Total pages in book: 59
Estimated words: 56885 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 284(@200wpm)___ 228(@250wpm)___ 190(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 56885 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 284(@200wpm)___ 228(@250wpm)___ 190(@300wpm)
I headbutt him again, roaring in his face, “You don’t talk about my woman like that, motherfucker. Nobody has that right.”
A third headbutt causes him to fall unconscious, his face a mess. I grab his gun and stand, aiming it at him, the urge to pull the trigger almost overwhelming. This man caused my best friend so much trouble. This man, by his own admission, would’ve killed my Piper.
Agent Waller rushes over. “Drop the gun, Logan. Don’t do this.”
Even when he says that I still want to, but then I think of my woman and me sitting beside a fire together, discussing literature and business, as we discussed before. Now, the fantasy is even more special and vivid. A crib is in the corner—our baby is sleeping, softly snorting.
I drop the gun, turning to Agent Waller and a wall of FBI agents, all with their weapons raised.
“He’s yours,” I growl, walking away.
“Another helicopter ride?” Piper says as I hug her in the elevator, breathing in her, her perfume, and her scent, more primal, deeper than any perfume.
“We need to get as much flying in as possible before a certain bump makes it impossible.”
She looks up at me, and her smile widens with a hint of disbelief. I’m sure mine is the same. Forever Love is progressing. We had a double breakfast date with Elliot and Ruby this morning. Sal will spend a long, long time in prison… and we’re together. Better than that, we’re free to be together and don’t have to look over our shoulders, sneak around, or doubt if we’ll make it.
We have made it.
“You seem more confident this time,” I comment as we walk across the roof to the helicopter.
She smiles. “After all we’ve been through, do you think I’m going to let an itty-bitty helicopter scare me?”
I curl my hand around her hip. “You’re an inspiration to me, you know that?”
She throws herself into my arms, standing on her tiptoes for a kiss. I press against her passionately, holding her tight, knowing I’m never going to release her. She’s mine. I’m hers.
“I love you,” she says. “I love how romantic you are these days. You talk like you text.”
“And you text like you talk…”
She giggles when I slide my hands to her hips. “Don’t get carried away. Haven’t we got a helicopter to catch?”
“We sure do…”
She laughs again when I pick her up, cradling her to my chest and carrying her to the chopper. Once we’re strapped in, the helicopter glides up into the sky and takes a familiar route.
My woman looks at me with her eyebrow raised. “I’m getting déjà vu…”
“It will make sense soon,” I reply.
“Why do you sound nervous suddenly?”
“It’s the headset distorting my voice,” I lie.
“Okay…”
She looks closely at me, searchingly. She knows there’s something else going on here. Soon, the helicopter descends, landing in the same field I took her to before the kidnapping, before Elliot found out, back during that getaway when we could pretend there wasn’t so much drama in our lives.
I lift her down from the helicopter.
“I feel underdressed for some reason,” she murmurs, brushing down her white shirt and black pencil skirt.
“You look perfect,” I tell her, and I mean it.
I’ll never tire of how she looks in her work clothes, her mounds highlighted by the white fabric of her shirt, her hips emphasized by the clutches of her skirt. Taking her hand, I lead her toward my childhood home, just like last time.
But it’s different now. The old structure has been demolished, and a work crew is clearing the ground, machines cranking, men calling to each other. I stop when we’re close enough to hear it but far enough so the noises don’t drown us out.
“Logan,” she whispers, the tears in her eyes making me think she knows why I brought her here.
I take her hands. “I know this isn’t the most romantic scene—”
“Shh. It is romantic because it’s us,” she says fervently. “We do things our way. We fall in love in a week.”
“In a kiss,” I say, squeezing her hands.
She laughs. “You’re right. My bad. What are they doing?”
“Building us a home away from the city,” I tell her. “A place we can always escape to. A place that symbolizes new beginnings. Bad things happened here: things that could’ve broken me. I thought they had broken me. But then I found you, my gorgeous Hardcover, and I knew nothing would ever be the same again. I love you. I’ll never stop loving you.” I bend down, kissing her belly. “And I love you, little one.”
Her laugh turns into a sob of joy halfway through.
“I love you too,” she whispers, her eyes glistening, tears sliding down her cheeks.
“I almost wanted to text you this question,” I tell her. “For us, I think it’d be fitting. But some things need to be said face to face.”