When others stepped up to talk to Violet, Olivia said goodbye and promised to check in with her. Rick took Olivia’s hand, and they headed for the parking lot. Olivia made sure she was out of Violet’s earshot when she finally let her tears go.
Rick put an arm around her and without a word escorted her to the car, where he stopped to hold her in his arms. She clutched the flag between them and rested her cheek on Rick’s chest.
“Violet was right,” he said. “You helped Ace, and it would be great if you could continue to help others.”
She peered up at him. “I hope that’s what the break will allow me to do.”
He nodded. “Now would be a good time for me to mention that we have hospitals in D.C. And you can write a book anywhere, right?”
“I can at that,” she said, hoping this was headed where she thought it was headed.
He gnawed on his lip for a moment. “Maybe you’d consider moving to D.C.”
“I’ll do more than consider it if you want.” Her heart pounded in her chest as she waited for his response.
“Oh, I want, honey,” he said, his lips lifting in a heart-melting smile. “I want.”
Epilogue
Washington, D.C.
Tuesday, November 22
6:20 p.m.
With one kick of the starter, the Harley’s powerful motor thrummed to life below Rick. He exited the airport hangar and couldn’t wait to get to his house to see Olivia. She’d flown in that afternoon for the annual Thanksgiving party held by Tara’s Aunt June.
He motored to the state-of-the-art security gate and flipped up his face shield.
The night guard, who looked like he could bench-press four hundred, poked his head out the door. “Evening, Agent Cannon.”
“Steve.”
“Heading home?”
“I am at that.”
Steve opened the gate. “Stay vertical, man.”
Rick smiled at the common parting expression between bikers. Steve had once been an avid biker, but after he married and had his first child, his wife had urged him to sell his bike. Rick couldn’t do the same thing. He’d been through two months of counseling and had made progress with his issues. He’d reconciled with his mom and spent time with her and Yolanda when he’d visited Olivia. And he’d even made an uneasy truce with his father, though they had a long way to go. But giving up his bike? That he couldn’t do.
Or could he? If Olivia asked, he would. The thing was, she knew the joy he took from his bike, and he doubted she would ask, so he might never know.
On the road he hammered down and let his mind drift to the conversation he planned to have with her. Conversation, shoot. He was going to propose. Wouldn’t be a surprise to her. They’d talked about their future over the last couple of months as she’d worked to finalize things with her clients. Still, Rick was more nervous than he’d ever been.
Relax. Enjoy the ride. He settled in and let the rushing wind and hum of the motor calm his nerves while he thought about taking Olivia out on the new Harley for the hour-long ride to June’s farm. Sharing his love of riding would be sweet. If she was willing to try it after expressing her fear of motorcycles.
He took the last corner to his house low, balancing nearly horizontally in the sweet spot between optimum speed and eating asphalt. He rolled past Olivia’s rental car and into the garage. The inside door was suddenly flung wide. He put down the kickstand, and Olivia came flying out to the garage. She wore pants that fit her like a glove and sent his senses reeling. She catapulted into his arms. Touching her fired off the few senses that hadn’t already awoken.
She kissed him hard, and he deepened it until they were both breathless. She lifted her head and smiled. “Hi.”
“Hi back atcha.” Happiness, still so foreign to him, made him smile.
She poked a finger into his cheek. “I love your dimples.”
“I don’t have dimples.”
“You do when you smile, and you’ve been doing a lot of that lately.”
“You, too.”
She leaned back farther. “I have a lot to be happy about. If you don’t count my mother and Harrison still not talking to me.”
“They’ll get over it,” he said and hoped he was right. “Speaking from experience, you’re a hard person to stay unhappy with.”
She tapped her watch. “We should get going. We can take my rental car.”
“There’s one thing I need to do before we go.” He reached behind her to a blue blanket and whipped it into the air to reveal the new Harley he’d bought a few weeks ago. The bright-red paint and polished chrome begged for him to take a ride, but he’d held off riding the beauty this long so he could take the maiden voyage with Olivia. What was a few more minutes?
“Ooh.” She ran a hand over the seat. “You bought a pretty new bike.”
He faked an angry look. “Okay, first of all, no ‘pretty’ remarks.”
She saluted, but her grin said she had no intention of complying. “And second?”
“Second, it’s not just any bike.”
She stared at it. “No?”
“No. It’s totally different from my other Harley.”
She shot her gaze between the two. “Okay, I give up. They look the same, other than one is an older restored model and this one looks brand new.”
“Hop on and maybe you’ll figure it out.”
Her eyes cleared. “Oh, I get it. There’s room for two people on the new bike.”
“Exactly.” He held his breath in anticipation of her response.
She sidled up to him. “Are you telling me something here?”
“No, asking.” He opened a saddlebag and drew out the ring box he’d stashed inside it before his latest trip.
She clamped her hand over her mouth, her eyes shining with joy and giving him courage to get down on one knee and leave himself open for the possibility of great hurt.
“I trust you and love you with my whole heart, Olivia.” He gazed up at her and flipped open the box to reveal the solitaire diamond his mother had helped him pick out. “Will you marry me?”
“Yes. Of course. There’s no one I’d rather be with for the rest of my life.”
He slipped the ring on her finger and got to his feet to kiss her, but before he could, she climbed on the back of the new bike.
“Guess if you trust me enough to ask me to marry you, I have to return the favor.” She reached for the helmet.
He settled on the bike facing her, taking her hands and stopping her from retrieving the helmet.
“I bought the bike as a symbol of us being together. You don’t have to ride with me if you don’t want to. I’m pretty sure we can have a wonderful life even if you don’t like motorcycles.”
“Ah, but I love you, Rick Cannon, and I’d take any opportunity to put my arms around you. So fire up this bad boy, and let’s take a spin.”
He clutched her to him, and happiness invaded his soul. “June’s house, here we come.”
“No need to rush things,” Olivia whispered in his ear. “Let’s start with a short trip to the end of the block and back. I have years with you to work up to a long country drive.”
Acknowledgments
Thanks to:
My family for making so many sacrifices so I can continue to follow my dreams.
My agent, Chip MacGregor. Your talent and skills have blessed my writing career, and when I panic over the little things you are always there to talk me off the ledge.
My editor, Christina Boys. I continue to be in awe of your insight and suggestions, and I thank you for walking this journey with me and making the White Knights series so much better.
The talented marketing staff at Hachette/FaithWords—Sara Beth Haring, Sarah Falter, and Katie Connors. I have been so blessed by your support.
Ron Norris, who continues to give of his time and knowledge of police and military procedures, weaponry details, and information technology. As a retired police officer with the La Verne Police Depar
tment and a certified information systems security professional, your experience and knowledge are priceless. I can’t thank you enough!
Vance Nebling, criminalist in the Portland Police Bureau Forensic Evidence Division. Thank you for the tour of your department and for answering my forensic questions. Your willingness to share your expertise and even suggest unique plot twists is greatly appreciated!
Any errors in or liberties taken with the technical details Ron or Vance so patiently explained to me are all my doing.
And most importantly, thanks to God for giving me the opportunity to share stories of hope and for giving us strong men and women in law enforcement and the military who risk their lives every day for our safety.
Reading Group Guide
Rick closes his mind to indicators that he bears some responsibility in the loss of his wife and child. Have you ever blamed someone for something that you had a part in causing? If so, what did you do about it?
Rick badly wants to get married and have children, but he denies himself that dream. Is there anything in your life that you are denying yourself that might actually be possible for you? If so, how can you overcome that?
Olivia decides that she has been putting limitations on God and she needs to let go of her wishes and trust Him. But it’s not long before we see her wanting to take her life back and questioning God’s ability to do the right thing by her. Do you ever resolve to act one way then find yourself not doing so? Have you found a way to stop or curtail that behavior in your life?
Rick has a huge issue with trust in his life. The people he trusted in his adolescence let him down. Has anyone ever let you down, and you haven’t trusted them since then? Do you want to change that? If so, can you now see a way to make the change?
Both Rick and Olivia have been betrayed by their families. Has anyone in your family or even a close friend betrayed you? Are you happy with the way you handled it, or do you wish you could change how you behaved? Is it too late to change, or can you still do so? How?
Olivia is warm and caring, and her job as a psychologist fits her personality perfectly. She also lets it affect how she deals with her mother and brother. If you’re like me, you probably wished she wouldn’t let them take advantage of her so often. As a counselor, she recognizes her behavior is wrong and knows she needs to change, but it’s hard to do so. Is there an area in your life where you need to change, but are putting it off? After reading Kill Shot, can you find a way to make those changes? If so, what might you do?
Olivia talks about how people tell themselves lies and can’t reach their full potential until they let go of these lies. Are you lying to yourself about something? Is it affecting your life, and would you like to change it? If so, how can you make the change? How might God fit in this decision and in finding a way to make that change?
When Rick’s wife and unborn child die, he stops praying because he doesn’t think prayer does any good. Has a situation in your life ever caused you to stop praying? Have you resumed your prayer life, or are you still not talking to God? Should that change?
Olivia is hurt by Rick several times in this story. At first she responds with anger or disappointment, but we soon see her giving those up in favor of helping Rick with the areas he struggles in, only to have him disappoint her again. How do you think she is able to let go of the hurt so quickly? Do you think she was foolish to do so, or do you admire the way she was able to put Rick first so much of the time?
At one point Olivia tells Rick to love people like Jesus, because love always expects the best in others. Do you agree with this statement? If so, why? If not, why not?
About the Author
SUSAN SLEEMAN is a bestselling and award-winning author of more than thirty inspirational/Christian and clean read romantic suspense and mystery novels. With three-quarters of a million books in print, readers love her romantic suspense series for the well-drawn characters and edge-of-your-seat action. She graduated from the FBI and local police citizen academies, so her research is spot on and her characters are real. In addition to writing, Susan also hosts thesuspensezone.com. She has lived in nine states but now calls Oregon home. Her husband is a retired church music director, and they have two beautiful daughters, a very special son-in-law, and an adorable grandson.
Praise for Susan Sleeman’s
FATAL MISTAKE
“Sleeman’s gritty, high-octane plot will keep the pages flying until the heart-stopping finale. A terrific choice for readers who like their romantic suspense fast-paced and terrifying.”
—Library Journal (starred review)
“Serial killers, romance and bombs, oh my! Fatal Mistake is a thrill ride from page one. Hop on, strap in, and prepare to be entertained!”
—Lynette Eason, bestselling, award-winning author of the Elite Guardians series
“With Fatal Mistake, Susan Sleeman has once more crafted a book of romantic suspense that’s virtually impossible to put down. This book offers romance set against an exciting search for a mass murderer. The ending will have you frantically turning pages.”
—Richard L. Mabry, MD, bestselling author of
“Medical Suspense With Heart”
“A delightful, action-packed thriller with unusual detail of research and depth of passion.”
—Donn Taylor, author of Murder Mezzo Forte
“Sleeman’s first book in her White Knights series is a must-read action-packed romantic suspense. Sleeman is a master at keeping the tension high while weaving frequent plot twists seamlessly with an unforgettable romance. Add in a swoon-worthy FBI hero and a strong, sassy heroine and this highly recommended, entertaining romantic suspense will thrill readers!”
—Elizabeth Goddard, author of Targeted for Murder
“Tense as a timed detonator, Fatal Mistake offers dauntless heroes, romance, hope—and a riveting read.”
—Candace Calvert, bestselling author of the Crisis Team series
“Susan Sleeman’s Fatal Mistake is a taut, well-written, can’t-put-it-down thriller. Romantic suspense at its best!”
—Julianna Deering, author of the
Drew Farthering Mystery series
Also by Susan Sleeman
Fatal Mistake
Available from FaithWords wherever books are sold.
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