Page 71 of Hemlock

"I don't accept your resignation," he says, leaning back in the chair and crossing his arms over his chest.

"I can't stay here and have her too."

"Why not?" he asks.

"Your rules--"

"Ace's rules," he clarifies.

"The rules," I say because at the end of the day, they're in place and it doesn't matter who set them up. "I can't be connected to anyone, and I won't walk away from her."

"You're needed here," Kincaid says as if it's that simple.

I run frustrated hands over the top of my head, wanting to stand and shake the man because the situation doesn't seem to be sinking in for him.

"I won't give her up."

"And I'm not asking you to. The rules are what have to change. Do you remember that first meeting when I spoke about this new group?"

I nod. "You urged anyone with ties to someone to think really hard about asking to move here."

"I never insisted you couldn't have connections, just that anyone wanting to come took into consideration what kind of position that put your loved ones in. Ace insisted on not having ties."

"But he's--"

"The liaison between Cerberus and ICE," Kincaid clarifies. "The contract you're working through is with Cerberus, not with ICE. You're Cerberus, Pax, not ICE."

A wave of possibilities washes over me, and I do my best to not let it get too big. Is there a chance I can still be one of the good guys here in Tennessee and have her by my side?

"So you're okay with all of this?"

"I think it's a bad look for a Cerberus member to kidnap someone and hold them hostage, and I was planning on having a very serious conversation with you about it, but then I stepped in here and saw how protective she was over you, and I no longer think the direction that conversation was going to go is valid. It's clear she cares for you."

"And what about her staying with me while I continue to work?"

"There's a lot of good we do, Pax, and sometimes a little distance is necessary, but it's inhumane to ask someone not to love others. I know with your repertoire you might think you don't deserve it, but you're a good man. You wouldn't be on one of my teams if I had any doubt about that."

I always wondered how I slipped past their extensive vetting process and figured that Hound maybe had a hand in my invite to the group. Knowing Kincaid saw something in me I've always struggled to see makes me hold my burden-heavy head a little higher.

"If the two of you are together, we just have to make sure your job assignments are a little different," Kincaid says as if it's no big deal.

I fought my attraction to her, fought against it both for what it meant for the job and personally, and it was nothing but a waste of time. It was always going to work out this way because, for the first time in my life, I had no power to control what was happening.

"Ace isn't going to like this," I mutter but I feel a million pounds lighter having this conversation with him.

"Why don't you let me worry about Ace," he says as he stands. “With all of that out of the way, we have a lot to discuss.”

Chapter 36

Zara

"I think he just has to come into his own," Jericho says.

I don't feel ignored as I stand by the sink and nibble on a piece of toast, even though they aren't talking to me. They aren't speaking in code or making me feel left out. It makes me wonder just how forthcoming they'd be if I started asking questions.

Jericho looks at me like I'm some mythical creature as I cross the room, intent on inserting myself into their conversation. Instead of getting into a tighter group, a show of closing in ranks, they spread out a little, the man that introduced himself as Hound giving me an easy smile as I approach.

There are a million things I want to know, and I can't decide if I'll be disappointed if I hear it from these guys instead of...

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