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Chrissy awoke groggily in sheets that didn’t feel like the 600-thread count sheets she had grown accustomed to. She turned and curled around a pillow that smelled like Saks as she tried to ignore the aches that filled her body. They weren’t bad pains, but pleasant, trying to remind her of—what?
The aroma of brewing coffee surrounded her, teasing her nose.
Noises, the sound of coffee tinkling into a cup, glazed ceramic clinking together, a refrigerator opening and closing, vied for her attention.
Her eyes fluttered open to an unfamiliar room. She scrunched her eyes against sunlight streaming in through a window above, and propped herself up on her elbows.
“Morning, sleepyhead,” Saks greeted, wearing an irrepressible grin. “I’m sorry I don’t have much for breakfast, but it’s early enough we can go to the diner down the road.”
“How early is it?” she croaked.
Out of the corner of her eye she saw her purse on the nightstand, and she grabbed it and pulled out her phone. It confirmed his next words.
Six freaking AM? She checked her emails and her messages. There were a few texts from Gloria, the last one saying, “Have a good time. Wink.” But curiously there were none from Jessica, which was odd. Chrissy was twenty-four hours out from contact with Pearson and Jessica, and she was sure she’d hear something from either one of them.
That there was radio silence worried her.
“Not a morning person, eh?” said Saks. “It’s six AM. I’ve got to open the shop by 7:30.”
“I should go.” She wanted to get to the hospital to check on her father, but she wanted to contact the New York office on her way, too. She scanned the floor for her clothes but didn’t see them. Her eyes widened as she remembered last night and Saks and her on the pool table.
She’d never look at Eight-Ball the same way again.
Did she leave her clothes out there?
“Looking for something?” he said.
“My clothes.”
He arched an eyebrow. “I thought I’d hide them to keep you from running off again. We have things to talk about.”
“Like what?”
He handed her a cup of coffee and sat next to her on the bed. “I was serious last night. I want us to get married. It occurred to me you said yes to the making love part, but not the marriage part. So, I want to get that nailed down.”
“Saks,” she said with exasperation as she clung to the mug.
“Don’t tell me you don’t love me. Not when you screamed it so loud last night it nearly shattered my eardrums.”
She covered her mouth with her hand. Yes, she’d done that. “I do love you, Saks.”
“Good.”
“But marriage...”
“I’m not taking ‘no’ for an answer.”
“But your family, my family—”
“Look, they can either be happy for us, or we’ll get married and honeymoon in the Bahamas without them.”
“It’s not that simple. As long as the men who shot you are in the wind there will always be suspicion and distrust between our families, and worse than before. Our families will declare us traitors.”
Saks shrugged. “I don’t care. Like I said, either they’ll support us or not. Chrissy, you’re my family. I don’t need a piece of paper to tell me that.”
Chrissy stared at Saks. For a man who had grease under his fingernails and wore a tattered leather jacket, he had a romantic side no one would suspect.
He took a sip of his coffee.
“But for the children, we’ll need that piece of paper.”
“Children?” Her voice cracked. She wasn’t even prepared to talk about marriage, let alone children. He moved pretty damn fast.
“I’m a traditional man, sweetheart. I’m not one of those guys who fucks around and then picks up the child support later. It’s you, me, and the white picket fence. Wherever you want. With my qualifications I can get work anyplace in the country, and I have some money saved, enough for down payment on a house.”
“Sounds like you thought of everything,” she said with a chill in her voice. She didn’t come as far as she had to have a man tell her what to do, not even Saks. All her life, Chrissy had tried to avoid having a man rush in and decide her life.
“Is there a problem?”
Chrissy put her cup on the nightstand and stood suddenly. “Yes.”
“What?”
“You.”
“Me?”
She saw her clothes folded on a chair in a corner. Chrissy stalked to them and pulled them on.
“Who are you to make decisions like that? Who are you to tell me what to do with my life?” She snapped her words out after she shrugged her shirt over her head.
“Whoa,” Saks said. “Giving you coffee first thing in the morning is a bad idea.” He stepped toward her, holding his hands up as if surrendering. “I was just thinking out loud. Of course, you get to decide things. We decide them together as a couple. That’s what marriage means. But what is not going to happen here is you walking away from me, not without a damn good reason.”
Chrissy shut her eyes. She loved Saks. The night prior, when she’d been bent over the pool table and under his spell, she’d been ready to submit to anything. Now, though, in the light of day, it seemed like a pipe dream considering the obstacles they faced.
“So, tell me,” he said. “Do you want to walk away from me?”
She shook her head. “No. I’d just like to slow things down. I have things going on, Saks. My father, for one. And despite what you think, I’m worried about the problems between our respective families. Maybe you can walk away from your family, but that’s not in my plans.”
“But you’re the one who went off with James Pearson.”
“Yes. I did. But it was a temporary solution.”
“So, you did run away.” Saks crossed his arms and gave her a hard stare.
“What was I supposed to do? First, they want me to marry you, then they tell me to stay away! My boss came on to me—”
“What?” said Saks.
Chrissy sighed. “Forget it.” She never should have mentioned it.
“No, Chrissy. You should tell me these things. You don’t have to face your life like a one-woman wrecking crew anymore. I’ve got your back.”
“Just like that,” she snapped.
Saks sighed. “Damn, you’re a stubborn woman.” Then he smiled. “Do I have to bend you over the pool table again?”
“No.”
“Yes.” With a swift move, he swept her off her feet.
“Put me down!”
He laughed. “Nope.”
With a few swift steps he was out the door, and Chrissy found herself in the Hades Spawn bar once more. He stepped into the alcove, with Chrissy struggling but also giggling in his arms.
“Put me down.”
“Sure,” he replied. He set her feet on the floor right in front of the pool table.
“Now,” he said. “Do I need to put you over it?”
“Saks. You’re ridiculous.”
He smiled mischievously. “No more than you trying to fight me off.”
Saks put his hands on her waist, and her eyes widened at the thought of what he did last night on the pool table. But instead of twisting her around to face the table, he leaned in and kissed her. At first, he was gentle and sweet, but then the kiss gathered force and passion, and she melted against his body. His tongue entered her mouth, coaxing her desire and need. Chrissy’s breathing hitched, and he pressed his denim- covered shaft into her hips.
He broke away and stared intently into her eyes. And she saw there what he said all along. Saks wasn’t just her lover. He was her partner, now and for eternity.
She sighed. “I’m sorry.”
He stiffened, and she realized he misunderstood what she was trying to say.
“I’m sorry that I'm difficult. It's because I’m not used to someone having my back. But what can you expect? I’m a Serafini.”
“Well,” Saks allowed with a smile. “I guess the only cure for that is to change your name to Parks.”
