After getting Damian medical attention for the graze wound of the bullet and giving a police statement about the past twenty-four hours, we all headed to Mom’s hospital room.

On the way there, Damian held my hand tightly, looking at me with a slight frown marring his handsome face. “Are you sure this is what you want?”

I raised an eyebrow. “You mean seeing Mom?”

He frowned deeper, as though not sure what to make of me feigning ignorance to the real topic at hand. “About not turning me in.”

“There’s no reason for that.” I leaned against him as we walked, grateful that we were both okay and would have the time to work on our relationship. “We don’t really know each other that well, but I do know I love you. We need more time together.”

He went quiet for a few moments as we made our way down the hall. After stopping in front of Mom’s room, my brothers and father walked inside. They held the door open for us to follow, but apprehension about Damian’s silence held me back.

“We’ll be there in a sec,” I told them.

With a nod, Kyle let the door shut.

“What is it?” I asked, gently intertwining my fingers through his.

He squeezed my hand, then leaned in to me, giving me a gentle kiss. “I don’t deserve you.”

“Well, I’m still working on finding myself now that I don’t have any reason to be afraid.” I let out a soft giggle, hoping he could see my sincerity. “I might be more than you can handle. Perhaps you’ll ask for a divorce once you get to know the real me.”

Despite the bandages on his left shoulder, he wrapped both arms around me. “Never. Don’t even joke about that. I love you, Bella.”

I nodded. “I know, but I do worry how much of the love comes from guilt on your part. You feel responsible for me, but is that really love? We need time to figure that all out.”

“I don’t have questions, but I can see that you do. This isn’t guilt talking. The only thing I want is a happy life with you, I just didn’t think I dared hope for that.” His tender lips brushed against mine with the sweetest kiss I’d ever experienced. It was as though I could feel every emotion he felt in that kiss—love, guilt, excitement, passion, and a touch of sorrow.

When he pulled away, I smiled again. “Don’t hope for it. Know that it’s reality.” Tugging his hand, I headed for the doorway. “Come on, Mom and the guys are waiting for us.”

As we stepped inside, my brothers were all cheering. Even Dad had a blissful smile on his face.

“What’s going on?” I asked.

Kyle hopped up, stealing me away from Damian and twirling me in a bear hug. “Mom’s going to be fine, sis! The doc says she’ll make a full recovery now that she’s awake.”

I beat on his shoulders to get him to put me down, then rushed to Mom’s bedside. Her calm, warm smile made all my worries about her condition disappear. “You’re really okay?”

“Yes, sweetie, I am.” Mom patted my hand. “And now that you’re okay too, everything’s right in the world.” She looked past me toward Damian. “Come here, hon. I need a love from my other son, too.”

Damian’s mouth gaped for a moment, and he shuffled forward a bit diffidently, as though he didn’t know what to do.

Mom had no hesitation. She reached out, squeezing the top of his hand with her other hand. “Ed filled me in before leaving to meet you at the factory. I know everything. I’m so glad you’re okay and back here with us, where you belong. The boys said you fought bravely and wouldn’t back down, determined to rescue Bella.”

He nodded. “I’d do anything for her, Sharon.”

Mom grinned. “Enough of that first-name stuff. Now that all our misunderstandings are out in the open, why don’t you call me Mom?”

All the strength seemed to leave Damian and he leaned over the bed, using it to support himself. “I don’t deserve this.”

Mom shook her head. “Family isn’t about what you deserve, it’s about what you get. Do you love my daughter?”

“More than anything,” he answered without hesitation.

“Then, despite our differences and the confusion we had between us, you’re one of us now.”

He grinned, and I tried to ignore the telltale glitter of tears in his eyes as he kissed my mother’s forehead. “Okay,” he said. “I’m happy to be part of the family, Mom.”

DAMIAN

When we reached our apartment later that night, I had a hard time feeling like my life was real. Not only had Bella’s family forgiven me, but they all welcomed me into the fold. It was a dream come true. My parents might not really give a crap about me other than as their prodigal son who would carry on their legacy, but I suddenly had James and Bella and an entire family who claimed to care for me. Even Bella’s brothers had forgiven me for the past, it seemed. A family was all I’d ever wanted, but I knew I didn’t really deserve it.

“Bella?” I turned to her after shutting the front door.

She grabbed my hand, tugging on it. “I know you’re a bit injured, but let’s go to the bedroom.”

“Yes, we need to sleep, but we need to talk more first.”

I had to tell her the truth, about what I wanted for my future. She might be disappointed, but I could no longer deny who I truly was as a person. Hopefully she would understand.

However, when we reached the bedroom, she surprised me by pulling me to the bathroom. “I need to shower first,” she said, “but I don’t want to sleep. Not yet. I want to be with my husband. Come on, let me help you get clean too. It’ll be hard with that arm.”

There was no question that I should stop this and make her listen to me, but I didn’t want to. Obediently, I let her lead me to the bathroom. She stripped down naked before helping me shed my clothing. Though I knew I had no right to want her, my body responded.

She chuckled, turning on the water and pulling me into the shower behind her. “We’ll take care of that in a few minutes. For now, let me wash you.”

With great care, she rubbed soap across my body. The touch of her small hands made me shudder with desire. When she soaped herself up as well and her slick skin came across mine, it was all I could do to hold back.

Before long, she had our hair washed and our bodies rinsed. The gentle touches of her hands on my skin where nearly enough to drive me mad, but I held off, not moving or going for her, letting her do whatever she wanted.

Once we were dried off, she then led me back into the bedroom, climbing into the bed naked and patting the spot next to her. “Okay, come here. I had to get those guys’ grubby fingerprints off me before I let you touch me, but now I want my husband.”

Hesitantly, I crawled in beside her, lying on my good side and using my injured arm to gently caress her smooth stomach. “I was so worried I’d never be with you like this again.”

“Shhh...” She ran her hand along my chest, making goosebumps break out wherever her fingers roamed. “You can’t get rid of me that easily, you know? I was going to get away from them and back to you, no matter what it took.”

“God, I love you so much. How can you be like this when you know what I did to you? I don’t understand how you’re such a good person. You should hate me.”

Her hand moved to my mouth, one finger falling across my lips to silence me. “You have to forgive yourself for the past. I thought it was going to be hard for me to forgive you when they first showed me the video, but it didn’t take long for me to remember the man you are now. You’re the man I love, the one I want to spend my life with. Even if things have been weird because I didn’t stand up for you with my family, I realized that what I really wanted all along was to be with you. I’ve forgiven you, so now you need to forgive yourself.”

I sighed, kissing the finger still covering my lips. “I’ll try.”

“Good,” she said, smiling. “Now, I want you to do something for me.”

“Anything.”

That caused her smile to deepen, and I couldn’t believe how beautiful she looked. How could I have ever thought she wasn’t the most beautiful woman in the world?

“Make love to me,” she whispered. “Not the painful, mean stuff I wanted before. Show me your love. I’m ready to accept you, Damian. I want to be loved like you want to love me.”

She couldn’t have said anything to make me happier. Despite my lingering doubts, I kissed her tenderly, running my hand against her stomach and stopping to fondle her breasts with a gentle touch.

She moaned into my mouth and her nipples tightened into small buds as though I had bitten her like she used to demand. “Oh, Damian, I want you.”

Ignoring the discomfort in my arm, I climbed on top of her, bracing myself with my good shoulder. I kissed her wherever my mouth could reach, loving her sweet skin with my tongue and lips until her moans grew louder.

Instead of clawing at me like normal, her hands caressed light, tender patterns down my back, turning me on more than I ever thought possible.

“I want you so bad,” I murmured, sucking on her earlobe.

Her hips shifted under me and she wrapped her legs around my waist. “I want you too.”

It seemed magical as I slowly entered her. We joined in perfect harmony, and I’d never felt anything that seemed as right as being with her. The inner walls of her tightened around me, milking me as if trying to make me explode then and there.

Gently, I began moving, never quickly, never hard, kissing her all the while. The way she moved and the noises coming from her let me know that she was truly enjoying this, even without the pain she used to need. She finally trusted me enough to need nothing more than my touch, my body, to make her able to let lose and enjoy the pleasure we shared.

Even if I still felt her trust was a miracle I didn’t deserve, her body told me without words that everything she’d said about forgiving me was true. She had totally released all her inhibitions, letting me love her and letting herself feel that love without hesitation or fear.

“You’re so beautiful,” I told her in between kisses. “I love you so, so much.”

“Oh, Damian.” Her moans became more urgent, and her legs tightened around me. “I never knew making love could feel this good. I love you too.”

As if that was all either of us needed to hear, we rode into bliss together, perfectly joined, perfectly paired, everything the other one needed.

I had never been happier.

BELLA

I woke up to the sun being high in the sky. Honestly, I couldn’t even remember falling asleep the night before. Somewhere between the mind-blowing orgasm and Damian’s sweet kisses, I’d finally not been able to hold on any longer after going so long without sleep.

Unfortunately, the bed next to me was empty and cold. Without even his warmth lingering, I knew Damian must have woken up long before me. Grabbing the phone that Kyle had returned to me the night before, I pulled up Damian’s number.

Where are you, love? I typed. The bed is lonely without you.

A few seconds later, his reply came: I’m sorry for being a coward. I couldn’t wake you before I left. I love you so much, Bella. Turn on the TV to any news station. Hurry, it’s about to start.

Wondering what he had done, dread filled my stomach as I pulled on a robe and rushed out to the television set.

Damian’s face filled the screen and words across the bottom proclaimed Assemblyman Grogan had an important announcement. I spotted him tucking his phone into his pocket as the camera panned out. I should count myself lucky that he’d responded to my text, considering he was in the middle of a press conference. Just what was he doing? It couldn’t be good.

“Hello,” he said, smiling out into the crowd and somehow also finding the camera to include everyone watching. “I bring sad news today, but I hope everyone in New York will understand my decision and respect it.”

A hush fell over the gathered news reporters from wherever Damian was holding his press conference.

“I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my past,” he told everyone. “My wife is the loveliest, most forgiving woman I could have ever hoped to meet, but I don’t expect everyone else to do the same.”

I clenched my fingernails into my palms, not caring when I felt a sting of pain against them. “No, Damian. Please don’t do it!” Staring at the television, I knew there was nothing I could do to stop what was about to happen. He’d made his decision. I thought I’d talked him out of it, but I could already see how this was going to play out.

“Years ago,” he said, “I committed a crime. I robbed someone and hurt them on the street, nearly killing the girl. It turns out, years later, I met that girl again, and she became my wife. I’m so lucky that she survived because now, I can’t live my life without her. She begged me not to tell the truth about that night, but I have to pay for my crimes.”

Murmurs broke out in the audience as everyone processed what he said. Tears silently fell down my face. My phone went off, but a glance at the caller ID told me it was Kyle. I’d call him back when this was over.

“I’m retiring from politics,” Damian said, giving the camera a sad smile. “That goes without saying. I hope you’ll hold my father and mother in high esteem still, however. They had nothing to do with this and in fact only found out about it a few days ago when my wife was kidnapped by the very gang I had spent time with before. They are all in jail now, and I’m happy to report that my wife was rescued. It’s a happy ending, but now I need to atone for what I did in the past.”

“Assemblyman Grogan, what does your wife think about this? Is she divorcing you?” asked a reporter in the front row.

Damian gave a rueful smile, a look I wished I was seeing in person so I could slap it off his face. “Fortunately for me, my wife is the best kind of person. She forgave me and wants to stand by my side. Well, I’m sure right about now she wants to kill me, since she asked me not to turn myself in.” He chuckled, and the reporters followed suit. “Still, I can’t move forward without paying for my past. I hope she will understand that and wait for me to serve my time.”

“You dummy,” I screamed at the television. “Of course I’ll wait for you, but why didn’t you just do what I asked? Oh, Damian... I don’t want to be without you!”

“What will you do after you serve your time?” a reporter asked. “Do you plan to reenter politics?”

Damian smiled, shaking his head. “Even my wife doesn’t know this part, but I always wanted to be an artist, a painter. I never wanted to be in politics, but I truly care about people. When I committed that crime, it made me realize that I had a duty to help the public if I could, so I followed in my father’s footsteps. Now, Bella’s helped me to realize there are other things I can do to help people.”

He paused, staring straight into a camera, as though he were trying to talk directly to me.

“When I’m done serving whatever time is needed,” he continued, “I want to pursue being a painter as my main career. However, I’d like to continue the programs my wife and I were working on as part of my run for the Representative seat. I want to travel around the country, holding seminars for women, helping them learn to defend themselves and stay strong in the face of prior tragedy.”

Damian paused once more, an anguished expression covering his face for a moment before converting back to his professional smile. “I hope my wife will be with me every step of the way. She can continue working the programs for however long I’m in prison, but once I’m out, I hope she’ll still want me by her side so we can work on it together.” He turned to face someone behind him, and I saw James in the background. “That’s all I have to say. I apologize once more to everyone, especially Bella. I’m ready to go to the police station now.”

An officer stepped into the frame of the camera from where Damian had looked, and the camera panned out again to show them leaving the area while the reporters clamored for attention, trying to get more comments. I watched as James followed along behind, keeping the television on until Damian disappeared through a doorway and the view changed to show a reporter in the studio.

Switching off the TV, I wiped at the tears falling down my cheeks. I needed to get to the police station. I needed to talk him out of this. I could say he was delusional or something. There had to be a way to change this.

A knock on the door pulled me from my random panicked thoughts. Checking the peephole, I was surprised to see Sally surrounded by my entire family.

I opened the door, and Mom was the first to rush in, letting crutches fall to the ground and cradling me in a tight hug.

“You got out of the hospital?” It was a dumb question, but my brain wasn’t yet accepting everything that had happened, so I couldn’t think clearly.

“We wanted to be here with you when you watched that,” Mom said, holding me tight. “We got stuck in traffic. Kyle tried to call but you didn’t answer.”

“So that’s why he called.” I looked over Mom’s shoulder to the rest of the family and my friend. “Did you all know about this then?”

Sally nodded, gazing at me with sad eyes. “Damian called a meeting early this morning and told us all what he intended to do.”

“Why?” I asked. “Why would he leave me?”

Sudden sobs ripped from my throat and I didn’t try to hold them back.

The boys all stepped forward, the arms of my family surrounding me in a group hug.

“He’s doing it to strengthen your marriage,” Dad said softly. “He really loves you.”

“No!” I screamed. “If he loved me, he wouldn’t leave me!”

“Sis,” Kyle said, “he feels like he can’t love you the way you deserve until he pays for his crimes. You have to understand that. He wants a clean slate with you, so that your marriage can be strong.”

Brandon patted my back. “He wanted to tell you, but said he wasn’t strong enough and asked us to help explain. You can visit him in jail as often as you’re allowed. He wants that, he wants you to get to know each other more.”

“But,” Elias interjected, “he needs you to be strong and allow him to do this. He can’t move forward as things stand. He feels too guilty. He wants to love you without so much guilt. Paying for his crime is the only way he can think to do this.”

They were all right. I knew Damian had wanted to turn himself in. Even though we had loved each other so sweetly last night, even though I trusted him more than I’d ever trusted another human being, it wasn’t enough to assuage his guilt.

Blinking away my tears, I nodded at my family. “Fine. What do I do?”

Sally grinned, taking my hand and pulling me away from the family. “First off, let’s get you dressed. You’ll be the face of the program to help women, especially until Damian gets out. You have a lot of things to work on while he’s gone. You need to work out your fears and everything that goes along with what’s happened the last few days. Let’s focus on that and make you the best you possible over the coming time you’re away from Damian.”

She was right. They all were right. Damian needed to do this to move on. Besides, color me surprised, but he didn’t even want to be a politician! Everything he said repeated in my mind. He could pursue his true passion, which was apparently art. The two of us could stand together, helping women just as he’d wanted to do. Even if he had to spend ten years in prison, we’d get through this.

I could do anything for the only man I would ever love.