Epilogue

Lexi

"Where is my left boot?" I called out, hopping around on one leg through the Striker's one room. It was a little messy and cluttered now that I had an entire, obnoxiously large wardrobe to pick from. I didn't care, I loved living on the ship with Rurick, even if that ship had been parked on Afir most of the time.

We both worked at the bar his friend Mads had started years ago. I ran the books and payroll, while Rurick was usually the bouncer/bartender. But it was a bar that the Clade liked to frequent, not that they advertised it. Sometimes, Rurick would slip into the backroom with one of them, and then he'd have a job and leave for a few days. Sometimes I'd go with him, sometimes I'd spend a couple of nights with his brother and sister-in-law.

There was just no keeping my mate in one place without at least some ways to let off steam. And while our bed play was fantastic, that wasn't the kind of release he needed, or rather, not the only kind. Still an assassin, now he worked for the good guys, the ones fighting to keep the UAR from expanding and killing and annexing more and more planets in the Alpha Quadrant. I could live with that.

"Here," he said with a laugh, an impish glint in his eyes. He ducked down next to me to help me put the boot on, something he liked doing ever since my belly was starting to get too big for me to see my own ankles. I had noticed that he wasn't taking nearly as many jobs as before, preferring to stay closer to home the closer my due date got. I liked that very much, I liked that he cared so much about me and our little one that it was suppressing his urge to roam.

"Thanks," I said, tossing my arms around his neck so I could kiss him. He was bare-chested, only wearing pants after he'd stepped out of the shower. A scar crossed his left pec like a silvery half-moon against his otherwise golden skin, a reminder of our run-in with Agosta. The mobster was dead, obliterated during our escape, and we were both very happy about that.

"What do you say we take a snow day?" I suggested, waggling my brows toward the bed. He laughed, sweeping me off my feet and reaching the fluffy mattress in two big strides.

"I say yes. I love you, Lexi." And then he nuzzled my belly, "And I love you, tiny one."

THE END