Page 117 of The Promises We Break

My jaw drops. “Oh no, I don’t think so. It does not work that way, mister.” I shake my head.

He rolls over on top of me, hovering his lips over mine.

“Fine. Then I’ll just have to take forever.”

I lean up to bring our lips together in a tender kiss.

Then hold my hand out between us, pinky up.

“Promise?”

He wraps his pinky with mine, all smiles.

“Promise.”

EPILOGUE

HUDSON

“To the coolest World Series champion I’ve ever known,” Seamus cheers as we click the necks of our beer bottles together.

We’re celebrating at Afterburn, because what better way to celebrate than at the place my wife literally created?

After turning down the position in New York, Corbin decided he didn’t want to miss the chance of having her be a part of the project he envisioned for the New York club. So, both he and Christian offered her an Assistant Director position where she oversees the management of Afterburn and its growth, along with taking the lead on the project in New York, with her and Cruz flying in between. I’ve gone with her a few times since the start of the offseason, and the entire situation couldn’t have worked out better.

She gets her dream job, and I get my girl. Win, win.

The Afterburn bar is open nightly, but only for meet and greets. Since the opening of the club, the XConnect - Unleashed platform has skyrocketed, and it drives a ton of business to the bar almost every night.

The theme rooms are also open nightly, and Ember and I have taken to visiting often, during and after business hours.

There are shows on the weekends and special events nights a couple times a month.

Which is the reason Seamus told me he was moving here. Because the venue needed to contract high-level security on the special event nights and weekends. Ember asked Seamus if he and his team were interested.

I told her he would never agree, and like a total dick, he proved me wrong. Agreeing almost instantly when she asked.

“So, what’s the real reason you’re moving here?” I ask, calling him out on moving here so drastically.

“Yourwifedrives a tough bargain.” His reply is simple, but I call bullshit.

“Bullshit. You wouldn’t move here unless it was calculated, purposeful, and you had the entire thing mapped out in your head. What’s really going on?”

“I don’t need to work and only take jobs when I feel like it. This is one of those times.” He shrugs, sipping his beer, looking around the venue and not at me.

“Double bullshit,” I say again. He’s never been an emotional guy, nor has he ever needed to be around us guys. So, as much as I would like to say it’s about Jake or me and his freedom to move anywhere at his leisure…

It’s not.

He’s like a hermit crab, in almost everything, and doesn’t need to be around anyone, so I know his ass isn’t moving here for us.

“Does it have anything to do with that woman in white?” I side eye him over my beer to test his reaction because, let’s be real, the guy is an ex-SEAL and a government-trained killer.

He didn’t expect me to say that, and I can tell when a small, almost insignificant, twitch happens between his brows and hisAdam’s apple bobs, but he quickly takes a swig of his drink to cover it up.

“What woman?” he replies, with zero intonation and zilch in the eye contact area, too.

I laugh and shake my head.

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