It was almost ten o’clock.

I was sitting in my home office, filling out random paperwork as I anxiously waited for Shelby to bring her ass back home. She’d been gone almost four hours, and it was taking everything in me not to march across the street and drag her back to the house. I hated being separated from her.

Especially when I knew she was less than a hundred yards’ away.

Lucca was asleep in his playpen five feet in front of me. After Shelby left earlier, I fed him dinner before taking him outside to play. The kid was full of energy, and he ran me ragged. He kept pointing at the neighbor’s tree house, wanting to explore it. I fully intended to build him one in our backyard. There were a couple of trees that would do the job. I also needed to get him a swing set, maybe even a sandbox. Shelby had a swing set at her duplex, but it was small. Not to mention, they wouldn’t be living there much longer.

Not if I had something to say about it.

Pulling my cell phone out of my pocket, I slid my finger across the screen a few times until I found what I was looking for. Typing out a quick message, I sent a text to Shelby.

Me: Are you behaving?

She responded in less than a minute.

Shelby: Why? Are you going to spank me if I’m not?

Smiling, I tapped out another message.

Me: Remember the cuffs, sunshine. Misbehave, and you’ll end up cuffed to the bed.

Again, she replied in less than a minute.

Shelby: I like that idea. Let me see what kind of trouble I can find.

Smartass.

With a chuckle, I tossed my phone onto the desk. Seconds later, my email chimed. Sliding my laptop in front of me, I clicked my mouse on the screen. I only had one unread email.

The subject read: Dixie Ann Mason, complete file attached.

My heart pounded.

This was what I’d been waiting all day for. Earlier that morning I’d requested a complete background check be run on Shelby’s mom. After hearing what she’d done to my woman and the hell she’d made her endure, I wanted to know everything there was to know about the worthless bitch. She was way out of my jurisdiction, but I’d find a way to deal with her. I already had a plan for Damien, but I didn’t have one for her yet.

That, however, was about to change.

Far as I was concerned, after what she’d done to Shelby and Lucca she didn’t deserve to live at all; much less freely. But to my dismay, I couldn’t kill her. Not without being sent to prison and in turn leaving Shelby and Lucca behind and unprotected. I could, however, find a way to send her to prison. A woman like her, I had no doubt she had plenty of skeletons in her closet. I just had to find them.

Cracking my neck from side to side, I opened the file.

At first glance, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Yeah, she had a rap sheet a mile long, but I expected that. She’d been arrested for a wide range of offenses including prostitution, possession, intent to distribute, aiding and abetting, assault and battery, grand larceny, and filing a false police report. Yet she hadn’t spent a single day in prison. From looking at her sentencing record, it didn’t appear that she’d spent more than thirty days in county.

Such bullshit.

Alabama’s judicial system was as broken as Georgia’s.

I started to get frustrated after scrolling through page after page of what appeared to be useless information. Nothing popped out at me, giving me a clue that there was something deeper to this woman than I already knew.

At least, nothing popped out until I got to the last page.

Staring at the first paragraph on the last page of the report, I squinted my eyes in disbelief. “No fucking way,” I whispered to myself. “That can’t be right.”

Pulling up another LE program, I typed in a single name. After clicking enter, I waited for the results of my search to filter onto the page, allowing me to cross-check the info from the original report against three other government agencies.

It must be a mistake. No way is this correct.

What are the chances?

Less than a minute later, the screen filled with information, and the truth hit me like a runaway freight train. Not only was the info accurate; it was damning for one person.

That son of a bitch!

Angry as fuck, I quickly stood up from my chair. It rolled backward, slamming into the wall behind me. I looked at Lucca, fully expecting him to be startled awake by the noise. He wasn’t. Little dude just kept on sleeping.

Hands fisted on the desk, I stared at the computer monitor. “I can’t believe this shit.” I shook my head back and forth as everything suddenly became crystal clear. “Now it all makes sense.”

I picked my phone back up and dialed the man whose name I was staring at on my screen. He answered on the third ring. “Yeah?”

The chipper sound of his voice made my rage skyrocket. Lowering my voice, I whispered into the phone, “I know your dirty little secret.” He remained silent. “I know all about your connection to Shelby, to Lucca.” My heart thundered. “Tell me, asshole, how do you think your precious Maddie is going to feel when she finds out the truth?” My chest felt like it was being ripped in half. “How do you think she’ll react when she finds out that you could’ve stopped it all? All the hurt, the pain, the damn suffering that her best friend endured could’ve been stopped”—I paused for emphasis—“if you’d only been man enough to do the right thing.”

He finally spoke. “Fuck, Moretti! You can’t tell, Shelby. Not yet. She’s to—”

I cut him off. “You can bet your ass I’m about to tell her. She deserves to know what exactly what kind of man you are. What kind of coward you are!”

“Don’t do this. I didn’t—”

“It’s too late for excuses,” I continued. “Because of you, the woman that I love was hurt. Lucca could’ve been ripped from her before she ever got a fucking chance to hold him! That’s unforgivable as far as I’m concerned.” It was the truth. “I just hope you’ve made your peace with God because I’m coming for you, Motherfucker.”

I ended the call and slammed my phone down on the desk.

My entire body shook with rage.

Needing to calm down, I walked around my desk and moved to stand beside Lucca’s playpen. Gripping the mesh covered rails, I peered down at the boy who was going to become my son. My chest swelled with pride just looking at him. He may not share my DNA, but he was going to share my last name.

Lucca Moretti.

Leaning down, I ran a knuckle from his cheekbone to his chin. “I’m going to take good care of you, piccolo principe,” I whispered. “Things won’t always be easy, but I promise I’ll do my best.” Swallowing around the lump forming at the base of my throat, I continued. “I may screw up sometimes, but I won’t stop trying until I get it right.”

He exhaled softly, then smacked his lips together.

“But I promise I’ll never let you down. Every baseball game, every school play,” I smiled, “every parent/teacher conference, I’ll be there.” It was a promise I intended to keep. My job wasn’t predictable, and I could get called away at a moment’s notice, but I’d figure it out. “And I swear on my life that I’ll never walk away. I’ll never leave you; never abandon you. Long as I have a single breath left in my body, you and your mama will never be alone, little dude. From now until the day I die, you’ll always have me.”

I’m going to give you everything your mother never had.

A minuter later, a throat cleared from the doorway, pulling my attention from Lucca. I looked up, and my eyes met Shelby’s.

“Hey, gorgeous,” I said, standing straight. “I didn’t expect you to be home for another hour or two.”

“I, uh…” she laughed softly, obviously affected by something.

Had she just overheard what I said to Lucca? I hope so.

“I just wanted to come check on, y’all. Make sure everything was going alright.”

Her words were slightly slurred, her eyes glassy. “You sloshed, sunshine?”

She turned to face me and held up two fingers. “Just a smidge.” Then she laughed again. “Listen, it wasn’t my fault. Clara made these drinks. One of them was called a Buttery Nipple. It has butterscotch in it. How the heck was I supposed to say no to that?” Licking her lips, she continued. “Lord they were good.”

“They?” I smiled. “How many did you have?”

“A couple.” She swayed on her feet as she carelessly shrugged. I stepped forward and wrapped my arms around her waist. “I think you’re more than a smidge drunk, baby.”

“I think you may be right, stud muffin. I—” She hiccuped before giggling. “Does that mean you’re going to take advantage of me?” My arms tensed around her and her smile fell in response. “Sorry,” she whispered. “Bad joke.”

My anger flared all over again.

Damien Black… his name bombarded my head.

He was at the top of my hit list. I couldn’t even think about what he’d done to Shelby, what he’d tried to do to Lucca, without feeling like my head would explode. Blackness began to consume me, and my hands shook as murderous rage overwhelmed every inch of my body.

The man had beaten, raped, and sliced Shelby’s body; scarring her forever.

Far as I was concerned, prison was too easy of a punishment for him.

He needed to die.

Placing my fingers under Shelby’s chin, I tilted her head back. “Why don’t you and I go downstairs? I need to get some food in your belly so you don’t wake up sick tomorrow.”

Her lips formed a pout. “I’m supposed to go back to the party.”

“Let me feed you first.”

Her eyes slid closed for a moment. “M’kay,” she replied softly. “But only if I get to pick what I eat.”

Bending down, I scooped her up into my arms. Her arms circled my neck. “You’re getting just as bad as Hendrix with all this carrying me around business.” Her warm body felt like heaven in my arms. “I can walk, ya know.”

“You’re not walking down the stairs while you’re blitzed.”

Grabbing the baby monitor, I carried Shelby out of my office and down the stairs. In the kitchen, I deposited her on one of the stools that surrounded the island.

“What do you want to eat, baby?”

She tapped a finger against her chin. “Hmm. Let me think.” Narrowing her eyes, she continued. “How about an apple? I want something sweet but not candy sweet. More like fruity kind of sweet.”

Without saying a word, I walked into the pantry. Grabbing both an apple and orange, I moved back to the island and pulled a knife out of the drawer. Blade in hand, I spun back around. “How do you want—”

At the sight of the knife I held in my hand, Shelby’s eyes widened, and her entire body froze.

Shit.

Knowing that I’d messed up, I tossed the knife into the sink and held my hands up in front of me, making it clear that I wasn’t holding anything. “Baby,” I said in a calm voice, “just take a breath.” I moved an inch closer to her. “I’m not going to hurt you.”

She blinked a few times before her shoulders visibly relaxed.

“It’s fine, sugar.” She stood from the stool and walked around the island toward me. Sliding her arms around my waist, she leaned her head against my chest. “You don’t need to walk on eggshells around me. I’m a lot tougher than I look.”

Of that, I had no doubt.

“But be warned—the next time you point a knife at me, I’m going to rip it outta your hand and stab you in the nuts with it. Then I’m going to douse you with kerosene and light a match.”

There’s my girl.

My hand instinctively dropped to cover my cock. “Genital mutilation followed by death via burning. You know how to deliver a threat, baby, I’ll give you that.”

She looked up and winked at me. “It’s only a threat if I’m talking shit. Which I’m not.” She pointed to the apple and orange I’d pulled out of the pantry. “Don’t we have any bananas left?”

I loved that she said ‘we’ instead of ‘you.’

Chuckling, I walked back to the pantry to check.

Luckily, we still had one banana.

“Here, gorgeous,” I said, tossing it to her.

She caught it in one hand and unpeeled it with the other. A sneaky smile spread across her face as she peeked up at me through her lashes. The little shit was up to something. I had a good feeling I knew what it was too.

Still smiling, she looked directly at me and slowly slid the banana into her mouth.

I knew what kind of game she was playing. Still, that didn’t stop my cock from coming to life. “Little tease,” I said, shaking my head. Her smile grew as she took more of the banana into her mouth and throat. For a moment, I worried she’d choke herself, but I knew better. “You keep messing with me, and I’m going to yank that banana out of your mouth and shove something else down your throat.”

She pulled the banana from her mouth. “Is that a threat?”

My jaw ticked. “Try it again and find out.”

Setting the banana on the countertop, she stood up. “Nah.” She moved towards me with slow, languid steps. “I changed my mind.”

Heart racing, I leaned back against the wall. “Oh really?” She nodded. “And what did you change your mind about?”

“I don’t want anything sweet anymore.” Her hips swayed with every step she took. “Suddenly, I’m craving something a bit saltier; something a bit more… meaty.”

She dropped to her knees in front of me and ran her hands up the front of my thighs. “I mean, if that’s okay with you.”

Like I’m going to say no.

Running my hands through her hair, I instructed her, “take my cock out, Shelby.”

She didn’t hesitate. Hooking her fingers into the waistband of my sweats and briefs, she slowly pulled them down. Her eyes grew more heated with each inch of me that was revealed.

Biting her bottom lip, she moaned as my cock popped free of my briefs. “Your cock is perfect.” I hissed as she wrapped her hand around the base. “If I could duplicate this and sell it,” she said, squeezing me harder, “I’d be a rich woman in no time.” Her tongue peeked out from between her pink lips. “But I wouldn’t let anyone have the real thing.” I held my breath as her mouth moved closer. “Because this one is all mine.”

My head fell back onto the wall as she took me deep into her throat on the first stroke. “Jesus fucking Christ!” I anchored my hands in her hair and held on as she took me to a place that I’d never been before. “Baby,” I moaned as she massaged my balls with her free hand. “You’re going to make me—”

I stopped speaking when I saw a shadow move outside the French doors to my left. “What the fuck?”

Startled by my reaction, Shelby pulled away from me and sat back on her calves. “What is it?” Her face twisted in confusion. “Did I do something—”

The shadow became clearer as I squinted my eyes. Suddenly, it raised its right arm. Fear instantly seized me as the glint of a gun flashed beneath the solar lights attached to my back porch.

The gun—a revolver from the looks of it—was aimed directly at Shelby.

Fuck!

I reacted instantly.

Knocking Shelby backward, I dove on top of her, shielding her body with my own. A second later, the sound of gunfire filled the air surrounding us.

Pop, pop, pop!

The glass doors to our side exploded, sending shards of glass raining down on us. I covered Shelby’s head and torso the best I could as she clutched my shirt in her hands and screamed in terror.

More shots.

Pop, pop, pop!

Bullets whizzed over our heads before embedding themselves into the kitchen cabinets surrounding us. One bounced off the tile, busting the ceramic into a dozen little pieces.

Shelby pushed against me and tried to wiggle out from under my body. “Stay down, baby!” I screamed, holding onto her tighter.

“Lucca!” She sobbed, hitting my chest with her fists. “Anthony get Lucca!”

As if on cue, Lucca’s terrified cries came through the baby monitor sitting on the counter. Shelby froze for a second before starting to hit me all over again.

“Damn it,” I cursed. “Hold on, baby. We’ll get to him.”

Her entire body shook as she sobbed and hit me harder. “Anthony get my son!” The shots stopped but I had a feeling whoever was outside wasn’t done.

They’re reloading. Move your ass, Moretti!

Jumping up, I pulled Shelby with me. Keeping my back to the door, I continued to shield her body with mine. “Shelby, run!” She took off for the stairs running at full speed. We’d almost made it to the foyer when more shots fired off. They narrowly missed us before busting through the dining room windows, shattering more glass.

“Damn it, Shelby, run faster!”

Her foot landed on the bottom step, and she rocketed up the stairs.

I followed right behind her.

Bursting through my office door, Shelby immediately ran to Lucca and scooped him up in her arms. After checking him over for injuries, she pressed him against her chest and ran her hand up and down his back. “Shhh, baby. It’s okay. Mama is here.”

“Get down,” I barked. “Keep your head below the window.”

Nodding, Shelby dropped to her knees.

I yanked open the bottom drawer of my desk and pulled out my gun box. Unlocking it, I lifted the lid and pulled out both handguns I kept locked inside. Slamming a clip into the first .45, I slid it across the floor to Shelby. She grabbed it with her right hand.

Pointing at the wall behind me, I said, “Baby, listen to me.” Her eyes were wide and filled with fear. “I want you to crawl over here and press your back into that corner.”

Again, she nodded and did exactly as I told her.

“When I leave, I want you to aim the gun at the door. If anyone but me comes through it, unload the clip into their chest. Got it?”

Her face dropped.

Stay with me, baby. Please don’t panic.

“Where are you going?” Her voice shook the slightest bit.

After taking the second .45 out of the gun box, I crawled over to her, handed her an extra clip filled with ammo, and kissed her once on the forehead. “I’m going hunting.” Next, I pressed a kiss to Lucca’s head.

Shelby didn’t say anything as I moved to the office door.

Once there, I listened for movement in the hallway and downstairs.

All I heard was silence.

Slipping out the door, I looked back at my family one last time.

Shelby had the gun pointed at the door just like I’d told her. “Good girl.” She licked her bottom lip. “Keep your aim steady, baby.”

Tears filled her eyes. “Tony—”

I pressed a finger to my lip, gesturing for her to be silent. “Take care of my boy until I get back.” I swallowed around the lump in my throat. I didn’t want to leave them, but I had to. I was confident that Shelby could protect herself and Lucca, but she shouldn’t have to. That was my job.

“I’ll be back.” I paused and inhaled. “I love you, sunshine.”

I softly shut the door without giving her a chance to reply.

A sinister smile spread across my face as I looked towards the stairs.

“Time to die, motherfucker.”