Chapter One
“This damn beard itches.”
Celina Davenport stifled a laugh, knowing her fiancé, Cooper Harris, wouldn’t appreciate it. The beard he referred to was white with elastic bands that held it in place. Underneath the brim of a red velvet cap she could make out a set of white bushy eyebrows they’d had to tape on, which, at the moment, were slanted down in a scowl.
A DEA Special Agent for the Southern California Violent Crimes Taskforce, Cooper was used to dealing with drug kingpins, gunrunners, and human traffickers. He had been on countless undercover operations, and witnessed some of the worst possible things one could ever imagine, but it was today’s event that had him sweating in his boxer briefs. Today Cooper would be playing Santa Claus for the Aslan Children’s Hospital holiday party.
“Well, I think you look sexy.” Celina wiggled her eyebrows, flashing a full on grin. Sexy was an understatement. He looked damn hot wearing that suit. Was it wrong to be turned on by Santa Claus? Well, if it was, then she didn’t want to be right.
Celina was well versed in the man beneath the costume. Cooper was always primed and ready for action. Thank God for that. He stood at well over six feet, with a broad chest and tanned complexion. When he wasn’t wearing a red velvet hat, his coffee-colored hair showed lighter, sun-kissed streaks from hours spent surfing and running on the beach. Known simply as The Beast to many, Harris exemplified the typical DEA agent—big, bad, and machine-like in his takedowns and arrests.
“Princess Via thinks so too,” Celina added for good measure, her hand taking a trip down the front of his red velvet coat. “She loves her daddy no matter what he’s wearing.”
As if she knew they were talking about her, their seven-month-old-daughter, Novia, cooed from the backseat of their SUV, her chubby legs kicking the bottom of her car seat. Cooper’s features softened at the mention of her name, and he leaned over the seat to wiggle his fingers at her. Celina inwardly sighed, her heart going soft. Cooper may be a big bad DEA agent, but one look from his daughter and the man was putty in the girl’s hands.
When Celina had first found out she was pregnant, she had been terrified to tell him. He already had a son, Owen, from a previous marriage, and she knew how much he hated that the dangerous aspects of his job sometimes spilled over and endangered Owen’s life. Introducing another child into their chaotic world was a huge risk, but in the end, he’d been thrilled by the news, and in true Cooper fashion, promptly proposed.
“Princess Via always thinks I look great.” He grinned when Novia grabbed on to his finger, promptly shoving it into her mouth. These days, pretty much everything went in there. “She’s a daddy’s girl, aren’t you, chica preciosa?”
“She’s a smart girl.” Celina’s wandering hand took a road trip south, skirting the fluffy white embellishments on Santa’s coat to the pants underneath. A grin curved her lips when she found what she was looking for—his impressive package hidden beneath yards of red velvet. She gave him a squeeze, receiving a throaty groan for her efforts. “I just hope Santa will pay me a visit later. If he isn’t too full on milk and cookies, that is.”
“No worries, my lovely soon-to-be-wife.” Always up for playing, Cooper found her mouth greedily, adding a bit of groping of his own by slipping his massive hand beneath her jacket to palm one of her full breasts. Celina arched into his questing hand with a sigh, her body instantly heated by his touch. That’s how it always was with them; all fire with no ice. Even with a seven-month-old, the desire between them burned as brightly as ever, if not more so. “Santa will come down your chimney and fill your stocking tonight no problem.” He paused to nibble her lower lip, sending a delicious shiver through her. “He’s got a package that requires a more ‘hands-on delivery.’”
“Mmm,” Celina drew back, licking her lips. A few more minutes of this and they would be late for the party, which would probably get them a whole lot of crap from the others on the team. “I’m counting on it.”
While Cooper grabbed stuff from the back of the SUV, Celina hopped out to unbuckle Novia from her car seat, easily lifting the child into her arms. She nuzzled the side of her neck, inhaling the sweet scents of lavender and baby powder. “Hey, Baby Girl. What do you say we go to a party, huh?”
Novia pumped her legs excitedly. She took after Celina’s Cuban-American side with her smooth, mocha skin, though her large brown eyes and dark hair came from them both. She wore a red holiday dress with white tights and black dress shoes for the party, complete with a red bow tied into her thick hair.
Celina laughed at her enthusiasm, brushing her lips over the little girl’s cheek. A sense of absolute happiness washed through her. She hadn’t thought it possible to love anyone as much as she did Cooper and Owen. Then Novia came along, and everything changed. “I’ll take that as a yes.”
“She’s a party animal already.” Cooper’s bushy white eyebrows slanted down even further. “I can feel the gray hairs starting to come in.”
“Oh shush,” Celina laughed, shooing him towards the front door. “She wouldn’t dare, not when she has you, her big brother, and the rest of the SCVC taskforce watching over her. The poor girl will be lucky if you guys even let her date.”
“Date?” his eyebrows went skyward in horror. “Jesus, I didn’t even think about that yet. Better keep my guns next to the front door until she turns twenty-one.”
“Only if you want my foot up your ass.”
The glass doors parted for them to enter, and they followed the signs to the cafeteria where the party was being set up. Because of a last minute ‘frisking’ Cooper gave her at the house, they were running late as usual. Celina just hoped everyone else was on time.
“Speaking of a foot being up my ass,” Cooper began slowly, as if he were measuring his words. “Got a call from that hotel we looked at, wondering if we were still interested in booking it for our reception. Have you thought any more about the wedding?”
Celina’s stomach tightened at the question. The hotel’s banquet hall was beautiful and would be perfect for a reception. She just couldn’t seem to bring herself to commit to it. She loved Cooper without question, and after everything they’d been through, they deserved to find happiness and finally get the chance to settle down. Only, she couldn’t seem to decide what kind of wedding she wanted, which held her back from making any final decisions. The little girl in her wanted the full-blown Cinderella experience with their friends and family to celebrate with. But most of Celina’s family was still in Cuba, specifically, her cousins and favorite aunt—Aunt Charo. There was no way they could make a trip to America to attend the wedding, and it broke Celina’s heart to not include them.
“Not yet. I will, soon,” she promised. God, she was beginning to sound like a broken record. How many times had she said those exact words to him in the past year? Too many to count.
In true Cooper Harris fashion, he wasn’t ruffled by her noncommittal answer. In fact, he almost seemed to expect it, which saddened Celina all the more. She hated that she couldn’t move forward with their plans. She hated even more that he was so damn understanding about it.
They stopped outside the cafeteria doors, and Cooper stole a look around to make sure they were alone before leaning forward and tugging his beard down to fully capture her mouth. “I’m a patient man, Celina Davenport. For you, I can and will wait.”
Before Celina could take full advantage of the beardless smooch, Novia squealed and grabbed hold of Cooper’s beard, giving it a good tug then letting go. The elastic snapped back against Cooper’s face, and he yelped, rubbing his cheek.
Their daughter’s untimely interruption was just the distraction Celina needed, and she burst out laughing. Novia, on the other hand, looked quite proud that she had made her momma laugh so hard.
“You’re lucky you’re cute.” Cooper fixed Novia with his most intimidating stare, but the infant wasn’t fooled. Her drooly, toothy grin said she knew she had her daddy wrapped around her little finger. Celina was pretty certain everybody knew it.
“I don’t think she’s afraid of you,” Celina laughed, moving Novia to her other arm so she could pull open the door to the cafeteria.
They paused at the threshold, taking in the winter wonderland in front of them. Snowflakes hung from the ceiling, garland and white lights twinkled from every post and eave, and in the center of the room was a large Christmas tree, the branches ready for the handcrafted decorations the children would be making at the crafting stations. Santa’s workshop and sleigh rested in the corner, brightly colored packages already being loaded on it. Every guest was to bring a toy for a child, which would then be placed into Santa’s sleigh. Later, Santa would visit the children and leave a present in their room.
A silent auction table was set up along the far wall, the table practically overflowing with gift baskets, floral arrangements and weekend getaways that had been donated for the event. This year’s theme was “giving back,” and the extra money raised would go towards families to help offset travel, food, and hotel costs incurred while their child was staying at the hospital for treatment.
Celina’s eyes bounced around the room, a smile curving her mouth as she recognized a few familiar faces. The entire SCVC taskforce had showed up to help, probably more due to Cooper’s ‘if I have to go, than you have to’ order than anything else. No one dared to argue when The Beast put down an order.
“I wish Owen could have come with us,” Celina said, bouncing Via on her hip as the little girl took in the surroundings with big eyes. Owen lived with his mother, but spent many weekends and several weeks during the summer with them.
“Me too,” Cooper said, wrestling with the diaper bag. “But I’m sure he’s having a good time with his friends at the basketball game.”
Across the way, FBI Agent Ronni Punto, Celina’s best friend and former partner, hailed them. She had amazing chocolate colored skin, dark expressive eyes, and hair that hung shiny and black around her elegant jawline and neck. When a psychopath had gone after Celina several years ago, Ronni had been put on her protection detail and ended up being stabbed—literally—in the back. It was nice to see her laughing and smiling again without the haunted look in her eyes, thanks in large part to the man standing next to her.
DEA Agent Thomas Mann, Cooper’s best friend and surfing buddy, had blond hair, blue eyes, and tanned skin from hours spent outdoors. Ronni had promptly nicknamed him Boy Scout after their first meeting. Thomas, no slouch in the sarcasm department, had dished the name-calling right back at her by using Ronni’s FBI creds to label her as Fabulous But Irritating. Unlike his nickname, though, Mann was no Boy Scout. He was two-hundred-pounds of tough male with the West Point cred and off-the-books special ops training to prove it. He’d been there for Ronni during her recovery, and was the only reason her friend hadn’t completely fallen apart during the aftermath.
With a rope of twinkle lights wrapped around his upper arm, ICE Agent Nelson Cruz stood in front of a large window, patiently helping Sophie hang white lights. Nelson was quick on his feet and didn’t miss a thing. He was what Ronni classified as the ‘dark and broody’ type. Celina had to agree. Sophie swore all the time that Nelson had put her under a spell, but Celina suspected it was probably the other way around.
Raised by her grandmother, FBI Agent Sophie Diaz, was often undercover in Mexico. Her long dark hair and beautiful skin spoke of her Hispanic heritage, and her big hazel-green eyes reflected her keen intelligence. The most fiercely independent agent in the FBI, Sophie had never considered herself a team player and preferred to work alone. Only known to a certain few, Sophie had occasional visions that always ended with a terrible headache.
Celina watched them all moving in unison, busy preparing the room for tonight’s event. It warmed her heart to have them here. Even though they grumbled about being ‘ordered’ to attend, she knew they would have come to help anyway. The taskforce was a tight knit group. They looked out for each other.
Cooper set his packages down and took Novia while Celina shed her coat, passing the baby back so he could help remove the wiggling infant’s parka. His dark eyes traveled the length of Celina’s elf costume, stopping at her pointy toes before traveling back up. She shivered at the hunger in his gaze, suddenly wishing they were alone right now. “You expect me to play Santa when you’re dressed like that?”
Celina grinned, doing a twirl so her skirt flared out around her green tights, thoroughly enjoying his reaction to her getup. “What’s wrong with how I’m dressed?”
“Absolutely nothing,” Cooper groaned, discreetly adjusting his pants against the tent his erection was creating, “except I’m going to have a hard-on all fucking night.”
“Poor baby.” Celina blew him a kiss and walked toward Ronni, knowing full well he would be staring at her ass as she went. After accepting hugs from Ronni, she took Via to the crafting table where Dr. Emma Collins sat with her four month old, Jett. A criminal psychologist, Emma always wore her dark blond hair in a long braid, and had brown eyes with green flecks that were usually hidden behind a pair of librarian glasses. Tonight she looked lovely in a dark green dress with red cardigan sweater, and Celina leaned in for another quick hug.
“Hey, Emma. You look beautiful! Hello, Mr. Jett.”
“Look who’s talking.” Emma rose, Jett in hand and the two babies reached for each other. “Seriously, Princess Via is only seven months and you have your figure completely back. You look amazing.”
Celina doubted that, but given Cooper’s reaction she felt pretty damn good. “So do you. I’m so glad you and your family made it tonight.”
Special Agent Mitch Holden hovered close by, as always keeping a wary eye on Emma and Jett, while he arranged crafting paper, glue sticks, and baggies full of sparkles in the center of the table. They were in charge of the crafting table for the evening, and Celina wondered if Mitch realized yet that he would be supervising a bunch of kids as they created ornaments for the Christmas tree. It would be chaos at its finest, and the perfect job for a guy used to working in threat management analysis.
“Hey, Mitch.” Celina gave him a wave. “Thanks for helping out.”
Mitch snorted. “Like I had a choice.”
“What he meant to say is ‘Hi Celina, thanks for inviting us.’” Emma rolled her eyes, though they sparkled with laughter. “Don’t mind him. He’s just grumpy because Jett kept us up last night. We’re happy to be here, just a bit tired.”
Aslan Children’s Hospital was a non-profit organization that relied heavily on generous donations from the public to support the families who come there. They were never charged for the treatments their children received, a feat in itself when healthcare costs continued to soar on a yearly basis.
“Sorry about that.” Properly chastised, Mitch’s face softened, and he moved to the other side of the table to give Celina a hug. “Em’s right, we’re happy to help.”
Emma smiled serenely, leaning into his side when he curled a protective arm around her shoulders. They were a great couple, their relationship having the same ups and downs Celina and Cooper faced. Dangerous drug cartels, undercover ops, and then the inevitable sleepless nights…she supposed anyone in their line of work was probably doomed to have a complicated relationship. Yet somehow, they still made it work.
“And we are happy to have you.”
Celina turned with a smile to greet her long-time friend, Amber Reynolds. For once the oncology nurse wasn’t wearing her work uniform of scrub pants and top. Instead she wore a form fitting red dress that sparkled under the twinkle lights overhead, her hair piled high on top of her head in a mass of curls. Amber was the reason Celina had gotten roped into the event in the first place, not that it had taken much arm-twisting. “Amber, thanks for inviting us.”
Amber returned Celina’s hug, her blue eyes shining brightly. “It’s you I should be thanking.” She cooed and made faces at baby Novia, who giggled, trying to grab on to her wiggling fingers. “And Princess Via is adorable as always, aren’t you, sweetie?” Novia gurgled her agreement and everyone laughed. Amber stepped back to survey the room again, looking pleased with how everything turned out. “Really, this place looks amazing. The kids are going to be so excited.”
“God I hope so, we’ve got enough glitter here to decorate the entire hospital.” Mitch held up a baggie, grimacing.
The women laughed, and Emma patted him consolingly on the shoulder. “It’ll be alright, Tough Guy. I promise not to tell anyone you were in charge of the glitter.”
Jett wailed in his mother’s arms, and both parents turned to comfort him. Amber and Celina stepped away from the table to give them room to calm the baby.
“Is everything set to go, then?” Celina asked, bouncing a wiggly Via. The baby wanted to get down and test out her crawling skills, but there were far too many people in the room for that to happen. Celina just hoped she could keep her occupied enough until the event started, then she would be hanging out with Jett in his playpen by the crafting table.
A flicker of worry crossed Amber’s face. “Yeah, I think so. Just a few loose ends I need to tie up.”
“Anything I can help with?”
Amber hesitated, and the worry knotting her brow deepened. “It’s not about the party. Just a patient, or a former one I should say.”
Celina swallowed, a knot forming in the pit of her stomach. “Did the child…pass?”
“Not yet, but she has acute lymphoblastic leukemia and was scheduled for a bone marrow transplant tomorrow.”
Why did she get the feeling there was a ‘but’ to this story? “Was scheduled?”
“Her father took her out of treatment a few days ago.” Amber blew out a sigh. “She’s only six and was undergoing the pre-surgery regimen when he checked her out AMA. There wasn’t anything we could do to stop him, and I fear without treatment, she could be in grave danger. I’m really worried about her—I’m wondering if she’ll even make it through Christmas.”
The doctors at Aslan worked tirelessly to deliver the very best care to their patients, and it burned Celina to hear a parent would endanger their child by checking them out against medical advice. Amber wouldn’t be able to tell her specific patient details due to privacy laws, so she didn’t even bother to press for more.
Celina put a hand on her friend’s shoulder, giving a squeeze. “I’m so sorry, Amber. I know how much you love each and every one of your patients. If there’s anything Cooper and I can do, please don’t hesitate to ask.”
Amber covered her hand, squeezing back. “Thanks. Sorry for putting a damper on things, I just can’t shake the disappointment over losing her.”
The cafeteria doors swung open and the West Coast Director of the FBI stepped inside. Victor Dupé was as charming as he was imposing. His jet black hair was always combed perfectly, he had a trim goatee that emphasized a strong jaw and cheekbones, and wore a suit like a second skin. In charge of all of the California taskforces, he personally handpicked his teams, all the way down to the support staff. He was also the only person Cooper hadn’t arm twisted into helping out tonight, so Celina was happily surprised to see him there. He closed the distance between them, nodding and speaking to various folks on his way to see Via.
“Victor, so nice you could come.” Celina smiled serenely as he pressed a kiss to her cheek and smiled wide at Novia. She stared up at the large man, her little eyes wide in her angelic face. Celina had to bite back a laugh, well imagining how imposing a man like Victor must seem to the seven-month-old.
“I heard the hospital was in need, so I came with checkbook in hand.” He patted his front suit pocket.
Celina introduced him to Amber, and though her sadness still lingered as she shook Victor’s hand, she managed a smile. “That’s generous, thank you so much.”
The fake smiled faded and Celina followed Amber’s gaze to a well-dressed, middle-aged woman across the room. “Um, Celina, would you mind showing your friend to the raffle table? I think Olivia is handling monetary donations. There’s someone I really need to speak with.”
Sensing her friend’s urgency, Celina nodded, shooing her away. “Go, do what you need to. I’ve got this.”
Olivia Fiorelli was next to the raffle table, and her eyes instantly lit up when they turned Celina’s way. Celina had recently met the US Marshal over lunch with Amber and had taken an immediate liking to her. She had a smile that lit up her chocolate brown eyes, and a voice that held a touch of New Jersey accent. According to Amber, Olivia’s Italian-American family had mob connections, but she had broken ties with them a long time ago.
With Novia once again wiggling in her arms, Celina leaned in to give the woman a quick hug. “Olivia, it’s so nice to see you again.”
“You too!” she exclaimed, though her eyes were on Victor.
The director seemed captivated by the pretty brunette as well, which was surprising since she couldn’t remember the last time Victor had looked at anything but work with that much interest.
“Victor Dupé, I’d like to you meet Olivia Fiorelli.”
Victor’s larger hand swallowed Olivia’s, and the pair mutely stared as though the only thing they could see was each other.
Hmm.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Director Dupé,” Olivia said. “I’ve heard a lot about you through the grapevine.”
“I hope it wasn’t all bad.” Victor flashed a most charming grin, propping a hip against the table so he could lean in closer. “I do have my good moments.”
Celina blinked. Was he flirting? It was hard to imagine the hardass director even knew how to. Had Celina not seen it with her own eyes, she never would have believed it.
Where was the mistletoe when you needed some?
“It was actually quite good, promise.” Olivia laughed softly. As if suddenly remembering Celina and Novia were still there, she tore her gaze from Victor’s, her cheeks turning slightly pink. “Amber told me you were helping out tonight, Celina. I’m so glad you guys could make it. Princess Via looks absolutely adorable.”
Novia gurgled her approval of the compliment, babbling something at Olivia no one could understand. Celina laughed, brushing the top of the baby’s silky hair with her lips. “I think Via said thanks.”
The doors to the cafeteria opened again, and more people streamed inside. Celina glanced at the clock. Yikes, it was almost time for the party to start. “Looks like I better get Via over to Emma and Jett before the kids start coming in.” She paused, looking between the pair. “Victor was interested in giving a donation, so I’ll leave him in your capable hands. Can we catch up later?”
“I’d love that.” Olivia nodded, her cheeks still pink as she smiled at him. Knowing when she wasn’t needed, Celina decided that was definitely her cue to go.
“Director.” Celina nodded to Victor and gave Olivia a little finger wave before making her way to the crafting table to get Novia settled in for the night.
It was time for the fun to begin.