The receptionist called to say that she had visitors and with a final hug from Ann, she walked to the front. Stepping into the lobby, she was stunned to see the room filled with women…beautiful, smiling women, with Bethany at the lead.
Hands on her hips, Bayley greeted, “I can’t believe I’m seeing you again,” just before embracing her. Whispering, she added, “I’m so proud of you, Ag—Aggie.” Pulling back, she stared at her blonde hair for a second. “This is pretty, but I hope you go back to your natural, dark color.”
Grinning, she replied, “I plan on it just as soon as I can get to a salon!”
“I’ll book my favorite salon,” Angel declared, “and we’ll have a full day for all of us!”
Stunned, she stared at Angel’s blonde hair with the teal, pink, and purple stripes. Looking around, she wondered what the other women thought, but with smiles on their faces, she assumed it must be a good plan.
Greeting the women she had already met, she was introduced to Dani, Kendall, and Evie. Overwhelmed, she stood, self-consciously, in the room, uncertain what she should say, when Bethany reached over and took her hand.
“Aggie, you’re now part of us. We consider ourselves to be a unique sisterhood…think of it like a close-knit support group of friends. No matter how many friends you have, they can never understand what it’s like to be with a Saint. So, we will be your new sisters!”
Sucking in her lips, she whispered, “I’ve never had a sister before. And, to be honest, I’ve never had any real girlfriends, either.”
“Well, then sweetie, congratulations, you just gained eleven of us!” Bayley laughed.
“We know you need to get to work, but we’ll have a salon day just as soon as Angel arranges it,” Bethany declared, and each woman hugged her as they turned to leave.
As Faith embraced her, she held on tighter for a moment before saying, “I once saw danger in your future.” Smiling shyly, she added, “It’s gone…I only feel peace with you now.”
Aggie was still reeling from that pronouncement when the last to leave, Bayley, embraced her once again. “So…Agatha Christel?”
Laughing, she said, “Your quote that night stayed with me. It seems Agatha Christy knew exactly how to describe my life. So, adapting her name just seemed appropriate.”
“I love it,” Bayley grinned.
Aggie quoted, “ ‘I like living. I have sometimes been wildly, despairingly, acutely miserable, racked with sorrow; but through it all I still know quite certainly that just to be alive is a grand thing.’ ”
Tears filled Bayley’s eyes as she offered a final hug before leaving the center.
Nathan walked, hand in hand, with Agatha as they made their way through the cemetery. Coming to a halt at a double gravestone, she knelt, her fingers tracing the words.
Harlan Robert Masten
Devoted husband and friend
“I like the stone,” Nathan said, kneeling by her side.
“I wanted something simple…he would have hated anything ornate.”
Nodding, he remained silent, allowing her time to just feel.
Bending close to the marble, she whispered, “I found it, Harlan. I found the light. And it’s right beside me.” With that, she squeezed Nathan’s hand and rose from the damp grass. Looking up at his face, she smiled. “I know he can rest in peace now.”
Wrapping his strong arm around her shoulders, he escorted her back to his truck.
Nathan, Aggie, and Scarlett walked through the woods, the other dogs trotting along. They had spent the morning playing with Persi’s six puppies. She had been entranced with the little bloodhounds, declaring them to be the cutest in the world.
He smiled, listening to her talk about the Saints’ women offering more than friendship, but a real sisterhood, knowing she had never experienced that.
“I guess we were both kinda loners,” he said, realizing that the Saints were now his brothers as well.
They stopped on the path, the tall trees and thick, green brush creating a wall of privacy, like they were in their own little world. The sun shone down in shafts through the limbs, sending sparks of light all around. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her body flush with his. Holding her dark-eyed gaze, he remembered the first time he saw her, hidden in the shadows of the nighttime forest. She had captured his imagination then and now had captured his heart.
“I love you, sweet Aggie,” he confessed.
Her breath caught in her throat and she blinked back the tears threatening to fall. “I love you, too.”
He bent to take her lips, but stopped a whisper away when she spoke again. “Faith said she felt only peace with me now…but it’s more than peace. It’s love.” Smiling, he kissed her, pouring all the love he had into their touch.
Scarlett stopped along the trail and turned her soulful eyes back to her master. A sunbeam rested on her red coat, warming her for a minute. Then, she trotted back to them, leaning her weight against her master’s legs, satisfied just to be part of their embrace. If anyone else had been in the woods viewing them, they would have sworn she smiled.
Far away, Mace Hanover climbed the steps of his lighthouse, the caves below housing his security company. As he emerged at the top, the sun was setting behind him, casting a glow over the water, the waves gently slapping the rocks on the shore. Leaning his arms on the rail, he peered out over the horizon, the last few days on his mind. The rescue mission, long in coming. The meeting of an old friend, also long in coming.
Life was not what he had ever expected it to be, but choices had been made and decisions hard earned. He watched the sun as it finished its last decent into the water, shooting brilliant colors across the sky. Standing, he appreciated the view, thankful that it never got old.
His radio, clipped to his belt, called out, “Boss, got a new call.”
“Be right down,” he responded. With a final glance at the ever-changing sky, he turned and walked back down the stairs.
33
Six Years Later
Jack opened the front door, watching as Nathan and Aggie pulled to a stop at the side of his and Bethany’s home. Walking up the wide front steps, they entered and he bent to kiss her cheek before shaking Nathan’s hand.
“Don’t run,” she called out to Jane, their four-year-old daughter. “Hold your brother’s hand.” They watched as Jane turned back to grab toddler Evan’s hand as he tried to catch up to her.
Nathan moved through the kitchen and, with a kiss to Aggie’s head, he headed out the back door to keep an eye on the children, already at play. She joined the few women in the kitchen still putting food onto platters.
Jack followed Nathan, stepping onto his massive, backyard deck that led to a stone patio. Moving to the grill, he unloaded a plate filled with hamburgers ready to be cooked. The large backyard, surrounded with a white-picket fence, covered in thick, lush grass was currently overrun with children playing. He manned the grill, along with Patrick, as some of the other Saints kept an eye on the children.
His children, Peter and Anne, along with Chad’s daughter, Amanda, as the oldest ones, herded the younger ones. Cam’s daughter, Genevieve, and son, Thomas, played on the swing set with Bart’s children, Rick and Shelby. The slide was occupied with Monty’s two girls, Ashley and Ariane, and Chad’s son, Robert. A small kiddie pool and sprinkler was closely monitored by Blaise and Luke, as they watched Beth and Ben, and Carl and Bill. Nick’s children, Bernard, Brooke, and Bryce ran circles around the gathering, chasing Marc’s children, Ken and Marianne.
With Jane and Evan in the bunch, the twenty-one children and twenty-four adults made for a huge crowd.
Lowering the hood on the grill, he cast his intense gaze over the gathering of children and adults, and could not believe his life. He expected to have a military career and remembered his Special Forces squad with pride. Their Captain, Tony Alvarez, still ran the Alvarez Security Agency, along with Sergeants Gabe and Vinny Malloy and Jobe Delaro, and the Saints partnered with
them when necessary.
After the military, he dedicated himself to the security and investigation business that was his calling. He thought back to some of the many other partnerships throughout the years, especially with Mitch Evans, a former FBI agent who was now the Police Chief of Baytown, a small coastal town where he and the Saints had vacationed many times.
A slight smile crossed his face as he thought of another former Sergeant, Mace Hanover, whose Lighthouse Security company now occasionally partnered with his as well.
Finally, he thought of the things in his life that were right at his fingertips. A wife and children had never entered his mind, until Bethany came bursting through his property woods many years ago, altering his world for the better. Now, he had love, children, and the honor of watching his men, who were not just employees but also friends, have the same.
The Blue Ridge Mountains cast long shadows in the background and the fresh mountain air filled his lungs. Arms circled him from behind and he reached back to shift Bethany’s body around to his side, pulling her in close to him.
“Happy?” she asked, turning her trusting face up to his.
Looking around at the gathering once more, he tilted his head toward hers. “More than life itself, babe.” Kissing her gently, they stood together, hearts light.
Hearing a cheer go up from the crowd, they turned and saw the assembly lifting their drinks. “To the Saints!” the others yelled, the children shouting along with the adults.
He nodded, lifting his cup as well. “To the Saints.”
* * *
To continue this story to the next spin-off series, I offer it in a boxed set with other amazing authors!
Mace (Lighthouse Security Investigations)
* * *
Heroes at Heart (Military Romance)
Zander
Rafe
Cael
Jaxon (coming fall 2018)
Jayden (coming 2019)
Asher (Coming 2019)
Zeke (coming 2019)
* * *
Baytown Boys (small town, military romantic suspense)
Coming Home
Just One More Chance
Clues of the Heart
Finding Peace
Picking Up the Pieces
Sunset Flames
Waiting for Sunrise (fall 2018)
* * *
Saint’s Protection & Investigations (Military Romantic Suspense)
Serial Love
Healing Love
Revealing Love
Seeing Love
Honor Love
Sacrifice Love
Protecting Love
Remember Love
Discover Love
Surviving Love
Celebrating Love
* * *
Alvarez Security (military romantic suspense)
Gabe
Tony
Vinny
Jobe
Sleeper SEAL
Thin Ice
Letters From Home (military romance)
Class of Love
Freedom of Love
Bond of Love
The Love’s Series (detectives)
Love’s Taming
Love’s Tempting
Love’s Trusting
The Fairfield Series (small town detectives)
Emma’s Home
Laurie’s Time
Carol’s Image
Fireworks Over Fairfield
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