“Finn!”
He turned to see Kai Costa scrambling up the steps to the deck.
“Hey, bud.” He held out his hand for a fist bump with an explosion at the end.
“Hey, back. How are you feeling?”
“Better every day.”
“Good, because I have an important question for you.”
“I’m listening.”
“What did the skeleton drive to the hockey game?”
He mock frowned. “I didn’t know skeletons could drive.”
“Well, most probably can’t, but this one can.”
“How does he see the road without eyes?”
“He just does.”
“You sure he can wrap those bony fingers around a steering wheel?”
“He’s super-skeleton. He can do anything, even leap tall buildings with a single bound.”
He was chuckling now. “Wow, he sounds awesome. Okay, I give up. What did super-skeleton drive to the hockey game?”
“A zam-bony…get it?” Kai doubled over in laughter and slapped his knee.
He laughed with him, as much at Kai’s reaction as to the corny joke. “I get it, and it’s funny.”
Kai looked pleased with himself. “My dad wanted me to ask you if you’ll be ready to start rehab tomorrow.”
Kai’s dad Dante was a beast. A former Navy SEAL, he now trained the agents, and he’d kindly volunteered to take charge of Finn’s rehabilitation.
“Tell him I’ll be ready.”
“Good. You need to get better so I can show you the obstacle course.”
“Deal.”
Kai left, and Finn looked out over the water again. He’d met all of Kayla’s coworkers during the week, and he liked every single one. They welcomed him like one of their own.
They hadn’t talked long term, but he wanted forever with her. Their relationship would have to be long distance most of the time for the next five years, but he was willing to try. He hadn’t known her long, but now he couldn’t imagine his life without her.
#
Kayla hugged Finn’s parents on the sidewalk outside the airport and waved goodbye as they headed inside the terminal to catch their flight. They were the nicest people, and she’d liked them instantly the first time she met them. Getting to know them better over the past week had been a gift. They adored their son.
She did, too.
It was scary how addicted she’d become to having him near. When Clint shot him, it felt like the bullet had pierced her, too. If he had died, he’d have taken her heart with him.
Her ribs were better, and the bruises on her face had faded to a dull yellow. Her wrist would need more weeks in the cast to heal, so she was on injured reserve. That meant more time spent with Finn.
Having him in her home the last week had been incredible. They talked and laughed and spent time with his parents. At night, she climbed into bed next to him and just held him, reassuring herself that he was alive.
She was pleased that he’d become good friends with Reed Steele, her best friend Hillary’s husband. As Reed drew up plans for a new house, Finn insisted on her input. All she wanted was his old house back, but she offered her opinions on the design. It would be a showstopper when finished.
He fit in perfectly with her coworkers. He fit perfectly in her house. He fit perfectly in her life. The only glitch was their respective jobs and the distance between them, but they didn’t live that far away from each other that they couldn’t visit as often as possible. And there was always Skype, as Tyler kept reminding her.
She’d always been a take-charge kind of gal, so maybe she should propose to him. She didn’t want any of the single women in Pittsburgh thinking they had a chance with him. He was hers now. Totally off the market.
She found him out on the deck. He loved it, and she loved seeing him there. She leaned over to kiss him and squealed when he pulled her onto his lap.
“Hey, I don’t want to hurt you.”
“The only way that can happen is if you leave me.”
Her heart skipped a beat. She felt the same way. “If you mean that, then what do you say we make this arrangement permanent?”
His jaw dropped. “Did you just steal my proposal? One I’ve been working on since the day I met you?”
She smiled at his incredulity. “I think I did.”
“Damn.”
“Oh, wait. I almost forgot to give you this.” She dug into her pocket and handed him a cellophane-wrapped treat, now smashed after he tugged her into his arms.
“A Twinkie?”
“Hey, it worked for Brittani Thornton, your first girlfriend.”
He laughed heartily and kissed her. “It worked for you, too.”
She dropped her forehead to his. “Is that a yes?”
He chuckled. “Babe, it’s a definite yes.”
# # #
Notes
I hope you enjoyed Iron Cross, the twentieth book in the COBRA Securities series. Several characters from previous books made appearances in Iron Cross. If you would like to read their stories, you can find them here:
Logan Bradley from The Fan
Luke Colton from Face the Music
Kai Costa from Hide and Seek and Kidnapped
Sawyer Oldham from Hunted
Tyler Redmond from Fatal Dreams
About the Author
Velvet Vaughn is the author of The List, The Fan, Committed, Violets are Blue, Trust No One, Hide and Seek, Killer Cuisine, Vigilante, Face the Music, Tough as Nails, Total Surrender, Hunted, Say Goodbye to Melody, Last Dance, The Viper, Golden Girl, Fatal Dreams, Without a Trace, Running Scared, and Iron Cross, the first twenty books in the COBRA Securities series, as well as Saving Santa, and Kidnapped, COBRA Securities Short Stories. In addition, two novellas: A Christmas Miracle and Flying High Christmas are available as stand-alone books or in the anthologies All I Want For Christmas and Yuletide Treasures, respectively. Worth the Risk, the twenty-first book in the COBRA Securities series, will be published soon.
Connect With Velvet
Website: www.velvetvaughn.com
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Email: [email protected]
From Velvet
Thank you so much for purchasing Iron Cross. I hope you enjoyed Kayla and Finn’s story. If you did, I would appreciate you leaving feedback at Amazon.com or Goodreads. Thank you!
The twenty-first book in the COBRA Securities series will be out soon. Worth the Risk is COBRA Securities agent Quinn Billings and veterinarian Vanessa Lacroix’s story.
If you would like to read the story of one of the characters from my books, let me know. You can reach me through the contact page on my website or my Facebook Fanpage. I'd love to hear from you. And be sure to like my Fanpage so you can take part in giveaways, and sign up for my newsletter for a chance to win a gift certificate in each issue.
Thank you again for your support!
Iron Cross (COBRA Securities Book 20) Page 25