Daring Deception

by Barbara Freethy

  "How did you knock her out?"

  "I smashed her head against the wall."

  "I'm jealous."

  "I know. I've deprived you of revenge once more."

  "You did what you had to do to save me and my father. That was more important."

  "I thought so. I wish I'd had time to get more information, but I was in a hurry to find you. I didn't kill her, though. She wouldn't have died if the house hadn't blown up. She got what she deserved."

  "So did Allison and Tim. And we'll make sure whoever was helping them pays, too. Emi said the three guys they picked up at the tower were already starting to talk. The thing Tim didn't realize about using people just for jobs was that he would get no loyalty in return. Not that it matters now." She let out a breath. "I do wish Kevin had been able to tell me what was happening. Maybe I could have saved him."

  "He should have told you, but it's possible he helped Allison more than you know and then he got caught in her web."

  "That's probably what happened," she agreed. "In the days to come, we'll be calling in Wyatt, Justin, and Senator Pederson, as well as Agent Bauer. They'll have some questions to answer, too."

  "Good. I'd like to see them have accountability for their lies."

  "Me, too." She gave him a smile. "Are you ready to let go of Michael Wainscott and be Quinn Kelly again?"

  "More than ready. I never really got used to being Michael. Sometimes, I wouldn't even answer until someone had said my name three times. And all of my relationships were limited by my inability to tell the truth."

  "You can be honest now."

  "I intend to be."

  "Good. Me, too. I think we should start now."

  "You don't want to take a hot shower first?" he asked.

  "I don't want to waste another minute."

  He drew in a breath and let it out. "Okay, let me have it."

  As she saw him steel himself for whatever was coming, she felt bad that she hadn't said something earlier. "When I was in the basement, I kept thinking about how I hadn't told you something really important."

  "Which is…"

  "I was wrong."

  "About what?"

  "I told you on the boat that I could never forgive you. But I can forgive you, Quinn. Actually," she amended quickly. "I already have."

  Hope flared in his gaze. "You don't have to say that. I know I hurt you."

  "I hurt you, too. I don't think I've admitted that out loud until now. We have a lot of history between us, Quinn. Over the years, I would only allow myself to remember the way you left me and not the way you loved me. There was a time when you knew me better than anyone else. You supported my dreams. You made me think I could be whoever I wanted to be. You were my best friend." She bit down on her lip as she was filled with emotion. "I'm not going to cry through this," she said with a teary laugh.

  "Can I say something?"

  "Please."

  "You were my best friend, too. You were my family, Caitlyn. With you, I could see a future that I hadn't believed was possible. You opened up my life as much as I opened up yours. I might have pushed you to try some new things, but you gave me back the optimism and hope that I'd lost. You made me believe again."

  "Did you stop believing after we broke up?" she asked curiously.

  "Yes. Those first couple of years put me back into the dark hole I'd been in after my mom died. Only it was worse, because I was responsible for that darkness. It wasn't cancer. It was me, my decisions, that had landed me where I was. And I was riddled with guilt at my inability to see what was happening in the LNF before it happened."

  "Whatever you missed, I missed, too. I'm sorry that you ended up in that dark place again."

  "Why would you apologize? It wasn't your fault."

  "No, but I still hate knowing how much pain you were in."

  "It wasn't anything compared to yours."

  "Well, now we have a chance to start over. I'd like to see if we could have a future together. I don't know exactly what it would look like, but that's kind of exciting." She licked her lips. "What are you thinking?"

  "I want to have a future, too."

  "Are you sure that's not the pain meds talking?"

  His blue eyes sparkled as a loving smile parted his lips. "I know exactly what I'm saying."

  "It's happening fast. A week ago, I still hated you."

  "We've packed a lot into the last several days," he admitted. "But it doesn't feel fast to me. It feels like it's taken forever for us to get back together."

  "But we're not back where we were. We're starting fresh—a new you, a new me, a new us." She let that sink in and then said words she'd never believed she'd ever say to him again. "I love you, Quinn."

  "I love you, Caitlyn."

  He gave her a long, tender, emotion-filled kiss. Every last lingering bit of doubt and pain fell away as they wrapped their arms around each other, as they shared the love that had never really gone away. There was promise in their kiss now, too, a happier future ahead.

  When they broke apart, she said, "I guess we should talk about how we're going to make our future work. We live in different cities."

  He put a finger against her lips. "We've talked enough today. Let's take a shower."

  "Can you get that cast wet?"

  He laughed. "Were you always this practical?"

  "I think I was. You've probably forgotten some of my traits that used to annoy you."

  "I can't think of one." He stood up and pulled her to her feet. "We'll make it a bath instead of a shower."

  "There is a spa tub with some lovely jets. I have some sore muscles from being thrown around in that van."

  He frowned. "I haven't even asked you about all that."

  "I don't want to talk about it now. We have time, Quinn. Lots and lots of time."

  They slept until eleven on Monday and then ordered a massive breakfast from room service. Quinn loved watching Caitlyn demolish a veggie omelet, bacon, and French toast with fresh blueberries. He'd done the same as well, ravenous after the last few days. The stress was finally gone, and while his body felt battered, the physical pain was nothing compared to what he'd gone through the last ten years.

  Caitlyn gave him a happy smile as she sipped her second cup of coffee. "I feel better."

  "I can see that." His gaze roamed her face, taking in all the details, from the sparkle in her brown eyes, to the soft fullness of her mouth, and the silky shine of her hair. She wore a thick, white terry cloth robe, and he was already itching to slip it off her shoulders and explore the soft curves of her body.

  "If you look at me like that, we are never going to get this day started," she warned.

  "That's not a problem for me. We deserve a day off. And we need to get to know each other again."

  "I feel like we're reliving the first month we were together when we had sex like three times a day for a month. We spent a lot of hours in bed."

  "And elsewhere. Let's try to improve our record for the next thirty days."

  "I'm not as young as I used to be, and neither are you. We're not crazy college kids anymore."

  He laughed. "I think we've still got it in us."

  She let out a soft sigh as she gazed back at him. "We probably do. I'm addicted to you, Quinn. I always have been."

  "I'm suffering the same addiction. Only, it's not suffering at all. It's amazing. And can I just say that you're not only a bold, fast driver now, you've gotten a little more reckless in other areas, too."

  She grinned. "I still have a few tricks up my sleeve."

  "See, that's the problem—you shouldn't be wearing any sleeves or any clothes."

  "I love this robe!" She drew it more closely around her. "It's soft and warm."

  "I can make you warm."

  "I know."

  An intimate memory flashed between them. And unlike before, it didn't make him sad; it made him happy, because they would make more memories. They had the rest of their lives to do that.

  "But," Cai
tlyn added, as she checked her phone that had buzzed several times in the last few minutes. "I'm getting a lot of messages. The real world wants our attention."

  "What's going on?"

  She flipped through her phone. "Emi says that Rob has agreed to open an investigation into Agent Bauer's conduct. They are currently trying to get in touch with him, but he is not home, and no one has seen him since last Thursday."

  "That can't be a coincidence."

  "No. Emi said that she picked up Wyatt this morning, and he's being cooperative. His father and brother are apparently also on their way in."

  "Senator Pederson is probably bringing a team of lawyers."

  "No doubt, but Wyatt is already talking, so anything his father does to stop him probably won't work."

  "That's good news."

  "Here's something that may not be as good," she said with a frown. She lifted her gaze to his. "Rob would also like to talk to us around three, if that works. He specifically wants you to come with me."

  "Well, the FBI office is never my favorite place to be, but as long as you're there, I'm fine with it."

  "You haven't done anything wrong, Quinn. You don't need to worry."

  "You're forgetting Yosemite."

  "I'm not forgetting it. You didn't kill Donovan. He killed himself. That's what happened."

  "The FBI might not agree. And who knows what Wyatt will tell them?"

  "It doesn't matter what Wyatt says. I know the truth, and I will make sure that Rob knows it, too. It won't be a problem."

  He could see by the determined light in her eyes that she wouldn't let it be a problem. He was curious about something, though. "Did Tim say anything about Donovan's death? Did he believe it was suicide?"

  "No. He thought you killed his brother. Tim said he had a special plan to make you pay for Donovan's death. I was so glad you weren't with us at the gala when Kent came over."

  "I was not happy about that. I was angry that I'd let go of your hand for even a second. Last night came very close to a bad outcome." His jaw tightened as he thought of what could have happened.

  "We're okay now." She reached across the table and put her hand over his. "We're good, Quinn. We got justice for Isabella. And we're together again."

  "You're right. That's all I'm going to think about—moving forward with you."

  "So, should we try long distance for a while, maybe take vacations together?"

  "Nope. Not a chance," he said with a definitive shake of his head.

  "What's the alternative?" she asked with concern in her eyes. "I love my job. You love your job."

  "Agreed. But last time I looked, there was an ocean in LA."

  Her eyes widened with surprise. "You'd move for me?"

  "I'd do anything for you, Caitlyn. I want you to believe that, really believe it. From here on out, you'll always come first. I can work anywhere. What I can't do is live without you."

  "That's very generous. I could probably transfer to San Francisco, although I don't really like Rob. But I would do it, if it makes it easier for us to be together. I also cannot live without you. I know that. I've tried it for the last ten years."

  "So have I. And I will not deprive your task force of their very best badass agent."

  She smiled. "I can't wait for you to meet them. They're not just coworkers; they're family. I've missed them the last week. Not that Emi isn't great, or that the other agents haven't done a good job; I just don't have the same kind of relationship or trust with this group as I do with my task force."

  "I do like Emi. She's cool. I'm sure the others are, too."

  "They are. And you might see Emi in LA at some point. She wants to join the team. I'm going to see if Flynn can make a spot for her. By the way, there are some surfers and divers on the task force. You'll find some ocean-loving friends."

  "I'm not worried. And, Caitlyn, I want to do things the right way. I want to ask your father for your hand."

  Her brow shot up in surprise. "Seriously? You want to give my father permission to say no to you?"

  He laughed. "If he says no, I'll still ask you to marry me. He will never run my life again. But I feel like it's something I'd like to do. I don't want to be between you and your parents and your brothers. I lost a family. I have never wanted you to feel that kind of isolation."

  "That is really generous, considering what my father did to you. He tried to ruin your life."

  "He didn't succeed, and I think last night was an awakening for him."

  "It was definitely that. It opened his eyes to the truth about a lot of things, including you."

  He squeezed her hand. "I want us to be a family. And someday, I want us to give Isabella a sister or a brother."

  "Oh, my God, you are going to make me cry," she said with a sniff. "I love that you said you want to give her a sibling, and not—"

  "We could never replace her."

  She shook her head, meeting his gaze. "I know she was only eleven weeks old, but she was still our baby."

  He felt a knot enter his throat. "Yes. She was our baby."

  "But we'll have another one."

  "When you're ready," he said.

  "When we're both ready. We need to make all future relationship decisions together. No trying to hide things to protect each other. I watched my dad hide his whole life from my mother, keeping everything messy or scary away from her. I don't want that. I want a partner. I want my best friend. I want a man who respects me enough to tell me the truth."

  "I can be all of that for you. I want the same, Caitlyn. I'm sure there will be things you can't tell me when you're on a case. I'll respect that. But outside of work—"

  "You'll know everything I know. Speaking of decisions…"

  He raised a brow at the mischievous sparkle in her gaze. "Yes?"

  "I think we should go back to bed. We have hours before we have to go to the office."

  He jumped to his feet. "I'm on board."

  "You're always on board."

  "I can't deny that."

  Her gaze clung to his as she stood up. "I love you, Quinn."

  "I love you back, and I'm going to spend the rest of my life showing you how much."

  He took her into his arms and then settled his mouth over hers.

  She was the one. She'd always been the one. He couldn't wait for the rest of his life.

  What to Read Next

  Don’t miss the next book in the

  OFF THE GRID: FBI SERIES

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  PREORDER

  RISKY BARGAIN

  September 21, 2021

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  Have you missed any books in the series?

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  Off the Grid: FBI Series

  PERILOUS TRUST

  RECKLESS WHISPER

  DESPERATE PLAY

  ELUSIVE PROMISE

  DANGEROUS CHOICE

  RUTHLESS CROSS

  CRITICAL DOUBT

  FEARLESS PURSUIT

  DARING DECEPTION

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  Other thrilling romantic suspense…

  Lightning Strikes Trilogy

  BEAUTIFUL STORM

  LIGHTNING LINGERS

  SUMMER RAIN

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  Sanders Brothers Duo

  SILENT RUN

  SILENT FALL

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  Deception Duo

  TAKEN

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  About the Author

  Barbara Freethy is a #1 New York Times Bestselling Author of 72 novels ranging from contemporary romance to romantic suspense and women's fiction. With over 14 million copies sold, twenty-three of Barbara’s books have appeared on the New York Times and USA Today Bestseller Lists,
including SUMMER SECRETS which hit #1 on the New York Times and DON’T SAY A WORD, which spent 12 weeks on the list!

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  Known for her emotional and compelling stories of love, family, mystery and romance, Barbara enjoys writing about ordinary people caught up in extraordinary adventures. She is currently writing two ongoing series: The romantic suspense series OFF THE GRID: FBI SERIES and the contemporary romance series WHISPER LAKE.

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