“What the hell do you mean you’ve lost her? Jesus, didn’t you say that she was going to her friend’s house?” I hissed at him.

“I’m sorry, we thought that she was in for the night. She just vanished.”

“What about her phone—can you trace it?”

“Yeah, but she tossed it in a dumpster outside of town at a gas station. That’s as far as we got. She paid in cash and went north.”

“Stay on it. I will meet you there in a little bit. Let me know if you come up with anything else,” I said sharply as I hung up the phone.

Shannon’s wide eyes met mine as I slapped my phone down on the counter. “Is everything okay?”

I shook my head. “No. Rosa has made a run for it. I knew I should have gone there first.”

“Hey,” she said softly. “You can’t blame yourself for this. You had no way of knowing the bosses would keep you until Collins was dealt with. It was stopping here first or there, and you made a call.”

“Thanks, Sis,” I said warmly.

I couldn’t believe how much she had changed since I had been gone. I was still kicking myself for what had happened. The bosses, after deciding that they wanted to bring down Collins, made me stay with them until the whole thing was over. No phone, no contact with the outside world. It had been Kane and one of his contacts who had kept me updated on Shannon and Rosa, but there was nothing else I could do about it. Shannon was back to her old sweet self and it was all because of Kane.

I saw the same look pass between them that I’d first seen when they met. Now it was stronger. Kane broke the gaze and looked in my direction. “Do you want me to come with you?”

I shook my head. “No. I want you to stay here. Maybe I can get Mary to give me her new cell number. If that happens, then I need you to track it. Shannon, though . . . it might make her stop for a second if she sees you. Do you mind coming with me?”

“Of course not! I would do anything for her. She risked everything to get that man away from me and get me back safely. This is the least that I can do,” she said.

“Great, let’s hit the road then,” I said to her as I dialed another number in my phone. “Mary?”

“Who is this?” she asked.

“Peyton. Listen. I need you to give me Rosa’s new number.”

“Hell, no. You broke her heart. Why would I want to help you?”

“Because I think she might be in danger. Please, Mary, there isn’t any time for me to get into this with you right now. I couldn’t call her. I was literally trapped, okay? Please just give it to me.”

She paused. “What kind of danger did you get her into? She said she was going home because she didn’t feel good.”

“That may be true, but I need to talk to her. Please just trust me on this.”

“Fine,” she hissed. “But I’m not doing this for you. I’m doing it for her. You’d better treat her right this time or I will hunt you down myself.”

I chuckled. “I have no doubt that you would. Thank you, Mary.”

My phone lit up. She had already ended the call. Seconds later, a message came through with a phone number and I forwarded it to Kane. We were racing down the road heading through town in Kane’s car. Shannon was silent, but I knew there was something more she wanted to say.

“Go ahead already,” I muttered.

“Aren’t you going to call her and tell her what’s going on?”

I shook my head. “I’ve already lost her trust. If I call her, all it’s going to do is make her get rid of the phone, and I will miss any chance at tracking her. The only way she is going to listen is if I am right there in front of her.”

My phone started to vibrate and Shannon quickly looked at it. “Then we should get there fast. She is stopped at a motel about fifty miles from here.”

* * *

My hands were shaking as I knocked on the motel door. Shannon was waiting for me in the car. I saw the curtains rustle before the door unlocked and Rosa opened it, glaring at me with distrust.

“What do you want?” she hissed.

“Rosa, you don’t know how good it is to see you, darlin’,” I stammered.

“I don’t know how you found me, but I want nothing to do with you, okay? Just leave me alone and stop leading Collins right to me.”

“Oh, honey,” I whispered. “Collins is never coming after you again. One of the bosses’ men shot him dead yesterday. He’s at the bottom of the ocean by now.”

Her eyes grew wide. “What? You mean it’s really over?”

I nodded. “I’m so sorry I couldn’t get ahold of you. The bosses took my phone. I couldn’t risk them tracking it back to you if I tried to reach out another way, but it’s all over now. Collins is gone and they’ve let all of us go. We are finally free.”

“All of us?” she asked.

I grinned and stepped aside so she could look out into my car. Shannon waved and stepped out. It didn’t take long before they reached each other halfway and embraced in a way only true family could. In that moment, I knew what real joy was. Seeing the two of them together melted every part of my hardened heart. I gave them a little bit of space as they cried and whispered to each other. Part of me was dying to know what they were talking about but I knew it wasn’t my place. Rosa would tell me in her own time.

When they broke apart and walked over to me, I couldn’t help but grin. Rosa was flushed but smiling as I wrapped my arms around her waist and pulled her into a warm embrace. She was my everything and I would never have to worry about losing her again.

“So, it’s really all over?” she whispered.

“I promise, darlin’, it’s nothing but smooth sailing from here on out.”

She blushed a deep red. “I wouldn’t say that. Being parents isn’t supposed to be easy. This one is already giving me a run for my money. I can’t seem to stop crying all the time.”

Shannon gasped. It took me a minute to catch on to what she was saying, but once I did, the color drained from my face. I was going to be a father. “Are you . . .?”

She nodded. “Yeah, I just found out a few weeks ago.”

“You mean, I’m going to be a . . .?”

“Yes, sir,” she said playfully.

I swallowed hard, the lump in my throat growing. Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought I would find a woman whom I adored, someone to have my children and grow old with, but there I was, swinging her around in my arms as she laughed carelessly. I set her down carefully and gazed into her eyes. I didn’t need anything else in the world but to know that she was mine for the rest of our lives.

“I love you so much, Rosa,” I whispered to her.

She took my face in her hands and smiled. “And I love you, Peyton.”

Our lips found each other and we got lost in the warm embrace of our love. It had been too long since I had felt her flesh burning against my own. All at once, the desire that had been locked away for weeks came roaring from its cage and demanded to be sedated. I broke away from Rosa, struggling not to drag her into the hotel room without another word like some caveman. I quickly fished around in my pocket until I found my keys and tossed them to Shannon, who was standing off to the side in a state of shock.

“Can you drive yourself back to Kane? I bet he misses you already.”

She blushed. “I think I can find my own way. I take it you two will be riding home together?”

I grinned. “I think so. We might stay the night though.”

Without another word, I pulled Rosa into the hotel room and locked the door behind me. Something about knowing she was carrying my child was driving me to the brink of insanity. I carefully carried her to the bed and set her down. Tonight, I was going to take my time with my wonderful flower. I was going to show her just how much I missed every part of her sweet body, from her salty skin to her sweet nectar. Our love story was just getting started, and I was going to take my time making her my queen.