Chapter 42
Emmett Blake looked from me to Hawk. His hands hung loose at his sides, and his whole manner had shifted. When he”d grabbed me, when he”d been fighting with Hawk, Blake had been in command. Of himself, of the situation. And now, for the first time, he was off-balance. Uncertain.
All his fight had drained away. He shoved his hands in his pockets and rolled his shoulders back as if preparing to face opposition.
“You should call that police chief of yours,” Emmett said. “He”s probably got a list of the laws I’ve broken.”
Hawk stared at Blake for a long moment before looking to me, silently asking my opinion. I thought about it. Calling West was the logical response. But it didn”t feel like the right one. Blake had been Hawk’s friend, as close as a brother, according to both of them. And they”d both experienced a horrible loss. Now that I knew the truth, that Hawk had taken a life he”d wanted to save, that Blake had lived all these years thinking his best friend had betrayed him?—
I believed in law and order, but law and order didn”t feel like the answer to our problem. So, what did we do next?
I glanced across the room at the kitchen, and I knew at once what I wanted to do. “I think I could use a drink,” I said, my eyes on the bottle of bourbon Hawk and I had shared during the snowstorm.
Both men looked at me in surprise.
To Hawk, I said, “Do you want to call Kane and let everybody know we”re okay?” I shifted my eyes to Blake and raised a brow. “Are we okay?” I asked.
“You”re not in any danger from me, if that”s what you”re asking,” he said. His voice conveyed a touch of curiosity, and if I wasn’t mistaken, respect.
Hawk nodded. “I think we could all use a drink.” Pulling out his phone as he strode across the cabin to the kitchen, he dialed and said, “Kane, we”re good. Quinn is safe, and we’re both uninjured. Everyone from the hiking party okay? Sterling? The girl?” He snagged the bottle of bourbon off the shelf and three of my blue-speckled camping mugs. His eyes skipped to Blake, and he fell silent for a moment, then said slowly, “Still looking. No. I don”t need backup. I’ll call when we”re headed back.” He hung up.
I hadn’t heard Kane’s side of the conversation, but I had a feeling Hawk had dodged any explanation of what had happened to my kidnapper. It looked like we were all undecided about what to do with Emmett Blake. I sank into a chair at the table, the same chair I”d been duct-taped to.
Hawk took the seat opposite me, reaching down to lift my right leg and resting my ankle on his knee. “The girl got a few stitches and a lesson in not goofing around in the forest. Everyone else is fine.” He rubbed at my tender ankle gently. “How”s the ankle?”
I shrugged, knowing I’d be annoyed about it later. “Not great. I was up for an easy stroll in the woods, not a scramble up the side of the mountain.”
Blake shook his head. “I”m sorry. My plan was never to hurt you.” He let out a gusty exhale. “I was so blinded by vengeance, by punishing Hawk for being happy, that I didn”t—” He shook his head again. “I should have taken more care. Hawk was right. This wasn’t about you. This was between Hawk and me. I never should have involved you.”
“No, you shouldn’t have,” I agreed.
Hawk poured a finger of bourbon into one of the mugs and slid it across the table to me, doing the same with the other two. Hawk raised his in a toast. Blake and I joined suit, and we clicked our mugs together.
“To happy endings,” Hawk said before taking a sip.
I drained most of my bourbon in one swallow, blinking at the smoky burn.
Blake, I noted, took a spare sip before pausing and staring into his mug. “Is it a happy ending?” he asked.
Hawk smiled, mostly with his eyes, the faintest curl to his mouth. “Are you going to kill me?”
“No,” Blake said, and looked up at Hawk with caution.
“Are you going to kill anybody else?”
Blake shook his head.
“Do you believe me?” Hawk asked. “About Neva?”
Blake gave a single, slow nod. “I believe you. I wish I didn”t. I wish it had all gone differently. I wish a lot of things. But I believe you.”
“Then, yes,” Hawk said, his eyes coming back to me, filling with warmth. He reached a hand across the table, his fingers closing over mine. “I”d say it”s a happy ending. Maybe if you can stay out of trouble, one of these days you”ll dance at our wedding.”
Our wedding.
Blake barked out a rough laugh and drained the rest of his bourbon. “Hawk Bristol, the romantic. I never thought I”d see it.” A grin curved his mouth, and he shook his head, looking at me. “You should have heard him when I was falling for Neva. No woman will ever come between me and the mission,” he intoned, lifting his chin and looking suddenly both pompous and self-righteous.
I couldn’t stop the giggle. I didn”t know that version of Hawk, but I could picture him perfectly. A hint of pink touched Hawk”s cheeks and he shook his head, hiding his smile with the camping mug as he sipped his bourbon.
“Live and learn, right?” He squeezed my fingers.
I was still stuck on his casual mention of our wedding. I knew we were in love, knew it was serious. He’d as good as asked me to move into the gatehouse with him. He was living with me in Heartstone Manor. But a wedding was a whole other thing. A wedding was forever.
A goofy smile stretched my mouth. Hawk and I were getting married. Not today or tomorrow, but eventually. Eventually was good enough for me. More than good enough. Eventually marrying Hawk Bristol was a dream come true.
“So,” Hawk said, pouring everyone a little more bourbon, “what have you been doing since we got out? Other than skulking around seeking vengeance.”
Blake let out a laugh. “Vengeance was mainly a side gig once I dealt with Reynolds.” He tipped his head back, studying the rough logs of the slanted ceiling before looking to Hawk. “Freelance hacking is the easiest way to describe it. I got out of wet work. I don”t have a taste for it. Never really did.”
“White, black, or gray?” Hawk asked, his eyes narrowed with interest.
I wasn’t sure I understood his question, but Blake did.
“Mostly white with a little gray here and there. I got dirty enough working for Reynolds. Not going there again.”
Hawk sat back in his chair, his fingers sliding from mine as he crossed his arms over his chest, studying Emmett Blake. I imagined I could see the wheels turning in Hawk”s brain.
Finally, Hawk said, “Lucas Jackson wants a word with you.”
Blake raised an eyebrow. “Lucas Jackson?”
“Sinclair Security’s head of digital security, or whatever the fuck they’re calling his department these days. He leads a team of white hat hackers who mostly work behind their keyboards but can handle being in the field if the job calls for it. Jackson designed that system you broke into so easily.”
“Fuck easy,” Blake said with a laugh, followed by another sip of bourbon. “That system is a thing of beauty. I haven”t had a challenge like that in a while.”
“But you still got in,” Hawk said.
Blake shrugged a shoulder. “There aren’t many systems I can’t break into. It”s a gift.”
“One you”ve honed to a sharp blade,” Hawk commented.
Blake nodded in agreement. “What does Jackson want with me?
Hawk shook his head. “I don”t know for sure. My guess? He wants to offer you a job.”
Blake shook his head immediately. “The Sinclairs aren’t going to hire me, and I”m not sure I want that kind of work.”
“What do you mean, that kind of work?” Hawk asked. “You couldn’t do better than working for the Sinclairs.”
“It”s corporate,” Blake said, his eyebrows drawn together in clear disgust. “It”s showing up every day in a suit with a fucking briefcase. That’s not me.”
At that, Hawk burst into a rare laugh, his eyes lighting with humor. “Clearly you haven”t met the Sinclairs. Axel likes his suits because that”s Axel. And I”m not going to say everyone else doesn”t wear a suit when the job calls for it, but that”s rarely anyone on Jackson”s team. If you”re ready to rejoin the world, you should let me bring you to Atlanta and introduce you. If it isn’t a fit, you don’t have to stay.”
Blake didn”t look like he was sold on that idea. He brought the mug to his lips and took another sip, then set it on the table with a clank. “I don”t know,” he said. “It”s been a long time since I’ve been part of a team.”
I watched Hawk take this in, consider it. I didn’t think he was ready to say goodbye to his friend, to have him disappear as he had so many years before.
“You should go to the Sinclairs,” Hawk finally said. “They can give you work you’ll like, and?—”
“I can find my own work. It’s not about the money.”
Hawk leaned forward, locking eyes with his friend. “You can’t keep running from the past. You deserve to have a life too. And you can relax there. They get it. They’ll get you.”
Again, I wasn’t sure I fully understood the subtext, but Blake did. He thought about it for a minute.
“You”d vouch for me?” Blake asked.
Hawk answered with a nod.
“Why? Especially after all of this? I hurt your woman. I didn”t mean to, but that doesn”t change what I did. I hurt her, and I scared her.” Blake squeezed his eyes shut tight, opening them slowly to land on me, so heavy with guilt they reminded me of Hawk for a moment. “I’m sorry.”
“I know. I’ll survive.” Now that the adrenaline surge had begun to fade, I was a little giddy, a lot exhausted, and not inclined to hold a grudge, even if I couldn’t quite bring myself to accept his apology. Now that I understood why Emmett Blake had come after Hawk in the first place, I could live with what he’d done. If I’d watched someone murder Hawk, I’d want vengeance, too.
Hawk looked at his watch. “It”s still early. If you’re up for meeting with Jackson and talking to the Sinclairs, I think we should get you out of Sawyers Bend before West starts asking questions.”
Blake drew in a slow breath and let it out. “Yeah. If you”re okay with vouching for me, then yeah.” He ran a hand through his short, dark hair. “I”m not sure I’ll stay, but I want to talk to Lucas Jackson as much as he wants to talk to me.”
“All right.” Hawk picked up his phone and sent a text. A few seconds later, his phone chimed with an answer. A second after that, it began to ring. “Jackson,” he said when he answered. “You got Cooper there? I”m going to bring you a present.” His eyes flicked up to land on Blake. “The guy who hacked your system. If you three can come to terms, he might be looking for a job.” A pause. “One minute.” Hawk dropped his phone to his side and looked at me. “You feel up for a ride?”
“To Atlanta? With you?” I asked. Hawk nodded. “Absolutely,” I said with a grin.
“We”ll be there in four hours,” Hawk said. “Is the safe house free? I’m bringing Quinn, and we’ll need a place to stay. Blake too.” After another minute of listening, he said, “Got it. See you soon.” Hawk hung up the phone. To Blake, he asked, “Where’d you leave your truck?”
“On the fire road,” Blake said. “I don”t need it. You can leave it there. I’ll deal with it later.”
“Somebody might steal it,” I said.
Blake shrugged. “Then Merry Christmas to them.” He rolled his shoulders back and lifted his chin. “How do we do this?”
“I need to bring Quinn back to the house,” Hawk said. He looked to me. “Your family is going to need to see you before we head to Atlanta. It scared the hell out of all of us when you went missing.”
Hawk rose and scooped up our empty camp mugs, bringing them to the sink and giving them a quick rinse from the water jug, saying, “I’ll wash them later.”
My heart brightened at the simple throwaway comment. He’d wash them later. Because we’d be back. Not because there was a crisis or a storm, but because we loved it here. Together.
The cabin I loved hadn’t been the scene of our end, but of another beginning.
Hawk came back to stand in front of me. I heard Blake murmur something and pass us on his way outside. I wasn’t paying attention. My eyes were glued to Hawk. He was smiling, his dark eyes warm as he lifted his hands to close over my shoulders, pulling me close enough for me to sink into his eyes.
“You’re really okay? I’ll call West if you want me to.”
“And have your friend arrested?” I asked, lifting my hands to slide around the back of his neck, pulling his face down to mine.
“You’re the one he kidnapped,” Hawk said, a smile in his eyes, despite the serious subject matter. His lips brushed mine as he said, “You get final say.”
I answered with a kiss, falling into Hawk, letting him take my weight as I licked at his lower lip and nipped lightly. I tilted my head to the side, fitting my mouth to his, every part of me alive at the way he kissed me back. Like he’d never get enough. Like I was all he wanted.
“I love you,” he said, his lips at my ear.
Before I could say anything, he straightened and turned, dropping into a crouch. I didn’t hesitate to climb on. My ankle wasn’t in great shape, and we needed to get back to the Manor quickly. But mostly I didn’t hesitate because there was no place I’d rather be than tangled up with Hawk. I leaned in and kissed the side of his neck.
“I love you too,” I said. “So much I’m almost glad your friend tried to kidnap me. Otherwise, we’d be in the old folks’ home before you worked up the nerve to kiss me.”
Hawk grunted out a laugh and headed to the door. “I would have made a move,” he argued. “I was kidding myself about staying away from you. You were meant to be mine from the beginning.”
I didn’t argue. Not when he was right. I’d been put on this earth to be with Hawk, and he was born to be mine. We had the rest of our lives in front of us, the adventures to come drawing closer with every beat of our hearts.