Epilogue
EPILOGUE
Skull threw back his third shot, then set down the glass. He’d just come from the hospital and his old man wasn’t doing that well. He felt sick thinking that he would lose his dad. He had to get out of there, let the doctors do their thing. They were talking about bypasses and other things that made his gut clench. His mom, as always, was a rock. He took comfort from that.
“Buy you a drink, sailor?”
He stiffened and looked over. It was…fuck…was it wishful thinking…no, it was Hummingbird.
“Oh, fuck,” he said in an exhaled breath. “What the hell are you doing here?”
“It’s classified.” She sidled next to him on a bar stool, and it seemed like she accidentally brushed against him, but it made him feel like a hunted man. “How long are you going to hold a grudge, Skully?”
“Don’t call me that,” he said. Not one day had gone by that he didn’t think about this annoyingly competent and deliciously sweet woman.
“Why not?” She pursed those plump lips, making him break out in a cold sweat.
The nickname was too cute, and it slipped through his dark armor much too easily. “Just don’t.”
“I like it.” That purposeful gleam in those blue eyes of hers didn’t bode well for him.
“Where’s your sidekick? Handling problems in the underworld?” he said dryly.
“No, silly. She’s got minions for that,” she said. Her eyes sparkled, and he had to work hard to keep his brooding look in place. “Besides, I thought that was your job.”
“Seems like hell sometimes,” he said, his voice snapping back. Despite himself, Skull took in the candy pink halter top, and the white jeans that clung to her sweet curves, outlining the flare of her tantalizing hips. Her body was so goddamned toned, the muscles beautifully defined against her soft peaches-and-cream skin. He wasn’t sure if it was the alcohol or if her skin glittered each time she moved.
She smelled lovely, the scent of her settling over him as seductively as her mouth.
“Ooh, I love a tall, dark man with a big, bad attitude.”
While he admired her tenacity to go after what she wanted and found her blatant stalking too much of a turn-on, he wasn’t sure that a Shadowguard had the same kinds of principles he had. He was aware of how much hell Karasu put Preacher through with her secrets and withholding. “Beat it, Hummingbird. I’m not in the mood.”
“Oh, I’m really good at putting…people in the mood and beating it.”
He met her gaze unflinchingly, the instantaneous sparks of awareness between the two of them nearly tangible. He had been ignoring that electricity for a while. Her words set his junk on fire, and he hardened.
He didn’t want to give her an edge and show just how much she affected him. He wouldn’t let down his guard with this one or allow her to rattle his control.
Then she smiled as if she already knew. A slow, sensual smile that affected him like a blow right to the gut. Fuck he wanted to taste that sassy mouth, his dark thoughts going to what she could do with it.
He wanted to taste her in every hot, sweet, place on her body. This bar was so dark, no one would even see them if he pushed her up against the wall and let her feel what she did to him.
Today, her hair was almost white, tousled as usual, chin-length curls. When she dipped her head, he wanted to slide his fingers into all that silk.
“Don’t you have some people to assassinate? Assess to kick? Candy to steal from babies? Skulking to do”
She giggled and it came out low and sultry instead of girlish and annoying. “I never skulk. But it’s so much fun to talk to you.” She moved closer. “I really missed you.”
He threw money down on the bar and swiveled off the stool. Damn if that last statement didn’t sound completely sincere. He was going home. Alone.
But she caught him before he could leave, doing some ninja move that had his back flat against the wall. “Dammit, woman.”
“I think you’re pretending too hard,” she whispered. “You intrigue me, Skully.”
“I’m not pretending.”
She tipped her head, sending her disheveled hair around her sweet face, and stared in fascination at his mouth. She placed her hands on his chest, the hands she’d used to kick his ass, and as soon as she touched him, his muscles flexed beneath her palms, and his breathing hitched. He felt the heat of her through his T-shirt.
With a secret, feminine smile, and in a breathy voice, she said, “I think about your mouth a lot. It’s very distracting wondering if you’ll taste as darkly decadent as you look.” His breath caught and his pulse stumbled when she brushed her palms over his hard nipples. With those relentless palms against him, Skull locked his jaw and made himself take a deep, slow breath, the heat from her body making his blood thicken.
She skimmed her hand down his torso, and fuck, he couldn’t seem to rub two brain cells together to stop her. With her gaze holding his, she slipped her hand over his waistband until she reached down and cupped his very hard erection in her hand. “Nice wand. I wonder what kind of dark magic you can do with it.”
Desire curled low and deep in his belly, and with a strangled sound, he yanked her hand away, his thumb pressed against the rapid pulse beating in her delicate wrist. “You’re going to get yourself into some trouble if you don’t be careful, little birdy.”
She let her breath go in a shuddering sigh. “I’m never careful. It’s not in my job description,” she taunted softly, pressing up against him. Even his best warning look didn’t faze her.
He wasn’t sure what happened. Her eyes flashed in the dark, dousing that sensual gleam as it was replaced by something seriously intense. She stared up at him, then she sighed softly. “Oh, I missed that. You’re…upset about something. Forget all my demanding nonsense. We can go back to the bar, and you can tell me what’s weighing so heavily on your heart. Better yet, how about some dinner?” Her eyes softened into a compassionate, warm, depthless blue. “I’m sorry that I’m being such an ass.” She huffed out a breath. “It’s just that you drive me a bit crazy,” she admitted in a low whisper.
Oh, that was some shit right there. This Hummingbird, this concerned, serious woman was even more dangerous than the aggressively sensual one. If she wanted to get under his armor, this was an unexpected and effective move.
He didn’t say anything, the temptation weighing on him with a tangible thickness that made his lungs labor. In the silence, his phone buzzed in unison with hers. Saved by the bell, just barely.
She muttered something under her breath, expelling a resigned breath. “Time to save the world, Skully.” She grasped his shirt in her small fists. “Even if things seem very bleak, there are always people ready to support you. You have to know that, handsome.” She shook him slightly. “Raincheck?”
He had to wonder who was going to save him from himself. Closing his eyes, he took a deep, uneven breath, seduced by her offer to listen to his fears about his ill father, knowing intuitively that he was struggling with the terror of losing him way too soon. He had let her get too close, and now, dammit, he looked at the message calling him in. It looked like he was going to be working with her again.
He covered her hands, needing some anchor in the storm inside him. Her soft, warm skin soothed him. “Since I’m such an optimistic person, I’m going to take that as a yes.”
Maybe he had been too quick on his opinion of this little Hummingbird. He’d reserve his judgement, for now.
Hazard picked Leigh up at the airport, and she hadn’t seen him in weeks. But her boss just wouldn’t let her go. He asked her to work in DC with him for two days out of the week, and that was doable considering she was going to be teaching full-time at ODU as one of their new law professors. She would keep her hand in the US attorney part of her life and fulfill her lifelong need and desire to teach. It was the best of both worlds.
She had missed him so much. After kissing and hugging him for eons, they got to his apartment. When he opened the door and she entered, she stopped dead.
“Oh, oh, no, we’re not living here,” she said, immediately. “This place isn’t big enough for all my doodads and lacy shit.”
He rubbed the back of his neck.
“Call a realtor. We’re buying a house.”
“You are pretty pushy, lady.”
She walked up to him, loving his annoyed tone. “Have we met?”
“You know I’m a Navy SEAL and not a corporate lawyer.”
“Ooh, shots fired.” Remorseful for being her blunt self, she sighed. “I’m not taking you to task for living in a dump, babe. This is a tasteful, beautiful studio, and I’m sure you sleep here very little, since you’re deployed so often, but it won’t do. I need space, a home office, and I want a garden.” She walked to the postage-stamp-sized kitchen. “I love to cook, by the way. You’d reap all the benefits from a gourmet kitchen.”
He brightened.
“I have a lacy apron I could wear au naturale .”
He brightened even more and gave her an admiring look. “You do know how to bargain.”
She wrapped her arms around his neck. “I can pay for it. I have some of my own money.”
“Your corporate bloodsucking money?” he said dryly.
“Is that another warning shot over my bow?” she teased him, enjoying every moment of his snarkiness. She nudged him with her hips. “Some blood money, but I inherited a tad more from my grandmother. She was…very generous.”
“Oh, moneybags. You do have a very distractingly nice bow.” Those silvery blue eyes went over her in a slow slide. He sighed in capitulation, then smiled with eagerness. “Can we get a garage so I can actually store my motorcycle in it?”
“You have a motorcycle?”
“Yeah, but I don’t get to ride it much, since I don’t have a garage. I have a kayak, too.”
“Yes, the motorcycle is so sexy—the kayak, not so much.”
“I do have a pair of tight shorts I could wear while paddling it.”
“Oh, tight shorts, huh?” She pretended to think. “Garage, check.”
He grinned. She separated from him but kept her hands around his neck. “I noticed that you have a pretty nice bed over there.” She started to back toward it. “Looks so comfy and cozy, and there is that jet lag plaguing me all the way from California,” she said, mock weariness in her voice.
He grinned wider, and oh, God , she wanted him to do that more often. “Oh, the huge three-hour difference, right?” he said with such sympathy. “You must be exhausted. How many lacy things did you fit into your bag?” The amusement spread to his eyes.
“Oh, my sweet man, more than enough to fill all the racks in your tiny bathroom.”
He chuckled and fell onto the mattress with her.
Then there was no time for anything but the desire that ignited between them. They scrambled out of their clothes, sighing when they touched bare skin to bare skin. Leigh knew that her life had started the moment she’d met him and that she would love him for eternity. Just as Breakneck had said. Love was all that mattered, without it, nothing was enough.
She sank onto him, taking him into her body, her heart full of all the joy and happiness she had denied herself for so long.
Unaware of how long she slept, she woke to a set of callused hands cradling her face and a soft, moist kiss. The ache of wanting him all over again surged through her. She opened her mouth beneath the pressure, savoring the warmth, the gentleness, the sweetness of the caress. She surrendered to him helplessly.
His amused voice intruded into her languid drowsiness. “Up and at ’em,” he said. “Let’s look at houses.”
“Hmm, no slacking for a Tier 1 operator.”
“Yup. I can’t wait for the garage.”
She chuckled and opened her eyes to Hazard’s soft, lopsided smile, his eyes smoky with emotion. Behind his shoulder, it was dark outside, and her stomach rumbled.
“The garage. It gets them every time. Men are so easy,” she quipped.
“Is that right,” he said. “You’re a real piece of work, lady. A genuine pain in the ass.”
She yawned and rested her head on her arm, gazing at him sleepily.
He let go of her and leaned back, amusement glinting in his eyes as he slid his hand under the sheet, and up her naked thigh, his touch making her shiver.
“You sure do look all cozy, and sexy in my bed.”
He rose and before she could fathom what he was going to do, he snatched the sheet off her, rolling her across the mattress. “You bastard. Give me that sheet.”
He grinned, wadded up the sheet, and tossed it across the room, then blocked her so she couldn’t get by him. “You feeling lucky, punk?”
He caught her off guard again when he came at her, hauled her over his shoulder in one powerful, swift move. “Time for a shower. You’re a little stinky. Must be jet lag. Let’s wake you up.”
“Oh, no. No cold water, Archer.”
“Think how invigorating it will be. Just the remedy for jet lag,” he said, his voice breaking with exertion and laughter. She got her fingers into his ribs, and he almost dropped her but recovered like the gorgeously muscle-bound jerk he was.
He tried to drag her through the bathroom door, but she grabbed the door frame, trying to kick free, her laughter weakening her. “Aren’t there airtight and unbreakable rules of engagement? I call foul.” He was undeterred. Losing her grip, she tried pleading. “Come on, Archer. You’re stronger than little old me.”
Adjusting his grip on her legs, he grabbed one wrist and tried to break her hold on the door frame. “Yet, I am unmoved.” Her Navy SEAL was no quitter.
Neither was she. Laughing and out of breath, unable to see a thing for her hair, she used his back for leverage and bit him hard on his tight ass. “Ow, goddammit. What the fuck! Damn you, Leelee. Now who’s not fighting fair.”
Before he could recover, she kicked loose and slithered down his back, landing in a heap on the floor. Knowing that she would have to incapacitate him to keep all her warm skin from that cold menacing shower, she grabbed him around his calves and used her shoulder against the backs of his knees. He cried out and went down like a ton of muscled bricks.
Flushed with love and laughter and sweet victory, she slapped him on the ass.
He rolled over onto his back, his chest heaving, laughter mixing and rumbling from his bare chest. “You’re a little street fighter, aren’t you? I like that about you.”
They laughed harder.
He rubbed his ass. “You really are a bona fide pain in my ass.”
She fell into more laughter right onto his chest, her bare breasts pressed to his warm skin. Trapping her to his hard muscles, he expelled the last of his laughter in a sigh, then wrapped her in a warm embrace. “You are going to be the death of me.”
“And you’re going to love every minute of it.”
“For a lifetime.” He dashed to the nightstand, pulled open a drawer and took out—a ring box.
“Oh, Archer,” she breathed. “What did you do? Are you asking me—Oh, my God, I can’t believe—is that a ring box—what?—
He dropped to his knees. “Will you shut the fuck up and marry me, Leelee?” he said with irritation. “I can’t live without you.” His gaze was so sincere, so serious, she melted.
“I can’t live without you, either.” Her face and stomach hurt from their previous laughter, but there seemed to always be more. “A mad proposal. So perfect. How can I say no?” She grabbed his hair and pulled it, dragging his mouth to hers, kissing him with everything she had. “I love you so much, Archer. I had no idea that it could be like this.” She kissed his mouth and whispered against his soft lips, “I will fucking marry you.”
“Geezus, you drive me fucking crazy,” he said with a puff of laughter. “I don’t know whether to put the ring on your finger or take you over my knee.”
“Ooh, how about both,” she said. “Nothing like an engagement spanking.”
He shook his head, expelling more laughter. He pulled the box open, and she gasped at the gorgeous thick silver band with a flat, welded heart encrusted with embedded diamonds.
“I love it.” She looked at him. “How did you know I don’t like skinny bands?”
“I’m a Tier 1 operator, babe,” he said with a scoff.
He took it out of the box and slipped it on her finger, and two seconds later her phone rang. Unabashedly, she pushed off him and dashed to the bed as she admired it. Her heart did a little dip when she saw it was Anna. She answered.
At that moment, Hazard’s phone chimed.
She took a hard breath and listened to Anna’s grim tone.
There had been developments Anna couldn’t discuss over the phone, and Leigh and Hazard dressed quickly, preparing to meet the team on base. Just as they were about to leave his apartment for the unexpected briefing, the door burst open and armed men flooded inside, cracking Hazard on the temple when he tried to fight.
The men grabbed her, and she screamed and fought, but it was no use. They overpowered her and hustled her and a semi-conscious Hazard out of the apartment building, forcing them against the side of the dark van.
“Hazard,” she said as his head lolled to the side, her concern off the charts at his glassy eyes.
“Shut up,” one of the men growled, roughly binding their hands and feet, and shoving hoods over their heads. Darkness descended, nothing but her harsh breathing breaking the brittle silence, and she felt the van move, taking them to places unknown for what purpose she couldn’t even guess at.
Her mouth went dry, and her heart stalled. Who in the hell were these guys, and what did they want?
Thank you so much for reading Hazard !