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PROLOGUE
GAGE
Isat in the back corner of Brooks’ Bar and Grill. Though it was the usual table for Falls Security, I was the only one occupying a seat.
Another cheer went up through the bar and I glanced to the middle of the dance floor where Roe had Sam bent backwards in his arms while they kissed. He’d finally done it. Somehow, he’d convinced Sam to marry him.
A tugging sensation pulled at my lips and I realized I was smiling again. Fuck. That had been happening more frequently. For years, I’d been a part of the team but separate. Now I found myself in a room with people that I’d call my closest friends, actually…celebrating. Had I gone soft?
My gaze drifted, as it always did, toher. Mia Delgado. She looked tired tonight but no less beautiful. Was she working doubles again? If so, I’d need to talk to Brooks.
The chair across from me scraped the floor and a smug looking Roe sat down.
“You’re supposed to talk to other people at parties.”
I grunted, wondering for the thousandth time what I was doing there in the first place. Oh, right—friends, engagement, attempt to look normal and not like a serial killer with a dead soul.
“Congratulations.” There, that was a normal thing to say. The therapist I’d been forced to see after my discharge would’ve been proud.
“Thanks, man. Happiest fucking day of my life.” He stared at Sam and his dumb smile got even dumber if that was possible. “Anyway, I’ve got something for you.” His finger tapped a folder, the kind we used in the office, that was sitting on the table between us.
“What’s that?” I eyed it suspiciously. If it was a new case, that sort of thing usually came from Gray or Kane. It couldn’t have been confidential or Roe wouldn’t have brought it to a busy public place. He was too proud of the intel he dragged from the depths of the internet. He hoarded that shit like a dragon.
“Open it,” Roe’s demeanor was serious and I clocked a bit of trepidation before it was hidden away. He slid the folder closer to me and I opened it, too curious not to.
“What the fuck?” I spat at him, angrily closing the folder. My eyes darted around the room but no one was paying us any attention.
Roe held up his hands and pushed his chair a few inches backward. Not far enough, I could still flip the table that was between us and be on him in five seconds. Sam would probably kick my ass if I knocked her new fiancé unconscious but I didn’t really give a shit about that right now.
“Hear me out. I knew you’d never ask so I made the decision for you and ran a check on her. You can throw it away, shred it, do whatever you want with it. But if you want my opinion…”
“I don’t.”
“You never do. But as usual, I’m going to give it to you anyway, you grumpy asshole. She needs you.Theyneed you.”
Then he got up from his chair and walked back to Sam, leaving me with both my greatest fear and my greatest desire in the palm of my hand.
As if it had a mind of its own, my hand lifted and flipped open the folder once more. Mia’s stunning face smiled up at me. She was kneeling next to her son, Miles, in the picture, her arm wrapped around his shoulders. I ran a finger over the photo before closing the folder again and getting up.
I looked at her one last time before leaving. She was safe. I had a few hours before I needed to be at her house to check in on her and Miles. Until then, I had some reading to do.
1
MIA
He was out there.
I didn’t need to see him to confirm my suspicions. For months he’s watched every night. The first time I’d seen the giant, looming shadow, I’d been terrified—so sure it was Miles’ father coming after us. Coming for revenge.
Before I could turn and run for the knife block in the kitchen, the shadow stepped into the light as if he could sense my fear. That fear disappeared with instant recognition.
Gage…
The man had become one of my regulars shortly after we moved to town. I worked the dinner shift at Brooks’ Bar and Grill. At least three times a week his table would be full with people I’d learned were his co-workers. They were regulars, too, and I’d gotten to know them over the last few months when they stopped in. But Gage? He was there every night. Always the same table, the same order, the same extravagant tip. I’d given up trying to chase him down, insisting it was too much, it was always met with a quiet refusal and crossed arms until I gave in and slipped the money into my apron pocket.
Our limited interactions were a comforting routine. I’d bring his food, refill his drink, all the while pretending that in a few hours he wouldn’t be outside my home watching me. A secret thrill shooting down my spine as that time grew closer.
My hand dropped from the curtain, leaving it to hang open. I wasn’t fooling either of us with this game. Each night I’d go to the window to confirm he was there. When those intense golden eyes met my own, I’d grip the fabric in my fist, mentally telling myself this was wrong, that I should pull the curtains closed and block his penetrating stare. Inevitably, I’d leave them open every time.
