Page 43 of Redeemed

Sofia heard a bit of mumbling, and suddenly the door banged open. Maggie came flying across the room toward her. "Sofia!" she cried, engulfing the woman in a hug as she sat up. "Oh, my goodness! I've been worried sick about you!" She held her at arms' length and looked at her with concern. "Are you okay? What can I get you?"

"I'm fine, honestly," she assured her friend. "Mamá's been here. I'm just really tired. And worried about JT. Have you heard anything?"

Maggie shot a death glare at the officer who was standing in the doorway. "Not much other than they are supposed to be released shortly. But with these people, I have no idea what their definition of 'shortly' might be. We've been here for hours!"

"That's all they would tell us, too," Mrs. Benevides said, standing to stretch now that Sofia was up. "I hope those boys are alright. There's no reason to keep them."

Zane came up and gave the woman a side hug. "We're awfully glad you're okay," he said to Sofia. "I heard JT put Jesse in the hospital."

Mrs. Benevides crossed her arms tightly over her chest. "It's less than he deserves," she said. "I don't want to think about what he would have done to my Sofia if JT, Julio, and Ramon hadn't shown up." She quickly made the sign of the cross. "I can't believe I was so wrong about him for all these years."

Sofia shuddered. "I didn't have any idea he could do something like that either, Mamá. I don't think anyone did."

Maggie pulled her close again. "You don't even think about it, honey. It's all over and you're safe. I doubt seriously you'll ever have to worry about that man again."

As they settled on one of the ugly couches, Maggie tried to distract her with the happenings at the wedding dinner which had gone off without a hitch despite Cassie being the only one left in the kitchen and Maggie worrying herself to death about what was happening with Sofia and JT. She'd even got a little laugh out of her telling her about the four-year-old flower girl attacking the three-year-old ring bearer when he tried to give her a kiss.

"And no one had any idea anything was wrong," Maggie assured her. "That is, until the police came to tell the Conners and Cruzes about Jesse being arrested and being taken to the hospital."

"Poor Amarylis," Sofia said, shaking her head. "At least they got through the wedding and part of the dinner. I feel bad for the family. They are such nice people and were always so good to me. I can't imagine what they're going through now, knowing their golden boy could do something like this."

"Sometimes there are just bad seeds," Maggie told her. "You can do everything right and still have a child turn out wrong."

Maggie's forehead creased and she frowned at her own pronouncement. Zane sat beside her, put an arm around her shoulder and caressed her belly. "But most of the time, love and care turns out lovely humans," he assured her and kissed her temple.

The sight of them made Sofia's heart clench. She needed to know what was going on with JT more than ever. They'd told Maggie and Zane they were releasing him but what was taking so damn long? She got up to pace again when she heard voices in the hallway. The door was opened by an older man in a suit she didn't recognize but right behind him were JT, Julio, Ramon, and her mother.

Her hands flew to her mouth as JT crossed the distance between them in two large strides. He crushed her to his chest and lifted her off the ground before she could say a word. She wrapped her hands around his neck and held on tight. They held each other for what could have been seconds or hours, Sofia didn't know or care, when suddenly the murmuring in her ear finally coalesced into words. "I'm sorry, baby. So sorry. Thank God you're alright. You're safe."

"What are you sorry for? You saved me," Sofia whispered in his ear, placing her forehead to his. "If you hadn't found me, I don't want to think about what might have happened."

"I should have believed you. I shouldn't have acted like such an ass. He never should have thought he stood a chance," JT said, his face a mask of regret.

"No, no, no," Sofia said taking his face in her hands. "This was not your fault. There was something wrong with him. He was crazy in the end. You saved me," she whispered again. "You saved me."

He took her in his arms again and rocked her, holding her tight against his body. He didn't know how he was ever going to let her get more than a few inches away from him again. He needed to get her alone and prove to her how much he loved her. He needed…His thoughts were interrupted by small hands patting his shoulder. Mrs. Benevides had tears in her eyes as he turned his attention to the small woman.

"JT, I want to apologize. I was wrong for not wanting Sofia to date you. You are a good boy," she pronounced, tears in her eyes. "You saved my Sofia." She took a shuddering breath and raised a hand to cup JT's cheek. "Estoy muy, muy agradecido. Ahora eres familia."

"She says she's grateful, man, and that you're family now," Ramon said softly behind him, translating her final words.

She thought she saw a sheen of tears in JT's eyes when he responded. "I'm honored, and I'm going to do everything in my power to keep her safe and happy from now on, Mrs. Benevides. I promise." Sofia beamed at her mother's declarations. Finally, she understood what Sofia had known all along. She was lucky to have found such a fine man. Their relationship may have started out as fake, but now it was something very, very real.

"Let's go home," JT said, keeping Sofia tucked tightly into his side. She wrapped her arms around him and smiled. "Yes, please."

Chapter forty-one

Epilogue

Aftertheyhadshareda dinner of leftover wedding food in JT's kitchen, Sofia climbed into his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck. She kissed him sweetly.

"I've missed you so much," she confessed. "When Jesse took me, I was afraid I'd never get to tell you how much I loved you, again."

"Aw, baby, you can't even imagine how awful these last few weeks have been without you," JT admitted. "I could have lost you because of my stubborn damn pride. I'm not ever letting you doubt how I feel about you again. And I'm not wasting another second with you."

"C'mon, I need to take care of you," he said and swept her up in his arms. She squealed happily as he carried her into the bathroom and sat her down on the vanity stool.

As the water heated and filled the tub that he'd thought was ridiculously large when Maggie had it installed, JT went to his nightstand drawer and pulled out the small jewelry case he had been hiding there. He'd technically missed their anniversary but felt like this was the perfect time to give her the gift he had gotten for her. He held it behind his back as he returned to the bathroom.