Tag: romantic suspense

Instead of the gratefulness he expected at his admission that he loved her enough to let her go, and to put himself in more danger by coming back for her and their child, she merely scoffed.

Maisie stared at him, indignantly, not believing the words coming from his mouth.

How dare she.

Match shook her again, irritated now but his new Maisie who wouldn’t bend to his will.

Even though he likely had hurt her she didn’t cry or beg him to let her go, merely hung limply in his hold until he set her on her feet.

As soon as he released her she was off down the hall no doubt searching for their son. It was unfair to blame her for him not knowing she was pregnant when he’d left her with no way to contact him, and he wasn’t really angry with her anymore.

Following after her, he found both his woman and his son in the kitchen. Milo was sitting in a chair at the table basically vibrating with excitement, and Maisie was bustling about, removing the pizza from the oven and pouring Milo a glass of water.

It was all so domestic, so different from anything he had experienced before.

Maisie had done a good job with their boy, and Match felt regret not just for all that he had missed out on but that these two, the closest things he’d ever had to a real family, were in danger because of him.

He was the worst thing to ever happen to either of them.

“Aren’t you going to dish me up a slice?” he asked as he strode towards the table.

The venom in the glare his sweet girl shot him made him smirk. This Maisie was everything. Sassy and strong, with a backbone he couldn’t wait to bend, and a submissive side that hadn’t disappeared despite her new found strength. He knew that because even though she glared at him she automatically moved to get him a plate.

“We’re leaving after dinner,” Maisie said as she dropped a plate down in front of him.

“No, you’re not.” This wasn’t up for debate, he couldn’t protect them if they weren’t here.

“You can’t keep us here. I have work in the morning, and Milo has school,” Maisie threw another adorable glare his way.

“I already called in sick for you, and I told the boy’s school that you were taking him on a vacation.”

“You did what?” Maisie sputtered.

“We’re going on vacation?” Milo asked at the same time.

“No, we’re not,” Maisie told her son making him pout. “Attitude improvement, Milo.”

Immediately the little boy wiped the pout off his face. “Sorry, Mama,” he said then picked up his pizza again.

Snagging a hold on Maisie’s wrist he tugged until he pulled her down onto his lap. She squirmed but all it did was turn him on more, but with their son in the room she couldn’t fight him off because he knew she didn’t want to scare the boy.

“You’re not going anywhere, babe. You’re mine and you know it. Always have been always will be. The boy as well. So get any ideas of leaving our of your pretty blonde head, because I am never letting you go.”

Maisie didn’t hesitate.

Shoving off the bed she ran for the door, heading for the room where Match had told her Milo was.

As she threw open the door to see her sweet little boy playing happily with trains and a wooden track she felt instant relief as she caught sight of her son, dropping to her knees and folding him into a hug.

“Mama, where were you? I wanted to play trains with you,” he said all huffy and she gave a watery laugh even as tears filled her eyes. Seemed her little sweet pea wasn’t in the least fazed about being kidnapped.

“Umm, I was sleeping, baby.”

“I’m not a baby, I’m a big boy,” Milo said with all the affront a four year old could muster.

“Of course you’re a big boy,” Match said from the doorway where he was watching them.

Instinct had her picking up her son and turning so she was between him and Milo’s father. Any residual love she’d harboured after he’d disappeared leaving her alone and pregnant had vanished when he kidnapped her and her baby like he had any right to come back into their lives.

“See, daddy says I’m a big boy.”

Her heart stopped beating.

The room suddenly didn’t seem to have any air in it.

Match had told her son that he was the boy’s father?

Without her consent.

Shock quickly morphed to fury. How dare Match. Who did he think he was?

Reigning in her anger only for Milo’s benefit she looked around, she had no idea how long she’d been unconscious but it was dark out and Milo hadn’t fallen asleep so it couldn’t be all that late.

“Have you had dinner?” she asked her son.

“You promised pizza,” he said immediately, drawing a small smile out of her.

“There’s pizza in the oven, why don’t you go wash up,” Match told Milo, who squealed and wriggled in her arms until she had no choice but to put him down and let him dart out of the room.

With her son temporarily gone she stormed up to Match, stood right in front of him, uncaring she had to tilt her head up to meet his gaze. “How dare you tell Milo you’re his father.”

“I am his father.”

“A father doesn’t walk away from the woman he claims to love, leaving her pregnant, alone, and struggling. Nor does he kidnap his child and the child’s mother. You don’t know what it means to be a father,” she seethed.

His hands darted out so quickly she didn’t realise he had moved until they clamped around her biceps and lifted her off the floor. “I didn’t know you were pregnant when I left. And I left to keep you safe.”

“Sure,” Maisie scoffed. Never again would she be stupid enough to believe a word that came out of Match’s mouth.

He growled and shook her roughly. “Loving someone in my world is a weakness, its something that can be used against you. You were my weakness ness and now you and our son are in danger.”

“What happened to you?” Maisie demanded, if Match thought she was the same sweet, timid, eager to please girl she’d been when he knew her he was sorely mistaken .

This Maisie had had enough of people walking out on her.

Match was just another person to abandon her. Left by her parents behind a dumpster when she was seven months old, Maisie had bounced around the foster system never finding a stable home. She thought she had found one with Match. He could be a hard man, a cold one, but he had always been so sweet and gentle with her. Although he’d never mentioned his job she believed he had been in the military and then joined some branch of law enforcement but he would never tell her what.

Obviously she had been wrong.

The man she had stupidly fallen in love with was nothing but a low life criminal.

Tipping his head he studied her from soulless blue eyes. “Life.”

His answer to her question only fuelled her rage. “Life sucks, doesn’t mean you get to hurt people. Now tell me where my son is.”

“Our son.”

“My son,” she corrected. “You gave up all rights to Milo when you walked away from us.”

Something passed through his eyes but it was gone before she could identify it.

“If you hurt my baby I will kill you.” Maisie didn’t care how ridiculous her threat sounded. Match might have ten years, more experience, almost two feet, over a hundred pounds on her, and have her tied to a bed but her inner mama bear was out in full force.

“The boy is fine.”

“That doesn’t tell me anything. He must be terrified, you kidnapped us.”

“Can’t steal what already belongs to you.”

Maisie scoffed. “We don’t belong to you.”

“What are you willing to do for access to the kid?” Match asked, his gaze trailing over her body lighting a fire everywhere it touched. Only now the fire wasn’t one of desire like it used to be. This was no longer the man who fulfilled all her fantasies, who made her feel safe and protected.

Now he was her enemy.

Her answer came without hesitation. “Anything.”

Match couldn’t take his eyes off the woman lying unconscious and tied to his bed.

His woman.

Maisie.

Strawberry blonde hair that reached all the way down her back, huge long lashed green eyes, a sprinkling of freckles across her nose and cheekbones. She was gorgeous, sunny, beautiful inside and out.

Walking away from her had been the hardest thing he’d ever done. But the right thing to do.

His obsession with her had put her in danger and leaving had been the only way to ensure her safety. In doing so he’d lost the chance to be a father.

Fury still burned inside him and it warred with the love he felt for the mother of his child.

Match knew he wasn’t a good man, not even close. He was a danger both to his son and Maisie.

Still he reached out a hand and stroked the side of her head, wondering if her hair was still as soft as he remembered.

It was.

When he tangled his fingers in the silky locks and tugged just hard enough he knew her scalp would sting, she woke scared and confused.

“Milo!” she shrieked, bolting upright so fast he only just avoided her head plowing into his nose.

Her frantic gaze flew around the room in search of their son and he gave a cold laugh, drawing it to him.

“Not nice not knowing where your child is, is it?” he mocked.

The Maisie he knew would have burst into tears, sobbed and pleaded, apologised even though they both knew none of this was her fault. Growing up in the foster system she’d become a people pleaser, desperate for any scrap of attention someone threw her way

But tears wasn’t what he got.

Instead fury filled the eyes of his gorgeous girl and her lip curled in a snarl. “You sick, twisted monster! You abandon me and our son and you have the audacity to be angry with me about that? Go to hell.”

Along with anger at being spoken to like that was a heavy dose of pride and a whole lot of desire. He hadn’t touched a woman since Maisie and seeing her again had need sizzling through his system like a wildfire.

“Sorry to break it to you, sweetheart,” he sneered, “I’m already there, and now, so are you.”