True Love Lost (An FBI Romance Thriller (book 3)) (54 page)

Timothy Blackhawk remained silent.

“I’ll give you a brood of Blackhawks you can boss around, but Callen’s heart can’t take much more and if it breaks over this, it won’t ever be the same.”

“Elizabeth,” he started to say.

“Please, for me Granddad? Let it go and release him from this promise.”

There was silence on the phone
as Blackhawk watched his wife work her mojo.

“Elizabeth, this is why you shall head this family when I’m gone. You are their warrior
who will fight to keep my boys safe,” he paused, “Where are the boy and the woman?”

“Promise to not go all Native Indian all over her?” she asked.
“Scaring her with the war bonnet and tomahawk?”

“I don’t believe I own a tomahawk,”
Timothy answered, laughing.

“Want on
e?” she inquired, trying to keep her voice serious.” Your birthday is coming up.”

He laughed. “
Are you trying to bribe me?”

“Is it
that apparent?”

“
I love you, my precious raven. I will be as welcoming as I was to you.”

“Well, just shoot the poor woman then
! Don’t grill her on your house and your feathers,” she added, and then thought about it. “Cal’s either at our home or at his house.”

“Both of them?”

“Yes, Granddad.”

His granddaughter was a joy, and really the only one that would speak honestly with him about anything he asked. “How is my great grandson, and have we named him yet?”

“We’re working on it, Granddad. I am leaning toward Leroy Heathcliff Mick Blackhawk IV.”

There was a pause over the phone.

“Wonderful name,” he finally said, the laughter evident in his voice. “Who are you punishing raven? The child or your husband?”

Blackhawk started laughing
, knowing he was the intended victim in this atrocious crime.

“Is it that obvious?” she asked.

“Ask her why the IV, Granddad,” winked Blackhawk, throwing his wife under the granddad bus.

“Elizabeth, why are there Roman numerals at the end of
my great grandson’s name?”

Now she saw it was a free for all and she was on her own. It was time to reciprocate. “Since Ethan is dragging his feet, anyone that meets this child is now going to think he, Wyler and you are all named that.”

There was a pause.

“I love you Leroy Heathcliff Mick Blackhawk
the first.”

Timothy Blackhawk roared with laughter.
“I love you, Elizabeth, and for you I will willingly change my name. I will trust your judgment on the woman, but if she turns out to be a holy disaster it will be your entire fault and you will rectify it and do what needs to be done. Am I clear, my sweet raven?”

Blackhawk snickered.

“Yes Granddad, but I guess you’ll have to disown me,” she replied, laughing. “Bet that tattoo on your arm will be a bitch to get off. Looks like that train ride to crazy town just came back to bite you in your ass.”

Timothy laughed
more. “Ethan, pick a name for my great grandson already.”

“We love you
, Granddad. When we get home, we’ll have dinner at our house with the whole family.”

“
I look forward to it, and if Callen picks a woman one third as well as Ethan, than I am going to be overly blessed. Be safe sweetheart.” Timothy hung up the phone to find his other grandson.

Ethan was still amazed that his wife yielded the power she did over his grandfather. The man was the head of the family and his boys all worried and feared him, but his pregnant wife wasn’t worried in the least. “Think she’ll survive meeting him?
Granddad is intimidating.”

“I
think so, but I just have this feeling their entire situation isn't going to run as smoothly as ours did. Meet and four days later get married and have a kid. I just get this feeling that granddad and his dream is going to be right. This stalker thing worries me.”

“Think he’s in danger
?”

“I think if he’s anything like his brother, he
’ll die to protect the woman he loves. That means the bull’s-eye won’t be on her, but on him. I just feel off about all of it.”

Blackhawk thought about it. “Then I think we’re going to have to help him keep her safe. Well, I am anyway.”

Elizabeth laughed. “Let’s have dinner, and then work on the profile and this assessment. I want to get home before something happens.”

“Callen’s new at this
agent thing and that worries me most.”

“Yeah, me too
.” She was very worried for her brother-in-law and now Desdemona too.

Deep down Elizabeth just knew this was far from being over, and she hoped her family stayed intact
, including Callen’s heart.

He wasn’t going to move until she gave him an answer.

Desdemona looked like a deer in headlights.

No, he wasn’t proposing, because if he dropped those words on her, he was convinced she’d rabbit fast and far.

At first he was going to try baby steps, but with someone as skittish as Desdemona, he needed to steam ahead. Callen was willing to push as hard as he needed to, in order to get the outcome he wanted.

Now he just had to get her to stay with him forever. If he took away her choice then everything would be fine. Like his brother pointed out, he had to keep her from running away a year down the road. And he had to buy some time to get his grandfather to approve of a marriage.

“Desdemona? I want us to live together.”

She stared at him and took a deep breath unsure what to say to the man. It was so sudden and completely off the cuff that she was freaked out. All she could think of was to go with the obvious. “I have a nut job stalking me. Did you see the back of that picture, Callen? Just the idea that you’ll be a target makes me sick to my stomach. I can’t go home and I can’t fall in love.”

“
Well, then I guess I’m completely safe unless you love me.” He threw it out there. Hoping and waiting for her response.

“We can’t live together
!” She didn’t want him to die.

He still refused to give up
and was feeling desperate enough to say the words before he was ready. “It’s too late. I love you.” He said it, pretty sure that would work. The truth was written all over her face. “So whether you love me or not, I’m a dead man,” he joked, and then realized he went too far.

Desdemona backed away from him
, bottom lip quivering as tears filled her eyes. All she could do was retreat for his room, slamming the door and locking it. What had she done? Just being near him risked him, and she did love him, and if she lost him because of her past how could she recover?

As she lay on the bed, she looked to the nightstand and the pictured of him with another woman, and her heart ached. Could she love a man that loved another woman? Then she tried to find the positive in it, and went with that. It was family, and wasn’t that what she always wanted? Plus toss in a friend to have all for herself. The tears overwhelmed her, and she wasn’t sure what she was crying over.

There were so many reasons. Love was damn complicated.

“Desi, I’m sorry. It wasn’t funny. Please let me in,” he begged. Way to go on screwing up re-do date number one. When he didn’t answer he got desperate and pulled his pocket knife out and popped the lock. Once inside he found her lying on his bed
, face buried in his pillow and sobbing. “Oh sweetheart, I’m so sorry.”

He pulled her into his arms, and kissed her tears away. “I didn’t mean to upset you like this,” he said, as she held onto his body and sobbed. Her tears ran down his bare chest.

“I have to get far away from you,” she sobbed. “I don’t want to see you get hurt because of me.”

“You can’t leave, and we’re going to live together. Do you want to live here or in your house?” he
continued, ignoring her words and forcing her to comply. When she was running it was best to yank her back and give her no choice. By taking her choice away, he’d keep her safe and give him the same life Ethan had built.

“Callen! You’re not listening to me. If you stay around me, you’ll get hurt.”

“Stay with me and I promise you protection. Nothing will hurt you if you just stay by my side. I’ll take care of you forever and love you.”

It wasn’t lost on Desdemona that he mentioned protection first and then love, but wasn’t that what she always wanted? To feel safe for once and to belong? Callen had a pretty amazing family and just to be part of that warmed her heart and gave her hope. With time she knew she could get him to love her more.

“Stay Desi, and let’s start something really great together.”

Part of her was screaming to her, warning it was all too fast. The other part of her was taking in the man before her, and the amazing body he had. The sex was stellar and the family was loving. The pros outweighed the cons. So what if she didn’t own his heart
? What could possibly happen? Elizabeth was a happily married woman. Again, her mind and heart went to war, and she was prisoner until it was decided.

Watching her face, he knew the minute
Desdemona had come to a decision. “It’s my life, I get to decide if I risk it for love or not. A life without love or a short life with love, and I choose love. I’m offering you protection and love.”

“Where will
we be safer?” she finally asked, laying her head on his shoulder. Her brain lost again, and her heart made the decision.

“After the assignment your house is safer.
There are houses around it, it’s in a more public place, and Ethan and Elizabeth are right behind us.”

“Can we get a dog?” she asked.

Callen laughed. “Yes, we can get a dog. A loud barking one with very big teeth and that likes strangers for breakfast.”

“Can we get a tall privacy fence like Ethan and
Elizabeth have?” she asked.

“Yes
.” He kissed her on the forehead.

“Gun turrets?”

“What a coincidence. After Ethan finishes building the tree house, they’re on ‘
Elizabeth’s Honey-do
’ list. I bet she’ll share.”

Desdemona laughed. “Of course they would be. I wouldn’t be shocked.”

“Now, how about we go have dinner and I try to salvage this date. Unless you plan on letting me have a re-do on a re-do.”

She laughed. “You don’t need a redo on this date. I think it’s a pretty spectacular date. Great sex, camping and you told me you loved me. This is a really good date.”

“I’m glad,” he smiled, never noticing she didn’t say the words back to him. Whitefox was just so excited he finally got her to concede. If she stayed, he could keep her safe. He led her out to the take out. “Do you want to sit by the fire or at the table?”

“Camping
doesn’t have a table,” she replied, laughing. “What’s for dinner?”

Whitefox walked over with a pizza and two salads. “Salad and pizza,
there’s no meat because I promised.”

“I love you.”

“Because I ordered a pizza and salad? We can have it every night for dinner if that’s the case. ” It was hard to not feel smug that everything was going as he planned.

“
No, but because you’re a really good man.” Desdemona watched him sit in front of her, and never had she met a man so honorable, and one willing to protect her. “Because your family is amazing and because I happen to think bossy, Native American men are incredibly sexy.”

“Stay away from my brother,” he ordered, grinning.

Desdemona leaned forward and kissed him gently. “I will, but not because you’re bossy, but because Elizabeth scares the shit out of me.”

He
snickered. “Here’s the big secret. She’s actually a pushover if she loves you. That’s how I get away with all my shit,” he answered, grinning. “She has a really big heart.”

“
I know she’s been okay with me so far, and she says ‘girlfriend code’, but you just told me you love me and what if that doesn’t make her happy, I mean…” She didn’t know how to phrase it, and she felt really nervous because she knew who held the first part of his heart and always would. Desdemona thought to the pictures on his nightstand and swallowed the jealousy.

Callen looked at his watch. It was still early, and he pulled out his cell phone.

“What are you doing?” she asked, appalled. “Callen don’t call her!” When he hit speed dial she just stared with her mouth open, as she heard it ringing on speakerphone. “Oh my God!”

On the second ring she answered.

“Callen darlin’, are you okay?” she asked, worriedly.

“Yeah,
beautiful I’m more than fine.” Whitefox glanced over at Desdemona. “I just told Desi that I loved her, and we’re moving into her house as soon as this is over.”

There was a small pause.