Black Dawn (37 page)

Lexi squeezed her eyes shut too. Hardly a potty mouth
and
kind of hysterical to adults too. “I’m sorry. I’ll have a talk with the boys.”

“Yes,
again
, please.”

The call disconnected. Lexi scrolled through her phone until she found Parker’s name. He answered on the first ring.

“Hey, so guess who called me today?”

He groaned. “Again? The boys?”

“Yup.”

“What’d they do?”

“Hacked Molly Talks-A-Lot.”

Parker burst out laughing. “God, they’re good.”

Maybe it was the age for mischief. Last week, Sugar had had to tell her girls not to booby trap the neighbors, Nicola and Beth had to have a talk about projectile devices having a time and place, none that were in the cafeteria, and both Mia and Caterina had practice unarming various toys.

“You didn’t help?” She smiled, rocking the baby and brushing the dark locks on the little guy’s head.

“Hack Addy’s doll? No.”

Lexi whispered, trying to keep the baby asleep, “You’re the one with genius genes. I’m going to blame you.”

“Oh, sweetheart. Blame me all you want. They’re the ones who found that article in the
New York Times
about your—”

“Shhhh.” The wiggling bundle sleepily blinked. “Okay, fine. We’re both to blame.”

“If making genius babies with you is trouble, then life is good.”

Lexi looked over the nursery that had slept four babies, then her eyes drifted out the window and over the lush green land. “Life’s better than good.”

They’d given each other a family and so much more than just love and acceptance. Everything was possible for her because of him, even if her husband made her feel as though she was the reason the world kept spinning.

Lexi closed her eyes after telling Parker that she loved him, and she rocked their baby back to sleep. Carefully, she placed him in the crib and walked down the hall, passing an anniversary present Parker had given her. It was a black-and-white sketch of their family with brilliant bursts of color all over the portrait. All he’d said when he gave it to her was, “Thank you for letting me color outside the lines.”

THE END

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Cristin Harber is a
New York Times
and
USA Today
bestselling romance author. She writes sexy, steamy romantic suspense, military romance, new adult, and contemporary romance. Readers voted her onto Amazon's Top Picks for Debut Romance Authors in 2013, and her debut Titan series was both a #1 romantic suspense and #1 military romance bestseller.

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Team Titan

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The Titan Series:

Book 1: Winters Heat

Book 1.5: Sweet Girl

Book 2: Garrison's Creed

Book 3: Westin's Chase

Book 4: Gambled

Book 5: Chased

Book 6: Savage Secrets

Book 7: Hart Attack

Book 8: Black Dawn

The Delta Series:

Book 1: Delta: Retribution

Book 2: Delta: Revenge (coming soon)

The Only Series:

Book 1: Only for Him

Book 2: Only for Her

Book 3: Only for Us

Book 4: Only Forever

Each Titan and Delta book can be read as a standalone (except for Sweet Girl), but readers will likely best enjoy the series in order. The Only series must be read in order.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Sometimes, when life’s the hardest, when the hurdles seem almost insurmountable, that is when true colors show. This book would not be possible without the hard work of so many people.

Thank you to my family. Your support has never wavered and your unconditional love is more than I could ever have dreamed of. Simply put, I love you. Courtney, you’re an expert I can call upon for research, but you’re my sister and best friend more than anything. Mom and Dad, thank you for giving me that inner fight that it took to make this book happen.

Tackle hugs for Team Titan. Your book pimping skills are phenomenal, but your love and support for
everyone
, not just me, but each other, sets the bar for how people should act. With love, grace, and an uplifting spirit. I truly can say you make me laugh and smile each day. I hope you love Parker and Lexi as much as I do. This book was a labor of love with so many of you in mind.

Sara Shone, welcome to the team. There are so many reasons why this book is possible, but you are a major factor. Thank you for your dedication, your intelligence, and your beauty, both inside and out.

Julia Sutherland, there are days that I thank God you have come into my life. There was a reason we met, and I didn’t know the extent and the purpose, but I can’t imagine life without you.

JB Salsbury and Claudia Connor, there are days that I knew all would come together for Lexi and Parker because you believed in this story as much as I felt it. Thank you for the line by line work you did on Black Dawn. Sharon Kay and Racquel Reck, you have been a valuable resource that I appreciate more than you’ll ever know.

Finally, thank you to Parker and Lexi. Yeah, I know. They’re
not real
, but for so many reasons they are to me. I love this story mostly because of how they triumphed in the end. Love should never hurt.

COPYRIGHT

Copyright 2015 Cristin Harber

All rights reserved. This book or any portions thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author and publisher except for the use of brief quotations used in a book review.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictionally.

ISBN-10: 1-942236-08-5

ISBN-13: 978-1-942236-08-5

www.CristinHarber.com