Epilogue
Dare
T hree months later…
“You need anything?” I leaned through the doorway.
“Nope.” Ty didn’t even look up from his computer. Lately, his work had claimed his focus with the same exacting precision as a knife through his chest.
With Ivans and Wenner gone, it was only Belmont left. Bernard Belmont. The man whose castle of cards was finally starting to crumble around him and who was battening down the hatches to shield himself from consequence.
Nodding, I grunted a goodbye and headed through the garage for the door.
I’d left Ryan’s bike— my bike— parked outside since I’d only stopped by to grab a few things. No sense in opening up a whole bay.
I reached for the handle and swung the door wide and came face-to-face with a raised fist. Not intended for me—but to knock on the door.
The owner of the fist instantly lowered it, his startled expression holding him in silence.
“Can I help you?”
“I’m looking for Tynan Bates.” The stranger pushed his narrow glasses higher and tried to look around me. “Is he here?”
My eyes narrowed, immediately assessing the man.
Everything about him was worn. From his voice to his frown to his tattered gray suit. Even the black sedan still running in the driveway was dirtied and scraped like it hadn’t seen a wash in a decade.
“Who are you?” Like hell I was going to tell him if Ty was here or not before I even knew who the hell he was.
With a huff, he reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a card, glancing over his shoulder in the process. This time, when I followed his line of sight back to his car, I saw a shadow move in the back seat.
He wasn’t alone.
My spine tingled and my fingers twitched at my side, ready to reach for my weapon should this guy decide to do something stupid.
“Officer Daws.”
“Officer?” I looked at the card. “ Parole officer.”
“Yes.” He bristled, his sharp eyes narrowing further. “Is Mr. Bates here or not? I need to speak with him.”
“What’s this?—”
“I’m here.” Ty’s voice boomed as he pushed me to the side, staring Mr. Daws down with a glare that I hadn’t seen in a long time. “What do you want? ”
“I’m here about Ms. Brant.”
Daws was too nervous to notice how my friend’s entire body tensed. I couldn’t remember the last time Ty had been affected by any kind of news or anything…like this.
Who the hell was Ms. Brant?
Wait.
Brant .
The familiarity of the name hit me. Jon Brant had been Ty’s mentor—his friend—in Special Forces. While the rest of us had come home emotionally and physically benched after our last mission and Ryan’s death, Ty had gone back. One more mission at the request of his mentor, Jon. One more brother lost.
“I can handle this, Dare,” he uttered his dismissal to me but didn’t take his eyes from Daws.
“Are you?—”
“Go.”
I swallowed my protest and nodded. We all had things—times when questions were off the table. This was one of those times.
I walked away, but I went slow—slow enough to hear the last vestiges of their conversation.
“What about her?”
“She violated her parole again, so I’m remanding her to your custody.”
“ What? No. ” Ty spoke with so much emotion I swore I felt the earth move.
“Either that or I report it and she goes to jail—real jail this time, Bates, not juvie.”
“Dammit. What the hell did she do? I’ll fix it.”
“You need to fix her,” the other man snarled, and even though I’d reached my bike, my head whipped when I heard the car door open.
Both men glared at the woman— girl ?—who got out. If the dictionary were a picture book, I had a feeling this girl’s picture would be under trouble. Jet-black hair . Piercings. Tattoos. But it was her give-no-shit swagger that really sold it for me.
“Uncle Tynan.” Her voice was sarcastically sweet, especially on the word uncle . “So good to see you again.”
I’d never seen Ty’s jaw look like it was about to snap. The whole of him, really.
“Six weeks. Six weeks until her parole ends. Six weeks until I suggest you start letting her clean up her own messes,” Daws said low, but the breeze carried his voice over to me.
Instantly, Ty was in the man’s face, towering over him like a hungry ogre ready to bite his whole damn head off. “Get out.”
Damn, Ty was pissed.
Flustered, Daws shook his head and rushed back to his car.
“Sutton.”
Sutton Brant.
“You don’t look very happy to see me.” She pouted and then laughed.
“You shouldn’t be here.” My friend barreled his arms over his chest like a volcano about to erupt. For years, Ty had been our benchmark for emotionless, logical living. But emotion hadn’t been absent; it had been dormant. And now he was on the verge of exploding. “What have you done, Sutton?”
“You heard the man, Uncle Ty.” Her mocking tone was the loudest part of her words before she stepped forward, right in his face. “I’m your problem now.”
Ty’s angry glare followed her inside before it darted back to me. Yeah, I wasn’t getting involved in this. I flipped my visor down and started my bike. I had other things to do today than watching Ty’s cool composure erupt. Even though that did sound entertaining.
“Come outside with me,” I begged, drawing her away from her latest canvas.
“But…”
I pressed a kiss to her neck. “It will be here tomorrow, but this…tonight can’t wait.”
Athena smiled and turned her head, and I couldn’t resist a taste of her lips, dipping my tongue into her sweetness for long minutes before I groaned low, “That will have to wait, too.”
She pouted adorably but stood.
“Trust me?”
Her nod was implicit.
“Good.” I moved behind her and reached around her head, covering her eyes with my palms.
“Darius…” She shivered.
“Let me guide you,” I said low, and I carefully walked us to the sliding back door that I’d already opened in preparation.
I only took us a few feet outside onto the grass before I peeled my hands away from her face.
“What…” She cupped my hands over her mouth, her eyes roaming over my handiwork.
A blanket on the ground, pillows placed on top of it. Battery-powered tea lights flickering along the edges.
“What is this?”
“We’re stargazing.” I led her to the blanket and tipped my head to the heavens.
“The Big Dipper.” She pointed to the right.
“Orion’s Belt.” I pointed in front of her, slightly to the left.
Her gaze followed my hand, and as soon as her focus was there, I dropped my arm and reached in my pocket for the box tucked inside it.
“There’s one back here,” I rumbled low and lowered down on one knee.
Her gasp of surprise was one of the most beautiful sights—one of the most beautiful memories I’d never forget.
“Darius…” Her lip quivered.
“This one’s called the proposal,” I said and opened the box, revealing the solitaire diamond ring nestled inside.
“Dare…”
“I love you, Athena. I love you more than the stars in the sky, and I don’t want to spend any more of this lifetime without you.”
Tears left a path that glistened down her cheeks as she stared at me. A second passed and then another, and then, to my surprise, her eyes drifted shut.
“Ask me again,” she pleaded.
My brow creased. “I’ll ask you as many times as it takes you to say yes, Angel, but…what are you doing?”
Her smile beamed wide as she explained, “This time, I want to feel your love.”
I loved when she did this. When she went back to the darkness to remind herself she wasn’t afraid of it—to remind her of all the things and perspectives it had given her. It was only in the darkness that we learned how to find the light.
My chest felt so tight, I thought it might crack as the words broke free. “Athena Holman, will you marry me?”
Her bright smile stretched wider. “Yes,” she murmured, and I took her hand, sliding the ring along her narrow finger. “I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
The End.