Epilogue

Six months later…

"Nice shot."

Raegan turned to see Rocky admiring her latest kill. Following his line of sight, she checked out the target at the end of her row and smiled.

"That's twelve centers in a row. Time to pay up."

"Fine." The big teddy bear of a man grumbled. "If I must."

Grabbing her around the waist, he pulled her into his arms, kissing her thoroughly. "Better?" he whispered against her lips.

Staring back at him from behind her safety glasses, Raegan playfully brushed the tip of her nose across his. "That always makes everything better."

She couldn't believe the whirlwind her life had become these past six months. The city was in a frenzy for a while after Samer's death, and the whole bomb scare situation had put everyone on high alert.

Though there were still some questions the FBI was working to find answers to, for the most part, it had all been stored away as an unfortunate—and terrifying—moment in Chicago's history.

From what Homeland and Lisa, Agent Atwell, had both shared, almost all of Samer's homegrown crew had been captured and were behind bars. As for the others still out there, the authorities were working diligently to find them all.

It was an ongoing fight that never seemed to cease. But Raegan was damn thankful for those who were out there, putting boots on the ground every single day, doing their very best to come out on top.

For Chicago.

For the United States.

And for the sake of humanity.

"You want to go another few rounds before we head out?"

"Sure." Raegan nodded excitedly.

She was still in awe that Christian and his sweet wife, Megan, had built such an amazing outdoor range at their home. Not only that, but there were other training areas placed strategically around a large portion of the Delta leader's land, which included both indoor and outdoor obstacles much like those she and her former team had trained with in the military.

Her pain from what happened that day in Iraq didn't die with Samer as she'd hoped. But there was a sliver of peace that hadn't been there before. One created from the knowledge that the man responsible for their deaths could no longer hurt anyone else, ever again.

As for the other aspects of Raegan's life, things were definitely looking up there, too. Her actions that day at the airport had been deemed "heroic" by the media outlets and social media, as well as local law enforcement agencies.

Raegan didn't see herself as a hero. Not even one in cartoon form. And while she hated it when people referred to her as one, the exposure did open up several new doors for her, professionally.

Between being nationally known now—something else that drove her batshit crazy—both Special Agent Foster and Agent Atwell had written her letters of recommendation to accompany Raegan's application to the FBI.

She got word yesterday that she'd been accepted into Quantico's upcoming class, which was why she and Rocky were here, brushing up on her firearms skills.

As for them…

Raegan turned to the love of her life who was reloading the mag to his pistol in the stall beside her. "Hey, can you hand me another box of ammo? This one's empty."

"Sure." He turned his back to her as he bent to dig another box of bullets from the duffel he'd brought with them.

"Oh, also, I meant to ask earlier…are you staying at my place tonight, or am I sleeping over at yours?" Raegan rested her hip against the edge of her own shooting stall while she waited. "It doesn't matter to me. I just wasn't sure if I needed to stop by my place after dinner to grab my overnight bag, or if you were going to?—"

"You know, I've been thinking about that." Rocky stood and placed the box on the shelf to her right. "I was thinking maybe it's time we started to think about other arrangements."

"Other arrangements?" She reached for the box.

"Yeah." He nodded his ball-capped head. "I mean, we spend every night together, anyway. It's kind of silly for you to spend money on rent when you could just move in with me."

Her heart caught in her throat as she processed what he'd just said. "You want me to move in with you?" Excitement fluttered throughout her entire system at the thought.

"To start."

"What do you mean, to start?" Raegan frowned. Glancing down, she pulled off the lid to the box of ammo and gasped.

"Rocky…" His name was barely a whisper.

Resting on top of the row of gold, nine-millimeter bullets was the most beautiful diamond ring she'd ever seen.

"I know we agreed on a year, and if that's still what you want, we can wait." Rocky reached out and carefully picked up the ring. "But I love you, Raegan. Heart and soul…sass and brass…I love you more than I ever thought could be possible."

Ohmygod!

"We've survived clogged sinks and breaking and entering…bank robbers and terrorists and bombs." He dropped to one knee. "If we can make it through that, sweetheart, then there's not a single thing in this world you and I can't face together. So, what do you say?" Unshed tears magnified the blues in his eyes as he lifted his hand and offered her the ring. "Will you make me the happiest man in the whole damn world and be my wife?"

Tears fell in streaks down both sides of Raegan's face, and it took three tries before she swallowed down the knot of emotions residing in her throat. But just like every other challenge she'd ever faced, Raegan refused to give up until she got what she wanted.

"Yes." She finally found the most important word to ever fall from her lips. "God, yes!"

Rocky slid the ring onto her left ring finger, and her heart soared when she realized it fit her perfectly. Deep down, she didn't care about the ring. Well, she did, but only because of what it stood for.

True, everlasting love.

And with that came the safety, warmth, comfort, and passion she'd dreamed of having but thought would never come. The gorgeous halo-style ring also stood for the same stability and strength of the bond she and Rocky now shared.

They say diamonds are forever, but the only forever Raegan had ever dreamed of having was the one she was about to start with the man currently kissing her senseless.

"I love you," she told him when they finally came up for air.

Rocky did that thing she loved where he tucked some hair behind her ear while staring back at her as if she hung the moon. "I love you, too, Raegan. And I can't wait to build a life with you."

She was going to build a life with a man named Rocky who was part of a badass team of protectors…

What could be better than that?

Ready to find out if Cade and Dr. Kerrigan Rawlins can stop a killer long enough to find their own HEA?