“Call him,” he says.
I look up at him and just as I start to dial the number I hear sirens.
“Fuck! How in the hell?” shouts Ben, but before he can say anything more, the door is kicked open. Two police officers come barreling inside followed by Luke, Antonio, and Adam.
Luke’s eyes quickly lock with mine. I begin to sag with relief but suddenly, Ben grabs me off the couch.
“Let her go, motherfucker! Your shit is with me, not her,” Luke warns.
“Oh, my shit is with all of you, but most of all it is with her,” he grins as he puts the gun to my head and cocks the trigger. The next thing I know, I am falling to the ground. Ben is falling next to me with blood coming out of his mouth, clutching his chest as he drops to his knees.
My mind starts racing but I just can’t move. Suddenly, strong arms are lifting me up off of the floor and I am pulled tight against Luke’s chest.
“Shayne! Look at me, baby. Are you all right? Did he hurt you?”
I reach up and touch the face of the love of my life.
“I’m fine, Luke. How did you find me?”
My eyes dart around the room, finally landing on the giant from earlier. I see he is holding a gun in his hand.
“Who are you?” I whisper.
Luke answers for him. “That’s Big Neil, baby. He’s the guy we put in place to keep an eye on you. He’s also a private investigator who works for us. He’s been working undercover for the past month or so getting close to Ben so he could be around just in case that asshole tried anything.”
“Oh.” I gasp. I turn back to Luke, and he stands up and carries me out. I curl into his body as closely as I can and close my eyes.
************
I awake and I am sweating so badly. Opening my eyes and checking out my surroundings, I notice I am in the hospital and the reason why I am sweating is because Lucy has herself curled up right next to me and is sound asleep. Luke is sitting in a chair next to the bed with his head lying in my lap. Trying not to wake either one of them, I adjust myself as best as I can in the bed. It’s still dark outside as I look out the window. Luke stirs a little and lifts his head. We stare into each other’s eyes for a few minutes before he reaches up and runs his hand down the side of my face.
“Is the baby okay?” I ask with worry.
“Yes, the baby is fine and so are you. We brought you here just to get you checked out.”
Luke reaches down and takes a hold of both of my hands.
“I am never letting you out of my sight again! When you didn’t come back from the bathroom right away…I tried to stay calm for Lucy’s sake, but I have never been so scared in all of my life.”
He stops to compose himself as I look down at my sleeping daughter. I can’t imagine how this must have affected her.
“Oh, God. My poor baby! She must have been so scared. What did you say to her?”
Luke looks so tired and worn out.
“When you didn’t come right back I knew something was wrong, so I told Lucy I needed to go to the restroom and then called the waitress over to sit with her for a few minutes. I found your phone on the floor outside of the restroom and you were nowhere to be found. I knew it was bad, so I called my mother and she came and took Lucy. All I told Lucy was that something came up that you and I had to take care of and that she was going to go stay with Grandma.”
I look at this man who I love and the right words come to me so easily.
“I remember when you told me that you didn’t know how to be a father,” I begin, squeezing his hands tight. “What you did and how you handled this with her makes you a great father. You put her feelings before yours, Luke. That is what a good parent does.”
Luke stands up and brings his lips to mine as he kisses me softly.
“It’s over, baby. The cops will want a full statement from you about everything that happened, though.”
I am not looking forward to reliving everything; however, I want this to be over. I reach out my hand.
“Okay. But can you help me out of bed so I can let my fiancé hold me, please?”
Smiling that smile I love, he helps me out of bed and makes sure I am sturdy enough to stand. I wrap my arms around him and he brings his arms around me. We stand there holding each other, and I will never forget the words he speaks to me next as long as I live.
“For seven years I have waited to hear you call me your fiancé,” he whispers. “I promise for the rest of our lives I will take care of you and always cherish you and our family, tesoro bella.”
I turn around in his arms and lean my head back on his shoulders as he rests his hands across my abdomen and slowly traces small soft circles there. We both look down at a sleeping Lucy curled up in the bed and clenching her dolphin. This feeling I have right here can never be put into words. This is just the beginning of what I know is going to be the best life any woman could ever ask for. Closing my eyes for a brief moment, I take a deep breath.