Page 63 of Taking His Heart

“I spoke to my father and found out who is out for your blood,” he tells me.

“Who?”

“A fucking Mexican cartel,” he grits out.

“What? Why would my father be doing business with a cartel?”

“Any number of reasons, but it’s not because of your father,” CJ explains. “The son of the boss had his eyes set on you, Dani. He asked your father to arrange a marriage and, well, your old man told him to fuck off, probably not so politely.”

“Wait, a Mexican drug prince wanted to marry me?” I laugh. “You mean I had options?”

“This isn’t funny, Daniella. This is serious. The threat is very fucking real.” CJ’s eyes are constantly scanning the mirrors.

“Okay, well, I’m married and off the market. Surely he’ll move on.”

“This guy has been watching you since you left Vegas a few years ago. And trust me, there is no moving on from an obsession with you. I would know.”

“Okay, so what are we doing about this guy? Because I can’t just be in hiding forever.”

“Actually, you could be. We could leave, just the two of us. New identities. We could go anywhere and no one would find us.”

“You’re joking, right? You wouldn’t actually leave your family, CJ.”

“For you, I would leave anyone, Daniella.”

“That’s sweet, but we’re not running away. I’m done running from my problems. I want the life I never thought I would get to have. I want what I was too afraid to try, and now that I’ve finally taken the plunge, I want to share our life with our families, CJ.”

“Okay, so no to running away then. Got it,” he grunts.

“I mean, I would follow you anywhere. But I would prefer if we didn’t have to.”

“Why the fuck do you live so far away from your parents?” He looks at the map on the car that still says we have thirty minutes to go.

“Because I didn’t need my family just dropping in all the time. So I moved a little away from them.”

“So they don’t just drop into your house?” CJ counters.

“No, they still do, but they complain about the drive each time.” I shake my head. “Don’t think that because I’m moving to Vegas, my family won’t just pop in unannounced.”

“I don’t care if your family comes, Dani. They don’t need an invitation.”

“You say that now. Just you wait,” I warn him.

My phone ringing has me shifting my gaze from my husband to the screen. “Ares, did you find him?” I answer my cousin’s call.

“Pfft, of course I did,” he says with his overly-cocky attitude.

“Who is he?”

“You’re not going to believe me if I told you.”

“Do I know him?”

“Ah, yeah,” Ares replies cryptically.

“Ares, you want to share or not?”

“Where are you now?” he questions.