Page 1 of Five Goodbyes

Prologue

I’m smiling as I fly down the road, my partner and lover sitting next to me as we chase a perp who’s been eluding the FBI, eluding Jasmine and me for over a year. We never rest being special agents for the FBI in Miami, Florida . . . and I absolutely love the excitement and adrenaline of this job . . . and I love Jasmine Anderson.

“Do you think we get off on adrenaline?” Jasmine asks as she laughs, her expression a mixture of excitement and raw fear.

“We definitely get off on adrenaline rushes. When this is over, I’m going to pull over at the first private road I can find, set you on the hood of this vehicle, then release every ounce of this energy burning through both of us as I pound you so hard you can’t walk for hours.” Just the thought of doing that makes me press my foot down harder on the pedal. I can’t get enough of this woman.

“Then drive faster,” she huskily whispers before reaching over and sliding her hand across my thigh, making me jerk the wheel of the vehicle as I nearly explode right where I’m sitting. We are going far too fast for her to touch me right now and still keep the two of us alive. Damn, I’m obsessed with this woman.

“Stop it right now! I love adrenaline, but I’m far too happy to die right now.” I keep my eyes straight ahead because if I turn to look at her, it will be all over.

“Stop what?” she asks with a false innocence.

“I don’t think you realize that when your mind goes to the gutter, you make these little moans and whimpers. My dick’s throbbing right now and sex is the last thing I should be thinking about when we’re going well over a hundred miles per hour chasing a crazy gunman.” Just to prove my point, a husky sound escapes her that has me ready to let this asshole in front of us get away just so I can find the first private road I can get off on and keep that promise I’ve just made to her a minute ago.

“There are crazy gunmen all of the time. There’s only one you and me. You’ve made me discover how exceptional sex is . . . and now I want more and more. You’ve turned me into a nymphomaniac and I’m burning all of the time now whether you’re sunk deep inside me or I’m just thinking about you taking me in many different positions.” I suck in my breath and bite down on my lip to try to focus on pain instead of my throbbing arousal.

“Damn, I’m about to let this bastard get away,” I growl, my voice raw. I press down harder on the accelerator and barely make it around a few cars. My lights are flashing and we’re moving at breakneck speeds. Thisreallyisn’t the place to have this conversation. Our only saving grace is that most people are getting the hell out of our way.

“Shit.” I yell as I slam on the brakes, our vehicle fishtailing for a few breathless seconds. I then whip the wheel and make a sharp turn to pull off the exit the perp has just taken. My siren blares through the night and I zip around several more vehicles, missing them by only inches.

“You almost missed that one,” she says. I take one millisecond to glance at her flushed cheeks and sparkling eyes. She’s so damn beautiful it hurts to gaze at her.

I turn back to see a vehicle heading straight for us, the lights nearly blinding. I whip the wheel to the left and can hear a scrape as our cars touch for the briefest of moments. I smile as Jasmine laughs. Well, we either laugh or cry right now, and I always prefer laughter.

I draw close to the perp. Gottcha, you bastard. It’s almost over.

“We’re going to get him,” Jasmine says as we shoot onto the Seven Mile Bridge.

“He has nowhere to go now,” I tell her, not letting the perp get more than a car length from us.

“Maybe he just wants to hang out in the Keys and get a final drink before he’s locked behind bars for the rest of his life,” she says with a chuckle. The rest of our team is far behind us now, not nearly as brave or confident in their driving skills. They’ll soon catch up though.

“We might have to join him after we cuff the bastard. I could use a drink.” Hell, I can use a dozen drinks after the adrenaline rush of this chase.

“We can let him use a straw then he can sit at the table and drink while we have him locked down while we wait for the rest of our team to arrive,” Jazz says. “It might take a while.” The rest of the team may take long enough for a drink. We both laugh.

“What is wrong with us?” She reaches over and sets her hand on my leg, but thankfully doesn’t rub this time. Our pull to each other is so great it almost hurts not to be touching. We’ve only been in an official relationship for weeks now. Since the door’s been opened though, we’re both fully in. I don’t know how we resisted as long as we have. There’s so much I want to say to her. I need to tell her what she means to me.

“Jazz,” I say, my voice husky. I want to reach out to her, but I don’t dare take my hands off the wheel.

“I know,” she says. We have a way of communicating without saying too much. It’s just one more reason we’re meant for each other. It might not always be easy as we are from two different worlds, but in this case, I really do believe love can conquer everything.

I briefly glance at Jasmine again before facing forward. We’re still driving way too fast for me to lose concentration. I’m smiling . . . before it all goes to hell.

The perp in front of us slams into an oncoming vehicle, making that car flip into the air . . . heading straight at us. I have nowhere to go. My body goes cold as I see our impending death coming straight at us. I hear Jasmine scream in fear as her fingers stiffen on my thigh. I jerk the wheel too hard trying to avoid the collision.

“Hunter!” Jasmine screams.

I lose control of the car, and worse than that, the speed I’m travelling propels Jasmine and I toward the side of the bridge as a vehicle clips our side. There’s a brief moment the tires connect with the road, and I think I might be able to steer out of this, but then we’re spinning again.

Another vehicle crashes into us from behind, sending us straight to the barrier between the safety of the road and the water far below. My eyes see what’s happening but there’s nothing I can do to stop it. This isn’t good. This isn’t good at all. I look over at the only woman I’ve ever fallen for.

“I love you,” I say as our vehicle slams into a small car, a sickening crunch as our two cars momentarily meld together . . . and then we flip high into the air. It’s an odd feeling to be weightless in a car . . . an even odder feeling is to look up at the sky . . . then down at the ground . . . then back up to the sky again. Our car is in the air, flipping end over end, and the only thing I can do in this horrific moment is look at Jasmine . . . look at this person I love so very much.

“I love you,” Jasmine replies. It’s only been a second or two, but time has slowed. I want to draw our last moments on this planet out for as long as possible.

Whatever end we’re about to come to, at least I know I’ve received one of the greatest gifts a person can be given . . . to be loved and for the person to know you love them back. I’m only seconds from probable death, yet I’m not worried about it. I don’t want to die in a tragic car accident, but if I’m going to go, at least I’m next to the woman I love as I go. Incredible.

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