Criminal Alliance

by Angi Morgan

  “You look different,” Therese said groggily when she awoke a second time.

  “Yeah, the nurses thought you might like me better if I cleaned up. I told them that was impossible—for you to like me more—but they insisted.”

  “I think the same thing about me. I must look horrible.”

  “Well, I won’t ever lie to you, sweetheart. The bruising is pretty bad. But I’m good with it.” He ran his thumb along the line of deep purple discoloration on her shoulder. “But the nurses might be right about cleaning up. I had the guys stop by your place and get some things.”

  “I don’t know if I’m up for that.”

  “Come on, honey. There are a couple of big surprises you’re going to want your hair combed for.” He pointed to her bag.

  “Can’t it wait?”

  “You’ve got about an hour.”

  “Wade? What’s going on?”

  “I had a long talk with Agent Woods. He agreed that your undercover days are done. I mean, our pictures have been all over the news and it wouldn’t really work any longer.”

  “And...”

  “There are some very important people on their way to be with you.”

  Therese’s eyes filled with unshed tears. “You called my family?”

  “Not me, but I’ll take some credit.”

  “He threatened a lot of people to make it happen,” Steve said from the doorway. “If it’s something you don’t want, blame him.”

  “Oh, I want it,” she whispered. “Thank you, Wade.”

  “Come on, Wade. The nurses are ready to do their thing.”

  Wade gently kissed a very happy Therese, reluctantly leaving her room.

  He stuck his hands in his jeans pockets and wandered to a pillar to wait. Steve followed.

  “Thanks for getting the Ortis family up here. It’s the best way you could have thanked her for the sacrifice she made for this country.” Wade stuck out his hand for Steve to shake.

  “I heard what you said. It was the very least we could do. I also heard your physical didn’t go so well.”

  “You heard right. I’ve got some permanent eye damage.” He dropped his head, staring at the floor. “Looks like a spot will be opening up in Company B.”

  “Are they transferring you?”

  “I resigned.”

  “Got something in mind?”

  Wade looked up at Steve. “You offering?”

  “Actually, Homeland wondered if you and Therese would be interested.”

  “I don’t know. I just bought a couch.”

  Steve looked confused. “They move those along with the other furniture.”

  “Honestly, I’d be happy sitting around a pool for a while. Whatever she wants. You know? I’m not willing to give her up yet.”

  “I bet you aren’t. Same thing happened to me a long time ago. I made that mistake. Let her walk away. Worst day of my life.”

  “But you’re married now, right?”

  “That I am. But this is your story and you’ve got time to think about it.” Steve shook his hand again and Wade watched as the agent walked down the hall to the exit.

  The nurses came out of Therese’s room, leaving the door open. Wade’s phone vibrated with a message that the family had arrived. He didn’t have much time.

  He knocked before entering. Therese sat up in bed, ready for visitors.

  “They’re on their way up,” Wade told her. “It took them an extra day to get here. I think Heath told me one of your younger brothers attends Washington State.”

  “I know.” She grinned. “I kept tabs on all the people I loved.”

  “So you are a stalker.” He crept over to her side.

  “I said you were more like a hero crush.” She held her hand out, wiggling her fingers for him to take hold. Which he did.

  “That does sound a lot better than stalker,” he teased.

  “Why don’t we just keep that as our little secret.” She slid her finger down his nose, landing across his lips.

  “I won’t ever tell. But I will be exacting blackmail on a regular basis.” He leaned in for the long, extended kiss he’d wanted for days.

  She wrapped her arms around him, bringing him to sit on the bed next to her, ending their kiss in each other’s arms. He could have stayed there. Finally resting because she was awake. And safe.

  But her family was on their way. Jack had picked them up personally. Wade sat back, wondering how he would tell her he’d had to resign. But he had a feeling she wouldn’t mind. That she’d support him in whatever he decided to do.

  Life after being a Texas Ranger...

  “Hey, I ordered a couch.”

  “Really? That’s what you think is important right now.”

  He turned off all the outward charm and stared at her. It was one of the few times in his life he actually tried to be serious. “I never had a reason to buy a couch before. This is a pretty big deal.”

  “Wade Hamilton, are you asking me out?”

  “Well, I do have a couch we can make out on now.”

  Therese wrapped her arms around his neck, tugged him close and kissed him again.

  “Now we have to rescue a dog.”

  “Oh no. No animals. This thing is plush leather. The real stuff. Not that fake pleather.”

  Epilogue

  Six weeks later

  Wade’s heart pounded in his chest. It could probably be heard by the people sitting at the next table. He’d never been this nervous in his life. Time was running out to change his mind. But he didn’t want to change his mind.

  Nope.

  He was frightened about the upcoming situation he let himself be talked into. What had he been thinking?

  “Are you okay?” Therese asked, reaching around her now empty plate to grab his hand. “Should we go to the hotel instead of trying to see a late movie?”

  “No. No. I’m good. Sorry. I’ve just been thinking.”

  “Well, that’s obvious. I don’t mind heading back if you’re tired. You did drive me to Fort Worth for a lovely weekend and brought me here for a very fancy dinner.” She squeezed his hand tighter. “You are springing for dinner, right? Did you forget your wallet?”

  To answer, he drew his hand away, pulled his credit card from his wallet and held it in the air, signaling to the waiter. Therese leaned back, wiping the corner of her luscious mouth one last time with her napkin.

  “I didn’t need dessert anyway.”

  “Did you see something you wanted?” He barely got the words out when her foot connected with his. He mouthed an “ouch” but it hadn’t hurt.

  “No, silly. I’d love to head back, too.” She winked.

  The waiter came and went with the card and Wade took her hand back into his. Things were good. Great, in fact. But they needed this weekend before he headed out for Homeland training.

  All their spare time had been spent together, but that had been limited. Between wrapping up the case, grand jury testimony, paperwork, applications, more interviews... Well, they’d barely seen each other. So, yeah, he got the hint about heading back to the hotel.

  But first...

  They walked hand in hand from the restaurant toward the hotel.

  “Hey, what’s up?” She dropped his hand, wrapping both around his biceps and giving him a squeeze. “Are you worried about training? They said your blind spot wouldn’t be a problem in your new analyst position.”

  He shook his head, shrugging, and mumbled that he was fine. He could feel her disappointment as she loosened her grip, letting her hands fall to her sides.

  Damn...he could barely swallow and his knees really felt weak. He was just nervous. He hated to admit it, but if he wasn’t careful he would blow all the elaborate plans.

  Maybe he should tell her and not find out if she enjoy
ed surprises. He’d been assured by his best friends’ girlfriends, Vivian, Kendall and Megan, that all women liked this kind of surprise.

  Wade scooped up Therese’s hand, raising her arm above her head and forcing her into a twirl in the middle of the sidewalk. She laughed. He did it again until they were both smiling and he could forget his nerves.

  A minute later they were there.

  Sundance Square.

  The fountains glowed with a gold light. He’d been told by Megan, Vivian and Kendall it was the perfect backdrop. Beautiful. Great for pictures. Something they all said was important. New traditions and all that.

  Tradition?

  He’d never had much of that but wanted it now. Even if Therese hadn’t mentioned it. Not once. A sign the major and Fred had both warned him of.

  Their friends were all around them. He recognized the men from their hats and the women who ducked behind them. But the one woman he loved hadn’t noticed. Or at least she didn’t give him any indication she had.

  Too enthralled with the kids running through the plaza fountain, she didn’t seem to pay attention to anything behind them. She was focused only on walking and being happy. Maybe on seeing the show she’d mentioned or just getting back to their hotel.

  He wanted to scoop up Therese and run with her over his shoulder back to the truck. What if she said no? God, what if she said yes?

  Before he could confuse himself any further, he dropped down to one knee. Strangers pointed. Mothers pulled their kids from splashing through the fountain. And Therese turned around to stare at him, covering her mouth with her fingers.

  “Wade? Are you—”

  “Why’s everyone looking like that? Can’t a guy scratch his leg?” He pulled up his dress jeans and reached inside his best boot. That was a clue for all of their friends to get a little closer. Her family sat just a little behind and Therese hadn’t noticed them yet.

  Therese released a long breath and spun away from him. He snagged the ring tucked safely inside his sock and worked it onto his little finger before pulling his pants leg over his boot.

  He didn’t move even as she took a couple of steps away from him.

  “Oh, thank God. I thought you were going to pro—”

  He stayed put, his arm outstretched with an engagement ring on display to everyone except the one it was intended for. When the woman with a kid in her arms pointed in his direction Therese stopped, hesitatingly turning back toward him.

  Her beautiful eyes were huge, and the tips of her fingers covered her lips, which were open and in the shape of an O. She stared into his eyes, then at the ring, then back again. Her unblinking orbs filled with tears, making them sparkle.

  “Is this a bad idea? Do I need to put this back in my boot?”

  He spoke as softly as he could. If she was going to say no, he didn’t need all of Fort Worth along with their family and friends hearing.

  “Therese?”

  She blinked and the tears swiftly slid down her cheeks.

  Crying. She was crying. Of all the scenarios that had played through his head...this wasn’t one of them. He began shifting, preparing to get to his feet.

  He wanted to wipe her tears away, but he was stuck kneeling and quickly feeling like an idiot. All the doubts his friends had talked him out of after buying the ring slammed into him again.

  “Wait!” Her hands extended to keep him where he was. “If there’s a question in there somewhere... I might have an answer.”

  Hadn’t he asked?

  “Damn. Therese Ortis, would you marry me?”

  “When you put it like that, how could a girl say no?” She smiled and offered him her hand.

  He slipped the ring onto the appropriate finger and got up off his knee. He barely kissed her before his friends were slapping him on the back and welcoming Therese to the fold.

  She began crying again when she saw her family along with Fred and his wife. Everyone was there for the important moment. Wade had never felt blessed before, but he did now.

  “You had all of us worried there for a minute,” Jack said.

  “I was totally caught off guard.” Therese smiled at Wade again.

  He was still recovering from her answer and couldn’t really think straight to reply. He could only feel and this...this was completely right. No doubts. He hugged Therese and spun around.

  “I love you,” he whispered into her ear. “You’re not alone in life. I’ll always have your back.”

  “I love you, too. You’re the best partner I’ve ever had.”

  “I’m the only partner you’ve ever had. And for this—” he kissed her finger with the diamond “—the only partner you’ll ever need.”

  * * *

  Don’t miss the previous books in USA TODAY bestselling author Angi Morgan’s miniseries,

  Texas Brothers of Company B:

  Ranger Protector

  Ranger Defender

  Ranger Guardian

  Available now from Harlequin Intrigue!

  Keep reading for an excerpt from Before He Vanished by Debra Webb.

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  Before He Vanished

  by Debra Webb

  Chapter One

  NOW

  Friday, March 6

  Winchester, Tennessee

  Halle Lane listened as her fellow newspaper reporter droned on and on about the upcoming community events in Winchester that he planned to cover, which was basically everything on the calendar for the next month.

  She couldn’t really complain. Halle was new. Hardly ninety days on the job, but she knew Winchester every bit as well as Mr. Roger Hawkins. She couldn’t bring herself to call him Rog. The man was seventy if he was a day and he’d covered the social events of Winchester for about fifty of those years.

  How could she—a fading-star investigative journalist from Nashville—expect to get first dibs on anything in Winchester? Hawkins had the social events, including obituaries. Her boss and the owner of the newspaper, Audrey Anderson-Tanner, generally took care of the big stories. The only potential for a break in the monotony of covering barroom brawls and petty break-ins was the fact that Audrey was pregnant. At nearly thirty-eight, she was expecting her first child.

  Halle had wanted to jump for joy when she heard the news last month. She was, of course, very happy for Audrey and her husband, Sheriff Colt Tanner, but mostly she was thrilled at the idea that she might actually get her hands on a real story sometime this decade.

  So far that had not happened. Audrey had covered the big federal trial of Harrison Armone last month. His son’s widow, the sole witness against him, had been hiding out in Winchester for months. Surprisingly for such a small town, Winchester had more than its share of big news happenings. This time last year a body had been discovered in the basement of this very newspaper building. Halle’s gaze shifted to the head of the conference table, where her boss listened with seemingly rapt interest as Hawkins went on and on.

  It seemed Winchester also had more than its share of family secrets, as well. A man posing as a Mennonite had turned out to be a former member of a Chicago mob. Not a month later, Sasha Lenoir-Holloway had uncovered the truth about the deaths of her parents. Cece Winters had come home from prison a few months back and blown open the truth about her family and the cult-like extremists living in a remote area of Franklin County.

  Nashville had nothing on Winchester, it seemed.

  “This all sounds good, Rog,” Audrey said, her voice pulling Halle back to the here and now.

  The boss’s gaze shifted to her and Halle realized h
er mistake. She had been silently bemoaning all the stories she’d missed and now it was her turn to share with those gathered what she was working on for this week’s Sunday edition.

  “Halle, what do you have planned?” Audrey asked.

  For five endless seconds she racked her brain for something, anything to say.

  Then her gaze landed on the date written in black across the white board.

  March 6.

  Memories whispered through her mind. Voices and images from her childhood flooded her senses. Blond hair, blue eyes...

  “The lost boy,” Halle said in a rush. The words had her heart pounding.

  Of course. Why hadn’t she thought of that last month or the month before?

  Audrey frowned for a moment, then made an “aha” face. “Excellent idea. We’ve just passed what? Twenty-four years?”

  “Twenty-five,” Halle confirmed. “Andy Clark was my neighbor. We played together all the time as kids.”

  Brian Peterson, the editor of the Winchester Gazette, chimed in next. “What makes you think Nancy Clark will allow an interview? She hasn’t in all these years.”

  Audrey made a frustrated face. “That is true. You tried to interview her for both the ten-year and the twenty-year anniversaries, didn’t you?”

  Brian nodded. “I did. She refused to talk about it. Since her husband passed away year before last, she’s practically a shut-in. She stopped attending church. Has whatever she needs delivered.” He shrugged, shifted his attention to Halle. “Good luck with that one.”

  Halle’s anticipation deflated. Hawkins looked at her as if she were something to be pitied.

  “Still,” Audrey said, “if you could get the story, it would be huge. Maybe since you and the boy, Andy, played together as children before he vanished, she might just talk to you.”

  Halle’s hopes lifted once more. “I’m certain she will.”

  The conference room started to buzz with excitement. Titles were tossed about. Potential placement on the front page above the fold.