I watch Ines sleep. Fucking shit, she’s been sleeping for almost forty-eight hours straight. My dad and Jade showed up early this morning. They took one look at her, and Jade cried. Ines is a mess, a mess of bruises and cuts. It’s a miracle that she didn’t break any bones. The doctor flat out told me that she must have a guardian angel with her. I happen to agree.

My phone rings and I glance down at the name. The police officer who was on scene and I have become quite acquainted with each other, and I’m glad for it. He knows it was Danielle who hurt Ines, who tried to kill her, and he’s been able to obtain a warrant for her arrest. Unfortunately, he hasn’t been able to find her. That has me completely on edge. I haven’t left Ines’ side, afraid that she’ll somehow bring her crazy ass in here to hurt my fiancée, again.

“I don’t want to believe that Danielle did this,” Jade whispers after about an hour of silence.

I shake my head, running my fingers through my hair and tugging on the ends. I’m sure I look like shit, and I probably smell terrible too, but I’m not leaving Ines’ side, not now and maybe not ever. At least, not until I’m assured that she’s safe.

“I wouldn’t have believed it, not in a million years, but she’s not the same person she was even a few years ago,” I admit. “She’s desperate. I don’t know why she thinks that me not being her husband, makes a difference in her promotions. As soon as I told her I wasn’t going through with that sham marriage plan of hers, she went off of her rocker.”

Jade nods, and then something flashes in her eyes. “Damn, I didn’t even think about it,” she says.

I try not to demand that she tells me what’s going through her mind, but I really want to know. Luckily, she relieves me of my curiosity a few seconds later.

“When we were young, she used to do coke, a lot. It was how she worked such long hours, and how she always got promotions over other people because her production rate was off the charts. Nobody really questioned it, it was the eighties, everyone was playing with blow recreationally. Danny wasn’t really recreational though, she lived for it. Only when she met you and tried to pursue you, did she slow down, but I highly doubt she ever stopped.”

I snort. “You think all of this is because of cocaine?”

Jade shakes her head. “No, but I have a feeling using it for so long built up a tolerance, and it’s expensive. She’s been paying for attorney fees. I bet she’s moved onto something different, something that would make her act irrational and crazy. You know, if I were a betting person, that’s what I would bet.”

“Like maybe, meth?” I ask.

Jade jerks her head with a nod. Christ. I would have never thought it, but damn if it doesn’t make sense. Rage fills my body yet again, it flows through me and I stand up, needing to expel some of my energy. I pace angrily.

Glancing at Ines every so often, I feel guilty and I’m fucking pissed. That bitch, she tried to kill my baby, that drugged out bitch, and it’s my fault. I didn’t know, I didn’t know that she was using anything. Jade knew, and I’m sure my father did.

Am I that blind that I didn’t know my own wife was an addict?

Am I that fucking stupid?

“You’re not stupid, Thomas,” my father murmurs.

I glance back at the sofa and notice that Jade is gone. “I’m not?” I snort.

“Fuck no, people live double lives all of the time. You hardly saw her; how could you know what kind of shit she was into?”

I think about his words, and he’s right, but I still feel like a goddamn moron.

“What happens if the police don’t find her? What will she do next, will she succeed?” I ask, voicing my fears.

My dad shakes his head, his eyes flick from Ines, then back to me. “She won’t succeed in shit, Thomas. They’ll catch her, and when they do, her ass is going to be locked the fuck up,” he grunts.

I want to believe him. I want that peace of mind, and I want it now. However, I’m not so sure, it’s been two days and they haven’t found her yet. Why haven’t they found her? When they do, and they charge her, I’m going to sit in the fucking front row at her trial. I’m going to gladly watch them drag her ass away to prison—with a smile on my face.

“Thomas?” Ines’ sweet voice calls out. “Gregory?” she asks, looking confused.

She hasn’t been awake much. She doesn’t know that my parents came here to see her and to help keep me from losing my shit. In all honesty, I’m about a second away from hunting Danielle down myself and dealing with her the way I see fit.

I hear my dad leave and the door click closed behind him. “We’re doing Christmas here, it’s been decided. My parents are staying until the holiday, and they’re going to help with everything,” I announce.

“Really?” she breathes. “I can’t ask that, I can’t ask them to stay here for that long, and what about Carter?”

I shake my head. “Don’t worry about anything. You are not traveling anywhere. In fact, after you leave this terrible hospital, you’re going home and staying tucked in bed until this baby arrives,” I state.

Ines’ eyes widen, and I watch as they dance, her lips turning into a smile. “That sounds awful, Thomas,” she giggles. “I will relax and take things easy, but there’s no way I’m sitting in bed for the next seven months, not unless the doctors demand it. I would go insane, Papi.”

I grunt, wishing she would just do what I say, but I know she won’t. She extends her palm and I quickly close the distance between us, slipping my hand into hers. “I love you, Thomas. Thank you for taking care of me.”

“If it wasn’t for me, none of this would have happened.”

Ines shakes her head, bringing my hand to her cheek and placing a kiss on the back of my palm. “You’re right, if it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t be blissfully happy. I would be absolutely miserable, and how much would that suck?”

I chuckle lightly, bending down and brushing my lips across hers. “I’ll keep you both safe, always,” I whisper against her lips.

“I know you will,” she replies.

* * *

Jade’s eyes widen, and she presses her lips together. Gregory and Thomas are attempting to put up a Christmas tree, and do it as straight as possible. Unfortunately, they’re arguing more than they’re working. It isn’t an ugly thing, they’re bickering and it’s kind of cute to watch. They both want it to be perfect, unfortunately they both have different ideas on how to achieve that.

I’m lying on the sofa, wearing a thick hoodie, leggings, wool socks, and I have a warm blanket wrapped around me. It’s not that it’s even remotely cold in the house, especially with the fire burning, but being wrapped up makes me feel safe and cozy.

“Now, I’m heading into town to grab ornaments and Christmas decorations, is there anything any of you need?” she asks, turning away from the men to look at me.

I shake my head. I can’t believe Christmas is next week, and here I am too sore to help with much of anything. I also haven’t bought a single present, not that I have any of my own money to do so. “I’m going with you,” Gregory grunts.

“You hate shopping,” Jade states.

He gives her a sharp look and she widens her eyes. I know why he’s going with her, and I hate it. Danielle hasn’t been found yet, and although nobody has been talking about it, there’s an undercurrent of worry in this house.

Thomas and Gregory finish straightening the tree without another word. Ten minutes later, Thomas’ parents are out of the house and we’re alone for the first time since I was released from the hospital three days ago. Thomas doesn’t waste a second, he walks directly to my side and sits down on the edge of the sofa cushion.

“How are you feeling, do you need any pain meds?” he asks, lifting his hand to cup my cheek.

I shake my head, wrapping my fingers around his wrist. “I’m okay. I actually feel better today than I have since it happened,” I admit with a smile.

Thomas nods and lowers his mouth, pressing his lips to mine in a gentle kiss. I want more, but I move my body too quickly and a sharp pain rolls through me. I whimper and lie back down, wishing all of my aches and pains would magically disappear. “Your ribs are bruised, sweetheart,” he says, lowering his face to place his lips on my forehead.

“I want you,” I whine.

Thomas chuckles and shifts, running his nose along mine. “Maybe if you’re feeling better tomorrow you can ride me? I’ll do all the work.”

“Well isn’t that fucking sickening?” a voice asks.

Just the sound and the tone sends a chill down my spine. I know exactly who is in our house—uninvited. It’s Danielle. I would remember her voice anywhere from that time she cornered me in the bathroom the night of my engagement. Thomas shifts before he stands, his body held rigid and tight. I feel something against my hand and I look down to see his cell phone, as he passes it to me. When he shifted, it was to take his phone from his pocket.

“What are you doing here?” he asks her.

Danielle snorts. I hold my thumb over his phone, and when it asks me for the passcode, I touch where the word, emergency, is located on the bottom left of the screen. I won’t be able to say anything, but hopefully they’ll send someone out here if I leave the call on for long enough.

I can faintly hear the dispatch operator asking questions. I glance over the sofa to see if Danielle hears as well, but her wild eyes are bugged out and I honestly don’t think she knows where she is, she looks like a mess.

Her hair is a dirty, tangled, mangled disaster—nothing like the woman in the bathroom all those weeks ago. When I met her then, she looked put together, gorgeous, and refined. Right now, she looks exactly like an addict. I watch as she scratches at her arm, then her neck, and finally her cheeks. Her face has open sores all over it, and I cringe. She looks gaunt and sickly.

“This little bitch, and you, the both of you ruined my life,” she cries.

Thomas shakes his head. “Did you not get your promotion?” he asks. “Because of me?”

“I couldn’t get it. I took too much time off, my performance had gone down, and all I could think about was the fact that you didn’t do what I wanted you to. You promised to take care of me, always, and you didn’t. You hung me out to dry,” she screeches.

“Danny, I didn’t hang you out to do anything. We haven’t been married for a long time, not really. I just, I fell in love, and we needed to end our sham of a union. It was well past time.”

Danielle reaches into her hair, tugging on the messy dirty pile, and then she moves her other hand and points a gun at Thomas. I suck in a breath, my heart beating so rapidly that it’s taking everything inside of me to concentrate enough to hear her words.

“Put that fucking gun away, you crazy bitch,” Thomas grinds out. I’ve never heard him sound so angry before, or his voice so loud.

Danielle cackles. “Or what? You’re nothing but a fucking pussy, Thomas. You won’t do shit. Maybe I’ll kill the little bitch in front of you. What would you do then?”

Thomas grunts and I watch in horror as he quickly jumps over me, over the sofa and lands on top of her. I let out a scream, and put my hands over my eyes, afraid to look at what will happen next. I expect to hear a gun blast sound, but I don’t. There is grunting, screaming, and thumps, but no gunshot sound.

Slowly, I remove my hands from my eyes, and I see Thomas on top of Danielle. She’s face down on our floor, he’s straddling her hips and holding both of her hands behind her back. My eyes dart around for the gun, and I see it across the room.

I open my mouth to ask him if he’s okay, his chest is moving quickly as he attempts to catch his breath and he has a sheen of sweat covering his face. As soon as I find my voice, the sound of sirens fill the air.

The police run inside, guns drawn. Thomas follows their orders as the policeman I recognize from the hospital, the one who questioned me a few days ago, appears as well. He makes his way over to me and asks me what happened. I tell him in detail everything that I can think of and he nods. “You did great calling dispatch,” he murmurs.

A few minutes later, Thomas rushes to my side and wraps his arms around me in a huge hug. It hurts, my ribs protest but I don’t care, I welcome the pain because he’s alive—we both are. We’re alive and that crazy woman is being hauled off in handcuffs.

Thomas presses his lips to mine. I moan as soon as his tongue slips across the seam of my lips, my mouth automatically opening with the gentle touch. One of his hands fists in my hair and holds me in place while he takes over the kiss, filling me, fucking me with his tongue. I welcome it, all of it, because it proves that we’re okay.

He lifts his lips from mine, nibbling on my bottom lip before he mutters against my mouth. “It’s all over now, angel eyes. It’s done.”

I let out a breath, which sounds more like a whimper than anything else and my eyelids slowly open. I give Thomas a small smile, and I exhale, leaning back against the sofa. “Can we start our future now?” I whisper, still smiling.

He winks. “We’ve already begun, sweetheart, this was all just a tiny bump in the road. It’s over now, and we move the fuck on.”

We move on. Simple as that. I’m not sure that it is exactly that simple, but I like that Thomas feels as if it could be. I know that this mess with Danielle it isn’t over yet. This is something that will probably linger for a while, but the fear is now gone. I’m safe, Thomas is safe, and our baby is safe.