“Not a problem at all.” One side of her father’s mouth hitched up.
He liked Gabriel.
And she wanted to strangle him.
But maybe she’d kiss him first.
Epilogue
Gabriel paced the length of Nikki’s bedroom. The bathroom was too small and confining for him to wait in there, so he’d come out here to do his pacing.
“Anything?” he asked after his fifth pass.
“It’s been thirty seconds.”
“Longest two minutes of my life,” he grumbled, and stalked back into the bathroom.
Nikki leaned against the vanity, staring at the white stick lying on the surface. Two weeks. They’d waited down to the day. She’d made him agree to not talk about it while he made his move up to DC and she started her evaluations following the Wilson case.
“What’s that?” He leaned over and peered at the window on the test strip.
“It’s a blue line.” She blew out a breath.
Not pregnant.
“You sure?” He reached for the pregnancy test, but she slapped his hand away.
“The instructions said not to move it for two minutes after the results show up.”
“You mean it could change?”
“I don’t know. Will you calm down?” She shoved her hands through her hair.
He cupped her face and pressed his lips to hers. Gently. She was still healing, and he’d rather be shot than cause her a moment of pain.
She wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her cheek against his shoulder.
“What does it say?” she asked.
He peered at the test. “It’s still a blue line.”
“So we aren’t pregnant,” she said.
Gabriel couldn’t deny the pang of disappointment. Sure, it wasn’t good timing for a hundred different reasons, but he’d grown to want a child with Nikki.
“What do you think about that?” he asked. They’d agreed to stop all baby talk until they knew the results, and he wanted answers.
“I . . . don’t know. I mean . . . I know it’s for the best, but I’m a little sad, too.” She pulled back and wrapped her arms around herself, staring at the pregnancy test. “Is something wrong with me?”
“Hey, don’t start talking like that.” He grasped her by the shoulders and pulled her in close again. “You said yourself that it wasn’t good timing, that it was unlikely.”
“I know, but now I’m . . . I don’t know. I’ll call my doctor tomorrow.”
“And what?”
“And get birth control, for one thing.” She gave him the stink eye. Despite his wanting her with an appetite that would never be sated, their sex life had remained tame due to their need for recovery. “They’ll probably be able to tell me if I can even get pregnant.”
“You will. When it’s right, mi cielo.” He kissed her brow, her nose, and her lips.
She smiled and his world was right. Coming back to DC with her was the best decision he could have made. The crew understood. They were all invested in untangling what was going down in Miami, but it wasn’t going to happen overnight. And they needed more than one set of eyes in DC. Besides, this way Gabriel could also check up on CJ.
“I love you.” Nikki looped her arms around his hips, her fingers inching down over his pockets. Things were different between them now. They were good.
“Nice try.” He slapped her bottom.
“What?” She gaped at him.
“There’s nothing in my pockets except my wallet.” To prove it, he slid the leather billfold out and laid it on the vanity.
“I wasn’t—” She slapped her hand over her mouth before she admitted what she supposedly wasn’t looking for.
What she didn’t know was that the engagement ring she’d been so sneakily searching for was in his wallet. Waiting for the right time and place.
He grasped her wrist and pulled her hand away from her mouth.
“You weren’t looking for—what?” He grinned, enjoying the way her cheeks went pink.
He loved teasing her, making her laugh, and even riling her up until she cursed at him. Everyone else got the picture-perfect agent, he got this side of her.
She crooked her finger at him before scampering out of the bathroom.
He followed her out through the bedroom and across the hall into her postage stamp of a home office.
“I did some digging. I’ve got new information for the crew. It’s all here.” She handed him a thumb drive.
“What is it?” He took it from her and turned it over.
“It’s everything I could find on the Evers operation. Think it’ll help Aiden and the others?”
“I do.”
The others were going to shit their pants when he dropped this on them.
Their lives would never be normal. Gabriel was no longer part of the Classic Rides crew; that chapter of his life was over, but there was still a case to solve. He would wear more identities, but at his heart, he would always be hers. They would always be in danger. But they were together, and no alias had ever given him that. With Nikki, he could do anything, be anyone, go anywhere and still be happy. She was mi cielo.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
It can never be said that 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 U.S. 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 belly dancing. Readers can find her at sidneybristol.com, on Facebook, and @Sidney_Bristol on Twitter.
Don’t miss the first two books in the Hot Rides series, available now!
DRIVE
Aiden DeHart has a history—and secrets. His classic car garage is a front for an FBI operation. His current mission: get some evidence from a drug dealer’s ex-wife, then get out. Madison Haughton sending his engine into overdrive isn’t part of the plan, though, especially considering she might not be as innocent as Aiden thought . . .
Since her divorce from her sleazeball ex, Madison has sworn off bad boys, gotten some sweet tattoos, and become a star of Miami’s roller derby scene. But however fast she skates, her ex is always on her tail. When the sexy guy in the muscle car offers to help, he could be her ticket to safety—or a detour down a deadly road . . .
“Quick-paced, clever, and wholly original.”
—RT Book Reviews
“As intense as it is sensual.”—Publishers Weekly
“Fast, furious, and full of heat!”—Julie Ann Walker
SHIFT
Tori Chazov isn’t exactly the girl next door. For one, if the neighbors found out she’s an FBI asset and the daughter of a KGB defector, she’d have to grab her go bag and run. Then there’s her day job: making magic happen under the hood of big, beautiful muscle cars. She’s more likely to be wearing engine grease than mascara, and most guys don’t fantasize about their mechanics.
But then most girls don’t fantasize about FBI tech geniuses, either, and Tori has it bad for Emery Martin. Emery has a past. She can see it in the way he keeps his body honed like a weapon, in the mysterious scars under his snap-button shirts. She can see it in the way his eyes follow her around the room, even though he never says a word.
He’s going to have to start talking now, though. A vicious Russian hit squad is on the way to Miami to take Tori out for good. And without Emery’s help, she might not make her last great escape . . .
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