G-Men: The Series (152 page)

Roses are red,

I know I’m an ass.

If you can forgive me,

You’re quite the lass.

I broke out into a grin at the poet inside of my G-Man. Slate had never been real big on romance. Protectiveness and controllership were his attributes in the relationship. Yet I knew how much he loved and cherished me because of those same things. And I knew just how much I loved him, stubbornness and all.

“Are you ready to go to dinner, babe?”

I turned around and saw him standing there, a smile on his face showing off the dimple that I loved so fucking much.

“Oh Eric,” I said, launching myself into his strong arms. “Thank you so much for that!”

“They’re just roses, babe,” he said, his lips grazing my hair.

“I meant the poem,” I whimpered. “I mean, I love the roses, but that poem, well, it just…”

“Hey, hey,” he cautioned me. “Don’t go getting all emotional on me, okay?”

He tilted my chin up so that I was looking into his gorgeous blue eyes and I saw the emotion there; his love for me was always evident in his eyes, and in the way that he looked at me.

“Slate,” I whispered, “I think we’re going to be late for the second seating. They’ll just have to start without us, I guess.”

He smiled again, pulling me against him, fisting my hair so that my face tilted up, his lips finding mine.

“Let’s fuck, Slate,” I said, “right here, right now.”

“You’re the boss, babe,” he whispered, taking my hand and pulling me towards our bedroom. “I can’t refuse you anything.”

~ Ronnie ~

I stretched out on the bed, waiting for Colin to finish up in the shower. We were supposed to meet Slate, Sammie, Taz and Lindsey for dinner tonight at the second seating. I wasn’t in the mood to go and Colin understood. I felt terrible for always bringing him down with my blues after my period showed up, marking yet another month without conceiving.

He came out of the shower, drying his damp hair with a towel, another one wrapped around his hips.

“Baby,” he said, coming over to the bed. “I can stay in with you if you’d prefer it. I don’t like leaving you alone when you’re not feeling like yourself.”

I sighed, sitting up in bed and reaching for his hand. “I know, Colin, but I feel so bad for bringing you down with me. Besides that, what will Easton and Darcy think?”

“I’m certain they’ll understand that you’re feeling a bit under the weather and I wanted to stay in with you. Aside from that, I’m not so sure Easton is in any condition to show up for dinner.”

“Why’s that?” I asked.

“His bloody mother showed up at his suite. He got a bit tanked this afternoon after she left.”

“You’re kidding me!” I gasped, eyes widening. “How in the hell did she know he was here? Better yet, how in the hell was she able to come on board?”

“Are you serious? That woman could wheedle her way onto the space shuttle if she had a mind to do it.”

“So, why was she here?”

“She was able to coax his whereabouts out of Darcy’s father at Baronton-Sheridan. She flew to Miami, and took a shuttle plane here. She had a matter of grave importance to discuss with him. Seems the bitch is seeing the last of her days on this planet. And she’s broke.”

I knew enough about Easton’s mother just from the bits and pieces Colin had shared with me over the years. She was a despicable creature, and that was the kindest thing I could say about her.

“So, she hits Easton up, huh? I hope he told her to rot in hell!”

“No. As a matter of fact, Easton was quite generous with her. He committed to seeing to her comfort until she passes. He’s deeding Greystone to her.”

“Seriously? Well, I suppose once she dies, he’ll inherit it back anyway.”

“I really don’t think he cares,” Colin replied with a shrug. “Easton’s a better person than his mother. He always has been. I suppose it took being loved by someone like Darcy for him to figure it out.”

I reflected upon what Colin had said, and I realized it was true for Easton, and it was true for me as well. I was a better person because of Colin. My past, though not one of wealth or privilege, had had some very dark moments. Colin knew all of it and loved me in spite of it.

“You know, Colin,” I said softly, taking his hand, and putting it to my lips. “Since you’ve decided to stay in this evening, how about you crawl under these covers with me?”

He quirked a brow at me, a slow smile lighting his face.

“Do tell?”

“Yeah, baby. I kind of want to show you just how much I love every part of you,” I whispered.

~ Eli ~

I took another sip of my second Margarita, looking across the long table at Cain. He was munching on another piece of shrimp, dipping it into the cocktail sauce.

“What do you think?” I asked, looking down at the long span of empty place settings at our table.

Cain gave me a grin, licking cocktail sauce from his bottom lip. “I think we’ve been stood up, Eli,” he replied.

“So, do you really want to stay here and do this seven-course seafood fiesta by ourselves?”

“Well,” he said, grabbing another piece of shrimp, “we do have to eat, right?”

“True,” I said, joining him by taking several shrimps onto my plate. “How about this? We finish with this first course, and then bag the rest and go for a walk on the beach. We haven’t been out of our suite for two days, and this is our last night of the cruise.”

“I’m down with that,” Cain replied, giving me a wink.

Later, as he and I walked hand in hand along the edge of the water, letting our toes sink into the warm, wet sand, Cain and I made a very important decision about our relationship. We were going to stay together and continue working on it. Because at the end of the cruise, and at the end of the day, we knew we loved one another more than anything.

I had never known some of the things about Cain that he had just shared with me over the past couple of days. He had kept things from me—important things that he’d been afraid to tell me.

Oh, it wasn’t anything like cheating or being unfaithful to me. Yet, there were things that tempted Cain and had for quite a while. Things that piqued his curiosity and appealed to him. He had shared those thoughts with me to see what my reaction would be.

I would like to think that I’m a liberal person. I don’t judge anyone’s lifestyle and never would. Still, some of the things tempting Cain had some appeal to my curiosity as well, once he had brought them to my attention.

We had decided we’d go through couple’s therapy and explore these hidden desires of his to see if somehow they could ever fit into who we were as a couple. Most importantly, we knew that total honesty and open communication had to play a major part in growing the relationship that we had with one another.

I pulled Cain to me, and kissed him on the lips.

“I love you,” I murmured against his mouth.

“I love you, Eli,” he replied, his tongue now tracing my lower lip, just before he tugged at it with his teeth playfully.

“Let’s go back and make this last night the best,” I said.

“I hear that,” he replied. “Don’t come a knockin’ if this ship’s a rockin’!”

^epilogue

After the cruise ended, life for Easton and Darcy, Taz and Lindsey, Sammie and Slate, Colin and Ronnie, and Eli and Cain went back to normal…for a while that is.

In late February, Ronnie gave Colin the great news that they were expecting! Ronnie delivered a healthy, 8 pound baby boy in October of that year!

True to their commitment, Eli and Cain started couple’s therapy as soon as they returned to D.C. with much success. They bought a ranch home together in Silver Spring, MD. Last I checked, they were struggling a little bit financially, but continue reading and you’ll find that a solution is on the way!

Slate, Sammie and the boys are doing great! Sammie finished some on-line classes in interior design and is now working out of her home with designing nurseries and playrooms for some of the upscale residents of the greater metropolitan D.C. area. She enjoys having some financial independence as well. Slate approves.

Taz and Lindsey are the same as ever! Lindsey is helping her mother in the interior design business by keeping the books and handling the invoicing and payables for her. She and Taz are enjoying their new home and recently had an addition to the family.

No, it’s not what you think. Taz and Easton’s younger sister, Paige, came out from Napa having been accepted into the internship program for FBI Administration in Quantico. She stayed with Taz and Lindsey for several months, until Taz had to finally sit down with her to discuss her inappropriate lifestyle. Paige turned out to be quite the “wild-child,” which was disrupting the Matthews household, big-time.

Paige had met Cain and Eli at a family barbeque, so she asked if they needed a roommate in their new home in Silver Spring. Guess what? They loved the idea of having an additional roomie to help with expenses, so it has worked out well so far. Paige has grown extremely close to Cain…

So that about concludes the most recent updates on the characters from the G-Man Series!

Wait! What???

Oops! Sorry—I nearly forgot about two key people: Easton and Darcy!