Page 94 of My Temptation

“Now I really do understand why your nickname in the motorcycle club was Smoke,” I muttered as I pulled out of the parking lot.

He chuckled. “Had to be quick to get the job done.”

We approached a stop sign about a mile from the bar when Nick spoke again. “I’ll jump out at the stop sign. Remember, I’m right outside. You need me to come in, just say the word.”

I stopped at the stop sign, and without a sound, he was gone.

“Jesus,” I muttered.

“He’s good,” Mila said as I made a right turn onto the road that would lead us to the bar. “He talks about the military trying to keep Brody, but honestly, the FBI tried just about everything to keep Nick.”

“Why’d he leave?”

“It’s a hard lifestyle, and he didn’t want to put Maddie and his son in danger by continuing it,” she explained. “He also told me he accomplished what he set out to do and had no reason to stay.”

I pulled into the parking lot and parked in the general area we always had, but we both paused before Mila spoke. “I really hope this is the last fucking time we have to go in there.”

I was surprised by her comment. “Thought you loved this shit.”

“I did at one time,” she confessed. “But doing this job reminds me of why I left. I hate pretending to be something I’m not. I swore I’d never do that again.”

“Then why did you agree so easily to this?”

She looked thoughtful for a moment before she answered. “Because I trust this team to get me out safely, and that trust isn’t something I had under my father’s command. But also because of Beth. She’s become a friend to me, and I hate that she’s lived almost her entire life in fear. That needs to end. And I have a feeling it will finally end when we take Samson down.”

I never considered she hated doing this. She always seemed so ready to jump in. “You’re really good at hiding the fact that you don’t want to do this anymore. I always thought you liked it.”

“I'll admit I like the adrenaline rush, but I want to find other ways to get that now. I don’t want to be in situations that make me forget who I am. I lost myself for a long time but over the past six months with this team…” She looked directly at me. “And you, I’m finding myself again, and I’m not willing to go back.”

I nodded. “Then let’s get this done.”

We pushed open the SUV doors and stepped out simultaneously. Walking toward the front of the vehicle, Mila slid her hand into mine as if it was the most natural thing to do.

And maybe, after all we’d been through, it was.

29

ETHAN

Pulling open the door to the bar, I was careful not to look back toward the parking lot, even though I was tempted. Nick had pointed out that it’s instinctual for us to do that if we know someone is around, so I made a mental note not to. My body language could be a red flag to anyone watching us that we were hiding something. I was impressed with the little things that Nick learned from years of being undercover. Subtle things we do and don’t realize we’re doing but could be to someone else.

Mila stepped inside, and I closed the door behind us. Glancing around, I recognized the same few people sitting at the bar and a few new ones. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

“Hey.” My head turned toward the bar when I heard Steve call out, so we headed in that direction. We were barely there when he continued talking. “You on the list tonight?”

“Yeah.” I jerked up my chin. “Got the invite last night.”

“Careful.” He grinned. “You might just become a regular.”

I chuckled. “That would take moving here permanently.”

“Seen it before,” Steve replied, but that answer seemed odd.

“We should probably get downstairs,” Mila said.

I watched Steve when his attention flicked toward her. “You in a hurry?”

She shrugged casually, but her response was flirty. “Maybe.”

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