Page 97 of Protecting Maggie
“What’s the rush?” Maggie asked with a laugh as she did her best to help him with her clothes.
It wasn’t until they were both naked and he was braced over her that Shawn said, “I can’t wait to get inside you. I want at least three.”
“Three?”
“Kids. Maybe more. I can’t wait to see you round with our child. To get up in the middle of the night with them. To watch you breastfeed. To experience Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny. To trip over toys and step on Legos. I wish we could have this baby tomorrow, that’s how excited I am.”
He was being adorable, and that wasn’t a word Maggie usually associated with her SEAL. “Well, he or she will need to marinate for quite a bit longer before coming out,” she told him.
Shawn’s hand eased down her body, stopping between her legs. He began to play with her clit as he spoke. “So…what kind of ceremony do you want? Big and lavish?”
Maggie’s hips pushed upward into Shawn’s hand. It was ridiculous how easily he could arouse her. How fast she got wet when he stroked her clit, just as he was doing right now. “Courthouse. Then a party at Aces.”
“Done,” Shawn said with satisfaction. “I love you, Maggie. You have no idea how much.”
“I do, because I love you the same way.”
Then he moved, pressing his cock into her. She wasn’t quite as wet as she usually was, but he managed to bury himself inside her to the hilt.
“A baby,” he breathed. “At least we don’t have to worry about birth control anymore.”
Maggie chuckled. “True.”
“Thank you,” he whispered. “For being strong enough to withstand that asshole’s attempts to silence you. For not giving up when shit got real. For loving me. For giving me a baby.”
“I think you were the one who gavemethe kid,” Maggie joked. It was getting harder to concentrate on what he was saying as he made love to her.
“We did it together. The way we’ll do everything from here on out.”
“Uh-huh. Shawn?”
“Yeah, love?”
“Less talking and more moving,” she ordered.
Shawn barked out a laugh but nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”
Their lovemaking was deeper in that moment. Maybe it was the commitment they’d just made to each other, maybe it was the knowledge that within her body, a new life was forming. Whatever it was, Maggie knew she’d never forget this night. Being arrested and sent to prison had felt like the end of her life. But in actuality, it was the start of something beautiful.
Bree Haynes crouched behind a dumpster and peered out into the dark parking lot. He’d found her again. She’d thought this time she’d finally been able to evade her ex. The asshole who’d fuckingsoldher. If asked just a few months ago, she would’ve scoffed at the very notion of someone selling a person in this day and age. And yet, here she was.
She had to get out of Vegas. But she had a feeling that wouldn’t stop her ex. He’d been given a lot of money for her, and since whatever asshole he’d sold her to hadn’t actually received their purchase, they were threatening Carl. Saying he either gave back the money they’d paid him, or find their property.
She knew all this because Carl had told her thelasttime he’d found her. She’d managed to get away, but Bree knew she’d just gotten lucky. She wouldn’t be able to get away the next time. Carl would hog-tie, gag, blindfold her, and cart her ass to the sex trafficker before she could even think about escaping again.
His car drove slowly around the casino parking lot as he searched the dark nooks and crannies for her. Easing back behind the dumpster and ignoring the stench coming from it, Bree pressed her lips together and tried to think about her next steps. She had money, but that wouldn’t protect her from Carl.
Even leaving Vegas wouldn’t necessarily guarantee her safety. Carl wouldn’t give up—ever. He felt as if he ownedher. He’d track her down. And she couldn’t go to her sister’s place in Washington. That would be the first place he’d look.
She needed a protector. Someone who wasn’t afraid of standing up to Carl and his criminal friends.
A face flashed in her brain.
Jude Stark. She didn’t remember a lot about the night Carl had sold her, or the scary ape who’d beaten and tied her up and shoved her into his car. He’d told her as he drove away from Carl’s apartment that he had one more pickup to make, then he was going to deliver both women to an underground brothel.
Then Jude Stark had shown up. Gotten her out of the man’s car and taken her to safety. But she hadn’t stayed where he’d put her. She was too scared. Too freaked out. Just wanted to get away.
And yet, Jude’s face was burned in her memory. As was everything he’d told her. He was a Navy SEAL stationed in Riverton, California.
