Chapter Twenty-Seven #2
Sam felt a tingle in the vicinity of her backbone, which tended to happen when she had a new thread to pull or felt like she was onto something that could break a case wide-open. She wasn’t sure yet if this was one of those moments, but she’d know soon enough. “Thanks a lot. Anything else popping?”
“Not yet.”
“I’ll let you get back to it. Call me if anything comes up.”
“Will do.”
Sam closed the phone with a satisfying slap and held it up for Nick to see. “Isn’t she pretty?”
“Gorgeous. Thank God and all the saints in heaven that you were able to get another one.”
“I know! I’m not made for phones that’re smarter than me.”
They ate the delicious meal that Daniel served, taking bites from each other’s plates, drank more champagne and enjoyed chocolate mousse for dessert. When the table had been cleared, Nick stood and held out his hand to her.
She took his hand and let him help her up. “What’s going on?”
“Come with me and I’ll show you.”
Because she’d follow him anywhere he chose to lead her, she went with him to the dance floor and smiled when she heard the opening notes to the Bon Jovi song they’d danced to on their wedding day.
He drew her into his arms and gazed down at her. “Thank you for loving me. In case you didn’t already know, you’ve made my life.”
Sam curled her arms around his neck and drew him into a kiss. “Thank you for loving me. I know it’s not always easy.”
“Samantha… Loving you is the easiest thing I’ve ever done. It’s easy like breathing.”
What had she ever done to deserve the love of this extraordinary man? Whatever it was, she was thankful every day for the divine intervention that had brought him to her not once but twice in this lifetime.
When the song ended, he kissed her neck and whispered in her ear. “Let’s go home.”
“Yes, please.”
Nick slipped Daniel a tip before they left the room to find Brant waiting right outside the door.
He spoke into a microphone to alert the other agents that Hot Shot and Fuzz were on the move.
“Who can I talk to about getting a better nickname?” Sam asked when they were in the elevator.
“I’m not sure,” Brant said. “No one has ever objected to one of our code names before.”
“Never?”
“Not that I’m aware of.”
“Figures I’d be the first.”
Nick snorted with laughter. “Of course you are.”
“Why don’t you like Fuzz?” Brant asked.
“It makes me think of frizzy hair.”
“You do know that’s an old slang word for police, right?”
“Yes, Brant, I know that, but I don’t like it.”
“Duly noted.”
“He’s not going to do anything about it, is he?” she asked Nick.
“I don’t believe so. I think he has more important things to do than to worry about your nickname, such as keeping me alive.”
Brant pointed to Nick with his thumb. “What he said.”
“I’d like my objections to be formally entered into the Secret Service objection book.”
“I’ll be sure to take care of that as soon as possible, ma’am.”
“He’s not going to do it.”
“Nope.”
“I’ll be happy to address that concern when I’m finished keeping your husband alive.”
“Now he’s being fresh.”
Brant cracked a rare grin. “My grandmother used to say that.”
“Are you equating me to your grandmother?”
“Not at all, ma’am. I would never make that mistake.”
“He’s good. I’ve got to give him that. He reminds me a lot of Freddie before I ruined him.”
“I can see that, and I can see that the ruining is happening because the nice agent who first took us on wasn’t quite as cheeky as he is now.”
“True. He was much more reserved and respectful.”
“I beg your pardon?” Brant tapped on his earpiece. “I couldn’t quite hear you.”
Sam and Nick laughed as they followed him off the elevator and back into the waiting vehicle.
“Thank you for an awesome date,” she said when they were alone in the backseat.
“Entirely my pleasure.”
“You got it right with the walk down memory lane. That was the best day of my entire life.”
“Mine, too.”
Sam leaned her head on his shoulder and curled her hand around his. “What was your favorite part of that day?”
“It had to be when I found out you told off my mother and sent her packing.”
“That was one of my finest moments. There was no way I was letting her ruin that day for you when she’d already ruined so many other days.”
“And for that I shall be forever grateful.”
“She’s been quiet lately.”
“I know. That’s never a good thing.”
“Eh, we don’t need to worry about her tonight.”
“No, we don’t. What was your favorite moment from our big day?”
“You might think it was when you got Jon Bon Jovi to sing our wedding song live or when we discovered we’d had the same thing engraved inside our wedding rings.”
“You’re my home,” he said, giving her hand a squeeze.
“That was pretty incredible, but for me, the very best moment of that day was when we arrived at the Hay and got a minute to ourselves to simply marvel at the fact that we were finally, finally married, all those years after our first night together.”
“Best day ever. Followed very, very closely by the day I met Scotty.”
“And the day I met the twins.”
“All good days that brought us an amazing family.”
“It hasn’t happened exactly the way we’d planned, but I wouldn’t trade them for anything, even ‘one of our own.’” She made quote marks around the last four words.
Nick frowned. “I had a good talk with one of the honchos at that reporter’s network and suggested she teach the reporter some manners before she sends her out to question people.”
“What’d she say to that?”
“She agreed and apologized profusely. Apparently, the producer has adopted children and was equally horrified.”
“Good, she should be. I wouldn’t trade our kids for anything, even ‘one of our own.’”
“I’m glad you were able to do something about her. It’s amazing how my thinking has changed on the baby topic. I used to believe I could only be fulfilled if I had a baby of my own, and now…”
“Now you have what you need, even if it didn’t happen the way we thought it would.”
Sam nodded. “We both went through so much before we had this. All of it made us who we are today, and who you are today works for me on every level.”
“I feel the same way about you.”
“If I hadn’t gone through hell before I found you the second time, I might not have been ready for this life we live. I never imagined I’d be thankful for the bad times, but in a weird way I am.”
“Me, too, babe.”