The Dragon (G.O.N.Y. - Double Dragon) (31 page)

As she lowered herself again, he thrust a few inches up. She tossed her head back as she took him fully. “Ramsey!”

“Talk to me, Jez,” he whispered, kissing her slowly. “Tell me how you feel.”

“I feel so…full of you.” She rotated her hips and he groaned.

“Do you love me?”

She stilled and he smacked her bottom. She whimpered but clenched down on him. He lifted her a few inches and lowered her again.

“Tell me, baby. Tell me you love me.”

She shook her head and whimpered. He stilled, and gripped her hips to still her.

“Don’t you love me, Jez?”

“It doesn’t matter.” Her sex clutched him again.

“That’s the only thing that matters.” With that, he lifted her away, ignoring her protests as he lowered her to the bed and covered her. He gripped his wet sex and slid himself home. He needed Jezebel, much more than she needed him, but tonight, she was going to admit that she loved him even if he had to torture it out of them both.

***

Why was he doing this to her?

Jezebel moaned as he slid into her again before pulling out completely. She tried to clutch him to her with her legs but he was strong, easily breaking her hold. One hand held both of hers above her head, allowing him to torture her while she lay there and took it.

“What do you want?” she finally screeched.

He kissed her and she eagerly returned it, gasping in pleasure when he tunneled into her again. “Oh yes, Ramsey…please…” He began to slide out again. “No!”

“You know what I want.” His lips closed over her nipple as his cock grazed her belly. “You know what we both want.”

“It doesn’t matter,” she repeated. “It won’t work―doesn’t matter. I can’t.”

His tongue moved to her other breast, stroking, sucking, teasing.

“Fuck me, please. Ramsey!” When he continued to ignore her, she screamed, “I hate you!”

He paused, lifted his head and smiled down at her. His lips moved to her neck, and he sucked hard before kissing her lips. As she eagerly returned his kiss, he pulled away. “I hate you.”

His cock brushed her slit and she arched, taking him deep as he came into her again. “Oh, I hate you…” He withdrew but thrust forward over and over again.“Yes, just like that. I hate you. I hate you, Ramsey. I hate you so much!”

“You love me.” He kissed her again, sucking her bottom lip into his mouth as he continued to thrust into her.

“I hate you.”

“I love you.” He plunged his tongue into her mouth, mimicking his hips. “I need you.”

“Because of the baby.”  

“Even without the baby.”

She moaned and shook her head. She was close, so close. “I can’t.”

“Do you love me?”

His thrusts grew faster, harder, and she moaned and whimpered, loving every inch of the virile man above her. “Yes…oh God, yes!”

“Say it.”

He stopped.

“I love you,” she whimpered, she rolled her hips against him. “I love you, Ramsey!”

Ramsey pulled from her again and she cried out her frustration. He rolled her to her side and got behind her. She eagerly parted her legs and cried out when he entered her from behind.

His finger slid between her legs and found her clit. “Oooh!”

As his thrusts increased, she closed her eyes and let herself feel.

“I love you too much to let you go,” he groaned. She couldn’t focus on the meaning of those words so she focused on his cock. He tunneled deep and withdrew almost to the point of leaving before slamming back into her.

Her body jerked once, twice and her body seized, locking down on him as the drawn out orgasm finally made itself known. She felt him thrusting on, his grunts making her shiver, before he groaned her name and warmth splashed her insides.

Neither of them moved for long minutes and then he did. His hips shifted back, leaving her bereft of him. He reached for the tangled covers and pulled them over their bodies. Curling around her back, Ramsey placed his hand over her belly and gently caressed her.

“You’re my family, Jezebel.” She froze. The slow stroking made her relax again. “You and this baby are my family.”

Moving her hand to his, she halted his caresses. “I won’t be with a gangster. It’s too dangerous and I won’t do that to myself or this baby.”

“I know.” He brushed his lips against her shoulder. “You won’t have to be with one. I’m walking away from it.”

What? She rolled to face him. “Can you do that?”

He smirked. “I can do whatever I want. I’m The Dragon, remember?”

She frowned, unconvinced. “Won’t they try to hurt you?”

Ramsey seemed to contemplate it for a while before he shook his head. “No.”

“What about your obligations to your family?”

He caught her lips in a kiss that made her toes curl. “You’re my family now.”

She frowned. “What about your
businesses
?”

“Most will shut down within the next six months. The only ones that will continue are the legitimate ventures: the spas, the investment company. I opened them after business school.”

“Why now?”

At his look of confusion, she amended, “Why are you giving it up now? Why didn’t you do this before?”

“I always had plans to make this inheritance legitimate, Jezebel.” His eyes grew haunted once more. “Lily’s death changed that. I needed to find the people responsible.” She nodded, understanding. “I found them. That part of my life is now over.” He stroked her belly. “I want this. I want you and the family you’re going to give me.” He smiled and her heart did something silly in her chest. “Is that okay with you?”

Hope bubbled to the surface and struggled to get out. She pushed it down. “Don’t tell me what you think I want to hear.”

“You’re smarter than that, Jezebel.” Black eyes bored into hers. “I’d never do that to you.”

“You’re leaving all of it behind?”

“From now on, everything I do will be in compliance with the law.”

When she only stared at him, he leaned close and murmured, “Do you think you can put up with a boring businessman?” At her wide-eyed stare, he added, “I’m not as savvy as you when it comes to business but I do pretty well for myself.” He smiled. “I also give full body massages. I’ve been told I’m very good.”

“Ramsey…”

“Marry me.”

“What?”

He grinned. “Don’t you want to make an honest man out of me, Jez?”

When she only stared at him wide-eyed, he smirked. “I’ll give you all the pickles, peanut butter, and barbeque potato chips you want.”

She tried to hold in her smile but failed. “You’re silly.”

“Only with you,” he murmured. “I love you. You love me. I want you and my son in my life. I want to give you my name, see you next to me every night I go to sleep and every morning I open my eyes…” Jezebel wasn’t particularly romantic, but she came very close to sighing at those words. He stroked her belly. “And I want more of these.”

“More of
these
?” she repeated.

“Yes.” He nodded. “Five.”

“Five?” Not two or three but five? She shook her head. “I’m not having five of
these
for anyone.”

“You’ll have five for me.” He kissed her protest away. “And you’ll enjoy making the other four as much as you enjoyed making my son.”

“Did Dr. Chen tell you it’s a boy?” The question had been plaguing her for a while. Ramsey just seemed so confident about ‘his son’ and she wouldn’t put it past the good doctor who just couldn’t resist jumping at Ramsey’s every command. If she wasn’t so good, Jezebel would have already complained about that twinkle she got in her eye when Ramsey did something even Jezebel admitted was cute.

He shook his head. “Paternal intuition.”

“What?”

“It’s a boy,” he whispered. “I feel it here.” He pressed a finger to his golden pectoral, just above his heart.

“Sure.” She groaned. “Does that mean she told you?”

Ramsey grew serious. “You’re going to marry me and expand our family.”

She scowled. “Was that a question because it sure sounded like a statement?”

“A fact,” he corrected. “It’s a fact.”

“It’s not a fact.”

He brushed his lips against hers, unperturbed. “It is.”

“I’m not the barefoot-pregnant-kitchen type in case you missed that.”

Ramsey chuckled. “You’ll make barefoot-pregnant-boardroom the new trend.”

“You’re trying to distract me.” She sighed, wondering if this was real. Had she fallen asleep? Imagined that Ramsey Stone told her he was leaving
the
family business behind to get into family business with her. “Don’t lie to me, Ramsey.”

He kissed her nose. “You’re the one person who doesn’t have to worry about that.” When she only continued to stare at him, he murmured, “Aren’t you tired?”

She was. Who wouldn’t be tired after the torturous workout she’d just had. But how could she sleep? Too much had happened. Ramsey wanted her to marry him, wanted them to be a family. She hadn’t accepted his proposal but she hadn’t denied him either.

Jezebel closed her eyes. She wasn’t stupid. Men like Kang Jae Ramsey Stone didn’t just quit and have everything disappear as if it had never been, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t hopeful. Maybe, just maybe, Ramsey would give it all up for her, for them. She smiled. If he did, she’d have to marry him, maybe give him three of
these
. Her index finger traced her naked belly. It would only be fair.

Firm yet soft lips brushed hers and she peeled her eyes open to find Ramsey smiling at her. “Is that a yes?”

Rolling over and pressing her back to his muscular front, she made herself comfortable and sighed. His hand instantly found its way to her belly. “It’s a maybe.”

“I can live with maybe.” He kissed her shoulder. “For now.”

“After a storm comes a calm.”

―Mathew Henry

“Merry Christmas.”

Jezebel started a bit, but smiled softly when she realized it was him. She was a vision in that royal blue wrap dress, standing by his window and watching as fat snowflakes rained down outside. The forecast had predicted light flurries with some wind. It was snowing heavily and possibly preparing to blizzard.

He approached slowly and stopped behind her. “Is everything okay?”

“I’m fine.”

She was lying. Ramsey heard it in the forced way she spoke, the underlying coolness of her tone.

He slid an arm around her waist and pulled her against him. As she leaned back, he pressed his lips to her uninjured temple. The other still had a dark, finger-width bruise, where the bullet had almost taken her life. The stitches were dissolving and it was healing nicely. Still, he’d be glad when that bruise faded. He didn’t want to remember how close he’d come to losing her, to losing his sanity.

He’d invited a select few family members to his home for Christmas. He usually had about thirty to fifty guests over for Christmas, no matter where he was, as he’d invite family, their spouses or significant others, and children. This year he had two guests, Ichiro “Ike” Kimura, his mother’s husband, and Jax Seong. He’d invited the two people in and near South Korea he trusted beyond a doubt. He wasn’t risking Jezebel for tradition.

Dinner had been a hearty four-course meal filled with easy conversation and lots of laughter. It had been followed by a social cocktail hour as Christmas music played around them. After half an hour of talking to everyone, her hosting skills were second only to Hannah’s, and that was because his mother had home-court advantage, Jezebel had excuse herself and made her way from the living room. He’d followed.

“Tell me what’s bothering you.”

When she sighed but didn’t answer, he teased, “Don’t you like my family?” He sighed. “They seem to like you.”

She scoffed. “Are they supposed to be the ones who wouldn’t accept me?”

Remembering his half-lie to keep her from leaving him, he added, “They’re the nice ones.”

“You mean there are nasty ones out there?”

“They won’t be nasty to you.” He might not be as involved in the underground lifestyle as a typical Dragon, but the title was still his and with it was the demand for respect. Jezebel would be his wife, the mother of his children, and even if they didn’t agree with his choice, they would respect it or stay far from his family.

“Hm. I guess that doesn’t count then.”

They fell into a comfortable silence, staring out at the snowflakes falling onto the water.

“You look beautiful tonight.”

“You have great taste,” she murmured. “Thank you.”

Ramsey didn’t know the first thing about shopping for a woman but his mother did. He’d had her purchase a few dresses and had chosen the best one for Jezebel, also known as the one he most wanted to see her in. He smirked. It worked out.

“Beautiful women should have beautiful things.”

“Very smooth,” she replied, unfazed as he’d known she’d be.

He chuckled. “I have something for you.”

She looked over her shoulder at him. “What?”

“Tell me what’s wrong and I’ll give it you.”

“You’re bribing me.”

Ramsey didn’t bother denying it. “Yes.”

She turned to look out of the window again. When minutes passed, he accepted that this was one of those things Jezebel had no intention of sharing. As he moved to release her, her hands slid over his. “This is my first Christmas away from my mother.” She laughed as if self-conscious to admit it. “It feels…strange, having Delilah here but not her.”

“Did you call her?”

“This morning. Delilah and I spoke to her for an hour.” She laughed. “She’s fine. She said some of her friends were keeping her company. They’re probably making rum cake and hash brownies.”

He quirked a brow and made a note to ask her about that later.“You miss her.”

Jezebel sighed. “I have a complicated relationship with my mother but she’s my mother. I love her and yes, I miss her.”

He nodded. “There’s nothing wrong with missing your family.” They didn’t speak for a few minutes before he added, “If you went away for months, I’d miss you.”

The snort he expected wasn’t far in coming. Turning in his arms, she smirked. “You couldn’t help yourself, could you?”

Ramsey grinned. “It’s true.”

“Where’s this present you promised me, Mr. Stone?”

Taking her hand, he led her into their closet, directly before the full-length mirror. “Don’t move.”

He disappeared for a few seconds and returned with a long, dark blue box. Jezebel eyed it with suspicion. He removed the cover and retrieved a thin silver chain. He placed the two pendants in the palm of his hand and showcased them to her.

“Are those doves?” she asked with a growing smile.

When he’d shown up at the jewelers, Ramsey had wanted something simple, understated, and meaningful. He’d seen this chain and had requested it with some alterations. Instead of crystals, he’d had diamonds put in for the doves’ eyes. “That’s you.” He pointed to the larger bird. “And this…” He pointed to the smaller one and lifted a brow. “This is junior.”

“That’s incredibly cute,” she murmured after long seconds of playing with the two pendants in his hand.

As he placed the chain around her neck, she kept touching it, smiling, examining it in the mirror. Reaching around her yet again, Ramsey pulled her against him. “Merry Christmas, baby.”

She smiled wide, before looking guiltily at him. “Thank you…but I didn’t get you anything.”

He nuzzled her neck. “You’re giving me a son. That’s Christmas present enough.”

At her unconvinced look, he added, “You can always say yes instead of maybe. Saying you’ll marry me is a great Christmas present as well.”

***

Although she hadn’t given him an answer to date, the fact that she was comfortably situated in Ramsey’s Long Island home was a clear testament to which way she was leaning. Even if she rationalized that it was necessary since the threat wasn’t completely eradicated, and the veritable fortress was much safer than her mother’s house.

At just over seven months pregnant, Jezebel had left Gwangju for New York. Except for Hannah, who chose to stay behind with her husband, the rest of the family left with her, including Ramsey, who worked her very last nerve on the trip. He’d signed her up for wheelchair assistance and wheeled her into First Class, before attempting to help her into her seat. At her glare, he drew back and allowed her to do it herself. When she was seated, he smiled, clearly satisfied, and proceeded to stoop and buckle her into her seat, asking her what was comfortable around her extended belly. It was impossible to stay mad at him. By the time the plane began taxiing on the runway to leave Seoul, she was smiling. When they landed at Kennedy Airport in New York, and he kept her seated until a stewardess brought him a wheelchair, she didn’t even fuss.

Dr. Chen had said the less stress on her body, the better the chances of a no-complications pregnancy, and Ramsey had taken it to heart. She couldn’t blame him. He was clearly anxious―
terrified
―about her pregnancy. The bigger she grew, the more overprotective Ramsey became, and hitting her seventh month had led to her blowing up, much like an overfilled balloon. Now, just on the cusp of her eighth month, she was a sight to behold, but behold they certainly did.

Moving from the master suite she shared with Ramsey, she waddled down the carpeted hallway. Jezebel smirked. She waddled now. Walking was a thing of the past. Additionally, she couldn’t reach her feet so Ramsey had to lotion her legs and help her put on her boots. Both tasks were mutually beneficial, as he seemed to take great pleasure in doing them, and they were necessities for her.

As Jezebel continued her duck-walk, she passed empty, unfurnished rooms and some half-furnished ones. The baby’s room was one of those half-furnished ones. Ramsey had supervised the painting and childproofing and she’d been tasked with selecting furniture to fill it. Jezebel had done her part but some of the furniture hadn’t arrived yet.

When they’d left JFK and headed away from the city, he’d explained that he purchased a new place in Long Island for “safety” reasons. It was a large estate, larger than the one in Gwangju, with guard posts at the four edges of the property. Security cameras were everywhere, even in the foyer and some hallways. Additionally, there was a quarter mile drive from the gate to the actual house, which meant an attacker had to crash through the high gates, escape the four guards, drive all the way to the front or back of the house, and manage to get in, all without dying. She could see why he’d bought the place. It was very Fort-Knox.

She finally arrived at the staircase and had just gripped the banister to make her descent when his voice halted her. “What are you doing?”

Jezebel felt like a child caught with her hand in the cookie jar. It was a weekday. He was usually at
Osiris
or out before 5 p.m. Dammit, she was not a child! She was a thirty-three year old pregnant woman whose baby’s daddy―the thought made her shake her head before smiling―was completely insane. She wasn’t on bed rest but
Doctor
Ramsey Stone seemed to think she should be.

“I’m waddling,” she replied, taking a step forward.

“Jezebel!” he growled. In seconds, he was standing before her, gripping her hand and leading her down the stairs. At the bottom, he took a good look at her attire and demanded, “Where are you going?”

She smiled. Jezebel had draped a large, cream blazer over a black maternity dress, and applied her pearls to her ears and neck. Her jacket was a soft, black, knee-length wool piece she’d purchased years ago and meant to return because it was cut large. Her busy schedule had prevented it, but she was glad since the coat managed to come in handy. She’d had her closet moved here just a week ago, for practical reasons. Delilah had brought over the products necessary to do her hair a few days back, and she’d swept it back in a conservative, almost matronly do. And of course, she’d applied a dash of makeup, foundation, powder and neutral lipstick. “I have a meeting with my board.”

“You have a what?” Jezebel had never seen Ramsey get flustered but the pink tinge that overtook his face on the cold winter day was enough to qualify.

“CEOs…” She pointed to herself before pointing to him. “…and other board members have board meetings to discuss the future of their companies.” The first thing she’d done when Ramsey told her they were going to New York was ask him if she could contact people. He’d called his attorneys and a few days later, she was given clearance. Immediately, she’d sent out emails to the board, calling for an emergency board meeting to reinstate herself, and remove the interim who was going to drive her company into the ground.

“And did you tell anyone about this?” he demanded.

“Of course I did.” She frowned. “I’m not stupid, Ramsey. I told Vince. He’s taking me into the city.”

Ramsey seemed surprised for all of five seconds before his face grew pink. He looked around, clearly searching out his cousin. Before he could storm off to yell at Vince, she caught his hand and shook her head. “You’ve been very irrational lately, sweetheart.”

He seemed shocked at the nickname but quickly overcame it. “I haven’t been―”

“Ssh.” She patted his hand like a child and began her waddle to the front door. “If you promise to treat me like an adult and not a child for three hours, I’ll let you come with me.”

“I don’t treat you like a child.”

As they approached the double doors, Vince came strolling down the hallway to their left, followed by three of the security detail. She recognized them all. Ramsey had made it a point to introduce her to every staff member on the property the second day of her arrival. He hadn’t explained why but Jezebel knew this was his way of avoiding a repeat of her kidnapping in Gwangju. She couldn’t remember all of their names, but she knew their faces. Although she wanted her boring and normal life back, Jezebel realized it would take time, and these measures were necessary to ensure their safety. For now.

Ramsey glared at Vince, who lifted a brow and smirked. “You―”

Jezebel squeezed Ramsey’s hand and smiled sweetly up at him. “Are you going to come with us or are you staying here?” When he only continued to glare at a now amused Vince, Jezebel patted his hand. “Can you help me with my shoes, Ramsey?”

***

“You’ll tell me if she’s scheduled to go anywhere else from now on.”

Next to him, Vince shrugged. “She asked me not tell you.”

“Who signs your paycheck, Vince?” Ramsey snapped. Of the late, Vince had grown closer to Jezebel. Considering his cousin currently lived with them, it wasn’t surprising. He’d sometimes come home from work to find Vince in the kitchen with Jezebel and Delilah, when she was there, listening to the sisters and smiling at whatever they were saying. Ramsey didn’t mind, it had never interfered with the man’s work before. “Whose name is on that check you receive every fortnight?”

Humor made his cousin’s lips twitch. “Duly noted. That might have been the reason I strongly suggested you take the day off.”