Darien stretched and felt the cold space next to her in the bed. Marcellus was gone. By the temperature of the sheets, he had been gone a long time. I have to get used to waking up this way, she thought to herself. As soon as her feet hit the floor, a wave of dizziness set in. She leaned over the side of the bed with her head resting on her up drawn knees and waited for it to pass before she did anymore moving. The dizziness had not happened in a while and the throwing up had stopped. Her body had changed in ways she had never imagined. What used to fit, no longer fit. What once looked good on her, no longer looked good. The only thing that had yet to change was the ferocious sexual appetite that she and Marcellus had for one another. If anything, it had increased. She walked to the bathroom smiling as she remembered the night before.

As she washed her hair, she thought about her day. She had plans to go shopping with Rya. Marcellus had told her the rubber band holding her pants together was no longer acceptable. He was convinced by not wearing maternity clothes that she was smothering his daughter and stunting her growth. Darien relented and said she would go by new clothes. Marcellus had gladly turned over his credit card to her. Rya had convinced her they needed the special treatment so they had decided to make a day out of it. First, they would shop, then they would eat, and the salon was the final stop of their day. Darien looked forward to the salon the most. She wanted to feel pampered and pretty since she seemed to be growing rapidly by the day.

Darien was in the massage chair while Rya lay on the massage table next to her. Darien was enjoying her massage so much that she almost did not hear Rya when she began talking about how Church and Marcellus were discussing life outside of the business. "I'm sorry what did you say?"

"I said that Church and Marcellus have plans to turn the whole operation over to Jimmy."

"Are you sure you heard that right?" Darien questioned.

"I know for certain since Church has been talking about marrying me and I keep telling him to save the talk for someone else. I am not marrying him until he is legit." Rya sighed. "It is one thing to fuck around with a known criminal, but I will not marry his ass."

Darien thought about what Rya said, and knew she was right. Even though she was not speaking in terms of her and Marcellus, Rya spoke the truth. There was no future for them if Marcellus did not leave his illegal dealings behind, and she knew in her heart that she could never ask him to give it up for her and their daughter. That was a decision Marcellus would have to make himself.
Marcellus sat as his desk contemplating his next move. He had just got off the phone with Carlo. Carlo wanted what he always wanted – money. The more he got the more he wanted. Marcellus' organization had been under Carlo since the bosses had allowed Marcellus to set up his own shop. Marcellus was high on the food chain, but Carlo was higher thanks to the efforts Marcellus and his crew put forth.

"So, how much does he want?" Church asked Marcellus.

"You wouldn't believe it if I told you." Marcellus stood and turned to face the view. Every since he and Darien had decided to work this relationship thing out, he had been thinking of nothing but waking up to her every morning without the weight of this world on his shoulders. He knew she would never marry him as long as he was not legal, so he had to go legit and fast. Marcellus knew she would not wait for him much longer. So far, she had not mentioned it, but the closer she got to giving birth to their daughter, the more he felt his time was running out.

"Don't stress the small stuff man. You still have time." Church knew what Marcellus was going through. Before he met Rya, he could have hustled all his life. When he had proposed to her and she turned him down because of his occupation, he knew then he would rather be broke than to be without Rya.

"One hundred million is not small stuff," Marcellus turned to look at Church. "Churchboy, I have to do this last transaction. That is the only way I will be able to give Carlo that type of money, but something inside me knows he will do something to sabotage me."

"So what are we going to do?" Church asked.

"I may have to do this one alone." Marcellus' voice was distant. The way he had phrased the sentence was not wasted on Church.

"You've never been alone in this and you won't be alone in it now." Church stood to his full height and looked Marcellus in the eye. "We ride or die together."

Marcellus nodded and they sat down to discuss their strategy.

It was midnight by the time Marcellus entered the bedroom that he now shared with Darien. She was asleep, as he had suspected she would be. His pressure on the bed caused her to stir. Her sleepy eyes looked up at him a smiled. "I missed you today," she said.

"Not as much as I missed the two of you." Marcellus rubbed her baby bump that had gotten a little rounder. Although she was showing, it was a small bump for someone that was going into her sixth month. Looking at Darien would leave you guessing on how far along she was. She was one of those women that just did not gain any more weight than what was normal.

Marcellus smiled as she stretched her arms out to him. He gladly went into those arms that had been offered and he pulled her closer to him. Darien snuggled into him as he asked how her how was her day. As she replayed her day for him, he began to play with her nipples. She giggled. Since the beginning of her pregnancy, her nipples had become a sensitive spot. Lately playing with her nipples made her come so close to exploding that she would often tell Marcellus to slow down. Marcellus kissed her behind her ear and heard her slight moan. He knew he was more than ready to take her hard and fast but due to the pregnancy he had to go slow.

Marcellus began slowly gliding his hand up and down her body while his other hand continued to play with her nipples. Darien bit down on her lip to stop herself from moaning aloud. Marcellus bit her gently on the neck and urged her legs apart. He immediately felt the heat at her center. "Why are you trying to play hard to get? You know you want me?" He said this close to her ear as he entered her from the back.

Darien moaned deep in her throat as Marcellus continued to stroke her to orgasm. Marcellus held her leg up into the crook of his arm and pumped into her. He nearly lost it when her sugar walls caressed him and sucked his dick deeper into her core. "You like that, huh?" Marcellus asked as he went deeper. "Tell me how do you want this?"

"I w-want." Darien could not get her thoughts together to form her words. She finally just spat out, "Fuck me, Marcellus. Fuck me deep." He liked it when she got vulgar. "I want you to fuck me and then I'm going to suck you clean."

Marcellus almost came at the sound of her words. "I might have to take you up on that one, baby." He felt his balls begin to tingle with his oncoming orgasm. Marcellus pinched her nipple hard as he pushed into her one final time and felt his sperm fill her. Marcellus pulled out of her reluctantly. Darien immediately began to suck his dick into her hot mouth and slowly seduced another orgasm from him. Marcellus tangled his hands in her hair as she swallowed every drop of him. Breathlessly, Marcellus lay back on the bed. Darien crawled up to him and kissed him lightly on the mouth, biting his bottom lip gently.

Marcellus lay quiet for a moment. He was holding Darien where had hoped to keep her, close to his heart. "I'm almost done, you know." Darien remained quiet. She did not want to believe that what she had been wishing for was coming true.

After waiting for a response and not getting it, Marcellus eased his arm from around her and leaned over her. "Tesoro, did you hear me?"

Darien bit her lip. "Yes, I heard you."

"So what do you say?"

"What am I suppose to say?"

"I expected you to be happy. I want you to be a part of my future. You know I love you. Marry me." Marcellus took note of the uncertainty in her eyes. "Darien, you had to have known this was coming. We are about to have a baby. I can't have both lives. I can't risk my daughter's life."

"So it's about the baby?" Darien moved away from him.

"How could you say that?" Marcellus sat up and took her into his arms. She was stiff. "Darien you have to know that I love you. You should have seen this coming." Darien shook her head. "Don't doubt me, Tesoro." Marcellus saw her slipping away from him. "Darien I want you and the baby. I just know that we have only seriously tried this relationship in the last month. I didn't know if you were ready to be in my life permanently."

"Marcellus, I love you. You know this, but I can't marry you right now." Marcellus leaned his forehead against her stomach and then kissed her there as well. "If you're serious about this, I can wait."

"I don't want our daughter born and we are not married."

"Marcellus, I am not marrying you until you are done with this life. That is my final decision." Darien could not believe the direction of this conversation. "Marcellus, where is this all coming from?"

She noticed he was not quick to respond. Darien pulled away from him. She went into the bathroom to take a shower. Marcellus sat in silence. How could he tell her that for the first time in his life he was afraid? He was afraid to lose her, but knew he would lose her if he stayed in this life. He was afraid to be alone after knowing what real love felt like. He was most afraid of losing his life in this next deal and leaving Darien to raise their daughter without him. Marcellus had so much on his mind that he had slept little to not at all over the last month. Other than the breakfast that he and Darien shared every morning, he had not eaten much. He heard the bathroom door open turned toward her. "I don't want to fight," he almost whispered.

"Neither do I," she replied.

"Let's get some sleep. I believe you have a doctor's appointment in the morning." Darien smiled, touched that he remembered.

Marcellus smiled as he got into his car. He had just left his attorney's office and had signed enough documents to secure Darien for life. He had wanted to make sure that no matter what happened to them in the future, she would not have to worry about finances when raising their daughter. His only worry right now was how to disappear without stressing Darien to the point of jeopardizing their daughter's health.

Church had advised him to just leave and give instructions to his attorney. It was how he had handled Rya. Marcellus knew he could not do that to Darien. She would feel like he did not trust her and her trust had been fragile lately when concerning him and their relationship. He had decided to take her on a vacation, but Carlo had moved up the transaction date and he only had a couple of days remaining.

Darien had gone by the advertising agency to formally resign her position. She had been working from home, but working from home had made the desire to operate her own business that much greater. Marcellus had done everything to accommodate her. He and Darien had talked about what she would need to run a graphic design company from home. Darien had solicited quite a few clients through the various contacts she had made while working on different campaigns with the ad agency.

Marcellus had converted a large room on the other side of his home so that Darien would be able to work and take care of the baby. She had long ago won the battle of no live in nanny. She was no fool, she wanted help; she just did not want the help living in their home and doing more mothering of her daughter than she should.

Marcellus knocked on the open door to get Darien's attention. "Are you ready for dinner?"

"I'd rather stay in if you don't mind."

"Are you feeling ok?" He asked.

"I feel fine. I just want some quiet time with you. Can you arrange that?" Her response caught him off guard. It touched him that she wanted to spend some time with him. It also made him feel guilty that in less than forty-eight hours, he would be gone from her and he had no clue if he would ever see her again.

"Anything you want," he finally replied.

She smiled at him and then kissed him lightly. "Good, I'll cook you get the dishes."

Darien grilled steak and made baked potatoes. After the salad was put together, she carried the two plates into the living room. She had decided to let Marcellus pick the movie and he chose The Bourne Ultimatum. Half way through the movie, the thought of just packing up Darien and leaving crossed his mind, but he was no fool. He knew Carlo would come looking for him, and Marcellus had never been a great runner. He was a man's man through and through. He believed that if you owe money, you pay it back. If you say you're going to do something, you did it. They were simple rules to live by, but they were values he believed in. He just wished there were some way of guaranteeing his safety so that he could come back to this. This was sitting with Darien and enjoying a quiet evening at home. Just the two of them, no phones ringing every five minutes.

"Are you ok? You were quiet during the movie."

"I'm good; just enjoying the time with you." Darien was lying with her head in his lap. He leaned down and kissed her. Darien smiled up at him. Marcellus caressed her cheek with his thumb. "I love you."

Darien leaned into his hand and kissed it. Although she had heard Marcellus say he loved her before, it always gave her pause. She never thought their relationship would end up this way. She looked up into his eyes and smiled. Darien rose up and kissed Marcellus. His reaction to her kiss was swift. Marcellus lifted her into his arms and covered her mouth with a fierceness that was beyond his control. He loved this woman. They had created a life and his fear of never being with them had overtaken him.

Marcellus undressed her with urgency. Her growing belly had restricted certain positions so he lifted her unto is stiff rod and entered her in one slick move. The moan that escaped her lips spurred him deeper into his lust. Marcellus took her engorged nipples into his mouth and savored them. Darien had always liked the way he handled her breast. His attention to her breast had always brought her to near eruption. She rocked her hips into him as he held her tighter and closer to him. Marcellus continued to drive into her as he filled both hands with her ass. He roughly massaged her ass while gently biting on her nipples. The heat flowed straight to her clit causing more juices to coat his dick as he continued to allow her to ride.

Marcellus released her ass and brought her lips to meet his in a sloppy kiss. Darien offered his tongue to her and he sucked on it slowly, savoring the feel of it in his mouth. One hand was tangled in her hair as the other one held her firmly around her waist. Marcellus continued to kiss her. He didn't want to lose this level of intimacy with her. For him the kiss was the most personal and he wanted to communicate his love for this woman through this kiss, and Darien accepted this kiss for how it was meant.

Marcellus looked deep into her eyes. "I love you." He kissed her again. "I love you."

A feeling of completeness went through Darien. She knew this time was different. Something inside her reached out to Marcellus and joined her soul with his. She could no longer hold back and in that moment she looked back into his eyes and knew that he meant the words he had just spoken. She held on tighter to him and she rode him to a complete orgasm.

When they were both spent, she looked him deep in his eyes and cradled his face in her hands. "Let's get married." Her words took a moment to register with Marcellus. She kissed him lightly keeping her eyes locked with his.

Marcellus wrapped her in his arms and returned the kisses she was sprinkling across his lips and chin. "Let's get married."

Two days later Marcellus and Darien were married at city hall. They celebrated with Church, Rya, Devin and Stephanie by having dinner at the Chop House in downtown Buffalo. Marcellus spent two beautiful nights as a married man, and then it was time for him to pay his last debt to the underground society. He and Church were coming out of the house when she pulled into the driveway. "I have some business, Tesoro. I will be back later."

"Be easy, Mr. Christos." She smiled then.

"Anything for you." Then he kissed her as if he could not go another second without doing so.

Late that night Darien awoke from her sleep to the racket of Rya ringing the doorbell and alternating that with beating on the front door. Just as Darien got up and slipped into her robe, she heard Rya calling her name. When Darien opened the door, she saw a ragged looking Rya. Rya pushed past her, closed, and locked the door. "Get dressed."

"What's going on?"

"Darien, look at me. I said get dressed. Would I be here in the middle of the night without Church if I had time to explain it? Get dressed!"

Darien was no fool. She went to her room and slipped back into the red jogging suit that she had worn earlier. She grabbed her purse, keys, and a laptop. When she went back downstairs, Rya was holding a bag that looked familiar to her. When Rya saw the question in her eyes she just said, "We'll talk in the car. Let's go."

They drove about half way down the block when they heard the explosion. Darien looked back and saw the house she had shared with Marcellus in flames. Rya continued to drive, as she had been instructed to do. When they reached their destination, Rya turned off the ignition and turned towards Darien. "I need you to listen close and be strong. I need you to remember that you have a baby on the way and a husband that loves you more than life itself and that is why we are here."

"Rya, you are freaking me out."

"Good it will keep you alert." She went into her purse and handed Darien an envelope. "This is for you, from Marcellus."

Darien opened the envelope with shaky fingers. As she unfolded the piece of paper she noticed Marcellus' handwriting:



Darien placed the letter in her purse and turned back to Rya, "so what do we have to do?"

"Church is with Marcellus. I am to stay with you. You cannot go anywhere without me."

"What about our house? What happened back there?"

"Jimmy."

"Jimmy?" Darien's face was a mask of confusion.

"Jimmy had to destroy the house and to make it look like you were there. So tomorrow on the news you will hear about a female body being found in the rubble that used to be your house." Rya held Darien's hand. "This isn't what we signed up for is it?" She tried to smile.

"Not at all," Darien whispered.

"Just remember that Marcellus is doing this to keep you and this little one safe," Rya said as she rubbed Darien's stomach.

"Just tell me, Rya, is he safe?"

"Yes, he is safe, and remember no matter what he loves you."

"I love him, too." The two women sat in the car for a while longer then went into the house where they were to be camped out until further notice.