Cautious (Sequel to Disastrous) (30 page)

It all felt unreal. The entire situation played like a movie. I
wouldn’t have thought that it could actually happen in real life, but it did,
and it happened to me.

Marcus had said that he had walked away from his former life completely,
but I had to wonder how true that was. Just because Lou was gone didn’t mean someone
else couldn’t take his place. The mob just doesn’t disappear. They rebuild
their family and continue to go on. There couldn’t possibly be any happily-ever-afters
when a person gets immersed in that lifestyle. Or could there be?

“I brought a brush with me.” Megan sang as she danced her way
over to my bed.

“No. Get away from me. You’re not touching my hair.” I swatted
her hands away.

She dropped her hands to her hips and gave me a hard stare, “Mia,
your hair is a tangled mess. We need to get it under control.”

Blowing out a deep breath as a way of caving in, I scooted toward
the front of the bed so that she could kneel behind me. “Fine.”

Megan began brushing my hair, “So, where’s Marcus?”

“I sent him home.”

“How did you manage that? He hasn’t left your side since day
one.”

“I threatened him that if he didn’t go home and take a shower I
was never going to kiss or sleep with him again.”

She let out a giggle. “That worked?”

“If you knew Marcus, you would know that sex is the best way to
bribe him.”

“You’re mean.”

“Yeah, I know, but I also wanted him to go out and get some air.
Staying in a hospital for several days isn’t exactly a spa getaway.”

“Like a massage spa getaway?”

We burst out laughing, and I winced as I felt a pain shoot
through the side of my rib.

“See. You’re not one-hundred percent yet. You can’t go home.”

“I hate being in here.”

“It’s a hospital, honey. Everyone does.”

She continued to stroke my hair with the brush, and I hated to admit
it, but it felt great. Once she was satisfied with the final result, she pulled
back to inspect her doing. “Well, it’s not exactly how I pictured it, but it’ll
do until you can wash it.”

“Wow, you’re such a great friend.”

“I’m honest.”

Marcus came through the doors with a huge flower arrangement and
a smile. “Hello, beautiful.”

“Awww!” Megan squealed.

“Marcus, you do not have to bring flowers every single day. What
am I going to do with all of these?” I spread my arms around the room.

He shrugged as he found a spot by the corner window seal and set
the vase down. “Get used to it.”

My lips curled into a crooked smile. “Are you going to buy me
flowers every day for the rest of our lives?”

“Yes, I am. Every single day.” Playfully, I rolled my eyes at him
and he chuckled. “I can see your attitude is back. That should be a great sign
that you’ll be home early.”

“Actually, the doctor said that I won’t go home until sometime
next week.” I crossed my arms across my chest with a huff and leaned back into
the bed. The mattress was adjusted into an upright position so that I could sit
up and not lie down on it.

“Well, I’d love to stay and chat, but I have to be at work in a
few hours. I’ll stop by tomorrow.” Megan leaned in and kissed my cheek.

“Thank you for stopping by, Megan, and for doing my hair.” Marcus
bunched his brows together as he tilted his head and stared at my head. I guess
there wasn’t much of a difference.

“Anytime! Maybe tomorrow I can do your makeup.” Her smile was so
enthusiastic I couldn’t help but nod in response. How could you turn down
someone who only wanted to help?

Just like that, with a single wave of her hand, she was gone and
out the door.

“What are the plans for today?” I turned my head to Marcus.

“Well, there’s the lovely game of Scrabble again.” He reached for
the game that lay on the table beside the bed. “Or crossword puzzles.” He waved
the book with a huge grin and a mocking brow wiggle. “And then there’s the fine
game of Go Fish ’cause you don’t know any other card games.” He sat in the
chair beside me.

“I know ‘I declare war.’”           

“Not a real card game, babe. Pick a game.”

With a hand to my chest, I widened my eyes. “Oh how shall I ever
choose with such a huge selection?”

He flashed a wide-dimpled grin. “Or I can go out and buy a few more
games if you like.”

“No, Scrabble is fine.”

“Atta girl.” He reached up and lightly tugged at my chin.

During the next hour, Marcus and I were still on our first game
of Scrabble, which I was winning, of course, when we heard a knock at the door.
Vinnie walked in and my entire body froze. I hadn’t seen him since the day of
the shooting. Marcus told me that he was fine, but just seeing Vinnie in person
made it all come back.

“Mia, how you feeling?” Vinnie asked as he slowly approached the
hospital bed.

“I’m good, better than good. How are you?”

“I’m glad you’re doin’ well. I’m doing well too. Hey, Marky.” He
nodded over at Marcus who returned the gesture. Marcus exhaled and stood. “No,
no, please sit. I don’t want to intrude. I just wanted to say a few things.”

“Alright.” Marcus said cautiously as he slowly sat back down.

“I just wanted to let the both of you know that I’m sorry for
what happened and how everything went down. Especially for you, Mia. You
shouldn’t have walked into that.”

“It’s not your fault. I was at the wrong place at the wrong
time.”

“Still it wasn’t right, so I’m sorry.” Smiling at him, I nodded.
“And, Marky, just so you know, there was glitch with the surveillance camera
videos after Lou left the building, if you know what I mean.”

I turned my head toward Marcus, who wore a baffled expression.
“So just like that. Everything is good?” His tone screamed with uncertainly.

Vinnie nodded. “I told you I owed you one, so yeah, just like
that.”

“But how?”

“Like I said, there was a glitch.”

Marcus stood up from the chair walked over toward Vinnie and offered
his hand. “Thank you.”

Vinnie took it and shook Marcus’s hand. They exchanged a quick
manly hug, and once Vinnie pulled away, he smiled at me, turned, and walked out
the room.

“What was all that about, Marcus?” I asked him the moment Vinnie
was out the door.

He shook his head in disbelief. “That was my out.”

“Seriously?” My heart fluttered in anticipation.

He nodded. “Yeah. It’s over.” I reached my arms out, and in a few
strides, he was beside me. He kissed my forehead and pulled me into a tight
embrace.

We could finally start reclaiming our lives.

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

THREE MONTHS LATER

MARCUS

Fingers traced along my arm, toward my shoulder, and
across my chest. Once at the middle of my chest, the fingers glided down my
torso and stopped at the edge of my briefs. A finger hooked its way in and
played along the rim of the cotton fabric. “Wake up, my sleepy man.” Her voice
was a whisper along my ear.

I moaned and adjusted my arm around her to pull her in closer.
With my eyes still closed, I smiled at her giggle. She continued to play with
the rim of my boxers. I caught her wrist and pushed her hands down. She giggled
again as she gripped my length and began stroking it up and down. “I didn’t wake
you for this.” She teased as she went on with her gentle strokes.

“Well, why else would you wake me?” I slightly stretched
underneath her and smiled as she leaned in and grazed her lips along my jawline
and toward my ear.

“Today is a good day.” She mumbled as she sucked in my earlobe.

“Oh, yeah? What’s today?”

“I need you to wake up so I can tell you.”

“I’m up, baby. Don’t you feel the hard on? I’m wide awake.”

Another soft laugh escaped her. “Open your eyes for me.”

Just like that, I did as I was told, flashing my eyes open. I had
the privilege to wake to that beautiful face every morning. She bit her lip as
a thrill of excitement filled her eyes. She was so happy with whatever she
wanted to tell me that the vibe was transferring onto me. “You’re killing me
here, Mia. What do you have to tell me?”

She kneeled up on the bed and wrapped her legs around my hips to
straddle me. I placed my hands on her waist and stared up at the most beautiful
sight I’d ever seen. Her hair, long and wavy, was draped down the front of her
shoulders and down toward the middle of her torso. Her soft face radiated a
glow that would lighten a room, and those big emerald sparkling eyes, that I
fell in love with the moment I saw them, weakened me every time. I raised my
brows, waiting for her to respond.

“Well . . .” She looked down at me. Her smile softened as if she
were unsure of why she’d awoken me, and then she blurted, “I’m pregnant.”

My mouth dropped open and then turned into the biggest grin.
“What?!”

She nodded adamantly. “I know. It’s crazy, right? I mean we’ve
done everything backwards. Moved in together, pregnancy, and then marriage, but
even though it’s not in the order everyone expects it to be, I’m okay with that.
I’m not sure . . .”

I gripped her face and brought her down, shutting off the
rambling that she always did when she was nervous. I smashed my lips against
hers. She weakened in my hold and moaned against my mouth. Slowly pulling her
away, I stared into her eyes. “Who cares if it’s backwards? Who said there was
a rule of how to plan your life? Are you happy?”

Her eyes filled with tears as she forced a smile and nodded. “I’m
so happy, but I feel guilty for feeling
this
happy.”

Puzzled by what she meant, I traced the back of my fingers along
the side of her soft cheeks. “Explain that to me.”

“Well, every time I begin to feel like my life is finally taking
off, that nothing could change the pattern of how great things are going, just
like that,” she snapped her fingers, “it’s taken away from me, as if I don’t
deserve for once to just be happy.”

“Baby.” I pulled her in against my chest and ran my fingers
through her soft brown hair. “I can’t promise you that life won’t try to take a
stab at you, that you won’t run through a few obstacles, and that you won’t feel
like quitting at times. But I can promise you that, with each stab, I’ll be
there to heal the wound. With each obstacle, I’ll be running right beside you. And
every time you fall, I’ll be right there to pick you up. We’re in this
together, always, and no matter how many times it feels like a struggle, we’ll
fight through it together because we deserve to be happy.
You
deserve
all the happiness life can bring.”

I tugged at her chin and lifted her wet face from my chest. A
soft smile formed on her lips as she swiped away the tears. “Well, be prepared
because life is going to bring you a moody, hormonal, and very sensitive
pregnant woman for the next few months.”

Laughing, I framed her face and grazed my thumb along her
cheekbones. “It’s worth it; everything with you is worth every bit.” I lifted
her hand, the one with the engagement ring she had accepted again the moment we
moved in together, and played with it around her finger. With a smile, I traced
my eyes from her hand to her face. “You’ve made me happier than you’ll ever
know.”

Mia breathed out a smile, leaned down, and pressed her lips against
mine—those lips that I had the pleasure to kiss every day for the rest of my
life.

Yes, it was exactly then that I knew, without a doubt, that I was
the luckiest man alive.

EPILOGUE

ONE YEAR LATER

MIA

I stared at my reflection in the long mirror before me,
and a smile crept along my lips as I admired the beauty in white. The long
strapless gown hugged my body flawlessly. The diamond necklace and matching
drop earrings were simple but elegant. My hair was pinned into a low bun and
covered with a long veil that draped down my back. Gathering my bouquet from
the table by the vanity, I held the beautiful yellow roses in front of me and took
one last glance at the reflection.

This was the day that I’d walk down the aisle and forever be
known as Mrs. Marcus DeLuca. Tears filled my eyes as the thought crossed my
mind of spending the rest of my life with the one man I loved. Marcus and I had
traveled a path that was dangerous, heart wrenching, and tremendously insane.
We also had a life full of love, laughter, and happiness. Even through all the bad
times, I couldn’t picture my life without him. We had fought for each other
tooth and nail. Yes, ours was a flawed relationship, but when we loved each
other as deeply as we did, no one could ever take that away from us.

We were meant for each other in every way, and I didn’t care how
others perceived our relationship. None of that mattered because I was going to
spend life with the one person that truly counted.

“Are you ready, sweetheart?” My grandfather popped his head in
the door and froze as he set eyes on me. “Well, I’ll be . . .” Tears began to
fill his eyes. Bowing his head, he walked over to me and pulled me into a hug.
“You are the most beautiful bride I’ve ever seen.” He whispered, “Don’t tell
your grandmother I said that. She’ll kill me.”

Laughing, I tightened my arms around him. “Thank you so much, and
thank you for walking me down the aisle.”

“Are you kidding? I’m honored.” He pulled back as his eyes danced
around my face. “Are you ready to become a married woman?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be.”

He nodded, stepped aside, and bent his arm. I nestled my hand
through the crook of it and looked up at him with a smile. “Let’s do this.”

We walked out of the hotel room and down the hall. My heart
fluttered as I anticipated seeing Marcus. I wondered if he was just as nervous
and anxious as I was. As we waited for the elevators, I heard Megan squealing
as she ran down the hall. Her long light yellow silk gown with a white sash
swayed as she darted my way. It was the perfect gown for a spring wedding.