The Buchanan's Redemption(16)

“Not exactly with Malvagio…it’s a members only establishment and it’s only open on Saturday nights on an invitation only basis. It shouldn’t be too hard to track down who was on the guest list that night.”

Penny frowned. “Assuming that person was an actual member. Maybe they snuck in.”

“Twice? No, something tells me whoever did this is a member,” Dillon said.

“Why? Does the club have video surveillance?”

“Yes, but whoever did this knew how to avoid getting his face on camera. All we have are back shots and he’s wearing a dark suit in a dark room.”

Suddenly Penny sucked in a wild breath. “Oh, that was a good one,” she said, a little shaky. “Your kid is using my kidneys for a soccer ball.”

“Athleticism does run in my family,” he joked but he was really starting to wonder if Penny was going into labor. He didn’t have much experience — okay, he didn’t have any experience with this sort of thing — but he was starting to think that maybe a trip to the hospital would be a good idea. “Maybe we ought to call Dr. Shabaz and have him check you out,” Dillon suggested to which Penny waved away his concern.

“Honey, I’m nine months pregnant. There’s bound to be some discomfort. I could really use a hamburger. I’m starving.” She looked to him with a sweet smile and he couldn’t deny her even if it was ten o’clock at night and he had no idea where he was going to find a decent hamburger at this hour. But just as he went to grab his keys, she made a small gasping sound and he whirled around to see a red-faced Penny, looking distressed and plainly embarrassed at the growing puddle beneath her, wetting their expensive sheets.

“Um…sweetheart? Did you just…pee?”

“No,” she wailed, her eyes widening. “I think my water just broke!”

#

Nolan had just closed his eyes when his cell went off on the nightstand with a soft, insistent buzz. He snatched it up in the hopes of catching it before it woke Shannon but she bolted awake the moment he grabbed it. “Is it Penny?” she asked blearily, rolling onto her side with a yawn.

“Yeah, it’s Dillon,” he answered to Shannon. To Dillon, he said, “Is it time? Is Penny in labor?”

“Yeah! I thought at first she peed but—“

“Don’t tell everybody that! It’s embarrassing enough as it is!” Penny yelled in the distance and Nolan grinned as Dillon continued with a quick apology, plainly rattled by the idea of being a father.

“So, do you want us to meet you at the hospital?”

“Well, Dr. Shabaz said early labor could take hours, how about I let you know in a few hours how things are going?”

To Shannon, he relayed what Dillon had said and she nodded in agreement, her eyes already closing again. “First babies are notoriously slow. I was in labor with Aubrey for eighteen hours. We’ll stop by in the morning after we’ve had coffee.” At then Shannon was sleeping again.

“Okay, the boss says we’ll stop by in the morning after coffee,” Nolan said, grinning. “You doing okay?”

“Yeah, I’m good.” There was a pause and then, “Holy shit…I’m going to be a dad!”

“It’s a fantastic gig,” Nolan said, thinking of Aubrey. “You’re gonna do great. Just remember…this is the easy part.” There was a groan in the background and Nolan clarified. “This is the easy part for you. Good luck, big brother.”

Dillon said a hasty goodbye and then the line went dead. Nolan settled back in bed and Shannon instinctively cuddled up to him. He quickly dialed Vince’s number but it went straight to voicemail. Instead of leaving a message, he sent a quick text: Penny in labor. Meet us at hospital tomorrow morning. And then he put his arms around his wife, excited for Dillon and Penny and wishing he’d been there for Aubrey’s birth. He would’ve died to hold Aubrey in his arms the moment she took her first breath. Unfortunately, he hadn’t known about his little girl until she was two. Long story, that. All that mattered was that he had his girls now. Why couldn’t Vince find the same kind of happiness? He wanted his twin to know how amazing it felt to hold the woman he loved in his arms and watch the mischievous light spark in his child’s eyes. All those years Nolan had spent doing things that would’ve made their mother ashamed…he’d been trying to fill a hole left deep inside. And now that he had Aubrey and Shannon, he never wanted to go back to the way things were. Vince needed to come around — he needed closure.

Isabel…set Vince free before he kills himself trying to run from the past. This has to end somehow.

But even as Nolan murmured the small prayer, he didn’t hold out much hope. Vince seemed on a collision course with destruction no matter how hard they all tried to pull him out of the skid.

And that worried the hell out of Nolan.

He couldn’t lose his twin, it would be like losing a piece of himself.

Nolan tightened his arms around Shannon.

In the end, all he could do was have faith that fate had bigger plans than mere mortals could understand.





-10-




The night ended and Vince shepherded Emma from the restaurant and into the Towncar but instead of instructing the driver to take them straight to the penthouse, he gave him an alternate location, a place with privacy and a spectacular view.

They pulled up to an area known as The Widow’s Peak, a bluff that overlooked the city and parked. “Where are we?” Emma asked, accepting his help from the car to look around. “You’re not bringing me out here to kill me, right?”

He cut her a sidewise glance. “You watch too many movies. Besides, if I were going to kill you, would I bring my driver as a witness? I’m no expert in the crime of homicide but I would imagine that’s something you’d want to do without witnesses.”

“He could be your accomplice,” she suggested but she allowed him to draw her closer to share his warmth as he took them to the highest spot with the best view. “Oh…that’s pretty,” she exclaimed softly, settling against him. If she felt his rock hard cock pressing against her backside, she didn’t mention it. “I never knew this was here. How did you find it?”

“My father owned the property with the hopes of building a hotel but he never got around to it and the land just sat empty and unused. Nolan and I used to come out with friends and get drunk.” And other things.

“You were really bad boys, weren’t you?”

“I could deny it but we both know I’d be lying. Yes, we were bad boys.”

She turned to him, wetting her lips. “Are you still a bad boy?”

“The worst,” he answered quietly, drawn by the sweet promise of those beautiful, pouting lips. He wanted her so badly he shook with it. Why had he brought her here? He should’ve had the driver take them straight to the penthouse. She shivered and he gently rubbed the bare skin on her shoulders. “Are you cold?” he asked.

“Yes.”

“Do you want to leave?”

“No.”

He reached up and pulled the pins from her hair so that it tumbled in loose, bouncy waves down her back. Vince buried his hand into the soft hair at the nape of her neck and pulled her closer. She came without resistance but her eyes had widened. “Are you still in pain?” he asked.

“A little,” she admitted a bit breathlessly. “Nothing a little ibuprofen won’t take care of.”

“Good.” And then he couldn’t wait a moment longer before he tasted her lips, felt her tongue against his. The petal soft press of her lips gave way to the invasion of his tongue as he swept her mouth with an expert, almost feather-light touch meant to explore and excite. She shuddered and he tightened his grip on her, needing to feel more of her body against him. A wild rush whooshed through his veins and the need for more seized his ability to think rationally and stomped it into pulp. Their tongues twined and danced, sliding against one another in a symphony of awakening desire and soon he was practically holding her up as she’d literally gone weak in the knees. He grinned and scooped her into his arms, stalking for the Towncar. So much for the grand plan to slowly seduce her until she was putty in his hands. He deposited her on her feet at the door of the Towncar and instructed the driver to take them to the penthouse — immediately.

But he didn’t think he could wait. His eyes were crossing with need and his vision had narrowed to Emma and only Emma. Her breath had become shallow and her pupils were dilated, betraying her desire as well. He was thankful for the privacy shield on the Towncar for he didn’t want an audience for what he wanted to do to her. With a growl, he pulled her onto her back and lifted the hem of her dress, sliding the fine fabric up her thigh until he reached the apex and caught sight of the tiny square of panty hiding what he wanted most. “What are you doing?” Emma asked as if embarrassed and tried to push her dress back down.

“You still owe me that kiss.”

“You lost the bet,” she said with a shake to her voice. “And what do you mean you didn’t get your kiss? What were we doing outside? Felt like kissing to me.”

He cocked his head at her and gently pushed her hand away. “I did not lose. You and I both know you lied, which means you forfeit and I win either way. But that’s not the kiss I was looking for. Now stop trying to be in control and let someone who knows what you need, give it to you.”