Page 91 of Breached

“Hey, Sully, what’s up?”

“I was hoping you’d answer.”

“I only have a few minutes. I’m not alone.”

“Then I’ll be quick. I wanted you to know the shipment went off perfectly.”

“I’m glad.” I grinned at Paul, who returned it with a sexy smile that made my knees melt.

“But something is going on within the Canos family. There’s been talk they’ve been losing some clients. Now, I’m not complaining,” he said quickly. “This works in my favor, but do you know anything about it?”

“No, I don’t,” I answered, “but I can do some digging and ask around.”

“I’d appreciate that, Nicole. Have you heard anything from Rafael?”

“Rafael? No, have you?”

“No,” he answered, “but some of his family are asking questions and causing my men some problems. Considering what I’ve done for them in the past, I don’t appreciate them poking around my business.”

That was news to me. As far as I knew, Rafael and Sully didn’t have any kind of relationship.

“It’s Rafael,” I threw in, seemingly disinterested. “If he’s not screwing you over, it would be someone else.”

Doc Roberts walked by with a flashlight in his hand. A few of the younger kids trailed behind him as they looked for fireflies. Chase had on light-up shoes and was holding Keith’s daughter’s hand. Reagan was so cute. She always chatted away about God knows what. She was good with Chase, and he adored her.

“Nicole, are you there?” Sully’s voice pulled me back to the phone call.

“Yes, sorry,” I quickly replied.

“Well, we had a deal. I was the one who discovered there was even a child up for grabs. I handed the boy over to him myself in Heroica Veracruz,” he complained. I tried to listen to Sully, but the kids were too cute. Chase chattered away in his shrill voice, then he spotted a firefly and started to scream with excitement, “—I had to endure that stupid aquarium for hours. Trust me, Rafael owes me a lot.”

“Ah, well,” I replied. I didn’t really care what he was upset about. Sully could be a bit testy over nothing. “Let me see what I can find out for you. Give me a few days.”

“Yes, please do that.” He hung up, and I rolled my eyes at Paul. “He’s pissy,” I held up the phone, “but I refuse to let him ruin my good mood.” I grinned and looked at the kids. “Chase sure has a lot to say over there.”

Paul laughed. “He sure is having a blast.” He took my hand. “Come on, we have an announcement to make!”

To say I was happy would be an understatement—I was ecstatic. I was engaged to the most amazing man, I had a son who adored me, I had a new family full of the most heartwarming people I could imagine. We had made a dent in the Mexican Cartel, and for at least a while, the locals would sleep a lot easier.

We headed inside, and the room erupted in excitement the moment Paul held my hand in the air.

Hugs were exchanged, drinks flowed, and the last of the tension from Bruno Perez lifted from the house. Even General Bruce turned out to be a pretty cool guy.

Cole jumped on the stone hearth of the fireplace and tapped his keys to the side of his glass. We all turned our attention to him.

“It’s late, it’s been a hell of a last few months, but Mom always said in moments like this we need to stop and appreciate. So, let’s do it right.” He raised his glass in the air, and we all followed suit. “Nicole and Paul, may this be the beginning of a lifetime filled with laughter that heals the hard days, love that grows even deeper with time, and a partnership that always feels like coming home! Cheers to you both.” The whole house joined in, and I fought back happy tears for the third time that night.

Paul leaned down and kissed me, then whispered in my ear, “I have one last thing to show you.”

“Yeah?”

“Mm.” His hand swiped over my bottom and gave it a hungry squeeze, igniting my excitement for him. “Yeah, but it involves you being naked and us being very-very alone.”

“You had me at naked.”

NINETEEN

PAUL