“Jair? Vulnerable? Fuck kid, do you have any idea what this man’s capable of?”
“Shut up!” I growl when Autumn turns pale and she twists and starts running toward the car when I grab her by the waist and lift her in the air.
“Let me go!” she squeals, kicking with her legs and she makes an attempt at a head butt but fails and it’s...adorable. “Unhand me, John! I am not getting involved with any ugly business and neither are you. You hear me? Neither are you!”
“He’s pretty high in rank. I woulnd’t talk to him that way if I were you.”
“Shut the fuck up. She can talk to me however she wants,” I growl and the stranger leans against the lamppost with his good shoulder.
“Fine. Your woman, your headache.”
Ignoring the stranger, I take Autumn’s face in my hands. “Sweet cheeks, calm down. It’ll be alright. I’ll handle this.”
She shakes her head. “You got this all wrong. You’re not in the mob. You’re not a made man!” Distressed tears slip down her face and get washed off with the drizzling rain. She’s more beautiful than ever like this, a troubled little wreck because she’s worried about her man.
Letting out a deep breath, I sigh, “I think I am.” I don’t remember but somehow this new information resonates with me. Inhaling, I add, “And you’re not my wife.”
Her lids shudder and she slumps against me. “Oh John...,” she whispers.
“Jair,” I remind her. “But you’re going to be. You will be mine.” I brush my lips over hers. “You’re coming with me to that compound.”
Autumn squirms. “I can’t be a mob wife.”
“Why not?” the stranger asks. “No woman ever complains. Never.”
Ignoring him I add, “But you do want to be mine, don’t you? Please be mine, Autumn. I don’t want to lose you.”
“John...,” she croaks, “...Jair... “
“You said I’m your mad man, remember?” I rasp and a small smile crosses her face and she nods. I clasp her to me. “Now let me be your made man. You and me together forever, sweet cheeks. What do you say?”
She blinks up at me. “You know I don’t want to lose you either, Jair.”
“Is that a yes?”
“Promise I won’t have to come in contact with that life,” she softly pleads and I nod because I’ll keep her protected. Smiling she brushes her lips over mine and the tears have stopped. “Then yes.”
EPILOGUE
Jair-ONE YEAR LATER
My wife doesn’t wake up when I come home from work. She sleeps on the couch with the baby on her arm and I silently cross the floor. A smile tugs at my lips because I have to be the luckiest mobster in town. I have a wife and I have a wife who I remember since the first time we met. My memory came back seven month ago but I was accepted back into the mob as soon as I showed up at the compound.
None of the made men doubted my abilities and they proved to be right because even though my mind didn’t remember, my body did. It knew what to do. Autumn adjusted to the life slower than me and refused to live at the compound, so I bought her the prettiest place I could find. We have our own house on a nice street, in a nice neighborhood because that’s what makes Autumn happy. She’s the white picket fence kind of girl and we make it work.
Bending down, I kiss Autumn’s temple and she stirs before her eyes flare.
“Oh...,” she whispers in confusion, “we must’ve fallen asleep.” She looks down at the still sleeping baby and strokes his cheek before turning to me. “You smell like shadows. Have you been terrorizing the streets again...?” she smiles and I shake my head.
“The only thing I terrorize is this...,” I rasp, cupping her between her legs and she moans because she’s just had a baby but she’s pregnant again since I can’t seem to calm down around her.
“You’re not supposed to get me pregnant when I’m already pregnant,” she moans.
“I believe that’s physically impossible, sweet cheeks,” I lick the seam of her lip and she inhales.
“Not if you keep looking at me like that.” She arches her throat when I pepper her with kisses. “Or when you keep kissing me like that.”
Sliding my hands under her body, I lift her up and put her down on the carpet and loom over her.