Epilogue

EMMETT

Two months later…

I scanned the room, taking in Scarlett and Malcolm’s house. The air was thick with the aroma of roasted meats, mulled cider, and so many sweets I couldn’t distinguish one from another. All around us, the Reynolds crew mingled with their significant others, Scarlett’s friends Heather and Kelley, and a handful of faces I didn’t recognize. It was a potluck dinner in October, perfect for what Malcolm had planned.

He stood in the archway separating the dining and living rooms, his usual cool replaced by an uncharacteristic nervousness.

“You sure everything’s a go?” I asked in a low voice, doing my best not to laugh at my best friend.

Malcolm swallowed hard. He wore his favorite cologne, had spent a half hour on his hair, and was wearing the cream half-zip sweater Scarlett loved him in best. “Tell me I’m not about to make a fool out of myself.”

I clapped him on the shoulder. “You looked calmer when we were facing down the armed clowns in April.”

“That was only our lives at risk,” Malcolm muttered. “This is a lot scarier shit.”

“Much scarier, but the payoff’s far better.” I nodded, feigning gravity. “Or significantly worse.”

With a chuckle, I turned to see Jenn standing at the dining room table. She selected food, placing bite-sized pieces on a small paper plate.

The sight of her sent a rush of emotions through me—desire, love, and a fraction of the nerves Malcolm was experiencing. “Just give me enough time to maneuver Jenn into the room. She won’t want to miss it.”

Malcolm’s face practically blanched. “You have ten minutes. Any more, and I’m ducking out like a coward.”

I laughed before leaving his side for Jenn’s. As I approached her, she smiled at me—a beaming smile that warmed me from the inside.

“What’s with Mal?” she asked. “He doesn’t seem like himself tonight.”

I slid my hand down her left arm, over the Love bracelet she still wore—without the tracker—and over the custom-made bracelet that held the blue scarab from Naukratis. I pressed my lips to her cheek. “We got a text from Evelyn.”

Jenn’s brow furrowed. “Was she supposed to be here?”

I sighed inwardly, thinking about how my mother had become obsessed with mission planning since Enzo’s revelation about framing my father. “We’re flying out tomorrow for a short recon job. Shouldn’t be more than two days.”

Jenn put her plate down and placed her hands on my chest. “Shouldn’t be?”

Over the past couple of months, I’d done a lot of local work. The job we were preparing for would be the first long, high-risk trip I’d leave her for.

“I can’t give you the specifics,” I said, “but it got me thinking…”

Jenn tilted her head, curiosity replacing the worry in her expression. “Thinking what?”

I took a deep breath, steeling myself. Malcolm was waiting for us. I didn’t have time to hem and haw over this. Just say it, man. “We’ve spent almost every free minute together since we returned from Monaco. I want to make it more permanent. More than one drawer and your own toothbrush.”

Jenn’s eyes went wide. “Two drawers?”

I couldn’t help but brush my thumb over her cheek. “Let’s stop pretending this might be temporary. When I get home, I want you to move in with me.”

Jenn inhaled deeply, her gaze drifting back to the table behind her. The silence stretched between us, and a sinking fear settled in my gut. Was I rushing things? I glanced over at Malcolm, who gave me a hurry-up signal.

“Unless…” I started, but my throat was too thick to continue.

Jenn snapped her attention back to me. “No unless.” She threw her arms around my neck, linking her wrists there. “I was thinking about my father. He’s part of my life, too. You think you can handle that?”

I winked at her. “You may not remember me tossing Enzo off a yacht, but?—”

“My dad’s pretty scary. But in the end, he wants me happy.” She lifted onto her tiptoes and gave me a peck on the lips. “And that’s what you make me. So if you’re willing to deal with him…”

That odd feeling in my chest started again. The one I was growing more familiar with by the day and had even started to crave. “That’s a yes?”

Jenn tightened her grip around my neck. “That’s a hell yeah.”

I leaned in and kissed her deeply. My life was turning around. Everything had seemed near-perfect before the kidnapping in April, but now? I’d been missing so much, and I hadn’t realized it.

Malcolm tapped my shoulder. “I’m doing this without you.”

I separated from Jenn, trying to calm the ridiculous smile that was half love for Jenn and half laughter at Malcolm. “We should go to the living room.”

Jenn looked to where Malcolm had gone and reached for her plate. “What’s going on?”

I put her plate back on the table, then towed her behind me, between a few people, and around the corner into the living room.

Malcolm was already lowering to one knee in front of Scarlett, opening a jewelry box. “You’re the most remarkable woman I’ve ever met, and no one?—”

Jenn squeezed my arm, practically jumping in place. She whispered, “You knew?”

I mock frowned at her. “He asked my permission to ask Evelyn months ago.” After working for Evelyn for six months, Malcolm had a well-placed fear of my mother. “He finally worked up the courage to talk to her last week.”

Scarlett didn’t take her eyes off Malcolm while he talked, and when he finally asked her to marry him, she nodded vigorously. Malcolm placed the engagement ring on Scarlett’s finger and stood, wrapping her in his arms.

I took in Jenn’s radiant face, and a crazy thought popped into my head. I was going to marry her . Not yet, but soon. As soon as I won over her father. “Go congratulate her.”

“Oh, right!” She slipped out of my grasp and rushed over to hug her best friend.

I slid my left hand into my pocket, rubbing the poker chip. It didn’t hold the same power it used to. Standing up to Enzo, seeing my therapist regularly, and having a wonderful woman in my life were all helping me heal. What happened to me in New York and Venice would always be a part of me, but I was getting closer to it being a single chapter in my history instead of the climax.

Jenn took Kelley’s baby as Kelley hugged Scarlett. The image of marrying Jenn flashed to one of having children with her—of her holding our child, and not just Kelley’s.

These were the defining moments. Not the games, not the danger, but the softness. The smiles. The moments that made me reflect on the good in my life. Because these were the moments that would pull me through the darkness.

Finally, I walked into the center of the celebration to hug Scarlett. “You really didn’t see this coming?”

Scarlett cocked an eyebrow, her way of admitting Malcolm had pulled it off. “Jenn said you invited her to move in with you?”

I scratched my short beard, glancing over at Jenn, who was cooing at the baby. “I love her, Scar.”

“Took you long enough.” She nudged me and hugged me again before Rav stepped in.

I hugged Malcolm, said my congrats, and returned to Jenn’s side. “I know it’s early, but what do you say we take off?”

Jenn smiled at me, handed the baby to Kelley, and took me by the hand. “Let’s swing by my place, grab some things, and head home?”

There was that light feeling in my chest again. “ Some things? You want to move in sooner rather than later?”

Jenn’s smile widened. “Abso-freaking-lutely.”

I took her face in my hands and kissed her, despite all the people around us, and that the focus was supposed to be on Scarlett and Malcolm. Who cared? Because I had my woman, and nothing else mattered in the world.

THE END OF BOOK 4