Page 32 of Oliver

“My Mom is in heaven, too.”

“Do you miss her?”

“I miss her a lot,” I said.

“Me too. Mommy always read to me. Daddy reads to me now, but I still miss my mommy.”

“I know, sweetheart. It’s hard when mommies go to heaven,” I said, hugging him.

And then Oliver was there, he picked his son up and hugged him. “You’re supposed to wait for me before you talk to strangers, buddy.”

“She’s not a stranger,” Olly said proudly. “She’s the swimmer lady.”

I looked at Oliver.

He looked at me.

And in that one moment, I realized the walls I’d built to protect myself, were already falling.

Because this wasn’t just Oliver’s world anymore.

It was mine, too.

“Niki, this is Emery Blake. Emery, this is Niki Spenser. She’s married to Lyon.”

“It’s so lovely meeting you, Emery. I hope everything turns out good for you. I’m sure Oliver and the team will handle everything for you.”

“It’s nice meeting you, too,” I said. Looking at this beauty and feeling drab, my hair hung down my back, and I was wearing Oliver’s shirt. “I have to get dressed,” I said, hurrying from the room.

19

Oliver

Olly was thrilled to see me; he kept telling me how much he had missed me. This was the first long mission I had taken since I discovered I had a son. I was as happy to see him as he was to see me. I hoped I was doing the right thing by letting him come visit me. Victor was locked up, but we weren’t sure if anyone else was out there hunting for Emery. I was sure we would have found that out by now.

Down the road, in a black SUV parked just out of sight, a man lifted a phone to his ear.

“She remembers something,”he said into the receiver. “It’s only a matter of time.”

A pause.

Then:

“Yes, sir. I’ll handle it.”

He hung up.

And watched the house.

Waiting.

20

Emery

Ihadn’t worn a swimsuit in weeks.

Not sincebefore I was kidnapped.

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