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Epilogue
“The semi-fredo should be set now and ready for us to eat.” Astrid smiled at the camera as she opened the freezer to pull out the dish.
Growler held his breath and crossed his fingers behind his back as he watched the woman he loved do her thing. He trusted the crew had done what he’d asked, but there was always a chance something had gone wrong.
The last six months had been the best of his life. After arriving back in Los Angeles, Astrid had relayed what Pedro had done and the mystery man who’d all but saved her life. How he could’ve killed her but didn’t. Whether he suspected Astrid would be rescued, considering who she was, or not was something no one discussed. Although it was never far from Growler’s mind, how close he came to losing her.
The Ramirez Cartel had been quiet since the incident as well. There’d been no chatter about them on the dark web, but Cass was keeping a watch and would report if things heated up again.
All that mattered to Growler was that Astrid was free and clear and had no one chasing her. He still found it hard to believe that they didn’t want Astrid, but maybe it was only Pedro who’d wanted her dead. With him out of the picture, the cartel had moved on. Either way, Growler wasn’t going to question it. But it didn’t stop him from always being aware of what was going on around them when they were out. Her show was getting more and more popular and she was being recognized a lot more now than when they first met.
Growler didn’t mind it. He loved her and wanted her to be happy, which was why he was standing just out of her line of vision, praying everything would go to plan.
He released the breath with a whoosh when he saw the thumbs up from Basil. Everything was in place.
“It has set nicely, and it’s going to taste just as good too.” Astrid reached for the spoon, and Growler moved forward, knowing that he was going to be in the shot but not caring because this was the moment he’d been waiting his whole life for.
Astrid dug the spoon in, lifted it and then paused, looking closer at it. He couldn’t help smiling, loving the puzzled frown.
That was his queue. Moving quickly, he was behind her on one knee before she could pull the ring from the iced confection.
“What is this?” She turned and gasped when she spied him on the ground. Her hand shook, and he was worried that she was about to drop the ring.
“Astrid Conway, I love you with my whole heart. Will you be my wife?”
“Oh my God, Callum. Yes. Yes, I’ll marry you.”
She fell to her knees, and he pulled her close, his lips finding hers with unerring accuracy. Around them, the crew whistled and clapped, but he was oblivious to it all. All that he was focusing on was the woman in his arm. His fiancée.
Growler pulled back and took the ring from her finger. It had a little of the dessert on it, but he pulled a napkin from his pocket and wiped it clean before slipping it on her finger. “You can take it off and clean after, but I need to see it on.”
Astrid shook her head. “I’m never taking this off.”
He laughed and tugged her close again. Life may have been uncertain when he’d left the Navy, but now it was complete in a way he never thought it could be.
Eveline Durville stared at the folder in front of her. For the last six months, she’d been compiling information about the actions of the company she worked for. A company she had once been proud to be associated with, but Gerald Morkham had changed and so had the atmosphere at Triple Z Security.
There was more secrecy and off the book jobs being taken. Jobs that she’d discovered involved abusing the trust of the clients they were supposed to be protecting.
No way could she stay quiet now that she had the information, but who could she tell in the office? There’d been a recent flurry of resignations, and the people Gerald hired were people she didn’t feel comfortable being around. She should’ve left months ago, and had in fact looked for a new job, but it seemed companies wanted candidates with far more qualifications than she had, even though she had years of experience.
Now here she was with information that was damning. No way could she forget that she’d seen it. Who could she trust?
Again, she looked at the file as if the answer to her problems would present itself. There it was, in an email from Kyle Matthews of Alliez Security. Memories of Kyle and their one night together stormed her, and so did the humiliation of being tossed out of his bed when he found out who she worked for.
If she took the information to Alliez, would Kyle even want to see her? There was only one way to find out. Tomorrow she’d turn up at his office and hope for the best.
