“Thank you for being here with me.” She does a face-plant back into my chest, making me smile.
“Nowhere else I would want to be.”
“Do you remember when I told you I used to want a tattoo?” she asks quietly.
“Yes.” I run my hand down her back, holding her tighter against me.
“My dad had my mom’s name tattooed along his ribs. I wanted that, only with my husband’s name, but then I lost my mom. And not long after that, I lost my dad, and I stopped believing love could last. Now I know it can. After I have this baby, I want a tattoo like that of your name along my ribs. I belong to you—will always belong to you. You brought me back to life.” She lifts her head to look at me. Her finger runs along my jaw then up to trace my bottom lip.
I can’t talk with the emotions choking me, so I pull her in for a deep kiss, gently pressing one hand to her stomach. After I find my voice again, I tell her, “If you want that, baby, I’ll take you.”
“Thank you,” she whispers
“There is nothing in this world I wouldn’t do for you, sweet Sophie.” I pull her closer to me and smile into her hair, thinking about my name being tattooed onto her perfect skin.
“You sure he’s here?” I ask Kenton, looking at the run-down house across the street from us.
“Yeah. When Ian called, he told me that Justin found a hit on his credit card. The stupid f**k ordered shit from Amazon and had it deliver here.”
“How the f**k did he run drugs without being caught for so long?” I shake my head. I swear I don’t know how most criminals are able to get away with the shit they do. Half of them are dumb as f**k.
“I don’t think he was the one in charge,” Kenton says, shaking his head.
“So what do the cops say about him?”
“They think his partners are turning on him. They want to offer him a deal, but they haven’t been able to track him. You know they always have too much red tape when it comes to this shit. Their hands are tied, so they want us convince him that he needs to come in.”
“So what’s the plan?” I look across the street again, seeing that the only light on is the one in the basement.
“We go in and do just that—use the power of persuasion to convince him to do the right thing.”
“And if he doesn’t agree?” I ask with a smile, knowing what the answer will be.
“By the time we leave him, he will be running to the cops.”
“Sounds good.” I nod. What I do isn’t always smiled upon, but knowing that one more f**ked-up criminal will be off the streets before my child comes into this world makes me feel that much better about doing what I have to do. “Lets roll.”
I open the door to my car, getting out at the same time Kenton does. We don’t even bother with the front door. We walk around the side of the house, checking windows until one opens. Kenton goes in first and I follow behind him when he gives me the signal that it’s clear. After that, we search the house, making sure that no one else is inside. By the time we make it to the basement Meyer Bulger is in the middle of getting a blowjob. The chick that was sucking him off runs out of the room screaming when she sees me. I let her go, knowing that she was paid for her time and is not likely to get involved.
“Meyer,” Kenton says, sitting down casually across from the guy.
“What are you doing here?” he finally asks, his eyes are glossed over from the cocaine he was shoving up his nose.
“We came to have a chat,” I tell him, setting my gun down on the table in front of me. His eyes go wide and his hand moves to the left. “Try it and I will put a bullet in you.”
His eyes search my face, and I know that he can tell that I’m not f**king around. His hand that had been reaching for his piece moves back to his lap.
“What do you want?” he asks, looking between Kenton and me.
“You,” Kenton says with a shrug.
“What the f**k does that mean?”
“You know what it means, Meyer.” I shake my head.
“I’m not a snitch.”
“Then you’re dead,” I tell him, starting to stand.
“No, you don’t understand.”
“I do understand.” I look him over. “I can see it now. You probably started using your own product when no one was watching. Eventually your addiction caught up with you and you couldn’t get enough. When that happened, you started f**king up, and the people at the top of the food chain didn’t like that much. Now they want you dead. So tell me. What’s it going to be?”
“You know if I talk to the cops I’m signing my death warrant.”
“You have a better chance of surviving if you work with the cops,” Kenton tells him.
“Fuck.” He shakes his head, his eyes falling to his lap, and just like that, I know we won.
I look at Kenton and smile, ready to get the f**k home to my girl.
"Ma, we’re not moving," I state firmly then watch Sophie's bottom lip wobble. Fuck, I hate when she cries, and she cries about everything lately. “Baby, please don’t cry.” I pull her into my side, kissing her head.
"I always wanted to live in the country, and the money from selling my house can buy it. Please just look at it before you say no,” she says, looking up at me with tears filling her eyes.
"You’re not buying our house." I look at the ceiling, praying for patience. "Ma, do you see the trouble you’re causing?" I narrow my eyes on my mom. “I leave my girl with you for three days, and this is what you do?”
"Your mom’s not causing trouble." Sophie sighs, looking at my mom then me
. I see something pass between them. "What?" I look at my mom and then back to her.
"I have something to tell you," Sophie says, biting her bottom lip while avoiding eye contact.
"What?" I repeat.
"I think you should sit," she says, wringing her hands together.
"I don't need to sit. Is it about the baby?" I ask, feeling sick all of a sudden.
"I really think you should sit, honey,” my mom says quietly, causing me to panic.
"Tell me," I growl.
"We're having twins," Sophie blurts then covers her mouth, looking at my mom with wide eyes.
I stare at her blankly for a minute. I don’t make her repeat herself; I heard her loud and clear. "I need to sit," I mumble, walking over to the couch where I plop, putting my head between my knees. “How did this happen?” I wonder out loud. Hearing my mom laugh, I lift my head to glare at her.