Pete felt like it had been days of waiting in the showpiece unit, vacillating between hope and fear. When he got Keegan’s text, with the picture of Dmitry out cold and in cuffs, he almost didn’t believe it.

Dmitry had been the most terrifying figure in Pete’s world for years. Keegan was a sleek trickster with a heart as big as the world. There was no way he could take on a guy like Dmitry.

They said a picture was worth a thousand words, and it would have been dishonest if Pete had said he didn’t like the sight of the man who’d put him through so much lying there in cuffs. Dmitry deserved it — but Pete couldn’t quite make himself believe.

A thousand things could go wrong. He would escape somehow. He’d been cuffed before and gotten out of it.

His gut told him not to believe it until Keegan walked through the door. As hours went by and Keegan stayed gone, he convinced himself he was right to not believe.

The worst must have happened. Dmitry had pulled one over on them. He’d tricked them. He’d fooled them all, escaped them, and he was on his way to kill Pete right now.

Pete wasn’t sure he cared at this point. Not if Keegan was dead. He had to protect Keegan’s child, though. If it was the only piece of Keegan left, he had to keep it safe.

When Keegan finally walked through the door, with nothing visibly wrong with him beyond a few raw, bloody knuckles, no one could have been more shocked than Pete.

He staggered over to the chaise, vision narrowed to Keegan alone. “I’m dead,” Pete declared, gaping at his lover. “I’m dead, and this is Heaven.”

Cooper walked in behind Keegan and looked Keegan over. Keegan’s terrible suit of the day was rumpled, as if he’d had trouble putting it back on. It was bright yellow and covered in three-eyed happy faces.

“If that outfit is your idea of Heaven, we’ll have to rethink this whole ‘reliable witness’ thing. Fortunately, we won’t have to worry about it as far as Dmitry is concerned.”

Cooper stepped to the side and helped Keegan off with his suit jacket. Was it Pete’s imagination, or was Keegan moving stiffly?

Keegan flipped Cooper off with a little grin. “Dmitry is dead,” he said. He didn’t take his eyes off Pete. Even though Pete was the taller partner, he felt tiny and protected in that moment, just from the way Keegan looked at him. “He went for his gun after he was cuffed. He’s never going to be able to hurt you, or anyone else, again.”

Pete threw himself into Keegan’s arms. He was free. When Dmitry was alive, he’d have been an ongoing danger from prison. Dead, his syndicate would crumble.

Some of the people working for him might still hold a grudge against Pete for his testimony, but they’d be too busy trying to consolidate their own power to go after him — or Keegan, or the baby. Pete and Keegan would still have to check in with Witness Protection from time to time, but in the main, everything was over.

Pete claimed Keegan’s mouth with a kiss. He needed as much of him as possible, kissing him and tasting him and breathing him in. He couldn’t believe it. He was desperate to trust his sudden emancipation, but he still didn’t dare.

“How?” he asked, when he came up for air. “I have to know how everything played out.” He pulled Keegan down next to him and rested his head on his shoulder. He’d never let him go.

Keegan smirked and flung an arm over Pete’s shoulders. “When I figured out Dmitry was a Hellion, I figured the best way to get to him was through the Club. My hope was that he would respect our traditions enough to come along peacefully, but I’ll admit to having a backup plan.

“He got mouthy about owning people, went for his gun, so I reminded him of a different tradition. I trusted he was arrogant enough to figure he didn’t need to worry about it.”

Cooper snorted. “Then you beat the shit out of him. It was almost funny, actually.” He looked them both over critically. “Look. Cupcake, here, stinks. He’s been fighting, hanging around booze. He needs a wash.

“And I’m sure he’s tired. It’s not like boxing is golf. I’m going to have some guys in the hallway, just in case, but other than that, the two of you are on your own for the night. We can talk about next steps in a couple of days.”

He left, leaving a couple of agents in the hallway. They were finally alone in their home. Pete could breathe Keegan in, give thanks for his alpha’s presence.

Keegan looked over at Pete. “He’s right about one thing. I do stink. I need a shower.” He held out his hand. “Care to join me?”

Pete took Keegan’s hand and followed. He didn’t know if Keegan would be up for anything more than a light scrub, but he wouldn’t let his lover out of his sight. He didn’t need sex with Keegan to appreciate the intimacy of sharing a shower, anyway. He just wanted to be close to the man he loved.

Once Keegan got naked, though, Pete could see whatever Keegan had gone through had not dimmed his ardor at all. His cock stood tall and proud, eager, as Keegan looked at Pete.

And whatever Keegan had done, it hadn’t been easy on his body. He had one bruise on his chest, on the lower right side. It looked painful. Pete could see an outline of Dmitry’s pretentious “seal” ring, right there on his rib.

Leave it to Dmitry to sneak in a weapon. Keegan’s arms had sleeves of bruises, up and down both sides. It was awful to see, and for a second Pete hesitated to touch him. He didn’t want to hurt him.

Pete had seen much worse. He had to remember that. These were defensive injuries. Keegan was alive, and Dmitry was dead. That was the important thing. That was what mattered, at the end of the day.

Keegan smiled at Pete and stroked his face. “Hey. It’s all good. Remember, every bruise you see is a hit he didn’t get to land.”

Pete ducked his head and blushed. “Is it that obvious?” Steam was already clouding up the mirror, for which Pete had to be grateful.

Keegan kissed him gently. “A little bit. Also, they do hurt. So they are on my mind, too. Don’t worry. You’re not telegraphing everything.”

Pete laughed and got out of his own clothes. “I’ll be gentle,” he vowed, and stepped into the hot shower.

Steam swirled up and around them as Pete reached for the washcloth and the soap. “I can wash myself,” Keegan told him with a little smile. “I’m not really hurt. I’m sore, not injured.”

“I know.” Pete soaped up the washcloth and got to work. He could do this for his alpha, his hero. It would feel good for them both. He could run his hands all over Keegan while the hot water and light stimulation helped with the aches and pains.

He started at Keegan’s head and worked his way down. The first thing to do was to work up a nice, gentle lather. He also wanted to massage those tired muscles, providing some relief to his hero.

He avoided massaging Keegan’s bruised arms, because that didn’t seem like a kindness, but he could soothe his back, his neck, his legs. For some reason, a reason he couldn’t quite understand but loved anyway, Keegan used a rose-scented soap.

Pete loved it. He inhaled deeply as he worked his way down Keegan’s long, muscular form, and then he let Keegan rinse off.

Then he sank to his knees. He liked to blow Keegan, just like Keegan liked to blow him, but this was different. He looked up into Keegan’s eyes, and Keegan stroked his hair.

“You don’t have to do this, Pete. I did it because I wanted to. Because I love you, and because it was right. And because it felt good.”

Pete huffed out a laugh. It probably had felt good for Keegan, at that. He liked to pretend he didn’t have the same urges as the less “civilized” alphas, but he was still an alpha underneath it all. The urge to protect the ones he loved was programmed into his DNA. It would have felt great to take down a man like Dmitry.

“I know.” Pete rubbed his cheek along Keegan’s erect cock. He loved the feel of it, the soft feeling he got from something so hard. “And you have no idea how much I appreciate the fact that you don’t just expect things, do you? That means the world to me.

“The thing is, I want to do this. Because I love you, and it feels right and good for both of us.”

And then he took Keegan into his mouth and swallowed him down.

Keegan was incredible at times like this. In public, Keegan was such an over-the-top, showboat-y kind of guy that a person would expect him to be aggressive or too pushy when getting head. He wasn’t.

He was always gentle and showed a lot of restraint. He could be even more controlled than Pete was at times. He didn’t force himself further than Pete was ready to take him or get rough at all.

He let Pete run the show, letting himself enjoy the ride. A lot of guys could take a lesson from Keegan.

Pete bobbed his head up and down, working his way down Keegan’s thick shaft. He kept his eyes on Keegan’s, even though he could easily get lost in the rhythm. He wanted to capture every gasp, every moment of delight that Keegan expressed only by widening his eyes.

Every time he swirled his tongue around Keegan’s cock, he got a choked-off moan that sent shivers up Pete’s spine. He loved this. He needed this.

Pete had been so scared, so worried, while he’d been waiting for Keegan to come back from the Club. He needed this to truly accept that Keegan had survived and returned to him.

He’d heard some guys say they needed sex to truly feel alive. He hadn’t understood until now, until this moment.

Keegan came with a bitten-off cry, shuddering and gasping. Pete worked him through it, and then he stood up, soaping himself quickly. “Can I take you to bed?”

“Please.” Keegan slumped against the tile wall of the shower stall, boneless with his release. The sight gave Pete a warm feeling deep in his soul knowing he had done that, all by himself.

He beamed and dried his alpha off. Then he brought him back to their bed. He curled in beside him and tucked them both in. Resting his head on Keegan’s chest, he signed when his alpha grasped his hand.

The sheets felt smoother, and somehow even more luxurious, now that Dmitry wasn’t hanging over their heads. The danger wasn’t eliminated completely, but tonight still felt like Pete’s first true night of freedom. He was proud to spend it at Keegan’s side.

Keegan hadn’t really expected all their problems to go away just by knocking Dmitry out in the ring. It was a nice fantasy, but not terribly realistic. Even Dmitry’s death wouldn’t solve everything.

Keegan had known that going in. It was why he hadn’t seriously considered a less-legal option when it came to his enemy.

Organized crime wasn’t about cut-and-dried solutions. People built networks, and those networks took a dim view of those who interfered.

Cooper took pains to explain that to both of them because he apparently thought they were both concussed bunnies or some such nonsense. Dmitry had been a big player, and the immediate threat from him was gone now. That was great, but Pete had given testimony about Dmitry’s organization, and the possibility would always linger that the people he’d left behind would come for him.

He would never truly be able to come out of the shadows and live a public life.

For the most part, Pete was okay with that. “I never wanted to be famous or anything ridiculous like that.” He shrugged. “I was a ballet dancer, but it was just a way to earn a living.

“I never expected to be Nureyev or anything. I’m too tall. I’m happy being a decorator and raising my kid.”

Cooper was surprisingly okay with Pete staying in New York, now that Dmitry was dead. Pete would still have to testify on occasion. Dmitry’s syndicate still existed, and its members would continue to grab for power and fall.

As they fell, they would be arrested and face trial. Those who’d already faced trial would appeal because that was a strategy everyone tried.

Pete soon gave up his decorating business, because he spent too much time in courtrooms to keep it a priority. Keegan felt bad for him. It was hard for most people to stop earning their own living. Cultural expectations were such that men especially were simply expected to earn their own living, and Pete certainly didn’t look at the stipend he got from Witness Protection as earned income.

Keegan did. As far as he was concerned, Pete had earned every penny, and deserved a raise besides. His opinion wasn’t the one that counted, though. It was Pete who needed to accept his new role.

Just as they’d expected, they would have to take reasonable precautions for the rest of their lives. Keegan had to learn all about checking for bombs and traps and making sure he hadn’t been followed.

Some of the kids he’d gone to school with had been the sons of foreign heads of state, and they’d learned all the same things. At the time, Keegan had thought it was all very exciting. Now it was just a huge pain in the ass.

It was all worth it to keep Pete by his side. The baby was a nice bonus to look forward to, but in reality, Pete was his top priority. He always would be.

Keegan wanted to do the right thing by Pete. They’d already talked about all the difficulties involved with marriage, and how they didn’t need a piece of paper to legitimize their love, or to force them to be faithful. Keegan stood by everything he’d said.

At the same time, he wanted to treat Pete right. He wanted to make sure Pete was protected if anything happened to him, and he wanted to make sure his child (or any future children) were taken care of, too.

Ordinarily, he would have reached out to Ty to get his advice, but Ty was still off limits. He trusted his brother, but the temptation to spill the beans and get their parents off his back would be too great.

Maybe someday, he would clue Ty in, and explain everything that had happened. Ty would have to be married with children of his own first, and safe from their parents’ importuning.

In the meantime, Keegan had to take precautionary measures to establish his relationship with Pete and paternity of their child. He thought about it long and hard, and then he went shopping. A few days later, he sat down with Pete, Cooper, and Gomez.

“We’ve already spoken a little bit about marriage. I want to treat you right, like the prince you are, and to make sure you’re taken care of. The thing is, I’m kind of worried about what my family would do.”

“You don’t like them very much,” Pete agreed. “But Keegan, they wouldn’t have to be involved. And we don’t need a legal document to prove ourselves to each other. We’re the only ones whose opinions matter here. Your parents can be as good or as awful as they want, but they don’t count.”

“They’re huge snobs. They’re happy to go to the ballet, but they’d never tolerate their grandchild coming from a ballet dancer. Not that I give a crap, but they’d harass you about it on the daily.

“And I’m worried that if anything terrible happened to me, they’d try to keep the estate from you and our little rugrat there.” He swallowed. “We can’t know the future, but we can try to plan for whatever happens.”

“Unfortunately, there aren’t a lot of other options.” Pete sighed. “And honestly, I’ve been married.

“I love you. I want to be with you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I don’t need a piece of paper to complicate things? What if things go bad and I have to run?”

“I’ll take out anyone who thinks about hurting you or our baby.” Keegan rubbed his raw, bruised knuckles absently. “But I see your point.”

He pulled his most recent purchase out of his pocket. It was a ring, in a small black velvet box. Pete paled when he saw it. “I want you to have this anyway.”

Pete’s stared, open-mouthed. “Keegan, we can’t get married. We literally just talked about this.”

“You’re right. Marriage is out, and kind of bogus anyway. But we can get engaged.

“We don’t have to tell anyone. Besides these two fine, upstanding witnesses, I mean. It can be our secret.

“We can be engaged for the rest of our lives. And if it’s a secret, we don’t have to do any stupid wedding planning. We don’t even have to pretend to do the wedding planning. We’ll be in that happy pre-wedding stage forever. All the good parts of getting married, with none of the stress.”

Pete stared again, and then he threw his arms around Keegan’s neck. “You’re amazing.”

Cooper and Gomez watched in stunned silence for a moment, and then they laughed. “Pretty slick, Cupcake.” Cooper wagged a finger at Keegan. “You did it in front of witnesses, so we can testify for Pete if your parents try anything.”

“Damn straight,” Keegan told them, and preened a little. He figured he’d earned it.

And so they got engaged. Keegan formally gave Pete the “show apartment,” and he moved into it full time. Although in reality, they both moved into it full time while Keegan kept the other place for show and storage.

Somehow, none of Keegan’s relatives picked up on the fact that Keegan’s apartment was essentially unoccupied. Even Ty didn’t notice, although Keegan guessed he could be excused. He had plenty of other issues going on, between ascending the ladder at his firm and fighting off their parents’ matchmaking attempts.

Pete’s testimony helped put more of Dmitry’s organization behind bars and keep them there. He helped to guide investigations and even wrote a book about Russian organized crime in the United States. Keegan considered filing a lawsuit to try to get some of Dmitry’s money for Pete and the baby, just in case, but Cooper put his foot down about that. It was too public and would put them at risk.

Pete grew larger and larger, but his pregnancy was essentially uncomplicated. Keegan was glad. He didn’t think he could handle if things went wrong somehow.

Their son was born at full term, an average-sized baby with a perfect temperament whom they named Tyler Peterson. Keegan doted on the little guy, who grew like a weed. According to Cooper, this was normal.

Keegan would have loved to be able to introduce his son to his brother, his namesake. He truly did feel badly about it. Circumstances still weren’t right.

He did tell baby Ty all about his uncle and his amazing exploits as a famous (or infamous) lawyer. When Ty did eventually marry, five years later, he told both of his children all about their two new famous uncles.

Cooper did, eventually, figure out who the mole was in the New York Marshals’ office. Brasier was a marshal in the middle of the pack. He’d been doing the job for nigh on fifteen years, and he’d been a stellar agent the whole time.

Five months before Keegan and Pete met, he’d gotten a visit from a guy from Brighton Beach.

Then his family had disappeared.

Keegan couldn’t be mad. If Pete and Baby Ty had been held hostage, he’d have done whatever it took to get them back, too. He asked Cooper to go easy on Brasier, but Cooper’s hands were tied.

Keegan sought out Brasier after he was terminated. The man was nervous at first, and with good reason. When Keegan explained himself, Brasier still didn’t feel a lot better.

He’d already been taken for a ride once. He didn’t want to get screwed over again. When Keegan made arrangements, no strings attached, for the education of the marshal’s children, and for a stipend for the guy’s maintenance, Brasier finally accepted the kindness and cried.

Brasier hadn’t wanted to betray the Marshals or Pete. He hadn’t had a choice. The same way the Marshals hadn’t had much choice about cutting him loose, either.

The only one who had a choice here was Keegan. He could either act out of instinct, and let the guy twist, or he could show mercy. He chose the latter.

Keegan would rather risk their parents trying to take Keegan’s money than Dmitry’s old associates coming after Pete and the kids. He certainly didn’t need the money for himself. In the end, he liked his life.

He was proud of Pete, and of baby Tyler. The way everyone thought of him as a playboy, when he had a secret life as a family man at home, made him laugh for hours sometimes. It was kind of like the ultimate bird-flip to his dad.

Most importantly, though, he and Pete had each other. They had their happily ever after, in a way that worked for them. Keegan didn’t care what anyone else had to say about it.