Ian’s face went blank. “He didn’t show. He got tipped off somehow. Thanks to Avery, we have the code. Weston broke it, but we can only hope Nelson shows his face soon. He has people inside the Agency. It’s obvious. But we’ve shut his arms dealing down for the moment and MI6 has arrested the UOF employees who helped your brother. Thomas Molina’s accounts have been frozen, and MI6 is sure they’ve tracked down where Rory stashed the cash he’d stolen from the UOF.”
Cutting off his access to funds would only make Nelson more dangerous. “He told me this is all a game, and he intends to beat you.”
Liam still had the scars. He’d been taken to a hospital and spent the better part of a week there. He had a bunch of new scars to show off, but he was alive because of Alex and Ian and Jake. His wife had gotten his ass up and moving, and his brothers had saved him. His brothers had covered him and Avery with their own bodies as the world blew up around them. Just as his blood betrayed him, he’d found his real family. The old Liam would have pulled into himself and shut everyone else out.
Avery’s Liam had opened up. He’d embraced his family. He was a loving husband, a proud brother, a protective uncle. He’d held Avery’s hand as they visited the grave of her first husband and her first baby. He honored them because they had such a place in his love’s heart.
And he’d visited her in-laws. It wasn’t perfect, but they were talking. His wife was too lovable to reject. She’d opened the world for him. She’d taught him to forgive himself.
Ian slapped his arm. “I’ll take care of Nelson.”
Liam was so fucking worried about his friend. “I think Nelson is planning on taking care of you.”
A savage look came over Ian’s face. “Then he should bring it on.”
“He’s going to come after us again.” Liam had no doubt.
Ian nodded. “I know. I’ll try to take care of it. I’m bringing on a new member of the team, by the way. I hired him yesterday. We’ve got a bunch of family men now. I need a smart agent who won’t get squeamish about handling a dirty op.”
“Who? Did Alex approve?” Liam had come to appreciate Alex’s opinion.
“Alex is in agreement, and you won’t like him.” Ian shrugged a little.
Liam groaned. “Not Weston. Please. Doesn’t he have a kingdom to run or something?”
Ian’s smirk told him he was right. “He left MI6 because he screwed up. I think he won’t do it again, and he was the one who figured out the cipher. We shut down Nelson’s money because of him. Damon says he’s a little haunted because he took Nelson’s data. I promised I would take care of him. We’ve all trusted the wrong people. I think he could be helpful.”
He would be a pain in Liam’s ass, and if the bugger looked at his wife wrong, he would take Simon out. But otherwise, he was on the team. “I’ll show him the ropes, boss.”
He owed Ian. He owed them all. Simon Weston would have the chance to prove himself.
“Thanks, man.” Ian looked around, his discomfort palpable. “Tell Grace good-bye for me. I love the kid, but I don’t know how to deal with her. I have a trust already planned for her school if that makes a difference. I won’t have any kids. I figure I can help with Sean’s.”
“Sure, mate.” Liam watched as Ian walked away. Nelson would show up, but they would be ready. They had won this battle, but the war raged on.
He opened the door again. Avery had Carys in her arms, rocking the baby sweetly. She looked up, her eyes bright.
She was his whole fucking life.
“Hey, baby,” she said with a smile.
Liam let the door close behind him. It was all right. He was with his family.
Deep in the night, Alex turned on his laptop. He would just check his email before going to bed. Hell, who was he kidding? He would be sitting here for hours. The minute he laid down in bed, he would be reminded of the fact that Eve wasn’t with him.
Watching Sean and Grace and their baby had hit him squarely in the gut. He was happy for them. He was happy for all of them. Everyone was married and had pregnant wives it seemed. Adam and Jake had wanted to start a family forever. Fuck, even love ‘em and leave ‘em Liam had settled down. He would be a father before Alex.
That was what churned in his gut. He and Eve should have been parents a couple of times over by now. Two or three kids. They should be in the suburbs with a couple of girls who looked like Eve and a dumbass boy who would act like Alex. They should have had a future.
He’d screwed it all up. He’d thought he was so fucking smart, but Michael Evans had shown him. He closed his eyes, the memories still so fresh in his head like the horror had happened yesterday and not years ago. But then wounds never healed when a man just kept ripping them open again.
A weariness invaded his veins as the screen changed. He’d earned his heartache. He’d gotten out of Eve’s bed not an hour before, and his soul was already aching. He’d lain there and just for a moment he’d pretended she wasn’t going to kick him out. He’d let himself hope that she would turn to him, lay her head on his chest and they could fall asleep wrapped around each other.
She’d gotten up and taken a shower as though she couldn’t wait to wash him from her body. He’d slunk out knowing damn well she was done with him for the night.