Epilogue

I t arrived in the mail eight weeks after they'd returned from Malta and just days after the two men who'd abducted Kira last December cut a deal with the prosecutor and entered guilty pleas in the matter of her abduction. They would each serve a minimum of fifteen years. Twenty-five if they never made parole.

The main trial still waited, but at least she'd only have to testify about her ordeal once. And then, when that was over, Kira and Rand could take a trip.

Anywhere in the world.

She ripped open the cardboard envelope and turned it to the side. Her new little blue book of freedom fell into her hand.

Rand entered the room. "Whatcha got there?"

She held it up, so happy, she might burst. "The State Department sent it by express mail."

He grinned. He knew exactly how desperate she was to receive a new passport to definitively confirm her citizenship.

Decades ago, the CIA had cut a deal with Conrad and Anna and provided a false birth certificate for Kira, giving her fake citizenship. This had been confirmed by the CIA officer who'd been Conrad Hanson's handler for the last decade of his life. The man had attended Conrad's funeral but left when he recognized Freya from the scandal that ended her career with the agency.

The deal to give Kira citizenship had been signed off on by the State Department, who'd appreciated the intel her mother had provided and understood the risk to mother and daughter should they be sent back to Russia.

Kira could have continued using the passport she got last May, but her birthdate was three years and two months off. And so, with the help of Freya, the CIA, and NSWC, they'd appealed to the State Department. Like her mother before her, she'd done the US a service in gathering intel.

The result was in her hands. She opened to the laminated page with her photo and passport number and checked the date. She grinned and held it to her chest. "I get to remain thirty-six for another month."

Rand pulled her to him. "This might be the longest anyone has ever been thirty-six, then. Four years and two months since your first thirty-sixth birthday?"

"Well, technically, I was also thirty-seven, thirty-eight, and I spent ten months at thirty-nine before the clock set back."

"Talk about your daylight savings."

"I have saved so much time ."

"I think we should waste a little."

"Oh, what do you have in mind?"

He took the passport from her hand and set it on the table, then scooped her up. "What do you say we spend the rest of the weekend in bed?"

"It's Wednesday."

"But you've banked a lot of weekends."

"Fair."

He carried her up the stairs to their bedroom and set her on her feet in front of the bed. He stood before her, smiling down. "In Malta, I suggested that if we couldn't sort out your citizenship, one solution was to marry me."

"I'm not sure that would have worked."

"But it would have been fun." He grinned and nipped at her shoulder. "I guess I have no reason to propose now except the most important one." He dropped to one knee and pulled something from his pocket.

Her stomach fluttered as she took in the solitaire diamond on his open palm.

"I love you, Kira. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Please marry me. If not for citizenship, then for love?"

She dropped to her knees and threw her arms around his neck and kissed him deeply.

He ended the kiss and looked into her eyes, waiting for her answer.

She laughed and said, "Okay."

He slipped the ring on her finger.

She studied the princess-cut stone that sparkled and flashed. Holy crap. She was going to marry Rand. But not because she had to.

"How long has this been in your pocket?"

"Since I saw the delivery confirmation text on your phone."

"You spying on my phone again?"

"No. You left it on the nightstand."

She turned and saw her phone was indeed charging next to the bed.

They made love to celebrate passports and engagements and afterward lay together, making plans for their life together. "I have another gift for you."

She smiled dreamily and ran her hand down his sculpted body. She'd attempted to paint him a few times now. She still wasn't satisfied she'd done him justice, but he was an inspiring artist's model. "I'm going to need at least a few minutes' recovery time."

He chuckled. "Not that." He rolled over and reached into the nightstand. "I figure it's not every day someone turns thirty-seven for the second time, so I wanted to make this birthday special."

"You might want to be careful with that. As I mentioned earlier, I've also turned thirty-eight and thirty-nine. You could be setting a dangerous precedent."

He shrugged. "I can handle it." He handed her the papers. "Now that you have a new passport, how would you like to spend your second thirty-seventh birthday in Italy?"

She jolted. "Really?" She looked at the papers, multiple hotel reservations. "Florence and Rome?"

"I sort of crashed your last vacation. I was thinking I owed you a new one."

She laughed. "You can crash my vacation any time." She looked at the dates. Ten days in Italy. "The Navy is giving you leave?"

He nodded. "The trip to Malta…didn't really end up being leave, and the dates land right between my transition from the teams to NSWC."

She kissed him and held the papers to her chest. She and her fiancé were going to Italy . In one month.

He grinned. "I was thinking I might set a book in Italy. So we can call it a research trip."

She laughed. "We probably need to buy art while we're there. For research."

"I'm not sure I can justify that, tax-wise."

"It's okay. You can hold on to it and give it to me for my second thirty-eighth birthday next year."

"Oh, I have created a dangerous precedent."

"Too late. No backsies."

He ran a hand over her butt. "Speaking of…"

She laughed and pushed him onto his back and slid on top of him. She kissed him deeply and then gave a happy sigh. "I love you, Rand. All I really want is to be with you. I don't need art or trips or anything but you to be happy."

He ran a hand down her spine. "Same. But also, seeing your face light up as you look at art that speaks to you is my favorite thing in the world. I want to take you not just to Italy, but everywhere. So I can share your joy."

She brushed her lips over his. "Okay then. Let's travel the world together."

T hank you for reading DON'T LOOK BACK, I hope you enjoyed Kira and Rand's Maltese adventure. Be sure to read the author's note at the end of this section to learn about some of the inspirations that led to this story.

The Evidence: Under Fire series will continue. Click here for pre-order information. While you wait for the next installment, be sure to look for the Flashpoint and Evidence series books that introduce key characters.

We first meet Rand and Freya in TINDERBOX.

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