Page 40 of Owen (Blue Team #1)

“Thanks for meeting with me,” Cruz said and offered his hand.

Whoa.

This was FBI agent Cruz Livingston?

“Thanks for coming all the way out to Maryland to meet with me.”

Owen cleared his throat and I dropped Mr. Hot Stuff’s hand. I glanced up at Owen and his lips were twitching.

“What?” I sassed even though I knew what.

I was totally gawking.

“Nothing.”

“You know,” I started conversationally. “It is not my fault all your friends are hot.”

“Right.” Owen smiled.

“You, of course being at the top of the hotness chart, but none of them are too far down.”

I swept my arm indicating the peanut gallery who were all smirking. No, Myles and Kevin were smirking. Gabe was outright smiling like an idiot but that was Gabe’s way. His over-inflated ego wouldn’t let him do anything but.

Zane Lewis was sitting at the head of the long table, which seemed to be his normal place.

That made sense since we were in the conference room at Z Corps’ office.

To Zane’s right was Lincoln Parker, Zane’s brother and…

well, right-hand man. Next to Linc, as he told me to call him, was Kyle.

And next to Kyle was Owen’s new teammate, Cooper Cain.

Owen explained to me that Cooper’s brother Jaxon was a member of the Red Team.

He might’ve explained some more stuff but it flitted in one ear and out the other.

Partly because I was nervous about my sit-down with Cruz.

The other part was because I was surrounded by suffocating male hotness.

And Cooper Cain might’ve been the newcomer but he fit right in.

“Right,” Owen repeated.

“Maybe we should get down to business,” Zane suggested.

My gaze sliced to him and I blinked. Then I blinked again. He was smiling.

Zane Lewis, Mr. Large-And-In-Charge, was smiling.

“You have dimples,” I noted.

“Here we go,” Linc mumbled.

“Don’t be salty, little brother. Not everyone possesses—”

“I thought we were getting down to business,” Owen interrupted.

And suddenly I wanted to know what Zane thought he possessed. Likely he thought he owned the world, and from what I’d learned about him that wasn’t far off the mark.

Zane had plenty of politicians in his Rolodex, though unlike Wilco, Zane’s contacts were made the legal way, and he was friends with them out of mutual respect, not blackmail.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t sit here all day and gawk at the plentiful eye-candy. I was now gainfully employed and I had to be at work in a few hours.

“I’ll make this quick,” Cruz started. “I know…we all know how hard it was for you to talk to the analyst.”

Cruz stopped and my heart started to flip-flop. It had been three months since the night I killed Wilco. A month since Owen asked me to marry him, and after a rocky first week home I’d laid Sarah to rest.

She was gone. I didn’t mourn her because there was nothing to mourn. Sarah Pollaski was well and truly at peace. So when Cruz had asked me to work with an FBI analyst it was not hard. It was cleansing. The last piece of the puzzle I needed to move on with my life.

“I told you then and I’ll tell you now—it was my pleasure.”

Incidentally, Franco had been wrong—Wilco was not as smart as he thought he was.

Cruz had seen Wilco’s brownstone was wired with explosives.

Later I’d learned about a man called Dude, who was friends with the three men who’d helped Owen save me—Wolf, Abe, and Mozart—who by-the-by, were total silver foxes, but that’s neither here nor there.

The point was, no one went kaboom . And Franco and the other soldiers who’d been at the retreat were in federal lockup.

Franco was not talking; the other four men were.

Singing like canaries now that they weren’t afraid of swimming with the fishes.

Franco was screwed.

I wasn’t the least bit unhappy about that.

“Right.” Cruz nodded. “I also wanted to tell you the information you gave us saved lives. A lot of them, Natasha. The FBI is still trying to sort out the women who are too traumatized to talk. But the other—and the last count I got was ninety-three—women have been reunited with their families and you did that.”

Ninety-three?

God, Wilco was the Devil.

“Thank you for telling me.”

“It was my pleasure.” I lost Cruz’s intense stare as he looked through the room and dipped his chin. “Z, appreciate the use of your office. ”

“Anytime. Tell Mickie hello and have a good flight back to Texas.”

“Will do.”

And with that, Cruz left the room.

Welp.

That was that.

I turned to Owen but before I could ask him to walk me out, there was a buzz in the room and Zane weirdly said, “Yes, my beautiful goddess of a wife?”

“Sweet Jesus, I’m gonna puke.” Kyle made a gagging sound.

“Sweet-talk will not get you out of this, Zane Lewis,” Ivy snarked.

Oh, I forgot to mention. I. Love. Ivy Lewis. She is drop-dead gorgeous, has the patience of a saint— hello married to Zane—and she puts up with zero bullshit. She also runs the back office of Z Corps. She was in reception when I’d come in for my meeting.

“Ivy, we are not under any circumstances getting a cat,” Zane responded.

I bit my lip. They were so getting a cat.

“How ‘bout we talk about this at home?”

“Nothing to talk about, lovely wife. I love you to the pit of my black soul but we’re not getting a cat. I hate cats. I have not kept this a secret. And it can’t be lost on you, every time I pass a cat I hiss at it.”

“Zane, you hiss at everything.”

“I hiss at things I don’t like.”

“As I said, you hiss at everything. I want a cat. Eric wants a cat. Can we please—”

“Fine. Get the cat.”

Lincoln busted out laughing.

Owen’s body started shaking and I closed my eyes.

This was my life.

“Baby, I need to get to work,” I whispered to Owen .

“I’ll walk you down.”

I didn’t need to ask, he’d walk me down. He’d also walk me to my car. He’d kiss me silly then he’d watch me drive away. I knew this because he did it all the time. Every time I left, same thing.

I loved my life.

“Thank you, honey,” I whispered as we stood.

Owen’s eyes darkened and my body softened.

“You’re lucky we’re not at home,” he remarked.

That comment made my body tingle because I knew what that meant.

Ever since the night of our engagement, any time I thanked him he found ways to occupy my mouth.

Seriously awesome, pleasurable ways. I vaguely wondered if I should call in sick.

I worked in a department store; people were always looking for overtime.

But I wouldn’t. I loved my job and my co-workers.

Besides, tonight when I got home, Owen would be there.

“I don’t know, I kinda enjoy your punishment when I show gratitude.”

“Not show, I love it when you show it.”

“Such a man.”

“Are you complaining I like the—”

I quickly lifted my hand to cover his mouth. “Hello?” I nodded toward the table.

“Baby, they’re busting Zane’s balls. Not a single one of them is paying attention to us.”

“I am,” Gabe announced.

Owen groaned and skewered Gabe with a stare. “One day, brother, you’ll be trying to have a private moment with your woman and when you least expect it I’m gonna pop up and ruin it.”

“Never gonna happen.” Gabe smiled.

“We’ll see. Payback’s a bitch.”

Owen took my hand and we were nearly at the door when I heard Ivy say, “There’s an Evette London in reception. She says she needs to speak to you and Kyle immediately.”

“Evette’s down there?” Kyle asked but he was already on his feet.

Ivy was confirming there was indeed a woman named Evette downstairs but Kyle was out the door and Gabe was in hot pursuit.

“Do you know what that’s about?” I asked.

“Nope. Never heard of the woman.”

I was pinned against my car, Owen was pressed against my front, and I was panting into his mouth. This was because he just broke an epic kiss.

Everything kept getting better and better.

“Have a good day at work,” he mumbled.

“You, too. See you at home.”

“Yeah, baby, see you at home.”

With one last sweet kiss, he let me go.

Then I watched Owen in my rearview mirror standing next to an empty parking spot watching me go.

I was loved.

So loved.

I had so many choices laid out in front of me, more freedom than I’d ever had.

Clean and free.

And every day, I chose Owen Cullen.