Tim interrupts the congratulations. "Okay, I got us a couple of suites at a nearby hotel. With both Maya's truck and Derek's car, we should all fit. Maya, I have a moving service set up to come pack your home tonight. They'll ship your stuff to Ireland via Paris to throw off anyone. I have a second aircraft set up in Paris while our jet heads to Australia. As for your vehicles, they'll take a little longer, but I'll put them in storage for a while. Anything else?"
"What about our motorcycles?" Derek asks. Of course, he'd worry about his girl.
"They'll go into storage with the cars." Tim smiles at him.
"Okay, works for me. That was fast, let's get out of here." I walk into my room and start packing a quick bag.
I check my guns and pack them to go with me now. I'll let the movers pack the rest of my stuff. My guns though arenecessary. I'm trying to reach the box in my closet with the ornaments from my mom when Duncan walks in.
"Baby, let me get that, what's in it?"
"Some personal stuff I need to have with me," I say quietly.
"What, baby?"
"It's the ornaments. Can you also grab that second box? It’s my mother and father's belongings I kept."
"Speaking of…" He walks to his bag and pulls out the angel he got me for Christmas. I smile and put it in the box with the rest. "She's been with me most of the time the last three months. I had to steal her from Joshua's office."
"What? Why?"
"He thought removing everything that reminded me of you would help me wait you out. He also thought it would throw off your stalker that I gave up."
"Did it work?"
"Not a day went by that I didn't think of you. Your stalker also still threatened me."
"Same here, I'd run on my treadmill and see you when I looked out my windows. You went with me everywhere."
"I love you, baby."
"I love you too."
We load up in the vehicles to head to the hotel. Joshua, Ana, Duncan, and Ian ride with me. I drive again as Duncan doesn't know DC that well. Derek has the rest of the team with him in his Charger.
We avoid the new doorman so he can't tell anyone where we're going. Just in case. Derek and I decided to take two different directions to the hotel in hope that if we have a tailthey'd not know who to follow. We left all our cell phones and the bug that was attached to Ana at the condo.
When we arrive at the hotel, Greg is waiting for us. I knew he wouldn’t be able to wait until our meeting. He'll try to go with us now, but because of his job, he won’t be able to.
Greg helped us get adjoining suites and even had a bag with him to stay with us. He used his Secret Service badge to get our rooms under an alias and I was able to pay cash. The first suite will have Duncan and me in the king bed with Ana in the queen and Joshua on the pullout. The second is for all the guys and they get to determine sleeping arrangements.
Derek, Greg, and I sit down and talk calmly about the future. They'll go with Joshua and me in the morning. I stand and hug both of them, they've become so much to me. Without Derek, I don't know where I'd be, we've been through so much.
"Sexy, it was nice to see you finally show Carl up. All those times you let him win and tonight you actually showed him what you could do. I'm proud of you. You're family and have been for many years, I'm not worried about tomorrow or the next days. Okay?"
"Derek, I'm taking you away from everything you know. Are you sure you want to do this?"
"Yes, I can't let my sister go off with a group and not want to protect her too."
"I'll go along for as long as I can. I'm due a vacation off the grid. Besides, I need to get to know this man who intends to marry you," Greg says as he smiles at me. I kiss his cheek.
"Thank you both, I love you."
"Derek, Greg, I'll protect her with my life," Duncan says from behind me. They look over my shoulder to him.
"I know, Big Guy. I want to get away from everything here. I need it. I can't live my life every day to remember them. They'll always have a piece of my heart, but I need to learn to live again. Tomorrow, after our meeting, I'll go say goodbye and finally start a new life like they'd have wanted. They'll always be with me here"—Derek taps his heart—"but I need to get on with my life finally. Watching Maya has helped me see how much I don't live." I love him so much. I hug him close to me again.
"I'm moving to London to take over the new task force there. I need to get away from here too. Thank you, Maya, for showing Derek how to live. Duncan, thank you for teaching her how to live," Greg says as he takes both Derek and me in his arms.
