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think he almost had me convinced,” Johanna exclaimed incredulously.

“What… what did he say?” Samantha asked.

“He wanted to believe that Devlin had poisoned your mind against us. He told me that

Devlin had probably forced you into seduction by using some kind of blackmail against you.”

“Devlin didn’t initiate it, I did. And before you look at me like I have grown another

head. I only did what I have been fighting against for years. I told you earlier, Devlin is my soul

mate. He and I share that bond that only someone like Charlotte is supposed to find and Dev

isn’t even a psychic.”

“Then, you are truly happy and you’re not doing this out of pure spite?”

“What went on between me and Devlin…that wasn’t spiteful love or revenge sex, I don’t

know what they’re calling it now. But it wasn’t that! Devlin is a caring lover though he can be

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quite authoritative and it’s actually refreshing since I don’t feel guilty after we’re done.”

Johanna looked queasy. “You felt guilty after you made love to Tyler? Oh, sweetie. Why

did you stay with him for so long?”

“Because I thought it was the right thing to do. Besides, you know as well as I do that

Tyler and I never really went back to where we were supposed to be after the events on New

Monaco. Plus,” she lowered her voice. “I was sick of faking it.”

Johanna gasped. “Okay, I didn’t need to hear that.” She shuddered. “Let’s get you

married to Dev so you don’t have to worry about feeling guilty for the rest of your life. Well, not

about love anyway.” Johanna winked at her. “I don’t feel any ill will toward you for breaking

Devlin and me up, Samantha, so don’t feel responsible about that. You were right as you

sometimes are. It happens every once in a while,” she giggled. “Dylan and I are right for each

other. Devlin would drive me nuts with his superiority complex. And his ego, my God it’s

bigger than Quinn’s!”

“Now, you sound the way I used to sound whenever I mentioned Devlin or someone

mentioned him to me. Talk about having your words come back to bite you right in the ass!”

Johanna smirked. “Well, I never thought I would live to see this day. I’m glad I did, I

will be taking holographic pictures!”

“Good, mom will love to see me dressed like this. I just wish she was here.”

“If she was, she’d be able to make Charlotte behave.”

“Johanna, things will get worse before they get better with Charlotte. She just has to

learn that if she really wants something or someone, she has to make sacrifices. If she doesn’t

make sacrifices Tyler will die an old unhappy bastard.”

Johanna laughed.

Devlin cleared his throat. “I don’t want to interrupt you two....”

“Of course you do, Devlin,” Samantha said. “But we don’t care, because that’s just the

way you are and I will accept you no matter what you say or do.”

“I thought I was supposed to say that to you,” Devlin said his eyes sparking.

“I think I need to go and talk to Veronica. Things are getting a little weird between the

two of you. The two of you together is just too strange. It boggles the mind! I think you’ve

both mellowed each other, shocking as that might sound,” Johanna commented, before she went

back into their quarters.

“I think the look on Johanna’s face gave me a glimpse of how everyone else might look

when they figure out we’re together,” Samantha commented.

“What about Veronica and Ross? They seemed a trifle surprised but not nearly as aghast

as I thought they would be,” Devlin murmured, giving her his arm again.

“Veronica has learned to roll with the punches and besides, she was the one that almost

nabbed Tyler. If she had, she would have been one rich woman!”

He frowned. “I wish you hadn’t been so good at what you do, if you weren’t, Veronica

would have brought me Tyler and you and I....”

“You think I could have been with you after you hanged Tyler?”

“Who says I would have hanged him? I actually wanted to reveal him as the bastard that

he was and then collect the reward.”

“
Me
being the reward?”

“Exactly!” He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye.

“Here’s a newsflash you got me anyway!”

“A little later than I would have liked, I had everything planned back on New Monaco

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and you threw me a curveball by seducing me on this ship!”

“Sorry, about messing up your master plans,” she laughed.

Sobering, she looked at him askance. “You had everything planned out…so, you seduced

me, and don’t you forget it! You devious little mastermind!” She flashed him a mischievous grin

and then put on a serenely happy face when the door opened. “Here we go, in a few minutes I’ll

be your wife. Oh, joy oh, bliss!”

“I’ll give you both in about an hour.”

“That’s good, I’ll hold you to that,” Samantha retorted.

“The two of you take forever to just get married, you know?” Veronica muttered. “Can

you please say what needs to be said, sign what needs to be signed, so I can go back to my

bedroom and sleep? From what I can see coming with the Triad I am going to need every wink I

can get. That damn poison took a hell of a lot of energy out of me!”

Samantha looked at the smorgasbord. “Good lord, Big V you could not wait to scarf

down all of the food could you?”

Ross looked up at the ceiling. “That was me,” he said sheepishly. “I was hungry.”

“No worries,” Devlin said benevolently. “There is more where that came from!”

“See, Mister Moneybags doesn’t care if my Ross eats so much. We were bored; he had

to do something to occupy his time while the three of you had a good long gab session. Any

reason why you had to leave us waiting for so long?”

“Devlin, I think we should get it over and done with. For once Big V actually has a

point, loathe as I am to admit it.”

“Where is the preacher, Jewel?” Devlin asked looking back expectantly at the door.

“He’s sort of too drunk to stand up. Someone forgot to wrestle the liquor bottles away

from him yesterday,” she said rolling her eyes.

“Great,” Devlin muttered. “You need to get another preacher.”

“We have several others. They refuse to marry the two of you.”

Devlin’s eyes flashed with anger.

“Steady, Devlin, you look like you’re going to explode,” Samantha cautioned.

“I am going to explode. Why won’t they marry us?” he demanded, eyes blazing with

fury.

“They say that Samantha is tainted. Her family should not be joined with the great and

noble house of Devlin.”

“These wouldn’t be the same preachers that have been with us since my father was

alive?”

“Yes,” Jewel confirmed.

“Terminate their employ with me. They just don’t want me marrying someone that I

actually care about, they know that Samantha will shake things up around here, and come to

think of it, they’ve been getting fat off of working for me and they do absolutely nothing.”

“No. Don’t fire them, Devlin,” Samantha said. “I knew our union would make some

unhappy. Why get rid of them so you can’t make their life hell anymore? You pay them a good

wage, that’s something hard to find for people that are raving addicts like most of them are. I saw

them sitting in the lounge the other night, they were all high on something I could feel it flowing

out of them in waves. Put them on a mining ship of yours somewhere deep in the Rim, they’ll

love that,” Samantha suggested.

“You’re right, Samantha. I always have liked the way you thought,” Devlin murmured

lovingly.

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Johanna grunted. “Good God, I think I am going to toss up my cookies.”

“Wait a bloody minute,” Veronica said. “The two of you switched bodies didn’t you?

Samantha you’re acting like Johanna and Johanna you’re spouting vintage Samantha! It’s

insane!”

“No, we haven’t switched bodies, Veronica,” Johanna sighed. “Unfortunately, the only

thing different about Samantha is that she’s now shagging Devlin.”

“Thanks, Jo,” Sam muttered.

“I could marry the two of you,” Ross offered standing up to his lumbering height and

girth.

“He could at that,” Veronica rolled her eyes. “Last year he became a certified star

preacher. He can marry anyone in any of the solar systems and you’ll be legal.”

“Grand,” Devlin said. “Remind me to put you on my payroll.”

Veronica snorted. “You are kidding, right? If we now work for you, I don’t know how I

feel about that. I mean you are not the most upstanding guy in the universe. My daddy might

not like the thought of me working for someone like you.”

“If I put you on a seven figure retainer, how do you think your father will feel then?”

“He’ll be cool with it. I bet he could even be convinced to like it,” Veronica said. Her

eyes widened. “Samantha, this beats having to scrounge for the next bounty. The competition

out there is fierce, if we work for Devlin now we will have everything we could only hope for!”

Samantha’s head reeled. She didn’t want to think that long term. The thought of losing

her independence, of having to forfeit everything she’d toiled so long for… it gave her the

chills—but the thought of not having Devlin in her life made her dread living another day.

“Ross, get the vows ready, cause time is running short and you guys all look exhausted. I

would like to be married in five minutes,” Samantha said.

“That goes for me too,” Devlin said, his eyes glittering with mirth.

“Do you want the long ceremony or the short ceremony?” Ross asked, clasping his hands

in front of him. “I have them both committed to memory.”

“There goes my little genius chubby cheeks again!” Veronica said, sighing with

adoration.

“The short version,” Samantha muttered.

“Okay, just stand in front of me, and clasp your hands together. This will be brief and

painless,” he chuckled, his eyes darting back and forth between them almost as if he was afraid

that she and Devlin were going to start fighting.

“Do you…wait, what name do I use for you, Samantha?” Ross asked.

“Samantha Lynn Mallory… I never ditched my maiden name when I married Tyler I just

sort of tagged Cassidy on the end.”

“I didn’t know that,” Devlin muttered.

“You learn something every day,” she said. “We’re getting off course here, people,”

Samantha said. “Let’s do this, Devlin.”

He nodded his head the heaviness in his eyes vanishing as a smile lit his gaze. “That’s

right everyone I am marrying the most romantic woman in the known galaxies.”

“Do you Samantha Lynn Mallory take...,” Ross stared at Devlin.

“Just Lord Devlin will do,” Devlin muttered.

“I don’t believe this, you give over your full name, Devlin.”

She bit her lower lip. “I think Lord Devlin will suffice in this instance. I have a mouthful

of a full name,” he said.

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She was tempted to have a fight with him but she didn’t think he’d relent. “You are a

dirty rat and I’ll get you back for this.”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” he smirked.

“Okay, do you Samantha Lynn Mallory take Lord Devlin as your lawfully wedded

husband?”

“I do,” she answered not wavering in her resolve when it came right down to the wire.

She felt as if she floated above her body looking down at herself doing something she wouldn’t

dream of a few weeks ago.

Ross paused staring briefly at her before turning his attention to Lord Devlin.

“And do you Lord Devlin...?”

Klaxons rang out on the ship. “Shit,” Jewel muttered. “Wrap it up please, Ross.”

“I do,” Devlin said, taking the rings from Jewel he placed them on Samantha’s finger.

She took Devlin’s wedding band from Johanna and placed it on Devlin’s finger. That sealed it.

Pulling Samantha against him, he kissed her passionately.

“Wait a second,” Veronica said, stepping forward with her camera. “Come on, I want a

picture of the happy couple! I love weddings!” Veronica snapped her photo and then, Devlin

and she went into action.

“Come on, let’s put our signatures on these documents and then I think we should get up

to the bridge,” Devlin remarked.

“In this dress?” Samantha muttered, walking with him as he guided her over to the desk.

He signed the papers quickly and then handed her the pen.

She flourished her signature on the provided lines and placed the pen on the table. Jewel

gave Devlin a hug and then moved to embrace Samantha. “Glad to have you in the family but I

think,” she paused when a tremor rocked the ship, “I think I am needed on the bridge. You guys

are welcome to come with me.”

Static crackled over the communication line. “Captain, we have an internal security

concern. It seems that Mister Cassidy is firing on us from within our docking bay.”

“Good God,” Jewel muttered. She looked over at Johanna. “I am going to need you.

We’ll have to go down to the docking bay and diffuse the volatile situation there. If I have to,

Johanna, I will fire on him using our internal weapons array.”

Johanna’s face mottled with anger. “I don’t know what the hell he thinks he’s doing.”