Chapter 58

Livingstone opened the door, and Aaron carried Hope upstairs to her apartment and sat on her sofa, holding her while she wept uncontrollable tears. He rocked her until she finally quieted and lay lax against his shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Hope."

He felt her swallow.

"Not your fault." Her expression crumpled. "And now I know for sure it wasn't mine either." She wiped her face. "I have all these emotions fighting inside me. I feel this incredible sense of betrayal combined with a sudden sense of freedom. People talk about a weight being lifted from their shoulders, but I've never experienced it before."

"You've had a helluva day."

"I have, but I finally know what really happened, and it helps." She sucked in a breath. "I think Leech truly believed I'd done it. I bet that's why he wouldn't stop writing to me, calling me a liar. How ironic that he went to prison for a crime he didn't commit after being released for the ones he did."

Her eyes were red from weeping, but they were starting to clear.

"Ella was released from the hospital, and so was Judge Penton. I guess the trial might be delayed." Aaron wasn't sure about those details.

"I was so mad at Penton this morning. She had some crazy notion Seth Hopper might be involved in Beasley's murder."

Aaron drew back. "What?"

"Colin threw him under the bus about a joke he made in court. It was nothing. I explained to Penton that Hopper had a solid alibi. Leech did admit to killing the first six victims, plus Sylvie, her husband, and Jeff Beasley—for lying about him, apparently." She rolled her eyes. "Pretty sure the DA will remove me from the Gibson case whether I like it or not—but I"m thinking of taking some time off anyway."

"I think that's a smart thing to do."

"I'll speak to Ella. Hopefully, they sent a victim's advocate to talk with her."

"Colin Leighton's position in the DA's office will raise a lot of questions and concerns."

She huffed out a tired laugh. "Oh, yeah."

"I suspect we're going to find all Leech's letters to you since Colin became your intern stowed somewhere in Colin's belongings."

"Is he still alive?"

Aaron nodded. "He lost a lot of blood, but he's in surgery. Apparently, he has a good chance of making it." Presumably the guy had set up a go-bag with all the things he needed to escape the country after he'd killed Leech and Hope. They'd find it. It was only a matter of time.

Hope gripped his T-shirt. "What I said to you last night with the ‘just sex' comment…"

He tried to interrupt.

"No, please let me explain. I deliberately made you think that all we had was physical chemistry because I was scared of you getting too close. If Leech targeted you because he discovered I'd gone and fallen in love with you, I wouldn't have been able to live with myself."

He held himself still, not sure he'd heard her correctly. "Pardon me?"

"You heard." She bumped his shoulder.

"Are you saying you love me?"

She smiled, and it was the most carefree expression he'd ever seen on her beautiful face.

"I do." Whatever shock she saw on his face, she misinterpreted. "It's okay. You don't have to say it back. You've given me a gift. Even if you run away screaming down the street this second, you've freed me from a prison of my own making. You made me realize I was stronger than I knew—not simply a victim but a survivor. I can't thank you enough for that."

Aaron couldn't believe what he was hearing. "I fell in love with you the moment I saw you downstairs not backing down when faced with a whole squad of Hostage Rescue operators."

"You were pretty intimidating."

"We didn't intimidate you for a second." He kissed her then because he couldn't not kiss her.

She kissed him back, and it was gentle and sweet.

Her fingers gripped him tight as if she was scared he was going to walk out the door. The fact he was going to have to at some point in the near future made him agitated.

Then she pulled back. "I need to tell you a couple of things before we continue."

Uh-oh.

She cleared her throat. "First, I'm going to find it difficult to cope with your job being so dangerous, but I will not try to change who you are." She ran her finger over his lips. "I happen to think you're perfect as is, so change is pointless. Instead, I will work on my own mental health and coping mechanisms."

Perfect? "My job is dangerous. So is crossing the street."

She elbowed him in the ribs.

He laughed softly. "The fact you're talking as if we may have a chance of more than ‘just sex' and said that you think you love me is all I want."

"Aaron, I don't think I love you. I know I love you. I've only ever felt this way once before." She sucked in her lips. "Danny would have liked you, and he would have hated Brendan for what he did and for getting away with it for so long." Her eyes had that faraway look, then focused back on him. "The other thing I realized today amid all the excitement is I'd like to have another child."

A warm glow started in his chest.

"And if you aren't interested, I'll be disappointed, but I'll also understand. Parenthood isn't for everyone. But I'm going to pursue some options because a woman in her late thirties can't dilly dally. I just want you to know that going in."

Going in.

He pushed her hair away from her face and stared into those unusual gray eyes. "The fact you would consider that, with me…"

Her brow crinkled. "A sinfully attractive, astoundingly intelligent, and remarkable human being like you, you mean?" She went up on her knees to face him and ran her hand over his jaw, resting her cool fingers against his neck. "A man who is supportive, considerate, unafraid to speak his mind when the situation calls for it. A man who is thoughtful and kind and who listens even when he doesn't agree? A man who is respected by his peers, who takes care of me, be it doing the dishes or shielding me from whatever danger comes my way? Aaron, how can you not know how wonderful you are?"

The fist around his throat loosened.

Maybe in reality the problem had never been him. The fact he'd feared he wasn't good enough was his former self's reaction to heartbreak and betrayal by the people he'd loved most. They were the ones who'd been lacking in all the things that mattered. But now he wanted to thank them both—for saving him from a disastrous marriage and an even more complicated divorce.

He liked his brain—it made him a better operator. And without his intellect, he'd never have put together all the pieces of this seven-year puzzle. Hope would still be unaware of her brother-in-law's treachery.

She was watching him. Patiently awaiting a response. That Hope was talking about a future together made him feel overjoyed. He was holding her too tight. He finally managed to find the words, although probably not the right words.

"I want kids. I've always wanted kids. And the thought of being with you, starting a family with you, makes me so fucking hard I want to carry you upstairs and?—"

Her eyes sparkled and what looked like relief lit her features. "What's stopping you?"

"My teammates waiting downstairs like teenage girls and the fact Frazer will be here any second. Then there are the FD 302s I need to fill out. The knowledge field agents from the local office will need to interview us all about what went down, and my boss will want an update…"

She laughed reluctantly, and then he felt the cat jump onto his shoulder and start kneading him with his claws.

He twisted. The cat jumped off and meowed for food. Hope leaned forward and kissed him. "Unfortunately for you, Lucifer and I are a package deal. How about we schedule an after-hours meeting in my room? As soon as everyone is done hassling us."

"I'd like that." He took her hand and folded her fingers and kissed them. "I'd like that very much. And you need to tell them to back off if it gets too much for you. You were drugged and abducted today and had to deal with some pretty hard truths."

She gave him a smile that lifted her cheeks. "I've seen many of my clients deal with worse."

He gripped her arms. "They didn't have me to run interference."

Her eyes glittered for a moment, but she blinked away the threat of more tears.

He sighed. "There is a small possibility we'll get called back to Quantico immediately and another we'll be sent somewhere I can't communicate with you from. But know that I will do everything I can to get out of whatever assignment it might be."

Her lips twitched. "I can wait for you, Aaron."

"I don't know if I can wait for you," he said honestly.

A knock sounded on the door, followed by footsteps on the stairs.

"I'll make coffee and feed the cat." She laughed, and he stole another brief kiss as Frazer arrived.

The man's cool gaze brightened. "Can I make mine a bourbon? I promise I'll send you a new bottle."

The man first walked over to Hope as she stood. He gave her a hug and kiss on the forehead. "I'm sorry about Brendan."

Hope shuddered as she drew in a big breath. "So am I, but I'm not wasting another moment on him. I feel sorry for Mary, but she's going to have to find a way of dealing with this that doesn't involve me."

"Good."

Frazer headed to the liquor cabinet, held up the bottle, flicked a look in both their directions. "Anyone else?"

Hope shook her head.

"I'll wait until I've made my statement, and then I'll have a double." Aaron ducked into the kitchen and pulled down a tin of the good stuff for Lucy.

"Oh, I forgot," Frazer called out. "There's a pretty brunette called Jeanine, who asked me to give you her number. She works at the printers in town."

Aaron felt his cheeks flush as he came back into the room. "Shit, I told them I'd be back to deal with the computer."

Frazer waved a hand. "Don't worry. The CSI unit dealt with it. And guess who the marshals finally caught up with?"

"Roberts and Somack?"

Frazer nodded.

"Thank God for that."

Hope rubbed her wrists, obviously sore from the overtight cuffs Colin had put on her. The fact the bastard had handed Hope over to Leech without a second thought meant Aaron had zero compassion for the guy.

"I'm going to order Chinese food for everyone. And as soon as we've written our statements, I want to thank everyone personally." Her clothes were dirty, and her face a little scraped up, but she'd come through this ordeal miraculously unscathed.

And his.

She'd come through it as his.

It felt like a miracle.

"We were just doing our jobs, Hope."

"You saved my life and gave me exactly that—hope. I want to thank all the team."

"As long as you don't get any ideas about what I said last night," Aaron muttered jokingly. A flush crawled up his neck. He shouldn't remind her what a prick he'd been.

"Now you mention it…" Hope smiled, then went off to tend to Lucy, who was still complaining about being hungry.

"Were these the ideas that prompted your middle of the night run?" Frazer admired the light through his large glass of bourbon.

"Not prompted, but they stemmed from the same source," Aaron admitted.

Frazer grinned. "Hey, Hope, will you sign one of your books for Izzy? She's a big fan."

Hope came out of the kitchen with her mouth agape.

"Did you really think I wouldn't figure it out with the books staring me in the face at dinner?"

"Uh, yes? I didn't think anyone would notice."

"Are you writing a book right now?" asked Frazer.

"I'm in the plotting stages." Her eyes flashed to Aaron. "I was thinking of introducing a romantic element to the series."

"Frankie gets her Happily Ever After?" Aaron teased.

A smile curved that wide mouth of hers.

"Come down and stay with us for a few days."

Aaron went to object, but Frazer spoke first. "You can stay too. As long as you like dogs."

Aaron looked at Hope, wondering how they were going to work out the logistics of a long-distance relationship, especially if they were going to try for kids.

Hope stared at him. Bit her lip. "I already told Aaron that I'm thinking of taking a leave of absence from my position as Assistant District Attorney so I can figure out my next move. I spent so many years going after the bad guys because I believed it was my fault Danny and Paige were murdered. I need to decide if it's still what I want to do or whether I would be happier as a full-time author."

She didn't mention wanting kids. That was their secret, for now.

Her smile was contagious. "So, I'd love to come meet your Izzy and explore the great state of Virginia. I've never been."

Frazer grinned. "You'll like her and Virginia." He looked between the two of them and seemed to realize he was possibly the third wheel in a private conversation.

"Okay, then. I'm going to go downstairs and order that food because it's probably my turn. I'll bring it and the others up when it arrives." He checked his watch. "I figure you have approximately thirty minutes to either write a report or…" He raised his eyebrows. As soon as the door closed Aaron swept Hope into his arms and carried her up the stairs.

She laughed and touched his cheek. "I'm not sure thirty minutes is going to be long enough."

"It won't be." Emotion pulsed through him as he walked into Hope's bedroom and closed the door with his foot. "It will never be enough time, Hope, but we'll make the most of every second."

"Promise?" Her eyes held his.

"I promise." And then he kissed her.

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