With noise and laughter abounding, it was in beautiful chaos that they dropped anchor near the blue belt cove. The sun was high as Mercy climbed into the water with Paige and James helped her take Ben to the beach. Some of the other men swam back to get the food for the barbecue.
Mercy grumbled, but this was her favorite place in the world and the perfect spot to celebrate. A day spent playing games on the beach, eating good food, swimming, and laughing with friends—there was nothing better.
As the sun began to set and her babies slept in the sun shield, she leaned back against her husband as he sat behind her and wrapped her in his arms. The sky was a bruise of blues, purples, and pinks, and it was hard to think of a better moment to tell him what she’d been hiding for days.
“You were right.”
Her hands rubbed his arms that held her as James cocked his head in question. “I was?”
Mercy laughed at the surprise in his voice and turned to look at him fully. “Yes, the best things happen when you stop looking. First, I found Alliance, then I found you, then the twins and now,” she halted and took his hand, sliding it to her belly, “and now there’s going to be another blessing for us to love.”
His eyes widened in surprise as she’d known they would. They hadn’t been trying to get pregnant, but they hadn’t been using protection either.
“You are?” James asked, his voice thick.
“Yep.” Mercy nodded and watched his eyes grow glossy with tears before he flipped her to her back with care and, holding her, kissed the breath from her. She knew she was home. He was her home. James, the kids, and the family she’d made at Alliance and there was no place else she would rather be.
“Fuck, I love you, Mercy Valentine.”
“I love you too, my Romeo.”
THE END
Sneak Peek: Knight Watch
Kingsley Knight and Sydney Rutherford
Kingsley Knight crossed his arms over his chest, as pride and contentment settled inside him. He never could have imagined this feeling of achievement twelve months ago. The last year had been one of the most difficult of his life, but in some ways, he didn’t regret what had happened or the choices he’d made because they’d led him here.
He looked out across the training field at the fantastic team he was part of as Cain Davies showed Emme Harris, his boss lady, how to adjust her aim for a larger caliber weapon. Cain was an ex-undercover ATF agent and had been a recommendation by Lance the head of the Purgatory organization where Shane, his other boss, had started his career outside the military. At thirty-two Cain was considered young to have burned out, but Kingsley knew the strain that undercover work could have on people. Cain had jumped at the chance to sign with the Agency, and they were lucky to have found him.
Knight felt Shane’s best friend Nicholas Hale move to stand beside him. Shane and his fiancée Emme co-owned Alliance Agency. They had founded the company after getting together a few months earlier, following a joint op between Purgatory and Fortis Security. The op had gone wrong in so many ways, but it had also brought the couple together, and nobody could doubt the team they made—both personally and professionally. Nick had served with Shane in the Navy as a SEAL, and it was his baby sister’s murder that had been the focus of the joint op.
“Still can’t believe you’ve made the jump to join us Yankees.”
Kingsley turned, lifting his eyebrow at Nick in greeting, before turning his attention back to the field. Rubbing his hand over his full beard, he wondered again if he should shave it and the mop of wavy midnight hair on his head that desperately needed a cut. The heat was already sticky in the early spring of Miami compared to the much lower temperatures of the UK. He finally answered Nick. “Indeed, I’m still coming to grips with it. This heat is relentless. The food is good though, although I may need to slow down on the burgers and tacos,” he replied with a smirk as he patted the flat muscles of his abdomen. The fact was Kinglsey Knight was in perfect shape. Years in the Navy as an underwater explosive expert had honed his body so it was all muscle and sinew with not an ounce of extra fat.
Nick rolled his eyes, but Kingsley could still feel a shadow on the man. Shane had told him that his friend had gone through a lot and still needed time and work to recover fully.
His eyes caught on Caitlin Carter as she took Killian, her German Shepard, through his paces. When he had met her, she had been training Killian to replace her last dog Mayhem who had recently retired. As a K-9 handler with the LAPD, Caitlin had years of experience to go with her well-earned reputation as one of the best handlers and trainers on the force. Growing up with two prestigious veterinarians as parents had set her in good stead for her job. He watched as she gave Killian—who for shits and giggles she called Kill for short—a series of commands that he obeyed with a blinding loyalty. Knight thought that a few more K-9s on the team would be a good call. That was something to discuss with Shane and Emme for sure.
Over on the assault course, the rest of the team were going through their paces. Malco Aguilar, another member of the group, was stretching his muscles off to the side before he attached the running prosthetic that gave him more absorption and energy return than a regular one. As the hostage rescue expert, he was one of the best and had an unparalleled reputation. Losing his right leg below the knee from a land mine trying to save an eight-year-old girl from her crazy, drugged up father, while working for the Green Berets, had not stopped him in the least.
However, Kingsley knew better than most that people only allowed you to see what they wanted you to see. The new team was a mix of different backgrounds that perfectly fit the diversity of work the Alliance Agency wished to attract.
Emme and Shane wanted to expand hard and fast, and they had a flight out of Miami that night to meet a contact of Shane’s about a contract with the FBI. It was lucrative and would involve them signing an NDA which wouldn’t be a problem as most of them still had top security clearance from their previous lives.
Kingsley cast an eye at Nick as he watched Alex Webb race Wolf Murdock over the course.
It had been designed by Zack, Emme’s former boss at Fortis who was also an ex-SAS commander. They were some of the toughest bastards around, and this course showed why. With it built over the hilly terrain at the back of their new base of operations it meant the operators had to use agility and strength, not just brute force and muscle. It was why Caitlin, Emme, and Mercy—the three women on the team—had some of the best times on the leaderboard.
Wolf raced over the ropes with speed, but Webb had the edge as they crawled through the wet tunnels with barbed wire overhead. It was neck and neck by the time they sprinted for the finish with Webb coming in a split second faster.
Shane, who had been standing on the sidelines away from him and Nick, watching his recruits train, started to walk toward the competitors, a grin on his face as the two men bent at the waist and sucked in oxygen. They had been training together for a month now, and Kingsley could see they were starting to think cohesively as a unit. Kingsley knew Shane wanted everyone to be able to read each other. It could be the thing that saved their lives one day.
“Gentlemen, that was piss poor.”
It wasn’t, but Kingsley knew Shane had done it faster, and so had Zack and Lance when they tested it for him. Not by a lot but enough.