Epilogue
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The late afternoon sun filtered through the trees as Eli leaned against the porch railing, and he waited for Delaney to arrive. At his feet was a takeout bag of barbecued ribs with all the trimmings and a carrier with two cold drinks. The spring air was warm, spiced up with blooming sage and freshly cut grass.
And everything felt just right.
Perfect, in fact.
That was a hell of a lot different from just ten days ago when he and Delaney had been in the middle of that shitstorm on County Line Road. Ten days ago that had changed everything.
Lawrence was dead. Nothing could have been done to save him after Eli’s shot landed center mass. The man had tried to kill his own daughter, and Eli had pulled the trigger that stopped him.
The medical assistant, Kent, and Hale had both survived their injuries and were now facing serious charges. Kent for his role in carrying out Vivian’s twisted plan, and Hale for the crimesuncovered at his institute—abuse, coercion, illegal confinement, and medical experimentation. Neither man had committed the murders themselves or launched the attack against Delaney and him, but that didn’t make them innocent.
Not by a long shot.
In fact, none of the central players—Vivian, Kent, Lawrence, or Hale—had clean hands. Every one of them had used manipulation and fear like weapons. Lawrence by having Grant murdered and sending hired thugs to stop Ava and Olivia from escaping the institute. And now Olivia and Ava were left to deal with the wreckage. Their grandfather was dead. Their mother was behind bars and would spend the rest of her life in prison.
For now, the girls were going to live with their paternal grandparents. It was temporary until they were both of age, but at least it would be stable. Safe. Delaney had said Olivia barely spoke at all, and Ava had been holding tight to Jason as if afraid she’d lose him next.
The damage would take years to undo. Some of it might never heal. But at least the worst of it was over. At least the truth had come out.
He heard the rumble of Delaney’s SUV as it pulled into the gravel drive, the tires crunching to a stop near the porch. She stepped out a moment later, her hair tousled from the wind, loose strands brushing her cheeks. When her eyes met his, there was something in them that hit him low and deep. Something that never failed to gut him.
She smiled the moment she saw him. “You stalking me again, Tarrant?”
He stepped toward her. “Only when you look this good.”
She didn’t bother with a reply. She just went up on her toes and kissed him. He kissed her back, thoroughly, the kind of kiss they’d shared a lot of over the last ten days.
When they finally broke apart, she laughed and rested her forehead to his. “You bring food or just that mouth?”
“Food, mouth,” he said, grinning as he tipped his head toward the takeout. “And dinner for a date. We had a deal, remember?”
She held out her arm, turning it so he could see the neat row of butterfly bandages and the fresh dressing over the spot where the stitches had been.
His smile softened. He ran his fingers lightly along her forearm. “Then I guess it’s time.”
“For dinner?” she questioned.
“For that date.” He tipped his head, his voice low. “We’ve earned it.”
She nodded. “Yeah. We really have.”
Eli grabbed the takeout bags and drinks from the porch and followed Delaney inside. The scent of warm food filled the space as they kicked off their boots and headed for the kitchen.
“I saw Noah,” Delaney said, brushing her hair out of her face. “He told me everything’s wrapped up on the mission. They found solid proof thatLawrence hired those goons. One of them was the one who killed Grant.”
Eli set the food on the counter and opened the containers, but his eyes stayed on her.
“We might never know the exact motive,” she added. “But Noah thinks Lawrence saw Grant as a threat. Maybe he figured Grant would stop him from controlling everything. He was right.”
She fell quiet for a moment, then let out a soft breath. “Anyway. Enough about work.”
Before he could say anything, she stepped in close and kissed him.
Long and hot.
