by Brandi Evans
"Untie me," Maddox demanded of his partner, but his gaze never left hers.
The second he was free, Maddox reached for her. She thought he was about to kiss her, but instead, he ripped her sweatshirt over her head and checked for bullet wounds himself.
She cupped his cheeks with hands steadier than they had any right to be. "I'm okay, love. I'm okay. I'm sure I'll be hurting when the adrenaline wears off, but it's just bruising. I'm okay."
"But he hit you," Maddox countered, still searching for injury.
"He hit you, too, and you look much worse for wear than I feel. I'm pretty sure the vest saved me some broken ribs. What about you? Does it hurt to take deep breaths?"
This time, when his gaze locked on hers, he looked as if he believed her. "You're okay."
It wasn't a question, but she answered as if it were. "Yes, Maddox, I'm okay. I decided it was time I saved you for a change."
A grin touched his lips—and all hell broke loose.
A distinct pop, pop heralded a cacophony of shouted orders through the mic in her ear.
"Was that a… gunshot?" she asked.
But Maddox was already sweeping her behind him, positioning himself between her and danger. Carter slapped a sidearm into Maddox's hand, and the pair stood shoulder to shoulder in front of her like a human shield. Sarge stood in front of the two men, his low growl an audible threat clinging in the air. All three readied for battle, if needed.
"You don't have a vest," Katlyn said to Maddox and tried to move in front of him.
"No, but I've got a gun," he countered, "so stay behind me. It's my turn to save you."
"Fuck that." She took one step to position herself in front of him when the all-clear came, and the nightmare that had lasted most of her adult life came to an end.
Maddox held Kat close as they lay cuddled together on a hospital bed waiting to be discharged. She'd survived the ordeal with Harris with minimal injury. As she'd predicted, her injuries were primarily bumps and bruises. She'd be sore tomorrow, but as she'd reminded him, it wouldn't be the first morning she'd woken sore from Harris' brutality, but it would be the last.
Never again would Jeff Harris lay a finger on her.
The asshole was currently on a slab in the morgue, assassinated by an unknown party while in police custody. The hunt for the shooter had been underway when the ambulance had transported Maddox and Kat to the hospital. Hopefully, Carter would have more details when he arrived.
Ignoring the pain in his own body, Maddox squeezed Kat extra close. He didn't think he'd ever be able to pull her close enough. His injuries had been more severe than hers, but not by too much. They'd both be sporting an array of bruises tomorrow, but he'd be doing it with a couple cracked ribs. All in all, they'd come through the night alive. And together. The situation could undoubtedly have been worse.
Maddox pressed a kiss to her temple. "Have I told you yet how much I love you?"
"Yes, but please, say it again."
She'd been quiet since Harris had been pronounced dead. Maddox could only imagine everything going on in her head, but he'd make sure she had whatever support she needed to work through any issues. Caroline, Raven, and Viv had already called to check on them. Each woman had wanted to visit, but Maddox had managed to put a kibosh on that tonight. Tomorrow, he doubted an act of Congress, an act of god, or an unexpected Armageddon could keep Kat's friends away from her, and he was damn glad for that.
"And just so ya know," she murmured, "I love you right back."
"Good, because I want to keep you around a long, long time."
"Oh yeah?" She lifted her head and smiled at him.
"That's the plan anyway." He touched her bruised cheek. "You're free, Kat, and you can go anywhere you want. I'll support whatever decision you make and help in any way I can, but I'd like it if you stayed here with me. Permanently."
"Oh, Maddox." Chuckling, she kissed the tip of his nose. "I was kinda already planning on it."
A knock sounded against the door, and Sarge jumped up from his spot and padded over, ready to defend, but he relaxed when Carter stepped into the room, followed by Special Agent Kirkland. Both men wore cargo pants, combat boots, and blue T-shirts. Kirkland's shirt sported the letters "FBI" in yellow while Carter's had the Dallas PD shield printed over the heart. Under other circumstances, Maddox would have badgered them about dressing like Twinkies.
With careful moves, both Maddox and Kat eased into sitting positions. Neither, however, moved from the bed nor from each other's arms.
"Y'all doing okay?" Carter asked.
Kat nodded and offered a smile.
"Not sure okay is the best word," Maddox said, "but we're alive."
"And sometimes," Kirkland said, "that's the best outcome anyone can hope for."
Maddox recalled the story Kirkland had told about Mary.
"What was it you wanted to tell us?" Maddox asked. "My world kind of fell apart just after you called to meet."
Kat gripped Maddox's hand in apology.
"Since I know you're exhausted," Kirkland began, "I'll give you the Cliffs Notes version. After we talked, I started digging into Harris' records, and I recognized a pattern of phone numbers that coincided with my investigation into Mary's death."
"Wait a minute," Maddox interrupted, "are you saying Harris killed Mary?"
"While I can't prove it definitively," answered Kirkland, "I don't think so. Mary's murder was done by a professional, as was Harris'."
"You thinking they were committed by the same person?" asked Maddox.
"I'm thinking I want to look very carefully into that possibility," answered Kirkland. "I would never have caught on, except these phone numbers were so fresh in my head because I'd been buried in Mary's case for weeks. The numbers were a series of burner phones just a few digits apart. That was too coincidental to me, so I traced them. Of course, I couldn't get information on who purchased the phones, but one of those burner phones had made several calls to someone connected with the Dallas PD."
"Maddox," Carter said, "she was in our division."
Kat's hand turned to a vice around Maddox's.
"She?" Maddox asked.
"Sanders."
Maddox couldn't process this new information; it just didn't compute. "Sanders? Are you sure?"
"Who's Sanders?" Kat asked, bringing her free hand to their already joined ones and capturing Maddox's hand between both of hers.
"Linda Sanders," Carter answered. "She works in our department."
Maddox shook his head. "She's the captain's administrative assistant."
"She might not have the power to make decisions," Carter continued, "but she sees everything that leaves the captain's office. Hell, she composes most of it. Getting to her was just about perfect."
"Are you sure she was involved?" Maddox asked. He'd liked Linda, a lot. He recalled their encounter in the alley the other day. Nervous and fighting tears, she'd spoken of stress. She'd spoken of this.
"Positive," answered Kirkland. "She sang like the proverbial canary as soon as I questioned her. She's claiming coercion, and I believe her. They threatened to kill her children if she didn't help them. I've taken her family into protective custody, and she's cooperating fully. Problem is she doesn't know much, and I think that was by design. I'm just hoping she knows more than she realizes."
Maddox nodded. Linda Fucking Sanders! "Next question, which one of you idiots decided to send Kat into the warehouse?"
Kat raised her hand and gave him a timid smile. "Me. I'm the idiot who sent me into that warehouse."
Well, fuck him sideways.
Maddox gaped at her. "Going in was your idea?"
She nodded. "I'd just decided to call you and apologize for running. It was stupid. I know that. I panicked, and I thought leaving would help keep you safe, but after talking with Max and Bree, I realized we'd be better off facing this together, but Jeff answered the phone and gave me an ultimatum: come alone or he killed you. It wasn't even a tough
decision. Hadn't I just decided I wasn't leaving you?"
She amazed him—one hundred percent amazed him.
He cradled her cheek as Carter picked up the story. "Harris told her he was monitoring her phone, and that if she contacted anyone, he'd kill you. And she only had twenty minutes to get there, but luckily, she was with Maxwell Penn when the call came. He and his army of security personnel set up the plan and contacted me while Katlyn was enroute. By then, it was too late for me to stop her from going in."
"It was my job to scout the room," Kat told him. "They couldn't just storm the building without knowing what they were facing, and there wasn't time to set up the correct surveillance. I was supposed to tell them whether or not Jeff was alone, and if I could, to get you on the ground in case there was gunfire."
"I got there with S.W.A.T. just as Max's team took control of the warehouse's electronics," Carter finished, "and you know the rest."
"Any word on who shot Harris?" Maddox asked.
Kirkland shook his head. "We tracked the shooter to his nest, but, no, the trail ended there, just like it did with Mary."
"Do you think the Group will still come after us?" Kat asked.
A steely resolve saturated Kirkland's expression. "Not if I take them out first."
When Kat and Maddox were alone again, she turned to him. "Are you going to keep investigating the Group?"
He shrugged. "I honestly don't know. This type of thing isn't my area of expertise. I only stumbled upon them because of Harris, and with Harris gone, I'm happy to pass the investigation off to Kirkland. He's in a much better position to look into them than I ever could."
She nodded. "I'm not going to lie. I hope I never hear about the Group again."
"That makes two of us. If Kirkland needs my help, though, I'll be there. That's just how I'm built, but busting huge nation-wide crime syndicates isn't why I became a cop." He cradled her face. "I became a cop to help people like you, and that's what I want to go back to doing."
"And that's why you're my hero."
"And you're mine."
She laughed him off.
"No, I'm serious, Kat. You saved my life tonight."
"Figured it was the least I could do, considering it was my fault you were there in the first place."
"Setting aside the fact it wasn't your fault, walking in there was brave as hell, and it's not something I'll ever forget."
"I'd do it again, Maddox. Without a second thought, because I realized something after talking about this with all my friends."
"And what's that?"
"There's no way forward for me without you."
The emotion that washed through him was like a summer thunderstorm, powerful but cleansing. "There's no way forward without you, either. I need you to know that. There's absolutely nothing I want more than being with you."
"Nothing you want more?" She pushed from the bed and held her arms out to him, a positively wicked grin curling her lips, one that had the rest of the night's trauma and insanity melting away. "Why don't you come here and say that again, Sir."
"Okay, kitten, I will." He pushed more gingerly from the bed than his ego would have liked. Then again, cracked ribs would do that to a guy.
Her expression softened, concern wiping away a bit of the temptress. "Okay, okay, how about you say that again in thirty-six to forty-eight hours when those ribs aren't so sore?"
Ignoring the discomfort, he yanked her into his arms, winced a tad, but otherwise, held tight. "I don't mind a little pain if you don't, kitten."
"I'd prefer pleasure, but with you, Sir, I'm game for anything."
FBI Special Agent Myra Andrei sat across from Mr. Smith and waited to be officially addressed. Mr. Smith valued tradition and order, and the fiasco in Dallas had not been ordered. Myra didn't like her boss angry. Then again, she'd never liked Mr. Smith, but to do her job, she didn't need to like her boss.
"Is the situation in Dallas rectified?" asked Mr. Smith.
"The former asset has been neutralized. I took care of him personally."
"And the woman he was pursuing?
"Escaped."
"Recommendation?"
"Observation." Andrei crossed manicured hands over her lap. "The woman was never a threat to us. The Dallas cops were only an inconvenience because of their connection to her and her connection to the asset. With the asset dead, there is a high probability their investigation will die with him."
Mr. Smith nodded contemplatively over the rim of a whiskey glass. "I'd prefer not killing members of law enforcement if possible. Those investigations are usually harder to squash. They tend to get… messy."
"Understood."
"Now, tell me more about this new thorn in my side, Hunter Kirkland."
Epilogue
Katlyn sat across from Maddox at the Stockyard Steakhouse and Grille. She had a full belly and an even fuller heart.
On the divider to the left of hers and Maddox's booth, a snowman shook his hips, happy in his winter wonderland as "Jingle Bell Rock" wafted through the restaurant's speakers. In the months since that terrible night, so many exciting things had happened. She'd passed her nursing exams—again—and landed a job at Children's Medical Center Dallas. She was working as an RN!
She had the means to support herself for the first time in a long time, and Maddox had stood by her side every step of the way. Not only had he initially provided the means for her to take her exams, but he'd also encouraged her throughout the process. For the first time in her adult life, she felt like she had a partner who was just that—a partner.
With her first paycheck, she'd bought Maddox a "date night" cookbook for Christmas, so she could continue making him yummy romantic dinners. She'd also purchased some his-and-hers throw pillows for their bed. His read "Her Sir" while hers read "His kitten." She'd bought some new pans for the kitchen because the ones he'd had were pathetic, and she'd found a provocative set of lingerie called Sex Kitten. She couldn't wait to see his face on Christmas morning when he opened that package!
He grinned at her over the rim of his Sunset Blonde, one of the restaurant's signature brews. "You're looking at me like that again."
"Well, that's because you make me ridiculously happy." She reached across the table and took both his hands into hers. "Like seriously happy, Maddox. I know I keep telling you this, but I am. You, Raven and Carter, the club and all the friends I've made there, my new job, and even Sarge, it all makes me so happy."
"I'm glad." He drew one of her hands to his lips. "Let's see if I can't make you just a little happier." He pulled a cream-colored box from his jacket pocket and placed it in the center of the table between them. "This is for passing your nursing exams and getting a job."
With trembling fingers, she picked up the box, the kind that might hold a necklace or a bracelet. He'd given her so much since he'd come into her life: security, a home, confidence, a future, and so much love that she could burst, but he'd never given her jewelry.
She flipped open the lid and gasped. "Oh, Maddox. It's beautiful!"
A delicate silver bracelet sat inside, her name engraved on a plate in a pretty script. Well, at least the name he called her: Kat. The chain had a series of medical-themed charms: a syringe, a caduceus, a stethoscope, a heart with "RN" engraved on it, and more.
As gently as she could, she removed the bracelet. Somehow, she kept from drawing it to her bosom like it was a beloved child. Instead, she held it out to him. "Will you put it on me?"
"Turn it over first."
She did, and there, on the back, was his other name for her: kitten.
"Oh my god, Maddox. It's so incredibly perfect." She came around the table and sat on the bench beside him, wrapping her arms around him. "Thank you," she whispered. "I love it, and I love you."
"I love you, too, Kat."
When they pulled apart, he fastened the bracelet to her wrist, and she stared at it like the idiot in love she was. So mesmerized with her gift, she didn't register the second th
ing he pulled from his jacket pocket until he placed the beige envelope over her bracelet.
"What's this?" she asked.
"An early Christmas present for both of us and maybe, if I'm a really lucky man, a little bit more."
Her heart sambaed against her sternum as she opened the envelope, pulled out the sheets of paper folded inside, and began reading. There was an address she didn't recognize and a bunch of legal jargon she didn't understand.
"Again, I ask, what's this?"
"A bill of sale for the lot next to Carter and Raven's house."
"A… what?" Her flabbergasted response amused him.
"I want us to build a house there, Kat, a place to put down roots." He paused. "A place for us to start a family."
She managed to keep from vomiting one flummoxed response after another, and instead, she cupped his cheeks between her hands and nodded vigorously. She wasn't sure how she managed to keep the maelstrom of tears from raging free, but she did.
Except Maddox wasn't done demolishing her emotions.
He pulled a ring box from his jacket and flipped it open. An oval-shaped diamond with a halo of smaller diamonds around the central stone twinkled under the lights. She looked to him, to the ring, and then back to him.
"What do you say, Kat? Will you marry me?"
This time, no force on earth could have stopped the tears that overran her eyelids and warmed her cheeks. They'd talked about their future, of building a life together, but she never expected this. Not so soon. Marriage, family, a home they could share, it was a fantasy on the verge of becoming a reality, and god, she could see it so clearly in her head—a home they'd make together. Weeknights cuddled on the sofa after work. Stolen nights at Restrained Fantasies. Lazy Sunday mornings in the kitchen as she made pancakes for their children. She could have that. They could have that. All she had to do was say yes.
So there, in the restaurant where they'd reconnected after a decade apart, Katlyn Matthews kissed Maddox Westbrook, saying 'yes' without having to speak a word.
The End
