The events in San Miguel de Allende had shaken him. Cole Egan haunted him every single night. Hunt knew he had done the right thing by his friend, but it didn’t make him sleep better. Hunt was tired of the violence. In fact, he was sick of it. How long could he stay away, though? He had once sworn he’d never lose control again. Clearly, he had broken that self-made promise—first in Florida and then in Mexico. He had lived a life full of violence. Could he learn to live without it? He knew some people who couldn’t. He prayed he wasn’t like them. Only time would tell.
“Anything on your mind you’d like to talk about?” she asked, bringing her wineglass to her lips.
“There are so many things that I don’t even know where to start.”
“How are you and Leila doing?”
Hunt sighed. His relationship with his daughter was complicated.
“I need to have ‘the talk’ with her. You know? I still can’t summon the courage to do it.”
“Why?”
Hunt chuckled nervously, crossed his arms on his chest, and said, “Our relationship is so fragile that I’m afraid I’ll ruin it all the moment I open my big mouth.”
“Did you talk to your ex-wife about it?”
“She’s more open-minded than I am, so I’m afraid we won’t have the same discourse.”
Hunt shook his head, exhaled, and looked up.
“What is it?” Anna asked.
“How would you react if you’d found a picture of your daughter’s half-naked boyfriend on her cell phone?”
Anna cocked her head to one side. “It depends what half is naked.”
Hunt smiled. “The top half.”
“They’re fifteen, Pierce. At some point, they’ll start experimenting. You have to establish ground rules. Talk to Jasmine and Chris about it. Come up with a game plan, and talk to her. It’s not rocket science.”
“It is to me,” Hunt said, scratching the back of his head.
“I think the important thing is for her to know that you’ll be there, no matter what.”
“I know that.”
“Yeah, but does she?”
Anna was right, of course. He’d talk to Chris and Jasmine later today after dropping Leila back at their place.
“Thanks. I needed to hear that.”
“You’re welcome.”
They sipped their drinks in a comfortable silence for a bit.
“Will you be looking for a job?” Anna asked after a few minutes.
“Simon and I were actually thinking about becoming private detectives.”
Anna choked on her wine and coughed, red liquid coming out of her nose as she laughed out loud. Hunt noticed that her nose crinkled and the wrinkles around her eyes—not that she had lots of them—clustered when she laughed. It made her look even more attractive and real. He had fallen hard for this woman once before. He could fall again.
“Please tell me you’re kidding.”
Truth was, Hunt hadn’t even started to consider what he was going to do with his life. His skill set wasn’t the kind civilian employers needed in great numbers. Now that he thought about it, maybe being a private detective wouldn’t be that bad. Part of Carter’s immunity agreement with the Department of Justice was that he had to resign from the DEA. With the dismantling of the RRTs, Hunt knew Carter wouldn’t have returned to the DEA anyway. He was upset the DEA hadn’t offered his friend any kind of financial package, but Carter had been adamant. “Don’t fight this, Pierce. Please. I’m just happy I can walk again. I’m set, man. Trust me.”
When Hunt had asked him to elaborate, Carter had replied, “Talk to Chris Moon.”
Hunt had. And, once again, Moon had surprised him. Without anyone asking for it—even though Hunt was pretty sure it was Jasmine’s idea—Moon had opened an account for the Carter family and deposited a cool million in it with a promise that he’d top it up if needed. He had done the same thing for Katherine Egan. As far as she and her father were concerned, Cole had been killed in action during a black CIA operation in Mexico to rescue American hostages.
“Hey,” Anna said, bringing him back. “Where were you?”
“Did I miss something?”
“I was telling you my plan to close up the family business.”
That was music to Hunt’s ears.
“This makes me very happy, Anna. What are you gonna do?”
“I’m good with numbers and computers. I’ll find something. I know it’s gonna take time, but with Tasis’s help, I think I can do it.”
Hunt smiled, then asked, “Do you sometimes wonder about what could have been if we had met under different circumstances?”
Anna grinned and reached for his hands. “I do, but we already have our answer, don’t we?”
Before he could reply, Leila and Sophia joined them. Hunt and Anna quickly withdrew their hands, looking a bit silly in the process when Hunt knocked over his beer with his elbow.
“I thought you guys wanted your own table so you could talk about your boyfriends,” Anna said, winking at Hunt.
The girls looked at each other and giggled.
“What is it?” Hunt asked. “What’s so funny?”
Leila said, “Seems to me like you’re the ones who need privacy.”
Hunt was saved from embarrassing himself further when his mobile phone rang. He looked at the call display but didn’t recognize the number. He excused himself.
“Pierce Hunt,” he said once he was away from the table.
“Tom Hauer, Pierce.”
The acting administrator of the DEA was the last person Hunt expected to hear from. “What can I do for you, sir?”
Hunt looked back at Anna, who was in deep discussion with the two girls, and waved at her. She didn’t wave back, but she smiled, and in doing so her eyes sparkled in the midafternoon light.