Page 35 of Devil's Last Dance

He was kind. There was no doubt about it. The only time he’d shown harshness in her company was when he was dealing with his men and guards. Every time he was with her, he was sweet and loving—only in private, though.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine.”

Antwone sat down on the coffee table, like he had done many times before. He rubbed at her knees. She didn’t push him away.

He sighed. “I know you’re not happy. I know you can’t forgive me for what I did. One day, I hope you will.”

She didn’t kiss him, didn’t accept his embrace. They were married in name only. She didn’t share his bedroom. She had a room close to him, but other than sharing a good night, there was no closeness.

“I don’t want to talk about this,” Candice said.

“When do you want to talk about this?”

“I don’t know, Antwone. This is a lot to take in.” She sighed and then put her book down.

“Your mother’s cookbook.” He reached for it and Candice allowed him to take it. “I know this is a huge change to your life. You’re not used to being taken care of, but I want to make this as easy for you as possible.”

This made her laugh. “You want to make this easy for me?” she asked.

“Yes.”

She shook her head. “How? What can you do? There’s nothing for me to do other than sit around all day waiting for my baby to be born. I’m not allowed to clean. I can’t go in the kitchen. You won’t even let me talk to your staff so I can have someone to talk to.” She pressed her lips together and didn’t want to argue with him.

“Do you want to use the kitchen? Tell me what you want and I’ll make sure you get it.”

“I don’t know what I … ugh!” She whimpered. Reaching out for thin air, she put a hand at the base of her back and whimpered.

The pain exploded through her whole body. It was so unexpected that for several seconds it took her breath away.

“Candice, what’s wrong? Talk to me.”

She heard the panic in his voice, but didn’t know what to say as another wave of pain came, but then she felt it—the wetness between her thighs—and she knew exactly what had happened. Her water had broken.

“The baby is coming.”

****

Five Hours Later

Antwone knew he had fallen in love with Candice the day he met her. There was something about her sweet smile and bubbly character that had called to him. He loved his brother and shared a bond with him that would last a lifetime. He adored his niece and nephew, and cared about Maria.

When he watched his screaming son be placed in his wife’s arms, Antwone felt complete love.

For the past two months, he had been afraid that he’d have no feeling for his child. The ultrasound pictures and listening to the heartbeat hadn’t affected him. He’d been dealing with a lot of problems he hadn’t told Candice about.

Since he’d married her and declared her as his woman, two of his capos turned on him. He had no choice but to handle them swiftly and efficiently. Their families had also been removed from the equation as well. The soldiers that had sworn loyalty to them and not him had also been taken care of. He wouldn’t allow anyone to bring harm to his family.

With Draven’s help, he’d been able to increase the protection around Candice. More of his loyal soldiers were close to home as a few additional threats had been located, but he was taking care of them.

The MC had been dealt with. He’d been able to come to a compromise and negotiate with them. Draven had been against talking with the prez of the MC, but he was more than willing to make a deal. He wanted to find out what the MC actually wanted. They wished for a direct link to the docks to shift product. For a price, the arrangement had been put in place.

The MC would pay and if Antwone ever needed them, they would answer the call, as well as receive ten percent of all profits from the products at the dock.

He knew Draven and a few of the capos would be insulted by such a low fee, but Antwone knew what he was doing. Rather than insult the MC and destroy any chance of peace, he looked toward the future. He wasn’t in the market of making enemies, but he wanted allies.

The future of his wife and child was always on his mind.

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