Page 70 of Make You Mine

Nico’s source, who owns this place, shuts the door, and the low burning fire ignites into flames. My arm wraps around Ashley, and I place a kiss on her head. “It’s finally finished,” I whisper.

Her blue eyes peer up at me. “It's so surreal. I’m…” She pauses, swallowing roughly. “I’m free.”

My body feels light, my throat thicker than before. “Yes, you are, baby. Yes, you are.” I hold her in my arms until both our brothers join in, hugging us silently. No words are needed; they know what this means for us.

Micah kisses Ashley’s forehead. “You’re safe now.”

She squeezes his hand in return. “So are you. What is the plan now? Has Don Amato said?”

Micah nods. “Yes, and because the head families in Italy get final say in situations like this, they have appointed Don Amato to be the advisor in New York City for now. Amato’s son is going to come back to the city with me and temporarily lead what’s left of the Santini Crime Family. It will take a while for us to regroup with all the shit Junior has stirred up, and we will continue to weed out anyone loyal to him or his father.”

Trevor pats Micah’s shoulder proudly. “Underboss, here”—he calls Micah by his new title—“just asked if we would officially be his on-call doctors.”

I look to Nico, wondering if he okayed this.

He takes a few steps closer to us, giving his confirmation. “I already gave the go-ahead. As far as I’m concerned, with Amato and Micah at the head of things, we will remain allies in any way we can and still live by the code of The Saints. I want our city to be at its best again, and I think we are one asshole closer after tonight.”

Nico starts walking toward Bishop’s SUV. “Now, if you guys don’t mind, I’m ready to shower off the grime of today.”

I interlock my hand with Ashley’s, leading us toward the waiting vehicle. She tugs on my arm, stopping me before we join everyone else again.

Ashley and I take one more look back toward the crematory, needing to see him burn just a little longer. She shakes her head. “He has taken too much from me… too much from us over the past several years. Tonight, as we walk away from this, I want all that pain to stay in the past. Junior’s ghost belongs nowhere in our future.”

“He didn’t belong in your past either, baby…” I turn her body back toward the fire. “Just imagine those flames erasing him altogether.”

A beautiful smile spreads across her face. “My sights are set on the future… Me, you, and our little bean.”

As my hand moves over the top of Ashley’s, resting on her belly, my heart hammers with joy for what is in store for us. “I love you both to the moon and back.”

Twenty-Two

“Are you ready to hear your baby’s heartbeat for the first time?” Dr. Kumar smiles at us both as she applies the warm gel to the ultrasound probe.

“Beyond ready,” I reply, giving an excited Ashley a toothy grin and gently kissing her hand, which is interlocked with mine.

There were days when it felt like we’d never be here. Never have the opportunity to even walk into a building together, freely holding hands like we did today.

Ashley’s smiling face quickly changes to a gasp. Snapping her head to the monitor, she watches in awe as our baby moves around inside of her uterus.

The strong heart sounds like a horse galloping through a field.

“It's so fast…” Ashley whispers, tears in her eyes as the most perfect noise I’ve ever heard fills throughout the room. “Oooh, fast heartbeat.” Like she just remembered something, she smirks at me. “You know what that means… Are you ready to be a girl dad?”

I chuckle through the tears of joy. “Someone’s been looking at the old wives’ tales.” Nodding, I squeeze her hand. “But yes…I’m ready for whatever we’re blessed with.”

That’s the thing about something you never knew if you’d have…it just makes you appreciate everything so much more. I couldn’t care less if it's a boy or a girl. I want a healthy mama and baby; the rest doesn’t matter. Even if he or she isn’t mine by blood, they’ll never know anything but the fatherly love I have for them.

I honestly don’t even care to know, but Ashley was insistent on a blood test. So, she had my brother draw labs for us last week for a non-invasive test. They are supposed to be returned anytime in the next three days.

The doctor continues taking pictures of our little one. “And I think I remember correctly; you both want to wait to find out the sex of the baby?”

We discussed it at length and decided it would just add to the excitement of welcoming our first baby into the world.

Ash and I nod.

Dr. Kumar smiles. “That’s so fun. As a doctor, it always excites me even more to be with you at the birth.”

She uses the ultrasound machine to take some measurements of the baby. “I know you aren’t certain of your conception date since your birth control had gotten a bit out of whack, but it looks like this baby was conceived right around Halloween, or even a few days after.”

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