Page 34 of Black and Brown

It still didn’t make them friends or even acquaintances.

But it did make Meridian owe them one, and Mirage didn’t know if that relieved or concerned him.

Once inside the elevator, Grace released a light exhale, and Mirage moved to his side.

After Grace’s fingerprint was confirmed, he pushed the button for the thirty-eighth floor, and they rode the short distance in silence.

Their penthouse apartments across from each other were their private havens.

They’d installed their own security, and no one—not even Spectre—had access to floor thirty-eight except them.

Just as no one could enter Ex and Meridian’s thirty-ninth floor.

Standing in front of his door, Mirage didn’t turn and face his partner when he whispered, “See you at seventeen hundred for debriefing.”

“Hmm,” was Grace’s response before he closed himself inside his home.

Grace

Grace entered his dark apartment, stepping over the tracers in the foyer. No one had been inside his home, not even Mirage.

If anyone tried, the invisible particles would attach to their shoes, and Grace would hunt them down and kill them slowly for violating his space.

His sanctuary was the only place he could relax and be himself, away from the violence and danger of his job.

Grace didn’t bother to turn on the lights, instead preferring the natural light of the approaching dusk from the wall-to-wall windows that gave him a panoramic view of the city.

His walls were painted the color of a caramel latte, and the furniture was dark oak with butter-soft leather cushions positioned around a Persian rug dominating the center of the floor.

He didn’t see the need for added frills or decorations.

Grace had chosen the decor carefully, approving pieces reflecting his personality and style. A mirror image of the assassin himself.

Masculine, quiet, and efficient.

A seventy-inch, flat-screen television hung on the wall above the wood-burning fireplace and moonstone hearth.

Once inside, he was able to take a deep breath as he removed his bulletproof trench and hung it in the foyer closet.

He went straight to his bathroom, needing a long, hot shower to release the tension in his muscles.

The bathroom was the only room with lighter colors. The walls were painted eggshell-white, and the floor was cream-colored stone. But his favorite was the luxurious shower that could almost accommodate five people.

He removed his espresso-colored slacks and dress shirt. Once he was naked, he stared at himself in the mirror and dropped his chin to his chest.

Mirage was heavy on his mind in a way he’d thought was impossible, and he couldn’t figure out why.

You damn well know why.

His mind and body programming was supposed to be permanent.

He still didn’t feel much guilt, empathy, sensitivity, or compassion in the field or at home…and he damn sure didn’t feel love.

None of those pesky emotions had invaded his soul in over five years.

Until he’d answered Meridian’s cryptic message and assisted him on one of his missions, which happened to be on Valentine’s Day. What he’d seen had flipped some invisible switch in his mind.

When he and Mirage had arrived to assist, Ex, Meridian’s partner, was nowhere in sight, which should’ve been Grace’s first red flag.