Cris' POV
The pilot announced that we had arrived in San Francisco. Kamea was lying down on the bed. Just as she finally went to sleep, I had to wake her up.
"Sweetheart, we made it safely back to Los Angeles. First, let me give you your insulin. She did her usual routine. "Ouch." And I gave myself my shot. "Let's get off the plane and get you home."
"Okay."
We walked out of the bedroom and made our exit from the plane. My security detail was waiting for us as we walked off. My Escalade was parked by the plane. I opened the door for Kamea to get in. Then, my security loaded the luggage in the back and the gifts for the twins. We got so much for Dia and Rocco that we had to use both vehicles. Then, I got in on the driver's side. We pulled off from the airport, with my security right behind us.
On our drive back, I glanced over to Kamea. She was looking out the window with a sad expression on her face. As a husband, how can one not feel hurt that his wife was assaulted sexually? I must do my best to cheer her up. I want her to feel safe.
"Hey, love, remember that I am here for you. It doesn't matter the time of the day. Talk to me, okay?" We had stopped at a traffic light, so I took this opportunity to put my right hand on her cheek to caress it. Kamea leaned into the caress.
"Okay. I promise."
Once we had reached home, the guys unloaded both trucks. "Place the gifts for the twins in their rooms, please?"
"Yes, sir."
Then, I went to help my bride out of the truck. Once we made it to the front door, I said, "Wait, I couldn't wait to do this."
Kamea looked at me, puzzled. I did what every man wanted to do when he brought his bride home - scooped her up bridal style and carried her in the house.
"Welcome home, Mrs. Fiore." Kamea was blushing from ear to ear.
"Aren't you so sweet? Thank you, Mr. Fiore."
"Where to now, madam?"
"I am still tired, so to our bedroom."
"Your wish is my command." I couldn't wait for this day to happen. And, here it is. So, while still in my arms, I carried her upstairs to what used to be my room - now it is ours. I placed her gently down on the bed.
"Get some rest, love. I am going to make a few calls and join you. I'm getting you a bodyguard and calling the family about dinner for Saturday."
While yawning, Kamea said, "Thanks, gorgeous." Then, she was fast asleep.
I called my parents and Kamea's parents. I put both on the line at the same time.
"Mom, dad, Mama Jayde, and Kalani, I wanted to call and let you know that we are back from our trip to the Virgin Islands."
"You both are back a little early. We thought you were coming back later," Mama Jayde asked.
"We were scheduled to come back later, but something happened, and we came back now."
I could hear the anger in her father's voice. "What happened, Cris?"
"Dad, you will never guess who I ran into down there - Chase Dalton."
"That guy has been bad news for years," my dad said. I could tell he was just as angry.
"Well, yesterday, Kamea told me she was going to the hotel gym for exercise. She ran into Chase on the elevator. The elevator stopped, and they were stuck for about 30 minutes. When they finally reached the bottom, she ran off the elevator and told me he sexually assaulted her. I nearly choked his life out, but Kamea had an asthma attack. I dropped him and ran to her. After her breathing came back, Chase had the audacity to say that there was no proof and that she enjoyed it. I resumed choking the life out of him. The police eventually hauled him to jail before I could finish him off. She didn't want to stay there any longer, so we came back to California early."
There was silence for a bit. Then Mama Jayde spoke.
"How is Kami doing? I can't believe he did that to her!"
"He has always been jealous of everything that I have had. In college, he even stole my girlfriend at the time. Yesterday after what happened, Kamea didn't want to eat, and she could barely sleep. I did get her to eat something later in the evening. Kamea got a little rest on the plane ride back. She is in our room sleeping now. I can't take away her pain, but I will do all I can to help her endure this. I love her very much, Jayde and Kalani. Chase is not going to get away with what he did. I am also going to get a bodyguard for her. I will protect her by any means necessary."
"We could tell by the way you were there for Kami in the hospital and how you took care of her in your home. And I could tell that the promise ring you bought for her was an engagement ring. That is all we asked from you, Cris. We wanted to see how you would treat Kami. You have more than earned our trust, and we just ask that you always take care of Kami and treat her like the queen she is. And, I am sorry for my behavior in making you nervous and giving you a hard time. Kami glows when she talks about you to us. She is finally happy, and that is all that we want for our daughters - for them to find someone that makes them feel happy."
Kalani's response was a surprise. "Thank you, Mr. Palu. She makes me happy, and my children adore her as well. Día and Rocco even call her their 'mom.' Kamea will permanently become their mom once she files adoption papers. I asked her to adopt the twins, and she said yes."
"Congratulations, Cris! I am so glad that you finally have what you want. Now, all we need is for you and Kamea to get married," my mom proclaimed.
I didn't tell her that we did get married. I am saving that bit of info for Saturday. "We wanted to have you all over for a family dinner on Saturday. I am going to call Alessandra and Marco as well. And, you don't need to bring anything. We will take care of everything."
"Sure. We would love to come, Cris. And stop that nonsense. We are bringing something. I am just so happy for my baby girl. We will let Noelani and Marissa know too. Thank you for the update, Cris. And, we will see you both on Saturday," Mama Jayde said before hanging up the phone.
"I know the perfect guy to be Kamea's bodyguard. For a young guy, he is one of the best in the business. His father is one of my good friends. I'll get in touch with him and let you know if he is available."
Quite a few of my father's friends were in the Mafia. They asked him to join, but he didn't want that lifestyle for his family. Most of my security detail is a part of the Mafia. That is why the imposter from the hospital was dealt with that way. As soon as we find Reed, he will get the same punishment.
"Thanks. I'll be here at the house for a while. I don't want Kamea to be left alone by herself. And when are you bringing the twins home? She really wants to see them."
'Understandable. Well, I'll make that call and get back to you. We will bring Dia and Rocco back this evening after they get out of kindergarten. See you later today."
My father hung up the phone. I heard Kamea scream, "Get away from me, Chase!!" She must be having a nightmare. So, I ran into the room. She was tossing and turning, throwing her fists in the air like she was punching Chase. I hate him for assaulting her. Why can't people understand 'no means no'?
"Sweetheart, wake up!! You were having a nightmare."
Kamea woke up and sat up, hugging me for dear life. "I-I dreamed that C-Chase had......"
"I'm right here, Kamea. As long as I am alive, I will never let him or anyone else do anything to hurt you, baby. I promise you. And, guess what? Dia and Rocco are coming back home to us after they get out of school. Also, I am going to be here with you for the rest of the week. I don't want you to be alone."
"But, I can't let you do that. What about your winery and the club as well?"
"Nonsense, Kamea. You, Dia, and Rocco are my number one priority. At our wedding, we vowed to care for each other and be there for each other, for better or worse. The winery and club will always be there when I go back to them. But, right now, you are my priority. So, don't worry your pretty little head. Just let me go to the other side of the bed, and we can cuddle together. You need to get some rest, sweetheart."
I got up and went to my side, pulled back the cover, and joined her. I motioned for her to lay her head on my chest and started rubbing her back and arms. "Now, try and close those beautiful brown eyes."
"I'll try." She really did try. Kamea kept tossing and turning. And I kept giving her a back rub. The tossing and turning went on for several hours. I really could not sleep seeing her in this state. My once confident, happy wife - was broken in one day.
I heard the front door open and the kids screaming, "Where are mommy and daddy?"
I could not move because I was holding Kamea really tight. And I could not really scream because then she would wake up. They started coming up the stairs, so I called their names. "In here, Dia and Rocco." And they came running in the room.
"Mommy! Daddy!" Kamea heard their voices and woke up.
"Hey, Dia and Rocco. I missed you both so much. I love you guys."
"We missed you too, mommy." Kamea pulled both of them into a hug, and I saw the tears streaming down her face.
"Hey, what about daddy?" Then, the twins ran over to me and hugged me too. "We missed you too, daddy."
Dia went back to Kamea and asked her, "Mommy, why are you crying?"
Kamea paused for a moment before responding to Dia, "Baby girl, I am crying because I really missed you and Rocco. And your dad and I got presents for you both." Dia took her hands and started wiping the tears from Kamea's face. "It's okay, mommy. I missed you too."
For a five-year-old, she is really smart.
"Let's go to your rooms."
"Mommy, will you come with me to my room?" Those two really have bonded since Kamea came to live with us. "Of course, sweetheart."
They left hand in hand, and it was me, and Rocco left. "Come on, Rocco." I got up off the bed, and we went to his room.
Kam's POV
The look on Día's cute little face brought more tears down my cheeks. Día and I really became close. It really feels like she is my birth daughter. After finishing opening her gifts, she ran over to me, hugged me, and said, "Thank you, mommy."
"You're welcome, sweetheart. And, guess what? I bought a robe just like yours so that we can be twins." On her robe, we had Día's name and 'Princess.' On mine, it was my name and 'Queen.'
"Yay!"
Cris and Rocco came into Día's room. He ran over to me too. "Thank you, mommy."
"Daddy! Daddy! Look at what mommy got me! We are going to be twins." Día put on her robe. Seeing her so happy made me smile.
"I see it, princess. Let's go show Nonna your robe," Cris said, smiling. So, both Rocco and Día ran downstairs to their grandma.
Before we left Día's room, Cris came up to me and wrapped his arms around my waist, and said, "Sweetheart, I told your parents and my parents what happened. And they are coming for dinner on Saturday. My father also said he has a friend whose son is one of the best bodyguards in the business. He is going to call me back and see if he is available."
"Thanks, gorgeous. Do they know that we got married?"
"You're welcome, love. It's my job to protect my family. And, no, I didn't tell them. I wanted you to be there by my side when we tell them. Now, let's go downstairs."
"Sure." On our way downstairs, Cris's mom came over and hugged me.
"Kamea dear, Cris told us what happened. We will all help you with this. You are not alone. I'll give you my phone number. Call me whenever you need someone to talk to. And, call me Isabela."
"Thank you, Isabela. And you can call me Kami or Kam." I put Isabela's number in my phone.
"And Cris, your father is going to call you this evening. Do you want me to take the kids to school in the morning?"
"I'll take them tomorrow. Thanks," Cris told his mom, and then she left.
"Do you mind if I take them tomorrow?"
"Día and Rocco, how would you like your mom to take you to school tomorrow?"
They ran over and hugged me. "Yay!"
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*Later that evening. *
Cris' POV
While Kamea was getting Día and Rocco ready for bed, I received a phone call from my father.
"My friend called me back and said his son will be able to become Kamea's bodyguard. His name is Jake Michaels. He is going to drop by your house on Friday evening. Just let him know how often you will need him - like 24/7 or only when she goes out. Whichever one you choose, he said he will do it."
"Thanks. As long as he is with Kamea, I don't have to worry about her safety."
"Good night, Cris. And see everyone on Saturday."
My dad hung up the phone.
I turned off the lights downstairs and headed upstairs and went to say goodnight to the kids. After saying goodnight, I headed to our room. Kamea was watching television. I could tell Kamea was sleepy because she could barely keep her eyes open. So, I plopped down on my side and went ahead and pulled her close to me. She laid her head on my chest.
"Starting Friday, you will have a bodyguard. His name is Jake. He is coming by Friday evening. I want you to listen to everything he tells you. He will be with you all day, even at home. I am not taking any chances regarding your safety. Understand, sweetheart?" I looked down, and Kamea had fallen asleep. I turned off the tv and the lights. "I hope she makes it through the night without any nightmares."
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*Next morning - Thursday*
When I woke up, I noticed I was alone. Kamea must have gotten up to get Dia and Rocco ready. So, I got up and got ready for the day.
"We are definitely going to need a bigger bedroom. This closet is not big enough for the both of us."
I grabbed what I was going to wear for the day - jeans, a blue collared shirt, and navy sports jacket, and a pair of loafers.
After picking out my outfit, I went to take a shower. After 20 minutes, I stepped out of the shower, got dressed, and made my way downstairs.
Sure enough, everyone was at the table and eating breakfast. "Good morning, daddy!" The twins said in unison.
"Good morning, gorgeous. "What would you like for breakfast?"
"I'll grab something. Sit and enjoy yourself." I looked in the fridge to see what we had. I grabbed some eggs to make an omelet.
"Sweetheart, how about we spend the day out today? And we will need to go grocery shopping as well."
"Sure. I would love that."
"Right after we drop the twins off, we will go for a stroll in the park. Before I forget, it's needle time."
"Ugh."
"Have you asked your doctor if you can have your insulin in pill form?"
"No, I never thought about that. I'll make an appointment for next week."
After giving Kamea her insulin and taking mine, I sat down to eat my omelet.
"Dia and Rocco, go get your school bags. Mommy and I will come to pick you up from school today." They both ran upstairs to grab their bags and came back downstairs. Once they came back downstairs, we left the house to take them to school.
When we arrived, Addison was standing near the door. "You got her good with that fist. Look at her shiner."
"Well, she will learn never to test me again."
At that moment, I had my confident Kamea back. She got out of the car and took the twins to their class. Addison didn't say anything. She just glared at Kamea as they walked into the building.
On Kamea's way back to the truck, Addison tried to instigate an argument. Kamea had her hand balled into a fist, ready to punch Addison again. I should have let Kamea punch her, but we are on school grounds. I got out of the truck.
"Is there a problem here?" Addison saw the unpleasant expression I had on my face.
"No, there is not a problem."
"Good." And we both got in the truck and drove off to the park.
We found a parking space right near the park. I placed some change in the parking meter. We walked hand in hand for a little bit, then found a bench and sat down for a little bit.
"Your bodyguard is coming by the house tomorrow. His name is Jake. His dad and my dad are good friends."
"Okay. For dinner on Saturday, I wanted to fix some of my favorite Hawaiian dishes. I want you and the kids to try them. I won't fix anything too exotic. I have the recipes on my phone. So, when we go grocery shopping today, we can pick up what we need."
"How about we fix it together?"
"I would like that."
"How did you sleep last night?"
"Well, I didn't have any nightmares. Your cuddling with me felt reassuring. It still bothers me that he did that."
"Chase was always jealous of what I had. And, while we were friends in college, he took my girlfriend, at the time, away from me. Her name was Miranda. I really did like her, but I guess the feelings were not reciprocated."
"Sorry to hear that. I had someone steal a boyfriend from me. But, to be honest, I didn't really care because I was going to break up with him anyway. There was one guy that I really liked. We started out as best friends. But then, we started dating. He was a senior, and I was a junior. But we realized we were better off as friends. It's been a while since I talked to him. Then, I started dating Reed in medical school. And we know how that turned out. And now, here I am, happily married to you. Maybe it was fate that brought us together. I'm glad we are together."
"I'm glad we are too."
"I have to get my name changed for so many things - driver's license, credit cards, social security card, at work."
"Let's go take care of those things now." We went back to the truck. The first spot was to get her driver's license changed. The wait was not that long. It must have been one of their light days.
"The credit cards and social security card I can do online. The main one was my driver's license. And I can take care of changing my name at work on Tuesday. Is it time to pick up Dia and Rocco yet?"
I looked at my watch, and it was. We made our way back to the school. I went in to get the kids, and we walked back to the truck. We didn't have any trouble this time. Once Día and Rocco buckled themselves in their seats, we went to the grocery store.
We picked up everything we needed for Saturday and what we needed daily. This is the first time I have gone shopping with Kamea.
The whole time shopping, I watched how Kamea would make sure she was getting the most for her money. And she told me that some non-brand name products are just as good as the name brand. But, for certain things, she buys name brands. We checked out and paid for our groceries. Then, we headed home.
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*Friday evening*
I spoke to Jake on the phone, and he's coming around 6 pm tonight.
As six o'clock approached, Kamea was fixing dinner, and the kids and I were watching television. I heard a knock on the door, so I went to check and see who it was. I looked through the peephole on the door. It was a guy, so I am guessing that was Jake.
"Who is it?" And, he answered, "Jake Michaels."
I opened the door. "Thank you, Jake, for coming this evening. Come inside."
Jake came in, and I closed the door. Día and Rocco came running to the foyer. "These are my kids, Día and Rocco. Say hi to Jake."
"Hi, Jake." Jake waved his hands. Día ran off; I'm guessing to get Kamea. So, we stood there for a few minutes talking.
"So, I understand you would like your wife to be accompanied at all times?" Jake asked.
"If you are available 24/7, the answer is yes. Ever since we have gotten together, it has been drama. From her ex to even my ex-best friend. She means the world to me, so I will go to lengths to protect her. My dad said you were one of the best in the business, so that is what I wanted for her."
"I understand. If you need me 24/7, I can do it."
"We have extra room in the house if you need a place to stay. And I would feel better knowing you were here. I don't ever want her to feel alone."
"Thanks for the offer. I can move in some things tomorrow if that is okay."
"That will be fine." Sure enough, Día went to get Kamea because I could hear both of them coming this way.
Boy, was I in for a surprise when they looked at each other.
"Jake? Is that you?" Kamea said with a smile on her face.
"What's going on here?"
"How does Kamea know him, and from where?"
Jake's POV
Seeing Kam walk into the room made me regret not pursuing our college relationship further. She was the one girl that I would do anything for. I loved her so much. But I was so focused on my dream of becoming a bodyguard.
Even while I was in training, all I could think about was Kam. The training was intense. We couldn't have any contact with the outside world. Not being able to talk to Kam was the worst part of training.
After training, I came back to tell Kam how much in love I was with her, but I found out through a friend that she was dating some guy named Reed. Apparently, that didn't work out, and now she is married to Mr. Fiore. Dang.
Kam's POV
Cris looked at me with a 'How do you know him?' look on his face.
"Cris, Jake was my best friend I told you about yesterday in the park."
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Thank you all for taking the time to read chapter 22.
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