Epilogue #2
“Mission accomplished,” Freddie muttered, setting off another wave of laughter.
Ignoring him, Sam pressed on. “There were lots of little hints dropped in the last few weeks that put my partner on edge and had him threatening to boycott this fine event. Can you imagine that?”
Next to her, Nick’s handsome face lit up with laughter that made Sam wish she could take a time-out to kiss him.
“Anyway, to set your mind at ease, Freddie, I want you to know the midget strippers had to cancel.”
“Thank you, Jesus,” Freddie said while the others roared with laughter.
“And the latex suit I bought for you to wear tonight got lost in the mail.”
“Damn shame,” Freddie said, seeming to realize he’d been had. “And here I thought you were my best friend. Do you people see what she’s put me through?”
The others were too busy laughing to give him the sympathy he craved.
“Have another beer, babe,” Elin said, handing him a cold one.
“You know me,” Sam said. “I couldn’t let you completely off the hook, so I asked each of your guests to bring one special gift to help spice up your new marriage.”
“It doesn’t need spicing,” Freddie said, giving Elin a wolfish smile. “If it were any hotter, I’d implode.”
“Freddie!” Elin cried. “Shut up!”
“Frederico Cruz,” Juliette said. “Mind your manners.”
That got Sam laughing so hard she had to take a break to get herself together. He’d walked right into her trap. “Without further ado,” Sam said, “let us begin the gift portion of the program. Who’d like to go first?”
“I will.” Skip directed his chair around the table to where Freddie sat. “It’s in the pocket behind my seat.”
“I can’t believe he made me do this,” Celia said. “It’s not my fault.”
“He gets a lot done for a guy who can’t move,” Tracy said of their father.
“You’re damned right I do,” Skip said. “You got it, Freddie?”
“I got it, but I’m scared to death to open it.”
“I’ll do it,” Elin took it from him, opened the gift bag and revealed what looked like a gift certificate. “Pole dancing lessons? That’s amazing!”
Freddie looked like he wanted to crawl under the table and die.
“Dad!” Sam said, amused and horrified at the same time. “I can’t believe you!”
“What? You said it had to be something naughty.”
“Well played, Skippy.”
“Thank you. And my thanks to Celia for putting aside her mortification to take care of the phone calls for me.”
“Yay for Celia.” Sam led a round of applause for her stepmother, who’d turned bright red with embarrassment. Sam loved to see her dad so pleased with himself.
“I’m next,” Gonzo said. “Christina and I gave this a lot of thought, and we came up with something we think you guys will enjoy.” He handed over a gift bag. “Congratulations.”
Inside the bag were his and hers edible underwear.
“I need another drink,” Freddie said. “And it needs to be a hell of a lot stronger than beer.”
“Make it a double,” Elin added.
The gifts were hilarious and got progressively filthier, until Freddie and Elin had a huge pile of sex toys, massage oil, racy lingerie and other goodies on the table in front of them.
“Thanks, everyone… I think,” Freddie said when they had opened the last gift, from Cameron Green, who’d gone with a gift certificate for a couples’ massage at a local spa, which had been roundly rejected by his colleagues for being too clean.
“I’m the new guy,” Cameron said with a good-natured grin. “Go easy on me.”
“I guess all of this beats strippers of any kind,” Freddie said to raucous laughter and more applause.
They got up from dinner, and a team miraculously materialized to remove the tables and chairs.
“You do not fool around, Tink,” Sam said to Shelby as she watched in amazement as dinner disappeared, leaving space for dancing.
“I know my shit,” Shelby replied, hiccupping as she downed another glass of champagne.
Avery had Noah and was apparently the designated sober parent for the evening. He never took his gaze off Shelby, which made Sam so damned happy. She wanted them to have it all, and it appeared they were well on their way to getting it.
“One hell of a party,” Captain Malone said from behind her.
Sam turned to him. “Glad you think so. What’re you hearing about Captain Wallack?”
“He’s still in the hospital, but due to be released in the next few days. He’s devastated, but working with Trulo to come to terms with it all. He told Joe he feels like a disgrace to the badge.”
“He did what he had to do to stay alive and protect his wife. None of us blame him for that.”
“Try telling him that.”
“Hopefully, in time, he’ll find a way to cope with it.”
“I hope so.”
They both knew the events of the last week would haunt everyone involved for a long time to come.
“We’re not here to talk business,” Malone said, taking her by the arm. “Let’s dance!”
Laughing at the captain’s lack of moves on the dance floor, Sam watched the people she loved best relax and enjoy the night she’d gone to so much trouble to plan for Freddie and Elin.
They danced until three o’clock the next morning when the cars Shelby had ordered began showing up to see people home safely.
Sam received sloppy kisses from her friends, colleagues, sisters, brothers-in-law and even Elin’s friends, who declared them the coolest second couple in history.
Freddie’s mom hugged Sam. “Thank you for this and everything else you’ve done for my boy over the years.”
“I love him,” Sam said, feeling a little sloppy herself by then.
“I know you do, and it brings me so much comfort to know you’re looking out for him on the job.”
“Sorry if things got a little racy earlier.”
“Don’t be. I loved every minute of it—and so did he, regardless of what he says.”
Sam kissed her cheek. “See you at the wedding.”
“Yes, you will.” Juliette blinked rapidly as she looked at Freddie, who had his arm around Elin while they talked to Nick. “My baby is getting married!”
Sam hugged her and accepted a kiss to the cheek from Freddie’s dad before they left arm in arm, together again after twenty years apart while he contended with bipolar disorder. By all accounts, they were deliriously happy to be back together.
Freddie and Elin came over to Sam.
Elin hugged her. “Thank you for such an amazing evening.”
Sam returned her embrace. “Couldn’t have done it without your help.”
Elin released her and stepped aside to let Freddie in.
He looked happier than Sam had ever seen him as he hugged her, kissed her cheek and said, “Thank you. For everything. Not just tonight, but all of it.”
Damn him! He was going to make her cry!
“You’re the biggest pain in my ass in the history of ass pains,” he said, “but I love you anyway.”
“I love you, too. Congratulations. Nick and I couldn’t be happier for you.”
Freddie smiled, hugged Sam again and took Elin’s hand to lead her out the door, leaving Sam alone with Nick—and the cadre of Secret Service agents who’d made themselves scarce for the night at her request.
“That,” Nick said, “was one hell of a party.”
She leaned back against his awesome chest as they waved to Elin and Freddie. “It was kinda perfect, wasn’t it?”
With his arm around her, he walked her to the stairs. Shelby had told her yet another team would be arriving in the morning to return their furniture and clean up the mess.
“He loved it,” Nick said. “They both did. I can’t believe you let him think there were going to be midget strippers.”
“You can’t? Really? And I thought you knew me better than anyone.”
Nick busted up laughing. “I do know you better than anyone, and I still can’t believe the way you torture your poor, sweet partner, who is so faithfully devoted to you.”
“That’s what makes it so fun. I think torturing him might be my second-favorite pastime.”
With his hands on her hips, he directed her past their bedroom and up the stairs to the loft. Since Scotty was sleeping down the street, there wasn’t an agent positioned outside his door, so they had the hallway to themselves.
“Please tell me you might be in the mood for your number one favorite pastime because you look so hot in that dress, it’s all I’ve thought about since I first saw you in it.”
Sam stopped and turned to him, wrapping her arms around his neck. “I’m always in the mood for that.”
“Which makes you the best wife any man ever had.” He kissed her senseless, and before she knew what was happening, he had her laid out on the stairs while he hovered above her, gazing down at her with love and desire.
“We can’t do it here.”
“Why not?”
“Cameras. The last thing we need is another scandal.”
“There’re no cameras in this stairway.”
“You’re sure?”
He pressed his erection to her core, making her moan. “One hundred percent positive.”
“In that case,” she said, reaching for him, “have at it.”
“Don’t mind if I do.”
Turn the page to read book 13, Fatal Invasion, right now!