Irony. There it was again. The man who’d haunted his nightmares for two years didn’t even know who he was. Didn’t even realize that he’d destroyed Connor’s life by the simple act of pulling a trigger.
“I’m the man who’s going to kill you,” Connor said softly.
And, yes, it was simple. Squeezing that trigger was the most natural motion his hand had ever made. He just… squeezed. Once. Twice. Three times, and then Knox’s body tumbled to the ground, and the evil eyes that had haunted Connor for so long lit up with panic before going glassy, unfocused, and finally… lifeless.
His breathing grew shallow as he lowered his weapon. He slowly turned to Hudson, who was still lying on the dirt, who hadn’t even made a sound when he’d put three bullets into another man’s chest right in front of her.
But her expression conveyed no fear. No recrimination. Her gaze never wavered as she locked it solidly on his, and when he leaned forward and held out his hand, she took it without hesitation.
“You’re here,” she whispered as he helped her to her feet.
“I’m here,” he said gruffly.
She glanced at the motionless body sprawled two meters away, and a flicker of emotion crossed her eyes. Triumph. Or maybe satisfaction. Either way, she didn’t seem devastated by the loss. She simply stared at the pool of blood forming around Knox’s chest as if mesmerized by the crimson puddle.
When she turned back to him, she looked calm and alert. “Why?”
He swallowed. “Why what?”
“Why are you here?”
His pulse quickened. He knew what she was really asking him, and his palms went damp as he struggled to find the right words. But he wasn’t good with words, damn it. He didn’t have Rylan’s easy charm or Kade’s city vocabulary, or the dry quips Xander always seemed to have handy.
All he had was… the truth.
“Because I —”
“Hudson!” a male voice interrupted. “Where the hell are you?”
Connor’s rifle shot back into position, taking aim on the trees behind Hudson’s head just as a frantic figure came into sight.
“Dom?” she blurted out, whirling around.
“Holy fuck, you’re okay!” The man’s voice was weak with relief. “Knox left the compound before us. I only found out when I got back and saw that he’d signed out, claiming he was going out on a patrol and —” He stopped when he noticed the dead body, a harsh curse sliding out. “Shit.” Then he went frozen in place as he noticed something else.
Hudson realized it at the same time, her shocked gaze flying to Connor.
“Don’t,” she begged.
It took him a second to understand what they were both seeing. He still had his weapon trained on the newcomer, aimed right between the man’s eyes. Gray eyes. The exact shade as Hudson’s.
Connor blinked, startled by the resemblance. Dominik’s features were chiseled and masculine compared to Hudson’s soft, feminine beauty, but anyone could see that they were related.
This was Hudson’s brother. The head Enforcer of West Colony. The man who was responsible for the colony sweeps.
“Please, Connor. Don’t.”
Hudson’s voice penetrated the angry mist. Connor turned his head and bit his lip when he saw the anguish etched into her face.
“He’s going to make it right. He’s made mistakes, but we’ve all made mistakes. We’ve lied and we’ve stolen and we’ve killed, but it doesn’t have to be like that anymore.” She looked pleadingly at her brother. “You’re going to make it right – aren’t you, Dom?”
“Yes. I am.” Dominik’s gaze stayed on Connor’s, and though his voice had softened when he’d answered his sister, it rang with resignation as he addressed Connor. “Do what you have to do, man. My head’s fucked up enough as it is. A bullet might make everything better.”
Hudson gasped. “Dom.”
“It’s true, H. I don’t know what they’re giving me. Who knows? Maybe the drugs will bring about a slow, painful death.” Dominik nodded at Connor. “I’m sure that would make your friend pretty happy.”
“She’s not my friend,” Connor said roughly. “She’s my woman.”
Dominik’s eyebrows shot up, and then his lips twitched with amusement. “Keeping secrets from your twin, huh, sis?”
Her cheeks reddened. “I didn’t say anything because I had no idea what was going on between us and— Jesus, why am I explaining myself?” Her voice became colder than ice as she turned to Connor and said, “If you pull the trigger, you will never see me again, Con. I will never forgive you, and you will never see me again.”
She meant it. He could see the promise of it in her eyes, and the thought of letting her walk away from him again was… unacceptable.
Letting out a breath, he bent down and laid his rifle on the ground. Then he straightened up and met Dominik’s startled gaze. “I surrender.”
Hudson’s brother blinked. Then he laughed. “Um, nobody asked you to do that, buddy. Pick up that weapon and get my sister the hell out of here.”
It was Connor’s turn to blink. “You fucking serious?”
Hudson snickered.
“Of course. I don’t understand why we’re still standing around talking,” Dominik said in exasperation. “If you’re not going to shoot me, then get lost already. Hudson says you’re good people, so prove it. Keep my sister safe.”
Either he’d gone crazy, or that was actually grudging respect flowing through him. It both enraged and mystified him, but Connor didn’t waste time analyzing either response.
He nodded at Dominik, then met Hudson’s beautiful gray eyes. “Come on, sweetheart. It’s time to go.”
The drive to the landing strip was a festive one. Rylan had hugged the living daylights out of her when she and Connor had rejoined the men, and even Pike had looked happy to see her. But Connor… he’d clammed up on her. He’d referred to her as his woman in front of Dominik and then acted as if it had never happened, sitting silently behind the wheel as they sped away to safety.
Hudson hadn’t asked where they’d gotten the car. She hadn’t asked how they’d managed to find a working helicopter. She’d simply basked in the joy of escaping the compound with her skin intact and allowed that feeling of liberation to fuel her patience.
Now that patience was wearing thin, and Connor’s silence was grating on her nerves, so the first thing she did when they got out of the car was address Rylan and Pike with a stern look. “I need to talk to Connor. Alone.”
Both men seemed to be fighting grins.
“Yes, ma’am,” Rylan drawled. He smacked Pike on the arm. “Come on, pilot. Let’s get the lady’s ride ready to fly.”
The moment they were out of earshot, she advanced on Connor with single-minded purpose, enjoying the way he gulped.
“You didn’t answer my question,” she said accusingly.
“Ah… which question was that again?”
“Playing dumb, are we? Fine, let me be more clear.” She met his adorably awkward gaze. “Why did you come back for me?”
She half expected another stalling tactic, but she should’ve known better than to think that Connor would beat around the bush.
“Because I love you.”
Her mouth fell open. “Oh.”
“Oh?” His lips quirked. “That’s really all you have to say?”
“No, I have a lot to say, actually. But it can wait, because right now I just want to do this.”
She raised her hand and slapped him right across the face.
A loud snort sounded from the vicinity of the chopper, but Hudson was too furious to check which one of the men was taking so much amusement from her very genuine indignation.
“You exiled me! What the fuck is the matter with you, Con?”
He rubbed his cheek, but the smile didn’t leave his lips. “You can hit me again if you want. God knows I deserve it.”
Hudson glared at him. “You do deserve it. And trust me, that won’t be the last slap
you’ll be getting from me. You might have let my brother go – and I’ll never forget that or stop being grateful for it – but that doesn’t mean I’m going to forget what you did back at camp. I’m going to bring it up every time we get in a fight, and every time you piss me off or annoy me or tell me I can’t do something. Every damn time, Connor! You’ve officially made it possible for me to lord this over your head for the rest of our lives.”
“The rest of our lives, huh?” His voice thickened. “Does that mean you still love me?”
Her annoyance slowly seeped away. She shot him a thoughtful look and said, “Do I still love you? I don’t know – what do you think?”
“I think I screwed up. I think I acted irrationally and made the biggest mistake of my life when I forced you to leave. I think I let my need for revenge blind me from what really matters to me.” Vulnerability creased his rugged features. “I think you might be the best thing that’s ever happened to me.” His voice shook. “And I’m afraid I’ve lost you.”
The earnest words cracked her heart wide open. Without a word, she moved closer and cupped his face with her hands. “You haven’t lost me. I’m right here.” She gently stroked the red mark her palm had left on his cheek. “And I never stopped loving you, you ruthless bastard.”
The corner of his mouth lifted. “Do you forgive me for exiling you?”
“Do you forgive me for lying to you?”
“Yes.” No hesitation. Just steadfast sincerity.
“Good. Because I forgive you too.” She leaned up on her tiptoes and brushed a kiss over his lips. “I promise I’ll never keep anything from you again, Con. But you have to promise not to shut me out. This is only going to work if we’re completely honest with each other. If we trust each other.”
“I know.” His rough fingers stroked her cheek. “I trust you, baby.”
Her heart soared when their lips met again, and this time the kiss was not fleeting, but endless. It warmed her belly and curled her toes, wrapping around her until her surroundings faded and the only thing she was conscious of was Connor’s hot, eager mouth. His wicked tongue. His big hands sliding to her waist, then lower, caressing her bottom and —
“Hey, assholes, can we speed this up?” Pike called.
“Seriously,” Rylan agreed. “Either get to the sex, or stop, because watching you suck each other’s faces is kinda nauseating.”
Hudson’s laughter was muffled against Connor’s lips. “Should we get to the sex, or stop?”
“Let’s save the sex for later. I’m gonna want to take my time with you once I get you naked.” Chuckling, he reached for her hand. “Are you ready to go home?”
Hudson planted one last kiss on his lips. “Never been more ready in my life.”
Epilogue
Connor stood on the lodge porch, stifling a sigh as he watched Rylan and Lennox unload an ornate vanity table from the back of Lennox’s pickup truck. Jamie was monitoring their every move as well, hands on her hips as she ordered Lennox to be careful with her prized possession. Which brought a wry smile to Connor’s lips, because it seemed like everything she’d asked Lennox to bring over from their former residence was her “prized possession” – Connor had never met a woman who owned so much stuff.
A soft laugh came from behind him as Hudson stepped out of the lodge and joined him at the railing. “They’re really making themselves at home, huh?” she remarked.
Connor slung an arm over her shoulder and pressed a kiss to the top of her head, breathing in the coconut scent of her shampoo. “Ha. Like this isn’t exactly what you wanted, to turn this camp into one big happy community.”
She grinned at him. “I won’t lie – it’s nice having other women around. You know, some estrogen to temper that testosterone fest you guys had going on.”
He chuckled.
She rested her head on his shoulder, her tone becoming serious. “So what are you going to do about Reese’s summons?”
His good humor faded at the reminder. When they’d gone to Foxworth to ask to borrow Reese’s chopper, they’d given the woman one of the sat phones, since Lennox didn’t need it anymore now that he was living at camp. Connor had told Reese to contact him when she decided what she wanted in exchange for the use of her helicopter, but she’d remained radio silent for the past couple weeks. He’d hoped that meant she’d forgotten about the favor.
But that was hoping for too much.
“What else is there to do?” He let out a breath. “I’ll head out there next week like she asked and find out what she wants.”
Hudson bit her lip. “What if it’s something dangerous? Or insane?”
“We’ll cross that bridge when we get there.” When her worried expression didn’t ease, he pointed out the silver lining. “Hey, at least the roads will be safe. Your brother is making sure to keep the sweeps away from us, remember?”
His words had the opposite effect – she looked even more worried now. Shit. Maybe reminding her of Dominik hadn’t been the best move. Hudson’s brother had contacted them the day after they’d returned to camp, sending a message to the phone he’d given her to tell them that he was all right, still in charge, and doing everything in his power to keep their area Enforcer-free. Connor wasn’t sure how long that would last, but for the moment he was grateful for Dom’s efforts.
Christ. Never in a million years had he thought he’d ever be grateful to Dominik.
“I wish he’d just leave the compound,” Hudson said softly.
“He’ll be okay, sweetheart.” But Connor was in no way confident of that.
“Hudson!” Jamie’s excited voice interrupted them. The woman hurried over when she spotted Hudson on the porch. “Do you want to help me and Layla decorate our cabins?”
For once, Connor was grateful for Jamie’s obsession with making herself at home, because her question succeeded in relaxing Hudson’s tense shoulders.
“Sure,” Hudson replied, and then she linked her arm through Jamie’s.
Footsteps sounded from the door again, and this time it was Xander who sidled up to him, his dark eyes focused on the commotion in the courtyard: Rylan and Lennox lugging the table. Hudson and Jamie walking down the path. Pike appearing in the clearing with the wolf in his arms.
Xander sighed, but when he spoke, he sounded more amused than annoyed. “It’s the dawn of a new era, huh?”
Connor’s gaze rested on Hudson’s sexy backside, her long blond hair cascading down her back, the ease and confidence of her gait. She stopped suddenly, turning to toss a smile at him over her shoulder, and his heart overflowed with emotion.
“Yes,” he murmured. “It is.”
Elle Kennedy, Claimed
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