Epilogue
ETHAN
“And then Ethan threw a cutting board at him!”
Barbara is regaling Emily with the epic tale of our victory over Zhao’s goons.
Killian and his new bride just got back from the Maldives, and she couldn’t wait—I made her promise not to tell them until they’re home.
I wanted my brother to enjoy his first vacation in…
well, ever. And it was his honeymoon. Who would have thought that out of all of us, Cross would be the first to get hitched? Madness.
“And they were shooting at you?” Morgan asks, one hand over her mouth. Damien rubs her back and glares at nothing. When did he become the grumpy one in our little brotherhood?
“Like I said, three times already,” I drawl, glaring playfully at my little bee while I do so, “we got them all, no one got hurt, and the snake’s head got cut off. It was a win.”
“I should have been there,” Killian growls very predictably.
Caleb sighs, leaning back on the couch. Basia tries to hide how she's ogling his guns. And I don’t mean the ones at his waist. “No, you shouldn’t have,” he says. “We had it contained.”
“How is Barb almost getting shot ‘contained’, Caleb?” Emily asks incredulously.
“Well, as far as we know, Black Ash won’t be a threat to any of us again,” he replies.
“Until they regroup,” Killian says, the little ray of sunshine.
“Well,” Morgan jumps in with a clap of her hands. “We have some good news too.”
“Not yet, princess,” Damien mutters, but he sounds resigned.
“Oh, hush. It’s the perfect time!” Her brown eyes, darker than Barbara’s, take us all in with a sparkle bright enough to blind half of Manhattan. “We’re pregnant!” she announces.
We’re all quiet for a stunned second, then the noise returns tenfold. The guys are cheering, clapping Damien on the back, and the girls are making sounds that would make wild turkeys envious.
“Congratulations, you two,” I say, lifting my beer pitcher in a salute, a giant grin on my face.
“Wait, this calls for something better than beer!” Emily squeals, already on her feet and sprinting toward Killian’s new wine fridge.
“Obviously not for me,” Mor says sheepishly, making us all laugh.
“What are you thinking?” Barbara murmurs, smiling up at me from my side on the couch.
I lean down to kiss the tip of her nose. “That it was all worth it,” I say quietly. “The deployments, this mess with Black Ash. Everything was worth it because it made us who we are now. Our women are safe, and a new life is coming.”
Her smile softens at my words. Then she frowns. “Well, Basia’s stalker is still out there.”
I glance at Caleb, who naturally heard every word and now has a tick in his jaw.
“We’ll get them too, little bee. We got skills, you know?”
She laughs at that and cuddles up into my side. “I love you,” she says so quietly I think I’ve imagined it.
I blink at her. “I’m sorry, what?”
She rolls her eyes. “I said I love you, asshole,” she mutters, way less dreamily. The insult is an endearment I’ve grown to love. But I can’t let it go this easily.
“What did you say?” I lay it on thick. “You know, that grenade, my hearing—”
“I said I fucking love you, Ethan Kane!” Barbara yells, turning every head in our direction. They all have goofy smiles on their faces.
“Ah!” I exclaim. “So that’s what you said.”
Barbara starts hitting my chest and snarling.
Laughing like a man possessed, I wrap my arms around her and pull her close, disarming her.
“I fucking love you more, Barbara Neal!” I yell even louder than she did, making everyone else burst out laughing.
“Fucking finally,” someone mutters.
I can’t tell who.
I’m already lost, kissing my girl.
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It’s out on February 20th, 2026, and here’s what it’s about:
She hired a bodyguard.
She doesn’t know who she invited into her life.
Basia Langford. Governor’s daughter.
A spoiled socialite playing poor girl, pretending she isn’t in danger.
The threats against her aren’t empty.
I’ve seen what men like this do. I’ve buried their victims.
That’s why I live by one rule—stay detached.
Protect the client. Don’t touch. Don’t feel. Don’t want.
But Basia makes that impossible.
She argues. She teases. She tests every limit until I’m seconds from breaking.
And when the stalker gets too close, she stops being a job.
She becomes my obsession.
She thinks I’m just her security detail.
She doesn’t realize I’ve already mapped every inch of her life—
every step she takes, every weakness she hides.
I’ll put my body between hers and every threat that breathes.
And if I have to cross lines to keep her safe, so be it.
Because the moment she stepped into my sights, she stopped being my assignment.
She became my purpose.
My temptation.
My sin.
Mine.