Dark Justice (Croft Family Mob Series Book 1) (35 page)

When he saw her, as usual, she stole his breath.

Emma always dazzled him with her attire, but this year, she stole the show. She wasn’t wearing last year’s dress.

No.

She was wearing something bordering on a regal scandal.

He loved it.

The artfully draped gauzy material wrapped around her body, showing peeks of skin she’d rubbed with a glittery lotion. She sparked as flashes of skin caught the attention.

Greyson could feel his body reacting from that alone. He couldn’t wait to get her home later and unwrap her. She was going to be his present.

Holding out his hand, Emma went to him. When she was within his reach, he pulled her against his body.

His mouth sought hers.

The kiss was heated, filled with lust, and spoke volumes of what they had between them. Her hands slid up to the speckled gray at his temples, and through the black silkiness.

He moaned when she bit his lip.

“You look beautiful, kitten,” he whispered in her ear.

And it was truth.

His fingers touched the elegant up do she’d done to her hair. The crown Randall had given her was there, woven among the red of her hair. It was studded in place with the green gem pins he’d bought her.

“You’re not wearing my ‘C’ necklace,” he stated.

“I know you. You’ve got something in your pocket, even if you’re happy to see me.”

He laughed.

She was right about that.

He pulled the box out, and handed it to her.

Emma opened it, and there was the loveliest necklace she’d ever seen. Greyson had gone with Emeralds.

She knew he would.

“Will you help me?” she asked.

He placed it around her throat.

It hung there in true beauty.

In the limo, which they’d be taking alone, simply because he wanted to molest his woman, he had one more gift.

Emma turned when he was done with the clasp.

“I’ll never love anyone as much as you, Emma. You’ve always given me all of you, even when I didn’t deserve it. You’re all I could ever want.”

She knew that wasn’t true.

Greyson wanted so much more, and she had the power to give it to him.

“We should go,” Dimitri offered. “We have a busy night.”

Greyson glanced over at Curtis. “Is everything handled?” he asked.

Earlier, Dimitri tasked him with a few things to make sure their bases were covered.

“Yes, you’re good.”

“Great.”

They headed out.

As Greyson went to lead Emma from the room, she stopped him.

“Yes, honey?”

She stared up into his eyes. “Promise me that you’ll be safe tonight. I don’t know everything about tonight, but promise me that you won’t let them win.”

He knew what she was asking.

There was a fine line between protecting his family and going full on retribution.

“I’ll be safe. I promise no one is ever taking me away from you, Emma. You’re my wife. I’ll always come home to my woman. This soldier has a mission.”

She knew.

That was the issue.

Greyson was slipping back into that role of Captain Croft, and it was worrisome.

The military had sucked him in years ago. She knew he wasn’t happy with the man it made him. The FBI gave him that control back, and she could see it going south really fast.

“I love you, Grey—with all of me. I’ll give you anything you want, just promise me you won’t let it eat away at you.”

He could do that.

“I swear. I won’t.”

She kissed him softly on the lips.

“Are you coming?” Dimitri asked, walking back into the room.

“Don’t you let anything happen to him, Dimitri,” Emma stated. “If you do, heads will roll.”

He believed her.

Emma walked out.

“You have a mommy,” he teased, getting a grin in return. “How embarrassing for you.”

“If I get hurt, guess who’s going to be kissing my boo-boos,” he teased, “with her mouth.”

He stopped laughing.

“You have a very valid point.”

Croft laughed.

“Come on. We have shit to get done.”

And they did.

The family was striking back.

One asshole at a time.

             
         
* * *
  G r e y s o n   C r o f t   * * *

When Steele and Dante came to check on Chris, Natasha was trying to get him out of the tub. She’d drained the water, but he was a ton.

She couldn’t budge him.

She was going to need help.

“Dante, can you help me?” she asked.

“You want me to carry a wet man to bed? Gee, it’s like you knew I was coming.”

Steele stared at him.

“Really? Divorced before the wedding?”

Dante snorted. “Yes, dear.”

It took all three of them to get Chris on his feet. He was groggy, but once up, he was manageable. They helped him to bed and tucked him in.

“When he finds out I saw his guy parts, he’s going to freak out,” Dante admitted. “And my night gets better.”

“Yeah, not for much longer,” Steele offered, checking his pulse and looking under his eyelids.

“He’s zonked out. What did you give him?”

She told him.

“That’s like a horse pill,” he stated laughing. “We could draw pictures on him, and he’d never know.”

“Is that an option? I’ll get the markers,” Dante offered.

“We’re not drawing on him,” Natasha said, drying him off. “He needs to rest. I’ll stay with him tonight, Steele.”

“I can check on him.”

“He’ll be well taken care of, but thank you.”

Dante elbowed Steele.

He got it.

Nat was going to play nurse. They weren’t needed. It appeared that she was marking her territory. This was going to be interesting when Dimitri got wind of this.

“Want to retire?” Dante asked, holding out his hand for Steele.

“You joke about naked men and then want me to hold your hand? Really?”

He tugged him into his body and kissed him. When he was done, he touched his cheek when he smirked. “You can’t say you don’t love me. I make you smile.”

He gave up.

“You make me smile.”

Dante dropped his arm over his shoulders and led him away. “Nat, if you need us, call.”

“I will.”

When they were gone, she began taking care of the man in the bed. He was still naked and a little damp from the bath. Gently, she wiped his body.

The scar on his chest horrified her.

They’d come close to losing him.

Natasha ran her fingers over his chest, barely touching the scar. She loved the way his body felt beneath her fingers. There was a light scattering of hair running straight down his abs and to his groin.

How she longed to trace that trail with her lips and tongue. One day, she hoped he’d let her touch him.

Being this close to him was maddening.

With a gentle kiss, she placed her lips against him. She knew it was wrong to steal it, but she had to do it. Whenever she was near him, Natasha was compelled to do it. The second her lips touched his, the feel of skin on skin caused a reaction.

Not only in her.

He must have felt it too.

He moaned, whispering her name, and she loved the way it sounded. It was the most beautiful word in the whole English language.

She cherished it.

“Natasha.”

Her heart skipped.

He was dreaming about her. Gently, she left a face full of kisses across his rough skin. She loved the whisker feel against her lips.

It turned her on.

“I’ve got you, Captain. You’re mine to protect. You may not see it yet, but I’ll always keep you safe. You own my heart.”

She spoke softly in Russian, declaring her feelings for him in his ear.

Again, he whispered her name.

Only, he surprised her.

It wasn’t her new name.

It was the name she’d been born with all those years ago.

“Anzehlina.”

Her eyes filled with tears. “I’m here, Christopher. I’ll always be here.”

It was the truth.

She made her vow.

With that, she curled up against him to keep him warm, and so she could memorize his scent.

That was how she got through her days.

And very long nights.

Chapter Twenty

Greyson opted to take two separate limos to the party. Yes, they would have both fit into one, but honestly, he wanted to molest his wife.

Sue him
.

This night brought back memories. This was the same exact limo where he had his wicked way with her a year ago, and he planned to do it again. Actually, he planned something more. Reaching into the console, that called the driver, he pulled out a box.

“What’s that?” Emma asked, glancing down at the simple velvet cube in his hand.

“It’s something for my wife. I wanted to give it to you privately. This seemed like the perfect moment.”

Emma stared at him. “Uh, okay. You just gave me a necklace, so I think you covered everything.”

“This is something I want you to have.”

He handed it to her.

“Open it, Emma.”

She took the black box and popped it open. Inside was a crazy big engagement ring.

Crazy wasn’t the word.

No.

This diamond was sick.

She had to stare at it for a good thirty seconds even to comprehend it.

“I want you to marry me again. The first time, it’ll always be special, but I want to have a wedding with our family, friends, and everyone else. I know now that eloping to Vegas, while a good option at the time, it’s not what my wife deserved. I want to see you in a white gown, carrying flowers, and me weeping in joy at you walking down the aisle to me. I want to show you that I’d marry you every year on our anniversary.”

“Greyson.”

“The ring I bought you before was nice, but that was the ring of a public servant. I want to put a ring on your finger that is insane.”

“I don’t need a bigger ring, Grey. You know I don’t care about any of this.”

“Yes, you do need a bigger ring because with each year, my love grows. Like that first ring, it was nothing then compared to now, Emma. I’m not sure how I ever went to work each day, leaving your side. You’re my everything. Let me remarry you again, and this time, let me do it right.”

She touched his cheek.

If there was one thing that was true about her husband, it was that he didn’t do anything he didn’t want to do. If he was buying her a ring and asking her to remarry him, it was something he needed in his life. She would do anything to make him happy.

If he wanted a wedding, she’d give him one he’d never forget.

“I love you, Greyson. I’ll marry you again. If you want a big wedding, then let’s have one.”

He touched her cheek. “I want the world to know you’re mine, and forever.”

“I’ve been yours since the day I was born, Grey. I was simply waiting for you to come into my life. We were always meant to be. It never worked for either of us because this was supposed to be the ending to our story. You’re my Prince Charming.”

His heart skipped.

He couldn’t love her more.

“May I slip it onto your finger?”

Emma took her old rings off and handed them to him. She had a plan for them in the future, and it was part of what she was going to discuss with him.

“I’m ready. Propose, Captain Croft. You’re girl wants to get hitched.”

He grinned.

Emma swore he was a wicked pirate with those sexy gray eyes, the scar on his cheek, and the smirk. Yeah, she loved that cocky grin.

It’s what made him…
him
.

Greyson Croft was definitely a sexy man.

As they drove toward the venue, he knelt before her. “The caveman needs a cave babe. Move in, we’ll make fire, and live happily ever after.”

She laughed so hard at his proposal. It was nothing like his first one, and that made it even more special. They’d changed a lot in the last year. They’d grown, and here was the proof.

“Yes, caveman, I’ll be your one and only cave babe. I’ll marry you again.”

He slipped the ring onto her finger, and then found her mouth with his. The kiss was just like that first time he’d built up the nerve to do it. There was that underlying heat that rushed through him like wildfire.

That first kiss sealed the deal.

He knew then that she was going to be the woman he married. She was going to be his wife, forever.

Pulling her into his lap, they continued kissing until Emma pulled away.

Greyson was a little shocked. She generally let him drive the make out bus. Now she was putting on the breaks.

That didn’t seem right.

He was wearing leather pants for her.

He’d gotten her a gorgeous bauble.

Yeah, next came sex in the limo.

It was pretty predictable.

“I actually need to have a talk with you.”

And that sucked the fun right out of the moment. Women only said that when bad things were about to happen.

“Is it about the strip club?”

She laughed. “No.”

“Is it about what Dimitri and I are going to do tonight to get retribution for the family?”

“No.”

“Then I’m clueless because you didn’t let me have that muffin, and I skipped lunch, so I should be good.”

“Actually, that’s part of it.”

“Oh, crap. You’re taking my muffins away for good, aren’t you? Emma! You already took bacon. I served my country. I’ve been shot. Dying by porky goodness isn’t a sin. I swear. I’ll go happy, and grease covered.”

Now she was shaking her head in amusement at her sweet husband. He had given up bacon for her. Well, she was going to give him something back.

“I want you to start detoxing.”

“Why?”

“I want to start trying to have your baby.”

He stared at her, much like she first stared at the ring when it came out of the box.

“Wait. What? Did you just tell me that if I give up muffins, you’ll grow us our own little muffin?”

She laughed. “Yes, in a less weird way, Grey.”

He stared at her, praying she wasn’t yanking his chain. He really wanted this in the worst way possible. It was funny, but his biological clock had started ticking.

“I think you’re right, Greyson. We’re in a better place now. Normally, no one is trying to kill us. Hopefully, that remains the same over the next few months. While we have some shit coming, it’s the best time to start our family—well, one we grow. We already have an amazing family.”

“Are you being serious?”

“I want you to have that same joy as Curtis is having. When he looks at Kat, you know he’s smiling about the life they created.”

He did watch Curtis and think that.

More importantly, he wanted to create a life that was half him and half Emma. Greyson was pretty sure that would be one hell of an amazing baby.

“I’m ready to be a father, but you have to be ready to be a mother, Emma. This can’t be about me.”

“I have a secret.”

“What?”

“I want to be a mother before I’m a grandmother. It feels weird, like I missed out on something.”

“I think we are missing out on something pretty amazing. While I know I can’t possibly love you more because you own my heart, I want a little one that’s us. I want to really be someone’s daddy.”

She opened her mouth.

“Don’t go there.”

Emma started laughing.

“Don’t get me wrong. I can’t wait to hold Curtis’s child, but I want to hold my child too,” Greyson admitted. “The last year has taught me so much. We’ve nearly died, we’ve been knocked down, but we keep getting up. Parenting is just like that. Only we can afford nannies to help keep us from screwing this up.”

She started laughing. “Well, I’m not saying that I won’t have a nanny, but we will need help. We’ve been working on this case and running around. Are you sure this is what you want to do?”

This was their new adventure.

This was the next page in their life.

Now he was all about the family—growing it, fostering it, and making it unbreakable. What more to cement their world than his progeny?

“I want to do this. I need to do it, Emma.”

She reached into the front of her dress and handed him the pack of pills. “Toss them out the window. The fun begins.”

He grinned wickedly, and then snapped the case in half, right before rolling down the window.

Then he tossed them.

He went to kiss her.

“Wait.”

“What?” he asked.

“I need one hundred thousand dollars.”

He stared at her.

“Holy hell, woman! I didn’t think this was going to be a business proposition. Should I negotiate that down, or just break out the dollar bills you’ll need to earn.”

She slapped him.

“You have stripper on the brain, and it’s not for me.”

“Are we being bribed?”

“No.”

“Paying for the wedding?”

“No.”

“Well, I can’t imagine what it’s for then, but you don’t have to ask me since you have access to all of our money.”

“Aren’t you curious?”

“Hell yeah, I am!”

“I want to give it to Paris and Tessa. She told me they’ve been trying to have a baby, but she thinks it’s not going to happen. They need to do it artificially, and that’s really expensive. They left their careers in the FBI for us, and we need to make sure we take care of them. They are our family too.”

He didn’t disagree.

In fact, he loved the idea.

They didn’t need the money, and Dante was accumulating more and more every day. It was sitting in a bank.

Why not put it to good use?

A baby for the Archers was the perfect way to spend it. They were investing in family.

“I want all of our family to feel this joy. I can’t stand thinking that if we get pregnant, and Kat is pregnant, Tessa might be hurt. I don’t want her to feel that, and I know it’s stressing Paris out. He’s blaming himself. You can tell he is when he’s watching her. He looks like he’s let her down.”

Since his injury was on Greyson, it was only right to make sure that Paris, Tessa, and any children they had were taken care of in life.

Croft owed them, and he always paid his debt.

He loved Emma for her heart. She was so sweet, that he probably didn’t deserve her.

NO.

He knew he didn’t.

Greyson kissed her softly on the lips.

“If you ever needed proof, here it is. You’re going to be a good mother, Emma. Don’t ever doubt that. You’re so compassionate and caring. Our child will be so lucky.”

“So I can have it?”

“Technically, it’s your money. I should be asking you. FYI, I paid a lot for that ring. Don’t lose it.”

She snorted.

“Well, then we should make everyone’s dreams come true.”

He agreed.

But first…

“Let’s start with mine.”

He tugged her back to his chest, his large hand locking her mouth to his. The kiss was incredibly hot, and Emma could feel the goose bumps racing across her flesh.

Emma wasn’t going to be outdone—not when it came to the man holding her in his arms.

She gave as good as she got.

When she tugged on his lower lip with her teeth, Greyson moaned.

His hands wandered across her body, leaving nothing untouched. Her hands were beneath his shirt, running her fingers through the scattering of chest hair.

He was hard beneath her.

“You make me crazy,” he muttered, taking her mouth again. Only his Emma did this to him. No woman would ever have this power over him.

She was his true love.

“Grey,” she whispered, as his mouth trailed down her throat to her neck.

He left little bites there, sending shivers through her body. Emma wanted more—so much more.

Then the limo stopped.

“Shit!”

Their only saving grace was that
‘Croft 1’
was second in line to empty out.

They had enough time to pull themselves back together again. Greyson made sure his wife was fixed and not all messy. She did the same for him, wiping the lipstick from his mouth and straightening his shirt.

“You look as handsome as ever, Mr. Croft.”

“And you, my lovely wife, are gorgeous. I can’t wait to see you carrying my child.”

He couldn’t help it.

It was primal.

It made him want to drag his woman back to his cave and take her all night long. His girl was going to have his child. He could barely wrap his head around that.

For the longest time, he didn’t dare hope they could even have that conversation, but now that they had, he could be happy.