Epilogue

Amonth later, Adam was still kind of pissy about things. He knew paperwork and being behind the desk were essential parts of the job—especially as he prepared to take over Team Alpha. There was only so much Adam could take, though. To add insult to injury, his doctor said he couldn't drive. He told Adam he could drive, but he might not be covered by insurance if he were in a wreck. Jin had jumped in and offered to drive him back and forth to work. At least there was a good chance he would get cleared on Monday.

"I don't understand why I can't drive."

"You go in on Monday. I'm sure you'll get the all clear."

He grumbled but said nothing.

"You act like you don't like spending all this time with me."

"And you act like you have nothing else better to do."

"I don't," she said, amusement dancing through her words.

He frowned and looked out the window. Jin had just taken the exit off H-1, heading toward her house. It was Friday, so fighting their way through traffic had taken forever. He had tried to get someone else to take him home to give Jin a break, but everyone had been busy.

"You're going to have to get used to letting someone help you."

He frowned harder and said nothing. Jin said nothing as she navigated through the neighborhood. He realized just how whiney he sounded. On top of everything, Adam had practically moved in with Jin. So, Adam guessed that was at least worth all the coddling he'd dealt with.

"Sorry."

She laughed. "No, you aren't, but that's okay. You have a right to be in a bad mood. But just…be nice to everyone."

"What do you mean?"

As she turned onto her street, he realized there were more cars than usual.

"Is someone having a party tonight?"

"Yeah, someone is."

That's when he saw his mother's car.

"What did you do?"

"I did nothing," she said with a smile as she pulled her car into the driveway next to his mother's sedan.

"Then…"

She turned her car off. "Listen, these people wanted to celebrate you being alive, and believe me, it's better than the community center."

"What?"

"Yes. I saved you from a massive celebration with all your mother's neighbors."

"All?"

She nodded. "And, of course, all your Aunties."

"Thank you."

She smiled. "Now, be nice to your mother. She has allowed me to be the caregiver, and I have a feeling it was tough for her to do."

"Okay, but part of this is for you."

She shook her head, and he didn't argue, but he knew it was true. She planned on outing herself next month on her podcast. There were already so many stories surrounding the podcast since the news had broken about who killed Alana Kim, so she'd decided to be proactive. He slipped out of the car, and they walked around the side of her house. He could hear the party before they stepped into the backyard.

Hand in hand, they walked through the crowd. Everyone from TFH was there, including the new Team Bravo. They intermingled with his mother and sisters and a few aunties. He could just imagine there would be a lot of complaints about who was and wasn't invited, but he'd let his mother deal with that.

"I have to double-check on the drinks. I'll be right back," Jin said, kissing his cheek.

"I can do that."

She smiled and shook her head. "It's your party. This is the first time I've had so many people at my house. Let me play hostess, and next time, you can be the main host."

Adam liked the sound of that. She gave him another kiss, then hurried off to check things. He watched her until she disappeared into the house.

"You look happy," Tamilya said, stepping up beside him.

"Yeah, it looks good on you," Cat said, sliding in on the opposite side.

"Are you two ganging up on me?"

Tamilya smiled and shook her head.

"No. We're just here to tell you that although you're our boss, we pick her if you screw this up," Cat said, a lethal smile curving her lips.

Adam cocked his head. "No love for o'hana?"

"She's o'hana now, and if something goes wrong, we have to assume it's you. Seriously, you have been a whiny bitch," Tamilya said.

"Are we talking about the CIA again?" Autumn said, sipping a beer. Jesus, they were ganging up on him.

"No, Adam," Cat said.

"Oh, yeah, ever since you got back in the office. I mean, seriously, I never expected you to be a big baby about being injured?" She glanced around. "Do we know how much longer before we eat?"

"Didn't you pop over to L and L Drive-In on the way here?" Tamilya asked.

"That was my afternoon snack. Anyway, I'm with the girls. We'll take you down if you hurt Jin."

"Adam," Del called out. Thankful for the save, he smiled at the women.

"When the boss calls…"

"Wimp," Cat called out with a laugh, but he didn't take a chance. He hurried over to where Del was standing.

"Thanks," he said.

"Yeah, I thought you might need an assist. I saw my wife doing a sneak attack from behind. You would have never survived that."

"Are you allowed to drink yet?" TJ asked. Adam nodded and accepted the beer.

"I can't believe I didn't know this was happening."

"Well, you have been kind of all up in your feels," Graeme said with a chuckle.

"Get bent," Adam said with little heat. He took a long sip of his Longboard Ale, enjoying the malty taste of it. It had been a long few weeks. He was just glad that everything seemed to be on an even keel. They had a lot of paperwork for this case, and while not everyone was satisfied with the ending, the public was. The murderer of Alana Kim wasn't alive anymore. Granted, her family had wanted a trial, but they all seemed to feel as if they had closure. Or at least as much closure as possible.

"Everything is about done," Del said. "You better do something nice for Jin. She worked her tail end off to get this done for you."

"There's my boy!" His mother wound her arms around him like she hadn't seen him in years. He had said hello when he arrived, and they had been at his mother's house for dinner last night.

"I can't believe you didn't tell me," he said.

She smiled up at him. "Don't mess this up. I think your sisters might throw you over for your woman."

He laughed because he wasn't so sure his mother was wrong. Soon, they were all munching down. He sat between his mother and Jin as children ran through the yard, and Dumfries, Graeme and Elle's dog, chased them. It was one of those nights that seemed almost too magical.

"What are you thinking?"

He turned to look at Jin. He should have known from the moment he met her, and maybe he did, that she was the one for him. There had never been a woman who would be perfectly put together. Her heart, body, soul…every bit of her resonated with him.

"What?" This time, her tone had turned worried.

"I love you."

Her eyes softened. "I love you too."

The words never failed to make his heart explode with happiness. This was the perfect night, and he wouldn't let anything disturb it.

"Hey, Adam Jin, thanks for the invite, but I have to get going," Autumn said. He glanced behind him. He was surprised she was even still there. She always showed up to their gatherings, but she tended to disappear once they were done eating.

"Thanks for coming, Autumn. Call me when you're ready to chat."

"Will do."

She slipped away, almost as if she had never been there.

"She stayed longer than I thought she would," Jin said.

"Yeah, she doesn't like big crowds of people."

"Understandable. Not to change the subject, but I have more news."

"You do?"

She smiled and pulled a key out of her pants pocket. "I thought you should have your own key."

He looked down at the golden key in the center of her hand, and a lump rose in his throat. In the years following her abduction, he had thought he would never get her back, that she would never find her way back to him.

"I thought you should have it since you might start driving next week."

He looked up at her.

"Never mind. I guess you'll?—"

He wrapped his hand around hers. "Are you asking me to move in with you?"

She drew in a deep breath. "I have no idea why I decided to do it in front of all these people."

"Yes, with a caveat."

She frowned. "What caveat?"

He laughed at her suspicious tone. "That you will consider marriage."

"Right now?" He didn't miss the panic in her voice.

"No. When you're ready."

She drew in a deep breath and nodded.

"Because I want a few of those," he said, nodding toward the kids. "And I want forever with you."

Tears filled her eyes. "Same."

"Thank god, he's moving out," Nanii said.

"You're rude," he said.

She shrugged. "You needed to get out, and since she took pity on you, I'm okay with that."

Since he agreed, he gave up the fight. He pulled Jin closer to him and sighed with happiness. This was all he needed. The woman, the family…all the love. That was what was most important to him and always would be.

* * *

Autumn was almost to her car when she heard the steps behind her. Ah, the SEAL was getting rusty.

"Did anyone ever tell you it's not smart to follow a woman out to her car in the dark?" she asked without turning around.

"Where are you going?"

She stopped in her tracks and turned to face him. If he wasn't a TFH member, she would definitely think about taking him to bed. He was built like she liked her men, all lean muscle, and he was a former SEAL. He could hold his breath for a really long time. But she never made the mistake of sleeping with a team member.

"I'm in my thirties. I haven't answered to anyone since I turned eighteen, so maybe back off."

"You're acting weird."

She cocked her head. "I'm always weird."

"True, but this is weird even for you."

Autumn wanted to laugh, but she didn't. She'd learned at a young age not to trust a man who could get inside your head. Joseph had been a master manipulator, and she'd watched him destroy people, including her mother. She didn't need some nosy SEAL figuring out what was going on with her. Especially since she was so close to getting her revenge.

"I have a thing with my friend Ian."

Crossing his arms over his chest, he stared her down. It took every bit of her control not to fidget. It was a new feeling for her. Or at least as an adult. She had learned early on at Joyous Wave that showing emotions could be deadly. She didn't want to give away anything. She felt this man could make her do that in a heartbeat. She was convinced it had more to do with him than his SEAL training.

"Do you?"

"I do. Since Ian doesn't like crowds because, you know, that's how spies feel all the time." That was a lie. Ian loved a reason to dress up and mingle. It was one of the many things she didn't understand about him. "So, see ya Monday, hopefully."

"What does that mean?"

"That means I would like to have one weekend without a major incident so we can enjoy living in Hawai'i."

He drew in a deep breath, and she knew he was trying to come up with something else, but she had to get out of there. She had kept her agenda hidden in all the time she had worked for TFH. Autumn wasn't about to let some hot SEAL with bluish-green eyes convince her to tell her secrets.

Jesus, he was hot.

She pushed that thought aside. "Have a good weekend, SEAL."

Before he could say anything, she walked away. It was a cowardly thing to do, but retreat was sometimes the smartest thing to do. With measured steps, she walked to her car. The whole time, she felt his eyes on her.

Her phone buzzed in her pocket just as she reached her car. Ian was always impatient, and her apartment scared him. He would never admit it, but the former spy freaked out. The apartment wasn't in the best part of town. And yes, he was considered a master spy and now a first-rate security expert, but she understood. She didn't like it. But when you were hunting a monster, you had to live among them.

She pulled her phone out of her pocket because it wouldn't stop buzzing with texts. Most of them were cussing her out for being late. But the last one had her heart almost stopping, the ratchet up to a rhythm that would surely kill her. Cold dread shivered down her spine, seeping into her soul.

Ian: He's back. Watch your six.

* * *