Epilogue

A fter sleeping in until after eight o’clock in the morning, a luxury she rarely allowed herself, Inda woke up wrapped around Lucas. She’d never felt so light, so free. Opening up to him about her past and expressing her love had healed her in a way she never thought possible.

Lucas’ eyes popped open and he caught her staring. But how could she not? He was the most ridiculously beautiful man she’d ever seen, and now he was all hers. When he smiled, she leaned in and kissed first one dimple then the other.

“What’s so great about my dimples?” he asked teasingly, pulling her closer so she lay sprawled on his chest. “I honestly don’t get the appeal.”

“They’re insanely sexy.” She licked one. “I’ve wanted to do that since the first time you smiled at me.”

“Don’t forget the other one.”

When she flicked her tongue along the other groove, his fingers threaded through her hair, urging her closer, and he began dropping kisses all over her face.

“What’re you doing?” She laughed, pulling back.

“You like my dimples and I love your beauty marks.”

“Ugh, they’re awful.”

“No way. I think they’re hot as hell.” After kissing each one twice, he captured her mouth in a slow, heated kiss.

“Do you think we have time to…” His voice trailed off as he began licking his way down her neck.

She glanced over at the clock. “If we hurry.”

“Sounds like a challenge,” he murmured.

“Are you up for it?” she asked huskily, letting her hand wander down. Oh, yeah, she thought, wrapping her fingers around his lengthening cock.

“Challenge accepted,” he rasped as she squeezed.

◆◆◆

At exactly oh-nine-hundred hours, the team gathered on the sofas and chairs in the common area. One person was clearly missing.

“Where’s Saint?” Gray asked.

“Out smoking?” Ryland suggested. He hopped up, walked over to the blinds and pulled them back to reveal an empty balcony. “Nope.”

“He went out to the bar last night, but I haven’t seen him yet this morning,” Braxton said.

“Which means he’s probably hungover,” Inda murmured.

“I’m sure he’ll turn up soon,” Zane said dismissively. “In the meantime…”

Excitement laced his voice and Lucas realized both he and River looked ready to burst with good news.

“You guys aren’t going to believe this!” River exclaimed.

“What?” Inda asked, leaning forward. Her hands were wrapped around a caramel mocha while Lucas drank his usual hot tea with honey.

Zane and River exchanged a triumphant look and Lucas knew that look all too well. It meant the hackers had hacked, and whatever they’d found must be damn important.

“Well, are you going to make us guess?” Gray grumbled.

“We hit the motherload,” Zane announced at the same time River said, “We decrypted every name on the list!”

It took them a second to absorb the news. Then Ryland exclaimed, “Holy shit! That’s awesome!” and slapped hands with Zane.

“Good job, guys,” Braxton praised. “We’re gonna want to hear who all ten of those assholes are. Even though we can pretty much guess, we need confirmation.”

“The program is spitting out the final ones as we speak,” Zane assured them.

A phone began buzzing and Lucas took a drink of tea while Braxton answered. Things seemed to be falling into place for the team, and that made him happy. He was on their side now and he needed them to know that. Especially his fellow hackers.

“That’s really great work,” Lucas told Zane and River. “Seriously. Great job.”

“Thanks,” Zane replied.

“If you need help with anything, I’m here.” He reached over and laced his fingers through Inda’s. “I need you all to know that I’m not going anywhere. I’m on board to do whatever it takes to help you bring down The Agency.”

“We appreciate that, Lucas,” River said as she sent Inda a huge smile, and his fierce little woman blushed.

“Goddammit, Saint!”

Everyone’s attention snapped over to Brax. He looked ready to implode. Instead, he reeled his temper in and calmly turned his phone on speaker, coolly announcing, “Saint kidnapped Chadwick Carlisle’s daughter.”

For a moment no one said anything.

“Aww, hell,” Ryland murmured.

“The opportunity presented itself and I took it,” Saint said, sounding unapologetic. “We use her as leverage to gain intel from Carlisle about who else makes up The Agency. Then we bring every last one of those fuckers down once and for all.”

“We have all ten names,” Braxton stated flatly.

“What?”

“Zane and River just decrypted the last ones.”

“Huh.”

Brax rolled his eyes. “Yeah…huh. If you would’ve waited a little longer instead of running off half-cocked, you could’ve avoided a first-degree felony charge.”

“Please.” Saint snorted, his voice full of irony. “I’d hardly say this is the worst thing I’ve ever done. You do remember what we do for a living, right?”

“That’s not the point,” Brax bit out through clenched teeth. “You should be here right now, working with us. Not on your own, doling out justice like some kind of vigilante. We’re a fucking team. We work together.”

“Noted,” Saint gritted out.

Lucas let out a pent-up breath and squeezed Inda’s hand. Somehow the celebratory atmosphere just turned awfully sour. But he understood Braxton’s point. Ex Nihilo was a team and Saint should be there in the meeting. The fact that he’d gone out on his own and kidnapped Carlisle’s daughter…

Fuck. When the man found out, it would probably start World War III.

River cleared her throat. “I have the names.”

Braxton gave a sharp nod.

“They’re revealing slowly, one at a time,” she murmured, typing away. “No surprises so far. But, like Brax said, it’s confirmation of the players. Basically, a hit list.”

“Go ahead,” Brax said.

“Number six is…ohh…” She glanced over at Gray. “Alvaro Mesa.”

“Who’s he?” Lucas asked.

“Mesa, better known as ‘El Escorpión,’ is a South American drug lord and the man responsible for the deaths of my former SEAL team,” Gray said. “He got away from me once, but it won’t happen again.”

The haunted intensity in Gray’s amber eyes revealed to Lucas exactly why the man’s nickname was Demon. At that moment, he looked possessed by vengeance, and Lucas did not want to find himself on his bad side. Ever.

“Seven is Camille Mercier AKA one half of the Toxic Twins.”

“And dead after drowning in a tank of acid,” Zane growled.

Lucas flinched. Not a way he’d want to go out.

“I assume Julien, her better half who I killed down in Colombia, is number eight?” Gray asked.

But River shook her head. “Number eight is…a new name. Malcolm Grendel. Ring any bells?”

They all murmured no and Zane began typing away. “I’ll see what I can dig up.”

“Number nine,” she said as she glanced over at Ryland, “is Nathan “Cross” Mills.”

“Shocker,” Ryland murmured. “And ten?”

River blinked. “Um...” For a moment, she looked confused. “There’s just a last name. I don’t know…”

Her voice trailed off and everyone frowned.

“What’s the name, RL?” Zane asked, brow furrowed.

River looked up. “Graves.”

Stunned silence filled the room and everyone looked over at Braxton.

“Graves?” he echoed in disbelief.

“Are you sure that’s right?” Lucas asked. “Want me to take a look at the program?”

“No, it’s correct,” River assured them.

“Why the fuck is your name on The Agency list?” Saint asked through the speaker, echoing everyone else’s thoughts.

“I have no idea. I’m not a part of it. You guys all know that,” he insisted.

“He’s not a part of The Agency,” Inda said, immediately coming to Braxton’s defense.

“Then why is his name on there?” Gray asked. “Sorry, Pharaoh, but we need to figure this out.”

“Yeah, I know, and we will. I want answers just like everybody else.” Braxton’s tone was resolute, but Lucas thought the whole thing was odd. He’d have to ask Inda more about their fearless leader in private. Like how well did they really know Braxton Graves?

“This is bringing back memories of when we thought one of us was a mole,” Ryland said, studying Braxton closely.

“I’m not a goddamn mole!” Braxton snapped. “Merlin/Cross/your father was the mole!”

“So why’re you getting so defensive?”

“Fuck off, Rip.” Braxton sighed wearily, raking a hand through his brown waves. “Look, I have no fucking idea why my last name is on there. But I need my team to have my back.”

“We have your back, Pharaoh,” Inda said without hesitation. “You’ve been leading and fighting with us since day one.”

“Thanks, Bruja,” Brax murmured.

Lucas could hear the frustration in Brax’s voice and his gut told him to trust whatever Inda believed.

Gray nodded. “Unless you prove otherwise, we’re on the same side.”

Braxton sat back in his chair looking overwhelmed. “Saint?”

“Yeah?”

“Hang onto Mia Carlisle,” he ordered, his voice low and menacing. “She might prove useful after all.”

“Roger that, Pharaoh.”

◆◆◆

“I’m not really sure what to make of all that,” Lucas said under his breath as he closed the door to Inda’s private quarters.

“Yeah, my head is still reeling.” She turned to look at Lucas and all the anxiety from the meeting began to melt away.

Moving over, she wrapped her arms around him and gazed up into his light blue eyes. She didn’t think of them as icy anymore. Instead, they were more like twin tropical pools, warm and inviting.

“I refuse to believe Braxton is a part of The Agency.”

“He seems like a good guy.”

She nodded. “He is. They’re up to something. I’m not sure what, but we will find out. Especially with you, Zane and River working together. You three are quite the formidable trio.”

Lucas chuckled. “Do you think they’ll work with me, though? After what I did?”

“If I know Banshee, and I’m pretty sure I do, he’s miffed about being hacked— twice by you—but his big head is nearly over it. And he knows the mission is more important than a personal grudge.”

“I hope so. I really like him and River.”

“They’re stubborn, but they’re also smart enough to work with you. I have a feeling you might even be able to teach them a thing or two.”

“Good.” He smirked. “How about we go back to bed? I might teach you something, too.”

“It’s ten in the morning!” She swatted at him and he pulled her closer. The heat of his hard body pressed along the length of hers and desire ran through her veins like molten lava. “Maybe I can be convinced.”

Her breathless whisper earned her a dimpled smile.

“I love you, Inda Léa Diaz . I love everything about you. From your intelligence…” He pressed a kiss to her temple. “To your good heart.”

When he laid a hand on her chest, her pulse spiked and she knew he could feel the galloping of her heart. Because when Lucas touched her, she had no control over her body’s reactions.

“What else do you love?” she asked, playfully nipping at his jawline and reaching down for the button on his jeans.

“Your fierceness.”

She undid it and tugged at his zipper. “Anything else?”

“How utterly fearless you are,” he said huskily.

“Keep going.” She shoved his pants down and they fell around his ankles.

He swallowed hard. “Did I mention your ass?”

Inda burst out laughing. “I love you, Lucas,” she whispered, reaching up to cup his face and kiss him with all the love in her heart. As the kiss deepened, she thanked all her lucky stars that Carlisle had hired Cipher to hack Ex Nihilo.

At that moment, Inda knew she wasn’t going to be alone ever again. There were people who cared for her and were willing to do whatever it took to protect her. Just as she would protect them.

She had her team and a man who loved her. And she’d never felt more worthy.

I hope you enjoyed Lucas and Inda’s story! Saint is up next, and when this bad boy falls for the good girl, his world flips upside down in every possible way.

Are you ready to see how it all ends?