Page 32 of Bride of Vengeance

Like me.

"I should hate you," I whisper.

"You should."

"I should arrest you."

"You should do that too."

"But now I don’t want to do it anymore."

He steps closer, close enough that I can see the gold flecks in his dark eyes, can smell the clean scent of his cologne mixed with something uniquely him.

"Because you're beginning to understand that the world isn't black and white. That sometimes the monsters wear badges, and sometimes the heroes work in shadows."

Heroes.The word makes me think of that training exercise, of the lesson I learned about the difference between bravery and stupidity. About following rules versus doing what's right.

Maybe there's a third option I never considered. Maybe sometimes being a hero means choosing the gray areas. Means working outside the system when the system is broken.

Dangerous thinking.

But maybe dangerous thinking is exactly what this situation requires.

"What happens now?" I ask.

We discussed this briefly before.The possibility of a life beyond this crisis. Beyond the hunt and the hunted, the phantom and the agent who chased him. He doesn't say "together," but it hangs between us anyway.

"I've never run from anything in my life."

"I know."

"I don't know how to be anything other than FBI."

"You'll learn."

He talks like he's already decided we're in this together for the long haul.

Like he wants us to be.

"This is insane."

"Completely."

"We barely know each other."

"I know you'd rather die than compromise your principles. And that’s enough for me." His thumb traces across my knuckles, the touch gentle but possessive. "You're the strongest person I've ever met, and the most beautiful."

The words make heat spiral through my chest in ways that are completely inappropriate given our circumstances.

"Don't."

"Don't what?"

"Don't say things this personal."

"It's been personal since the moment I decided saving you was worth exposing myself."

Since the moment I decided saving you was worth exposing myself.The confession hangs between us like a bridge I'm not sure I'm brave enough to cross.