Chapter 25

"Are you sure your brother will be okay with this?" Hudson mutters nervously as we walk down the sidewalk and toward the café where we are meeting Poppy and Walker for lunch. "I mean … I'm older than you. And not by, like, a year or two. But by nine years. That means when you were in first grade, I was in fucking high school. That's kind of weird, isn't it?" He continues to ramble. "You were having juice boxes and going out to recess, and I was about to get my driver's license and sneaking girls under the bleachers between classes."

I stop in my tracks, widening my eyes. "Wow. Nine years? Really? You are old as hell. No wonder why your balls are so saggy," I tease him, poking his side, knowing damn well his balls are not saggy but somehow incredibly perfect. Which is something I never thought I'd say about a set of nuts.

"Oh, yeah?" He runs his fingers over his chin thoughtfully. "If they are so saggy and old, why were you so fierce to lick them that day in Italy?" he drawls, giving me a tiny grin.

"Maybe I just have a thing for decrepit old balls." I shrug. "That can be a thing, you know."

"Yeah, I bet." He rolls his eyes. "I'm serious. Is Walker going to be a little bitch about this? Because I gotta be honest, if he's pissed, I'm not even gonna fight back." He shrugs his shoulders. "I mean, one punch couldn't hurt. It's been two fucking weeks, and I feel pretty good."

"First off, there will be no punching. My brother isn't going to care. He's not one of those weird, protective brothers," I answer point-blank. "And, two, one punch could hurt because you're still healing, dumbass." Taking his hand, I swing our arms together. "Now, let's go. You decrepit old man with an old wiener and saggy nuts."

Tugging me against him, he leans down, hovering his mouth over mine. "I'll show you how not old my dick is and how firm my nuts are right now. Let's go back to the truck."

Giving him my sweetest, fakest smile, I kiss his cheek. "We could, but see, then you'd be going against doctor's orders. And, yeah, as your designated nurse, we're not going to do that." I wink. "Now, come on, big guy. Let's go see my brother and Poppy."

"Knowing that you didn't catch on sooner shows how much you do not pay attention to simple shit," Poppy says to Walker, shaking her head at him. "Literally the first time I heard him talk about Briar, I knew right away that this whole thing"—she waves her hand between us—"was going on." She laughs. "Well, that and, let's see … the wallpaper on his phone was your sister. That either meant super stalker or they were a thing."

Briar spins her head toward me. "Your background was me?" She puts her hands on her chest, batting her lashes. "I am quite flattered."

"Yes. It was when you were in Italy and I was here," I say nonchalantly, knowing it makes me look like a fucking stage-five clinger. "Don't make it a big deal."

"It is a big deal," Poppy deadpans before she stomps her foot on Walker's. "I wasn't your background when you moved to South Carolina and I was back here in Georgia, asshole."

"Maybe you were. How can you know for sure?" He smirks, winking at her.

"Well, was I?" she asks, raising a brow.

"Nah." He shrugs. "I was too pissed at you for that. My background was the generic shit that came on my phone when I got it."

"I can attest to that," Briar says, raising her hand.

"So, like, when you came back to the United States and watched Poppy—" Walker starts to say, but Poppy interrupts him.

"Watched is basically the same thing as babysat, asshole. Pick a different word," she warns.

"Sorry," he says. "Um, when you … worked as a guard for me and Poppy?" He says the words more like a question, and she gives him a small nod, pleased with his wording this time. "When you were doing that, were you and Briar, like, seeing each other?"

"Well, obviously, babe. I mean, he isn't going to put a chick on his background that he's not … close with," Poppy says, raising her eyebrows up and down at Briar. "Kinda a hot story. A bodyguard and a girl being held against her will. That should be a romance novel. People would eat that shit up."

"Gross," Walker groans. "No, they wouldn't."

"We were … feeling some things, yes," Briar answers, glancing at me. "But it was complicated." She blows out a breath, looking dazed. "Very, very complicated."

"The whole time, I thought you were just blinded by Uncle Boobie Man's flashy lifestyle," Walker says, clearly ashamed. "I thought he had corrupted you. Turns out, you were trying to outsmart him at his own game."

Taking a sip from her drink, she chuckles. "Yeah, and how'd that work for me? Not too good." She sighs, relaxing back in her chair. "I don't know why I thought I could just mosey on over there to Italy and learn all the dark things about our family. Really, all I learned was Beckett's involvement with the Romanos and the drug running. And that our grandparents ran in the same circle way back when Mom and Beckett were kids."

"That's not nothing," Poppy says, giving her a look of reassurance.

"No, but what good does it do for me to know that?" She looks at Walker. "Sorry I worried you for so long. In my mind, I thought I was being courageous and brave. Really, I was just being an idiot."

"How do you figure that?" I cut in this time. "If it wasn't for you and Natasha, who knows how long it would have taken us to find Vittoria Island?" I reach over, patting her hand. "You saved so many people's lives. And you brought justice to those who were taken to Vittoria Island. And all the crimes the Romano family had committed, you are a big reason why they are now paying for them."

Thank you , she mouths, but I can tell she still doesn't believe that she deserves the praise she's gotten. She does though. And I'll keep reminding her of that if I have to.

"Speaking of Natasha, how is she?" Poppy says thoughtfully. "Have you seen her?"

She nods, smiling. "Yeah, I saw her a few days after we got home. She dropped off some goodies for us and stocked the refrigerator with a ton of stuff. She's good. She's just happy to be away from Beckett, I think."

"Who could blame her for that?" Walker mutters. "Fucking bastard creates nothing but problems."

"She'd like to still be in our lives. And honestly, I'd like her to be." She looks at her brother, and suddenly, her expression grows somber. "We're all each other has in the family department. Might be nice to have an aunt, you know?"

He doesn't smile or look that impressed. But eventually, he bobs his head up and down once. "Sure. Why not?"

Poppy leans toward Walker and whispers something before she gives him a look that definitely means he has something to tell his sister. Reaching down, Poppy takes out a small bag and hands it to Briar.

"This is from your brother. He got it for you himself."

Glancing from the bag to her brother, Briar slowly pulls a beanie from it. On it is the New England Bay Sharks logo. Her eyes widen, and a huge smile spreads from ear to ear.

"Walker, does this mean …" Her voice cracks, and tears fill her eyes. "Are you in the NHL?"

"I sure am," he utters, and even though he doesn't say much, the excitement is all over his face.

Shooting out of her chair, Briar pulls him up from his seat and throws her arms around him before jumping up and down. "My brother is a professional hockey player!" She sniffles, squeezing him tighter. "I'm so fucking proud of you, baby brother. You did it."

Releasing him, she heads for Poppy, who is already standing. And together, they bounce up and down, cheering for Walker's news.

We cheers to Walker's accomplishment, and I'm thankful as hell to be here right now. But more than that, I'm grateful that Briar is here.

I'm so happy for that kid because if anyone has worked their ass off to get to where they want to be, it's him. And while I'm pumped that his dreams are coming true and he's headed into the next chapter of his career, I can't stop myself from thinking about mine.

Because I know I'm done working as an undercover agent. It's too dangerous, and I don't want to put Briar through it. But the question is, where the hell am I going to go from here?