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Because he did.
He loved her.
The two of them hit the ground hard, and Mark disarmed the shooter before he climbed on top of him. He screamed foreign words at the top of his lungs, fighting Mark’s hold, but he didn’t break free. Gritting his teeth, Mark pulled out the zip-tie cuffs he always had on him, just in case. This was the first time he had to use them, though.
The man continued to yell.
“Shut up,” he snapped, pulling the ties tight.
He didn’t shut up.
Mark did a quick onceover of himself, checking for blood, but he was clean. Glancing over his shoulder, he scanned the room for anymore threats. Everyone watched with wide eyes, and Steven spoke to their charge in a hushed voice.
Five other Shillings guys had come in and were backing everyone away, guns out, circling the room. The situation was under control, so that left one step.
Arresting this son of a bitch.
Unfortunately, he didn’t have the power to do so.
After Mr. DeLaCourte was ushered out by other agents, Steven came up to Mark, eyeing the still screaming shooter. “Nice work, man.”
“I said shut up,” Mark snarled, pushing off the fucker.
The man finally shut up, and Mark kicked the man’s gun, toward the wall, out of reach. He swiped his hands on his khakis, noticing his left arm was sore from his rough landing. Nothing dangerous. He’d just have to ice it when he got home. “Thanks. You, too. That was the most action I’ve seen since Iraq.”
Steven grinned. “Same. It was kind of nice, huh?”
Even though he felt guilty admitting it… “Hell yeah, it was.”
Sirens went off in the distance, and he stiffened. “Did you call the cops?”
Steven nodded, sliding his gun into his holster. “We’ll have to stay behind and give our report. It’ll probably take a few hours.”
“Right.” He shoved a hand through his hair, his pulse surging for a completely different reason now. “Of course.”
Steven eyed him. “It probably won’t be her.”
“Won’t be who?” Mark asked, keeping his tone perfectly neutral.
“Daisy.” Steven gave him a really, dude? look. “If she hears a call come in from the Shillings Agency, she’ll probably run in the opposite direction. You’re not exactly her favorite person right now.”
He stared blankly at his coworker. “I don’t know why she’d—”
“Save your breath for someone who will believe you.” Steven shook his head. “I’ve known about you two since Cooper’s wedding, and so has Lauren. Holt figured it out the other day when you rushed out of the office, and he told Lydia. We know. We all know.”
Mark’s jaw dropped. “Wait. What?”
“You two were about as mysterious as a child ‘whispering’ secrets at the top of their lungs.” Steven laughed, clapping him on the back. “When you two were going to come out to the rest of us, we were all relived we wouldn’t have to pretend anymore that we didn’t know. But then…”
He turned away. “Yeah. But then.”
“What happened, anyway?” he asked casually, shoving his hands in his pockets and watching the door. He nodded at another Shillings Agency agent. “Why’d you two break up?”
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Just say you’re sorry.” Steven shrugged. “And mean it.”
“There’s nothing to be sorry for. We just didn’t work out. Sometimes things aren’t meant to be, so people end things for the better.” He lifted a shoulder, watching for any signs of bright red hair approaching the door. “This was one of those times. It’s fine.”
