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"Mama Santa!" Theo had talked to her about Santa more recently, which made her even more excited about the holiday. She wouldn't remember this Christmas, but she'd still hold that excitement in her heart that would follow her.

"I know Santa's coming tonight!" I placed her back onto the bed, picking out her clothes for today. "But today, we are meeting Reed's family and going to Bella's!" She waited impatiently as I helped her change and tied the red ribbon on the back of her dress.

"Alrighty, we got things to do to prepare for Santa!"

"Cookies?!" She squeals with a sparkle in her youthful eyes.

"Yep, cookies!" I follow her to the kitchen, where she rushes in impatiently to start baking. I enjoyed her being my little sue chef, even though all she did was taste-test the dough and chocolate.

?

Staring out at the Charles from here wasn’t a bad view. Tonight, I wasn’t going in on a mission but rather observing one. My target hadn’t arrived in the city yet, but they were packing shipments of something. I couldn’t go in and wipe them out, or she’d be alarmed, Verona Nardini, a drug ring leader in several small countries. But for some reason, she was drawn to Boston, and I only knew about it because Isaac told me to keep a close watch.

They were packaging things as packing peanuts flew in the air, and green bubble wrap was left behind. I couldn’t get a clear view of what was being packed, but it looked like containers. The guards looked frantic as if they knew someone was watching, maybe waiting for the police to raid. But from what I heard they were still trying to find them.

Verona held a general’s brothers in captivity, an American citizen trapped for ransom. There had been an ongoing rescue and search, but one of these men could lead us there. The warehouse seemed almost too obvious, which made me curious if this was a setup or a ploy. The real operation lay in the shadows far from here. I heard a noise, and as I looked over on the far-left side of the rooftop, he sat, watching.

“How much is he paying you for this?” I call out, and he looks over to see me, a smile on his lips.

‘You’re not allowed to ask me that,” he says, and I move from my post, walking towards him. We meet in the middle, tucked away by the shadows. I hadn’t seen him since that night, I felt it for the best. But not seeing him out on missions felt weird now.

“Where have you been?” He sighs at my question and looks back to his spot on the roof.

“I’ve been right here,” he points to the spot, but he knows that's not what I meant.

“Amartolós?” He fiddled with the hood of my jacket. I knew he wanted to remove it to fully see my hair, no matter how long or short it may be. I wanted to know what I was hiding behind all of this.

“I stepped back for a bit to enjoy time with my family.” Family. Oh my god, he had a family, and I slept with him like some idiot. I guess it really does go both ways; he slept with me, and I became a cheater. But he was too, and I didn’t care to ask. “Y-your family…” his head shakes at my reaction, which is heard in my voice.

“My mother, they can be annoying sometimes,” he laughs. “Don’t worry; there's not a wife or a child you should be scared of,” he glances back at the warehouse, busy with packing as we seem to begin neglecting our mission as a whole.

“Good, you scared me for a moment.” It was interesting to hear about his life. I figured he wouldn’t tell me about much of it due to security. I wouldn’t tell him about my family; it would put them at risk. I didn’t know what his intentions or moves were. “So, is this the part where we go back to hating each other?” I asked.

“Maybe in the New Year,” his hand trailed up my side as our faces were inches apart.

Don’t do it, Hope. You have a boyfriend and a life back home. Reed didn’t deserve this. What kind of person would this make me?

The sound of a ringtone interrupts us, and he looks over, “Shit.” He turns to stop it quickly and makes his way back to his side of the roof. But now I stood conflicted in the middle. As I looked over the same operation continued below, he was on this job; they didn’t need two people for this.

So, while he was distracted, I slipped away from the roof stop. I don’t know why I did it, but maybe it was in fear. I knew it was best to try and never see him again because someone would end up hurt. Maybe it’d be me, or perhaps it’d be someone else. He already told me his intentions long ago, even if he’s claimed they may have changed.

You can’t trust anyone.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Hope Taylor

Standing outside Reed's door with Joely in hand made me nervous. I never felt nervous, but here I was freaking out. I was meeting his parents, and I guess Joely was too.

Sure, she'd been around Reed a handful of times, but not his parents. What if they hated children? What if this was a terrible idea? It would only be a few hours, and then I'd go to Bella's.

I looked at Joely, and she remained with a smile on her face as she held a gift in her hands. I pressed the doorbell, and within seconds it opened. A man who looked just a few years older than Reed stood in front of me. I recognized him sharing his blonde hair, but his was darker, and his eyes were a brighter blue.

"He was right; you are beautiful." He smiled at me, stepping aside to welcome me in, "You must be Hope, and this is Joely?" He offered his hand, and I shook it. This was his brother.

"You must be Griffin?" He nods and takes the gifts wrapped in red wrapping paper from Joely, giving her a small high five.

"Are you excited for Santa?" he asks her, and she nods rapidly. "I heard on the news that he was spotted in Japan just a few minutes ago!" The excitement in her face grows, though she's only three. She was already so hopeful of Santa, something I had always dreamed to see.

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