“That’s us. Come on, let’s get this show on the road.” Elvis slapped his shoulder before leading the way into the chapel.
Travis kept his gaze straight ahead, all the way to the platform at the front of the room and stood on his mark. Elvis said a few words, people snapped pictures, but none of it really mattered. He bounced his knee, just enough to feel the ring in his pocket and stared at the double doors that now stood closed at the end of the chapel.
Finally, the music started and Elvis began to sing.
Travis stopped breathing. The attendees stood as one, turning toward the doors. Elvis hit a higher note, the song lost on Travis, and the doors opened.
Bliss and her father stood at the end of the red carpet, and he’d never seen anything so beautiful in his life. His future wife. His love. His heart.
Epilogue.
Six months later.
T
ravis jogged up the porch stairs, keeping on the balls of his feet and avoiding the squeaky board. Bliss wasn’t expecting him home until tomorrow morning. These moments, coming back to the little two-bedroom house they shared, were the best. Second only to the hours of lovemaking that followed. Things weren’t perfect, but they were making the best out of what they had. And it was a hell of a lot more than he’d ever expected.
He disabled the security through his phone app and let himself in the front door. For a second, he stood on the little rug and listened. Music played softly from the spare-room-turned-office, and over that he could hear her humming.
There wasn’t an aspect of his life Bliss hadn’t touched. From redecorating the boring house to his taste in food and music, she’d changed him. For the better. His life wasn’t just work anymore. And though the long hours, days, and sometimes weeks apart sucked, he always got to come home to this.
His home. With his wife.
Travis tiptoed down the short hall and peered into their office. Or more accurately, Bliss’ office. Yeah, he had a desk in the room, but she was the one who worked there five days a week.
She sat bent over his desk, her back to the door, pen in hand, signing—something.
He tapped on the door with his knuckle.
Surprising her only went so far.
There were still nightmares and panic attacks on occasion, but those were fewer and farther between.
Bliss whirled around, mouth open, eyes wide. Her hair was pulled back in a clip, and she wore one of his sweatshirts with leggings and bare feet.
“Travis!”
He grinned and crossed the room in two strides, picking her up for a thorough kiss.
Five days away, forgotten in an instant between her lips.
“What—? You weren’t supposed to be back until—”
“Tomorrow, I know. I decided to hop a commercial flight instead of waiting.” The cost of a one-way flight was nothing in comparison to twelve more hours together. Especially when he was facing a lengthy assignment down in the Keys.
Bliss grinned and he put her down. She kept her gaze on him and pushed the papers behind her.
“What are you up to?” He reached around her and plucked the top sheet off the stack.
“No, just—Travis!” She made a wild grab and only got his forearm.
He wrapped the arm around her and skimmed the letter.
To the governor of Oklahoma.
“What is this?” A chill swept over him.
Was Bliss unhappy? Had he upset her?
She sighed and snagged the letter from between his fingers.
“I didn’t want to show you. I didn’t want to get your hopes up,” she said.
“Why are you asking the governor for a pardon?”
She leaned against his desk and stared up at him.
“It’s the job, isn’t it? You still don’t like it.”
“Its—no. You like what you do. I just—you really want to be a PI.”
He didn’t bother to nod. They’d had this conversation. That career path was closed to him thanks to his felony record, as were so many other options in life.
“I talked to a lawyer. He thinks that there’s plenty of evidence and proof that your conviction could be pardoned. So yeah, I was going to send these today, see what might happen. I’ve got letters to both the governor of Oklahoma and the President. Worst case, they said no, you wouldn’t know, and we keep on making the best of what we have.” She reached for his hand, clasping it between hers. “I just want for you to be happy.”
“Are you happy?”
Above anything else that mattered was Bliss. No, he didn’t want to work for Aegis forever. He’d die doing this job if he stuck it out until he was too old to dodge bullets, and she didn’t deserve that. Truth be told, he’d never considered a way around his conviction. It hadn’t occurred to him, because good things never happened to him.
And then there was Bliss.
She was all the good he’d never had, rolled into one, sexy package.
“Are you mad at me?” She pulled his hand, urging him closer.
He let her pull him between her legs while he paused before answering, rolling her actions around in his head.
“No,” he replied. “Are you happy?”
“Yeah.” Her smile spread slowly across her face. “More now that you’re home.”
He blew out a breath and leaned down to kiss her. She tasted of oranges and tea, which meant they were probably out of food. Oh well, they could order pizza and spend more time in bed anyway.
“Note to self, next time I get a bright idea I don’t want my super sneaky husband to know about, do it right after he leaves. And before I forget, Emma sent over some wedding stuff. They picked a date.”
“Later.”
Travis picked Bliss up, and she wrapped herself around him. There was time to figure out the logistics of a couple trips back to Oklahoma. For now, he needed to show his wife just how good they had it.
Want to know what the rest of the Aegis Group is up to?
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Find out about the BAU’s other cases, starting with:
Blind: Killer Instincts
He recognizes the darkness in her. It’s in him, too.
Detective Jacob Payton knows the clock is ticking down. Someone is about to die, and his best suspect is also his only source of information. He’s known Emma Ration’s story for years—after all, a brutal serial killer left his mark on both their lives when they were still young. Meeting her is another experience altogether. She challenges his control and entices him in ways no other woman has.
But is she the killer? As the bodies pile up and their passion ignites, Jacob runs the risk of losing his control. Falling for Emma was never in his plan, but now that she’s part of his life he’s not about to give her up. Not even to the FBI on the trail of the very same killer.
Jacob must figure out if it’s Emma in danger, or himself. If he can’t uncover the identity of the copycat killer, it could be the end for both him and the woman who has fast become the center of his life
Dear Readers,
I never intended to write Travis’ story. Yes, that’s the truth. He was never supposed to get more than a few lines on the page in Blind: Killer Instincts, but the reaction to the short account of Travis’ life was demanding enough I couldn’t say no. I had to write it.
You can thank my editing team for Blind for kicking my butt into writing Dangerous Attraction. I was going to write a completely different story...and then Travis happened.
Here’s to stories that weren’t supposed to be,
Sid
Acknowledgements
Jessica and Dayna, this book would have never happened without you. Thank you for demanding I write it. I hope you like the finished product. Also, thank you for not killing me, or sending flaming poop to me for the cliffhangers.
The
other Seven Naughty SEALs authors, Zoe York, Olivia Devon, Sadie Haller, Zara Keane, Selena Blake and Yvonne Michaels, thank you for sticking with the boxed set when things got shakey. Thank you for your enthusiasm and all you guys have done. I wouldn’t have needed to write Travis if it weren’t for you.
Shawn—you smiled and nodded at all the places I needed you to. You’re a great sounding board.
Now, I need some sleep.
Book List
Aegis Group
Dangerous Attraction, parts 1, 2 and 3
Bayou Bound
Picture Her Bound
Duty Bound
Bound Memories
Bound & Tamed
Other BDSM Titles
Committed
Bound with Pearls
Collar Me in Paris
Festive Seduction
Electric Engagement
So Inked
Under His Skin
The Harder He Falls
His Marriage Bargain
Good Guys Wear Black
Hot Tango
Line of Duty
Standalone Titles
Falling for His Best Friend
Dream Vacation (free read)
How Zombies Stole Christmas
Anthologies
Hot Ink
High Octane Heroes
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
It can never be said that NYT & USA Today Bestselling author Sidney Bristol has had a ‘normal’ life. She is a recovering roller derby queen, former missionary, and tattoo addict. She grew up in a motor-home on the US highways (with an occasional jaunt into Canada and Mexico), traveling the rodeo circuit with her parents. Sidney has lived abroad in both Russia and Thailand, working with children and teenagers. She now lives in Texas where she splits her time between a job she loves, writing, reading and fostering cats.
Sidney is represented by Nicole Resciniti of the Seymour Agency.
You can find Sidney here:
Website: www.SidneyBristol.com
Twitter: @Sidney_Bristol
New Release Newsletter:
http://sidneybristol.com/newsletter/
Facebook Page:
www.facebook.com/Sidney.Bristol.Romance.Author
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www.facebook.com/groups/CheesecakeReaderLounge
Copyright © 2015 by Sidney Bristol.
Editing by Dayna Hart | www.edits.daynahart.com
Copy editing by Jessica Fritsche | www.jessicafritsche.com
Cover design by Charity Hendry | www.charityhendry.com
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, addressed “Attention: Permissions Coordinator,” at the address below.
Inked Press/Sidney Bristol
www.sidneybristol.com
Publisher’s Note: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Locales and public names are sometimes used for atmospheric purposes. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions, or locales is completely coincidental.
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Ordering Information:
Quantity sales. Special discounts are available on quantity purchases by corporations, associations, and others. For details, contact the “Special Sales Department” at the address above.
Dangerous Attraction: Part Three / Sidney Bristol.—1st ed.
Dangerous Attraction: Part Three (Aegis Group) Page 11
