Page 49

Amelia

THREE YEARS LATER

“No, beta… it’s Raven,” Kabir cooed to our one and half year old daughter, Dahlia. “Say Rayyyyyy-ven. Raven.”

“Way-way,” she blabbed, patting her tiny hands on his cheeks with all the confidence in the world.

Sometimes, I still wondered how we got here—how close the world had come to ending. How many people we’d lost along the way.

I shook the thought off and stepped into the nursery, leaving it at the doorway like I’d learned to.

This was new. The peace. The quiet.

A calm neighborhood in New York. Our fieldwork had dwindled. Kabir still went into the new Blackthorn Manhattan office occasionally, but mostly? He worked from home. We both did—our shared basement office in the townhouse was our little command center now.

It was calm. It was grounded.

It was ours .

He sat Dahlia down on the edge of the daybed, grabbing the tiny shoes her Aunt Kay-Kay had gifted last week.

“Time for a playdate, huh, Dali?” he said in that gentle, fatherly voice I swear didn’t exist until she popped out of me. “You’ll see your cousins, Raven and Elijah. You’ll be good for Aunty Leo, Uncle Zar, Aunty Kay-Kay, and Uncie Lo, right?”

“Lo-Lo,” she repeated, grinning.

Clearly someone had a favorite.

Kabir was halfway through wrangling her into those shoes when he glanced over his shoulder and smiled at me—that soft, devastatingly Kabir smile that still hit me in the ribs.

“You ready, Heer?”

“Yes, jaan .” I walked over and ran a hand over his shoulder. The sapphire on my finger caught the light streaming through the window.

I’d never been a jewelry person. But this ring? I would never take it off.

As he tried to get the second shoe on our very squirmy toddler, I watched him mutter under his breath.

“We’ve got…” he checked his watch, “forty minutes to drop her off and hit the road to Vermont.”

I rolled my eyes. “They’re not going to cancel the reservation if we’re late, Kabir. You forget who we are sometimes.”

His eyes lit up with victory the second he got Dahlia’s shoe on—like he’d just hacked the most complicated system in the world.

He turned toward me, sliding both hands around my waist, his voice dropping low. “Guess going from global fugitives to decorated heroes takes some getting used to.”

“Really?” I deadpanned, glancing at Dahlia—who, with great toddler elegance, slid off the daybed and ran straight to her toy basket. “By the way… she’s not looking. Kiss me.”

His brow arched. “I’d kiss you even if she were, Mrs. Gill.”

He leaned in—and his mouth found mine in a slow, searing kiss that stole every breath I had. His fingers slid into my hair, fisting gently as he coaxed my lips open, his tongue brushing against mine like a promise.

“Mama… no!”

We jumped apart, laughing as tiny hands started pushing at our legs.

“Guess someone doesn’t like me attacking your mouth,” I grinned.

He chuckled, dropping a softer, chaste kiss to my lips.

“Lo-Lo!” Dahlia cried, her face screwing up into a dramatic pre-tantrum.

“Yes, beta ,” Kabir said as he scooped her up. “We’re going to see Uncie Lo-Lo.”

She immediately lit up, giggling against his shoulder.

Drama queen!

We grabbed her bag, locked up, and made our way to the car—me driving, Kabir in the passenger seat with a juice box in hand for the queen in the back.

And as we pulled onto the quiet street, headed toward Zarek and Leora’s place, I caught Kabir watching me with that same soft look he always saved just for us.

After he remotely entered the gate code, we rolled up the gravel path just as the front door swung open and Logan stepped out—his one-year-old mini-Logan, Elijah, perched on his hip like a squishy royal.

Logan and Kaylan were crashing at Zarek’s for the whole weekend—because wrangling three toddlers takes a village… or at least four semi-functional special agents.

The second our doors opened and Kabir unlatched Dahlia from her car seat, she spotted her second favorite man.

“Lo-Lo!” she screamed with full toddler intensity.

Kabir scooped her up just as Logan sauntered over, grinning.

“Baby swap, Kabira?”

Kabir laughed, already handing over Dali like they were trading intel files. “Careful. She bites.”

Logan took her with one arm like it was nothing. “Good. So do I.”

I just shook my head, grabbing Dahlia’s bag. “You two are ridiculous.”

Logan bounced Dali on his hip. “You staying for coffee or you wanna get on with your hot parent getaway?”

Kabir rolled his eyes before giving me a look. “I need caffeine, Heer . Don’t know about you.”

I shrugged. “Coffee it is.”

Inside, the house was buzzing with familiar comfort. Kaylan and Leora were deep in conversation in one corner, while Zarek was locked in battle with Raven—who was holding his phone hostage and absolutely refusing to eat her breakfast.

She was three and already negotiating like a seasoned criminal lawyer.

My heart swelled painfully.

I missed Dylan.

Every day.

I wished he hadn’t made the choice he did.

A sigh escaped me before I could hide it.

Kabir shifted Eli in his arms, catching the change in me immediately. He reached out, brushing my cheek.

“You okay?”

I nodded. “Yeah… I’m okay.”

His smile was soft. Knowing. He leaned in and kissed my forehead.

We made our way in, just as Kaylan spotted us. “There she is!”

She all but sprinted to her husband, stealing Dahlia from Logan’s arms without a second thought.

“Guess Aunty Kay-Kay is second favorite,” Leora called out with mock offense.

Eli began to fuss in Kabir’s arms, kicking a little, so Leora stepped in smoothly.

“I got you, baby boy,” she cooed, taking him into her arms. “You still love Aunty Leo best, huh?”

As she walked away with him, I looked over at Kabir—both our arms empty.

He looked confused for a beat.

“We just got kid-jacked,” he muttered.

I grinned.

Just then, Raven came running with all the grace of a mini diplomat. She stood between us and placed her hands behind her back.

“Hello Annie Lia. Hello Unc-Kabir,” she said.

I crouched down. “Hello, my wise little Raven.”

She beamed. “I—I ate all my toasss. Cuss evil.”

“Can’t argue with that,” Kabir nodded solemnly. “Cuss is evil.”

Then Zarek appeared, walking over while rubbing his eyes like he hadn’t slept in years.

“Crust war again?” Kabir asked, glancing at the battlefield of toast crumbs and toddler tears on the kitchen counter.

Zarek let out a sigh from deep in his soul. “Every morning. She negotiates like she’s trying to close a billion-dollar arms deal.”

Kabir chuckled. “She is your kid, Zar.”

Zarek gave him a look. “Exactly.”

Just then, Logan wandered in—hair a mess, carrying Eli’s pacifier in one hand and a half-empty sippy cup in the other. “Mornin’, lovebirds.”

I smirked. “You look like someone who lost a battle to a diaper genie.”

“Don’t knock it,” he muttered. “That genie has teeth .”

He reached for the coffee pot, barely missing a yawn. “I haven’t had proper sleep in four days. And Eli’s suddenly in love with electrical sockets.”

Kabir raised a brow. “Want me to send you a care package? Maybe a nightlight, some holy water?”

Logan shot him a glare. “You try keeping a one-year-old alive when he thinks wall sockets are portals.”

Kabir shrugged. “Sounds like a skill issue.”

“Oh, bite me.”

“Can’t. Busy raising a reasonable child,” Kabir said, sipping his coffee. “Dahlia learned her colors yesterday. All of them. Including ‘apple.’ Your kid still thinks a spoon is a hat.”

Logan squinted at him. “You’re real confident for someone whose daughter screams when you cut her toast wrong.”

“She’s emotionally expressive.”

“She’s terrifying.”

“She takes after my wife,” Kabir said with zero shame.

Now I was offended—shooting him a glare.

“I wasn’t going to do this,” Logan deadpanned. “But you’ve forced my hand, Kabira.”

Then, with a totally straight face, he stared Kabir down. “I’ve decided Dahlia and Elijah are definitely getting married.”

Kabir blinked. “I’m sorry?”

“Think about it.” Logan gestured like this was the most obvious thing in the world. “Cousins-but-not-really. She’s cute. He’s got dimples. It’s practically written in the stars.”

Kabir stared, still buffering. “Huh?”

I bit back my laugh.

Logan grinned. “It’s called investing early.”

I let out a quiet snort. “He has a point. It’s a long play.”

Kabir’s eyes widened. “What is wrong with all of you? She’s a baby.”

“I’m just saying,” Logan shrugged. “Their joint wedding hashtag is gonna be #Dalijah. ”

“She’s not even potty trained,” Kabir hissed. “You better stop talking before I drain your bank account.”

“I’m flattered by your panic,” Logan smirked. “It means you know I’m right.”

“She’s one and a half!” Kabir half-growled. “The only thing she’s marrying right now is her stuffed elephant.”

Zarek rolled his eyes, engrossed in his phone. “It’s decades away, brother. Relax.”

“Nope,” Kabir muttered. “Not happening. Ever. Tell your son to back off.”

“He can’t even walk in a straight line yet,” Logan deadpanned. Then, with the most smug grin. “And yet I see it in his eyes.”

We were still laughing when Raven marched into the room again, tiara askew.

She held out her hand. “Uncle Lo-Lo, Eli ba-pup binky.”

Logan crouched in front of her, booping her cute little nose. “Here’s the backup binky, Ray.”

As she went running back, Logan blinked and stood back up. “She’s three and already better at logistics than I am.”

“She is better than you,” Zarek said without looking up.

“Maybe Eli should marry Raven instead,” Kabir added with a smirk.

“What?” Zarek’s head snapped up, nostrils flaring.

And just like that—

Chaos.

Caffeine.

Family.