Dirty Little Promise (Forbidden Desires #2)

Emma

When we arrived at the office Christmas party, I was momentarily taken aback by the sight of so many beautiful women in one place. All these months, it had been easy to forget that Gavin ran an escort agency, but now? Not so much.

Gavin didn’t release my hand as he led me into the office. And he didn’t so much as glance at any of the women.

I stopped to hug Alyssa and waved to a couple of people I recognized, feeling calmer already. The invite list for their ugly-sweater party read like an enviable who’s who of the Boston social scene. Politicians and notable members of the media were there, as well as a couple of professional athletes.

And then there were my parents, standing near the punch bowl with wide eyes.

Oh dear God.

I prayed for their sake—and mine—that the eggnog was heavily spiked.

“Hey, Mom.” Gavin greeted my mother, pulling her into a swift hug with an easy smile.

She beamed, patting his chest. “Don’t you look handsome as ever, son.”

“Hi, Mom,” I said, giving her a hug.

I was perfectly okay with playing second fiddle to Gavin. It was sweet, their adoration and understanding for each other. To say that Gavin had won my mom over was the understatement of the year. They had a very cute and special relationship.

“Daddy.” I grinned as I lifted up on my toes to press a kiss to his cheek.

“You two are late,” my father said.

Gavin muttered an apology as he shook my father’s hand.

“Are you guys enjoying yourselves?” I asked, feeling a little self-conscious. What I meant was, Are you scarred for life?

Gavin had insisted upon inviting them, taking this whole family thing seriously. He had parents in his life for the first time in a long time, and he was trying to make the most of it. I never thought they’d actually come, but they were trying to accept all the various sides and sometimes sharp angles to their new son-in-law, so I knew I shouldn’t complain.

“It’s been rather . . . enlightening,” my mother said, her gaze darting to where a group of escorts in their twenties were doing shots at the bar.

My father nodded toward a white-haired man across the room. “Is that the CEO of Goldschmidt’s bank over there?”

Gavin nodded. “He’s been a client for years, actually. Good guy. I can introduce you later, if you like.”

My father’s face lit up like the Fourth of July. “That’d be terrific.”

My mother pursed her lips. “Don’t you even think about trading me in for one of these hot little numbers, Frank,” she warned.

That answered the question about whether the eggnog was spiked. My mother’s tongue was already loosened. God help us all tonight.

Dad put a loving arm around my mom’s shoulders. “Wouldn’t dream of it. I have everything I need right here.” They shared a quick kiss while Gavin and I exchanged a look.

Gavin led my father over to meet his man crush, and Mom and I took our drinks to wander around and mingle. It hardly looked like their office with the low lighting, and all the furniture moved out of the way to accommodate a small bar and parquet dance floor.

I chuckled to see Quinn was dressed as Santa Claus, complete with a red velvet suit, stuffed belly, and white beard. His perfectly styled dark hair wasn’t covered by a wig, though, so the effect was rather hilarious. He was a hot Santa, and he was definitely the center of attention. With Gavin now married and Cooper nowhere to be found, that left the dozen or so escorts in the room focusing on Quinn—sitting on his lap, pressing lipstick kisses to his cheek, and smiling at his every word.

For the first time, I realized how lonely it must be being Quinn Kingsley. As the oldest brother of the family, he had so much weight on his shoulders as he guided the ship. The smudge of dark circles under his eyes was faintly visible. While he was jovial tonight, all smiles and hearty laughs, I could tell it wasn’t always that easy for him.Content bel0ngs to Nôvel(D)r/a/ma.Org.

Pushing the somber thoughts away, I introduced my mom to Alyssa, and they struck up an easy conversation. As I stood there, enjoying the low pulse of electronic holiday music pumping through the speakers, my mind began to drift.

This year was so strange. It was Christmastime, but instead of baking cookies and stocking up on sweaters, I’d spent the morning picking out bikinis, modeling each one for Gavin in the department-store dressing room. Tomorrow, we’d leave for the vacation in the Seychelles islands Gavin had bid on and won at the charity gala we’d attended together earlier this year—fourteen days spent on a private yacht in the Indian Ocean off the coast of East Africa. A late honeymoon, a holiday getaway . . . whatever you wanted to call it, it was my idea of heaven.

Of course, my parents had balked that I wouldn’t be home for Christmas with my new husband. It amused me to think about Gavin sleeping in my childhood bedroom with me, probably tying me up with my old equestrian ribbons or making me wear my old cheerleading uniform while we made love. And, of course, I would have done it. It was impossible to deny Gavin something he wanted.

Traditions like that with my family would come later, in time. Their acceptance of Gavin, of us, meant the world to me. My mom had continued with her quest for grandbabies, reminding me that I’d be thirty next year.

I still wasn’t sure what to make of Gavin’s uncertainty about that subject, and tried to hide how worried I felt about it.

Later, my parents met Quinn, and while they chatted about my dad’s favorite football team, Gavin turned toward me.

“Come with me,” he said, taking my hand and drawing me into a private alcove in the office. “There’s something I want to say to you.”

My heart beat faster, stealing my breath. “Okay.”

He brushed my hair lovingly from my face and took a step closer. “There were so many things I never thought I’d do. Fall in love, get married . . .”

He left it off the list, but I imagined having a falling-out with Cooper would have been on that list too. And that stung, because I knew it was my fault. It still made my heart hurt after all this time. But I couldn’t focus on Cooper right now because Gavin was opening up, baring yet another piece of his soul to me, and I hung on his every word.

“What are you saying, Gavin?”

“I also never thought I’d be a father, but I’ve been thinking about it lately, thinking about what you said. Let’s have a baby.”

Suddenly breathless and at a complete loss for words, I felt my mouth curve into a suspicious smile. “What are you talking about?”

He shrugged, pulling me close to his chest. “Having all those things I never thought I’d want, they’ve taught me I can’t be afraid to say yes to the good things in life. You’ve made me so happy, Emma. I want this too. With you.”

“Gavin . . .” My heart surged with even more love for this man.

“What do you say, love?”

I brought my lips to his, kissing my silly, loving husband. “Of course I do. But, I’m sorry, I’m kind of in shock right now.”

“Want to make a baby?” he asked, waggling his eyebrows.

“My bookstore isn’t even open yet. I think we should wait a couple of months. I’ll get off birth control, and we can figure out the right time.”

He brought my hand to his lips, kissing the back of it. “Of course. There’s no rush.”

My heart swelled at the thought of Gavin with a baby, the thought of someone else, even a tiny creature, loving him so unconditionally. It made my heart feel incredibly full.

He might have thought he was doing this for me, but truly, this would be one of the biggest gifts and blessings in his life. He just didn’t know it yet. Fatherhood would suit Gavin. I knew it.

He was commanding, yet loving. Firm, but fair. Guarded, but affectionate. I wasn’t worried, not one single bit. And I almost laughed at the idea of how overprotective he’d be of me while I was pregnant. But if I could survive an over-the-top alpha male doting on me, I knew our happily-ever-after would be amplified tenfold.

“How many do you want?” I asked, still giddy and drunk on this conversation, and not wanting it to end.

He kissed me again, pulling back slowly. “I don’t know. Three? Four?”

I barked out a laugh. “Whoa, overachiever. Let’s start with one and go from there.”

“Okay,” he said, agreeing a little reluctantly.

Bringing my lips to his, I murmured, “You don’t know how happy you’ve made me.”

“I love you,” he said softly, his lips still against mine.

“A million billion,” I finished for him.

And then he swept me off my feet, carrying me toward his office down the hall where I imagined we’d do very naughty things.