re going to get big. Who cares? I’m going to love you in a way that you never thought possible. You’re giving me the greatest gift a man could get. I’m a father now. I’m going to take care of you and our baby. I never want you to worry about that. Promise me.”
Ana shook her head. “I can’t.”
I touched her face again. I leaned in and put my forehead to hers. “I know you can’t, Ana. I know it’d be a lie if you did. I’m going to spend the rest of my life making sure you feel beautiful.”
“Even after the baby comes, Knox, things are different.”
I sucked in a breath. “Not for me. Not for me.”
“I’m going to get stretch marks.”
“I’m not worried. I’m going to kiss every mark on your body. And after the baby is here, I’m going to keep doing it. I’m going to cherish your body for what it’s done.”
“Oh, fuck,” Ana whispered.
“What?”
“That makes me wet.”
I grinned. I kissed her. She tasted as delicious as ever.
“You’re going to be protected, Ana. The Reap isn’t going to let you down. We’re taking care of things in town. Okay? I’m not going to say it’s simple but I just want you to focus on the baby. On your body. And how you want the wedding to be.”
“The what?” Ana asked.
I never really thought I’d end up proposing to someone. If I was, it would be to Ana. Even then, I knew it was going to be an interesting situation.
This was it.
I was naked and I got on one knee next to the bed. Ana covered her mouth and the sheet fell down her body, exposing her tits. My cock started to swell again.
I held the ring in my right hand and when she saw it, she burst into tears.
“You saw this ring a long time ago, darlin’. I knew I had to get it for you. No, I didn’t steal it. I earned it. I kept this ring for years. Everyday it’s been with me. I’ve been waiting for the right time to hand it off. This ring has seen really good days and really bad days. Now it’s your turn, Ana. As long as you wear it and as long as you’ll be mine for the rest of our lives. Darlin’, will you marry me?”
Ana nodded and then screamed YES at me.
I slid the damn ring on her finger and another piece of the world felt right.
I grabbed her and hugged her as she wept.
I swore on it, to her and to myself, I never wanted her to worry.
Face it, I was a bad guy. I was a cocky asshole with an attitude to match. I had committed crimes. I had spent time in jail. Police hated me and lawyers loved me. I took to the streets as my home, always looking for a sense of freedom. Two wheels were better than four. My leather cut was just an extension of the ink on my body.
It was all I knew.
But when it came to Ana, she was my everything. There were women all around me and my life. The only one that mattered was Ana. From the day I met her until the day I would take my last breath.
I kissed her, hard, and couldn’t control myself. I kissed down her neck but then made a different path as I kissed her shoulder, down her arm, and finally, I kissed the diamond ring. I pulled away and she held her hand out, beaming with happiness.
That’s when I slipped my fingers between her legs just to see how happy she was.
I fucked Ana while she wore nothing but that diamond ring.
The entire time I thrust in and out her sweet body, my hands touching, my lips tasting, my ears savoring the groans and whimpers, my phone was across the room, buzzing over and over and over.
The pattern had stuck.
For everything good came something bad.
When I came up for air, I wished I hadn’t.
When Uncle Jakey calls personally it only means one thing.
Someone was dead.
twenty-nine
(knox)
NOW
I stepped into the chapel and the guys were all lined up, waiting for me. Liam was first and he grabbed me, hugging me. I swallowed down the emotion and went with the motion of the sign of respect from my brothers. This wasn’t just about losing our President, this was also about me losing my father.
The old man… Hammer… was dead.
Murdered in prison.
When I got to Slam, he squeezed me so tight, I felt my back pop. “I’m so fucking sorry, brother. We’ll fucking fix this.”
“Thanks, bro,” I said.
Behind Slam was an empty chair with King’s cut on it. That one hurt bad. Really fucking bad. I wondered if King would even find out about my old man’s murder.
Then there was Uncle Jakey. A whiskey bottle in his hand. A big frown on his face. He was too far back from the group.
“Now what?” he asked me. “Huh? This is what happened. This is what we get.”
I took the words, knowing this was how Uncle Jakey showed grief and cried.