“I’m a killer, Cassidy. I did it for money because that was what my father did and trained me to do. Not knowing any better is an excuse that I refuse to live behind. I did what I did. I’d do what I did days ago all over again if it met keeping you safe. If it means keeping our child safe.” He sees the twitch of her shoulders at the word child and quirks an eyebrow at her. It’s an endearing look that she’ll never get her stomach to stop flip-flopping over, even if they live their entire lives together.
“Children.” She says quietly. There are a few seconds where he stares at her disbelievingly, and then his lips curl up at the corners.
“Twins?” He asks.
“Triplets.” The smile disappears as his jaw slackens, and Cassidy wonders if it’s the first time Troy has ever been rendered speechless. He looks at her lower abdomen as if it’s foreign to him, and then he looks confused.
“You’re two months along, shouldn’t there be something by now?” He doesn’t sound condescending, just curious.
“Yeah, that’s what I said, but the doctor says that it’s normal. I should start showing any day now, and she said that everything will be fine. But twins are considered high risk, triplets are extremely high risk. I could give birth prematurely, one could die while the others live, and they’d have to remove it, and they’re identical, so there are all these horrible things that could happen!” She inhales to keep going, but Troy stops her with a finger to her lips. He smiles at her as he pulls her in under his arm and looks out at the trees beyond the pastures.
“I’m here. I won’t let anything happen to you or them, Cassidy. No matter what it takes.” She snorts at his absurd belief that he could stop a miscarriage or anything else, but somehow his confidence in himself makes her feel a little better. At least she won’t be doing this alone.
“So you’re staying?” She asks quietly and feels the tensing in his arm at her question.
“I’ll never leave again.” He tells her. They have a long way to go in developing a relationship, but Troy is certain of one thing. He loves Cassidy Grant, no matter what her name may be now, and he’d never leave her side for anything or anyone again. The world has enough killers in it, and to him it doesn’t matter whether he’s on the right or the wrong side, he wants to retire.
* * *
One Year Later
“Oh God! No, that one is yours!” Troy tries to stifle the coughing fit while his eyes water and his hand comes up over his mouth and nose. The gagging comes next as he retreats from the room. His fiance and the mother of his children stands at the end of the hallway with her hands on her bony hips and the bright red streak of hair like a flaming stop sign in front of him. She’s let it grow out a little longer, but it’s still blonde with some sort of streak at all times.
Her finger comes up, and points in the direction he’s running from as she gets in his way. He’d never plow over her, but he’s actually contemplating it for a second. The stern look on her face would make any man quiver under that gaze, and he knows she’s an excellent mother just from that glare. She can stop anyone short with that look.
“Get your ass back in there, Troy Evans! I had to get up all last night and do my shift, and now it’s your turn!” She also knows how to make a man feel guilty. He even tries to beg with his eyes for a few seconds, but it’s no use. Troy would never run from a fight, but smelly diapers are not playing fair.
Dejectedly, Troy returns to the room to do his duty. He sucks in a deep breath before he returns to the changing table and gags as he removes the disposable diaper. The screaming he can handle, but the smell? That’s worse than a nuclear bomb.
Unfortunately, Robert’s screaming is like a fire engine siren. It’s loud, ear piercing, and grates on the nerves. There is no denying that all three triplets are Troy’s. They each have dark brown eyes like his, and they all are quite bull-headed already at five months of age. They’re healthier than anyone expected, too.
As soon as he’s done changing the diaper, Troy puts Robert back in his crib and runs a finger over the baby’s cheek. Then he stands in front of Troy Jr.’s crib, and checks to make sure this one isn’t in need of changing. And he finally ends with Jack, the littlest of the triplets. He was born one pound underweight, but he was not in need of a respirator.
They got lucky, and so did Cassidy.
His heart swells with pride when he leaves the room as if changing diapers is a feat only a real man could accomplish and sits down to his breakfast of eggs, bacon, and home fries like Cassidy’s father used to make. It’s five thirty in the morning, and the day has officially started. He’s not a religious man, but each morning he thanks the universe that he has a chance at a normal life.
Epilogue
A five year engagement seems like a long time, but getting married with three kids running around still learning how to be polite seemed like a fairy tale notion. Cassidy fixes the veil atop her head and looks at Troy Jr. sitting behind her quietly in a chair. His chubby cheeks come up to reveal dimples when he smiles at her, and she can’t help but return it.
“You look like an angel, Mom.” Coming from anyone else would make her feel silly, but coming from her brutally honest son makes it mean the world to her.
“Thank you, Troy. Could you help me with this last button?” He hops off his chair, and his feet hit the floor gently as he walks towards her. She can see the lithe way he moves even though he’s only five, and feels something she does not want to admit to herself, fear. They are definitely their father’s sons the way they compete with one another. But Troy Jr. is the most gentle of the three.
She bends down so that he can reach up and fit the white, satin covered button into the loop and then he positions her hair back into place. Before he can retreat, she pulls him into a tight hug and plants a kiss on his forehead. He struggles and looks embarrassed by her show of affection, but she can see the light in his eyes when she finally lets go.
“Moooom,” he drags out pithily.
“Don’t Mom me. It’s my wedding day, and I get to kiss whomever I want. Don’t worry, I’ll catch up with Robert and Jack after all this rigamaroo.” He looks satisfied with that, and she straightens his little tie. It’s hard not to choke on one’s own wedding day, but even harder when she’s fixing her son’s tie. Sometimes she thinks about what it will be like when they turn eighteen and run off to college. Will they stay out of trouble? Or will they be like their father?
Then she thinks about the man that Troy Evans has become, and her fears are stifled. He’s stayed true to his word and left behind the ways of a brutal man. Not once has he laid a hand on another in anger since that night she told him she was pregnant with triplets. Oh, he’s looked as if he wanted to quite a few times, but his self-control almost seems endless.
Troy Jr. is prattling on about the cake and all the great things they’ll get to eat, and she lets the warmth of love embrace her as she leads him from the room. Judy, one of the farmhands at the dude ranch, helps him to his seat and shoos Cassidy back into her room. “You can’t let him see you yet!” She whispers hurriedly.
This all seems very silly to her. The man has seen her naked over a thousand times, and yet they had to sleep in different rooms last night. The key word being sleep because they spent over three hours together in the wee hours of the morning before they went to their separate rooms again to get more rest. No one said they couldn’t do other things while they weren’t sleeping.
It’s another half an hour before Victor comes to retrieve her from her room. He’s wearing a black suit with a black shirt and a white tie. Leave it to him to stand out a little at a wedding, but she doesn’t mind.
“Are you ready for this?” He asks her with a small smile. After Troy returned, she had a long talk with him about his feelings for her, and she assured her that they didn’t go beyond casual interest. She won’t feel better about it all until he finally finds someone of his own.
“I’ve been ready for five years, Vic. Just get me down t
hat aisle so I can eat some cake. I’m starving!” She moves with easy grace towards the door that leads to the room they turned into a makeshift chapel. Each person from the dude ranch was invited, as well as a few friends that they’ve made in town. Overall, it’s a little less than a hundred and fifty people, but it’s a large crowd to Cassidy.
The old fashioned, high neckline dress with chiffon overtop of the satin suits her elegance as she makes her way down the aisle. Victor has to stop her from moving too fast several times, and she can see the twinkle in Troy’s eyes as he tries to wait patiently. They’ve been talking about this day for over four years, and now that it’s finally come, they both want it over with so that they can celebrate and call each other Mr. and Mrs. Evans.
It took a lot of convincing and pleading to Moonlight to get Troy’s first name changed, but they managed it. Yet to Cassidy, it’s not the name that matters, but the man behind it. She stumbles over the words that the pastor has them repeat until she gets to the final ‘I do’. Those two words come out loud and strong, and as the rings are exchanged she can feel Troy’s hand shaking.
There is nothing chaste about the kiss that sends tremors down her spine and her legs. It’s like that first kiss in her father’s barn, and there is a few clearing of throats as it lasts much longer than necessary. Their three, identical sons stand and clap with everyone else, and finally they get to go into the room with cake.
With three five year olds and all their friends, it’s a mess, but it’s light hearted and fun. There are games. The kids get to go outside and ride horses while the adults sit inside and talk about their lives and their own weddings or their hopes for one. Cassidy can’t stop looking at the man she can now call husband, and wonders if it will always be this way between them.
When he pulls her into for another kiss as they get a moment alone from the well-wishers, she’s pretty sure that the way he makes her legs weak and her heart stammer will never end.
“Cassidy,” he whispers to her as he pushes her hair back.
“It’s Cassie,” she whispers back to him with a little smile.
“I don’t care what your name is. I love you.” They’ve said those three words to each other countless times over the years, but this feels different. This feels as though he’s making a commitment for an eternity with those words and Cassidy puts her forehead to his chest. The shirt hides the scars, but she knows what they stand for.
“I love you, too, whoever you are.” They snicker and laugh, and then her breath catches when his warm hand moves down her waist and he pulls her in for another kiss. It’s a promise of what will happen tonight in the bedroom, and it makes her knees weak when she has to turn to another person wishing her a wonderful rest of her life.
Moonlight Rogers and Marty Summers both stand with one hand clasped over their wrist in front of their pelvises. They look everything like a secret agent should with their black suits and black ties. Even their shoes are shiny and perfect. The guests seem to realize that these men are dangerous, predatory and shy away from them.
“We came to see if everything is going well.” Marty says formally as he looks at Cassidy. She glances around at the party and the smiling guests.
“I’d say it is going pretty well.” Troy puts an arm around her shoulders and looks at both men with no expression. He hasn’t lost the ability to make someone squirm with that look. It’s not something he learned, but something ingrained in him.
“You enjoyed the gift?” Moonlight asks with little emotion.
“We did,” Troy answers this time. “Reese’s Pieces is currently causing havoc in the herd as we speak. He seems to have a roaming eye for the ladies.” Both men’s lips upturn and Troy returns the small smile. Feeling silly, Cassidy moves away from her husband and pulls each man into a tight hug with a few tears shimmering in her eyes.
“I don’t know how you did it, but I don’t think words can express how I feel about having him back.” Moonlight pats her on the shoulder once in an awkward show of emotion and clears his throat.
“It really wasn’t that hard.” She doesn’t ask them about the details, and hurries to find her sons. They’re bound to get into some sort of trouble tonight.
“You’re still not interested in the offer?” Marty asks lightly. He knows that Troy will say that he’s not, but he still has to ask.
“No, I like my life here. Besides, the world has you two.” After that tidbit of business is over, both men relax, and all three of them sit down at a table to discuss politics. It seems to be the only safe subject with these two, considering they cannot talk about work.
At the end of the night, Troy and Cassidy slip into the black sedan that Moonlight and Marty brought. They wave to their three sons and Cassidy worries that they’ll cause more trouble for Victor than the man can handle, but everyone insisted they have a honeymoon. She leans forward between the two front seats with a glimmer in her eyes.
“So where are we heading?” She asks.
“You know I can’t tell you that, right?” Moonlight responds seriously, and for a second her heart stutters. Then both agents look at each other and laugh as they speed up the car. “Paris, honey. You’re going to Paris.” Cassidy leans back with relief on her face and snuggles into the side of her husband.
“Our tickets say Mr. and Mrs. Evans, right?” She asks worriedly.
“Nah, we thought we’d change it up.” She narrows her eyes, but neither one of them laugh. Annoyingly, their tickets don’t have their real names on them, and they’re handed new identifications along with new passports as they get to the airport. It’s better to be safe than sorry.
Acknowledgements
This was solely for my readers.
That being said, I always thank my family for supporting me and encouraging me to pursue my dreams. I’d like to also give a shout out to past and present friends who believed in me when I was brave enough to actually admit what I wanted to do for a career. You’re all amazing people who deserve the best in life.
I listened to a lot while I wrote this book. It was actually a hodge-podge of music that kept me moving through the scenes rather rapidly. This is a full list of the songs and their artists.
I Will Follow You Into The Dark ~ Death Cab For Cutie
Nowhere Kids ~ Smile Empty Soul
You Spin Me Round (Like a Record) ~ Dope
In The Air Tonight ~ Nonpoint
Change ~ Candlebox
You ~ Candlebox
Cumbersome ~ Seven Mary Three
Megalithic Symphony Album ~ AWOLNATION
You Think You Know ~ Device
Burning Down The House ~ Talking Heads
Little Black Submarines ~ The Black Keys
A Tout Le Monde ~ Megadeth
What A Shame ~ Shinedown
Sin With A Grin ~ Shinedown
Hurt ~ Johnny Cash
‘Til We Die ~ Slipknot
Imagine ~ A Perfect Circle
Counting Bodies Like Sheep ~ A Perfect Circle
Call Me ~ Shinedown
Hey There Delilah ~ Plain White T’s
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Assassin Page 18