Page 113 of Protected from Reprisal
Okay, despite my confidence in Ace’s skills,I’mscared crapless. There are just too many things?—
“Done.” Ace moves aside so I can see the timer, stopped at two minutes, forty-eight seconds. “This ass—jerk—can’t do anything to us now.”
Standing, Ace turns to face the rear of the cabin. “The explosives are disarmed. No one’s getting hurt on this planetoday.” He scowls at the hijacker, now unconscious on the floor. “Other than him. I think his arm might be broken.”
“How do you know,” the cowardly passenger asks. “Who are you to say it’s disarmed?”
“Because I served as a HAZMAT specialist for the U.S. Army,” Ace replies. “I’m certain of it. Now.” He glances at the other flight attendant, the one with the sparkly reindeer horns. “Can you get the copilot out here? So we can fill him in on what just happened?”
She stares at Ace for a long moment before nodding. “Okay,” she whispers. “Thank you.”
A second later, the silver-haired woman echoes her statement. “Thank you. Both of you. That was just?—”
“Amazing,” someone else adds.
“Thank you,” the little boy’s mother calls over. Her voice throbs with emotion. “Thank you so much. I was so scared…”
The father pulls her and his little boy into his arms. “Thank you.” His gaze moves from Ace’s to mine. “Both of you.”
And then.
The entire cabin erupts into applause.
Ace turns to me, relief evident in his gaze. “You’re okay.”
“So are you,” I reply. Then I rush forward to hug him. “So are you.”
“You were so incredible,” Ace says as his arms come around me.
I hug him back, hard. “No.Youwere incredible.”
He loosens his hold on me just enough to look at me. “We both did a great job, Tink. We make an incredible team.”
Oh.
Love sweeps through me, so swift and intense, it steals my breath.
I love him so much.
“Yeah,” I agree as I gaze into the eyes of the man who brought me to life again. Who taught me it’s okay to trust. That it’s not scary to love. “We really do.”
EPILOGUE
5 MONTHS LATER
ACE
Gettinga hot tub reallywasa good idea.
First off, it’s therapeutic. Which is the reason I gave to my teammates when I suggested the idea.
But even better is when I get to see Yara naked inside it. Not that I don’t see her naked all the time, but there’s just something about being in a hot tub with her, seeing her cheeks flushed pink with heat, the swell of her breasts, slick and satiny as the water bubbles around them, and the softness of her features as she relaxes into the experience.
Steam billows around us, curling the tiny hairs around Yara’s face. The flickering light from the candles scattered around the gazebo adds a warm, romantic glow. Above us, the glass roof displays a panorama of stars.
Of all the places in the world, I can’t think of anywhere I’d rather be.
Actually, strike that.
