Will’s voice was deep, a little husky, as he said, “Will you marry me, Taylor?”
Taylor laughed, a shaky, breathless laugh. He shoved the blankets aside and jumped out of bed. “Which beach?” He held his hand out to Will. “And who’s driving?”
Epilogue
It was raining.
Not hard, more mist than rain, but wet enough to keep the sun and surf crowd away. Now and then during the very brief ceremony, the sun peered through silver-edged clouds, smiled briefly, and faded out. The aqua surf hit the white sand in regular, leisurely heartbeats, and occasionally the grooms’ words were lost in the pound of waves and the cries of gulls.
“I, William, take thee, Taylor, to be my lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death us do part.”
Will slipped the platinum band—platinum mixed with a small percentage of lead from the bullet that had changed everything—onto Taylor’s ring finger. His hands were warm, his fingers steady, and his eyes smiled into Taylor’s.
Then it was Taylor’s turn.
“I, Taylor, take thee, William, to be my lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death us do part.”
Taylor reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out a ring: a chrome and box elder band with a line of laser-carved pine trees. He met Will’s astonished gaze, slid the ring on Will’s left hand, and winked.
The damp wind tasted salty, but there were no tears. They were not men who cried easily or often, and surely not for happiness. The only moment of self-consciousness was as they each placed a wedding lei over the other’s head. The leis were made of ti leaves, wound with tiny, fragrant white tuberoses, and they were beautiful and festive. There were a couple of laughs, a muttered comment from Taylor, a few more clicks of phone cameras, and at last a kiss, so careful, so tender.
Afterward they had lunch at another of the big hotels, where they were serenaded by Christmas carolers clad in Hawaiian shirts. Will ordered champagne, Taylor ordered some kind of cake made with pineapple, cinnamon, and nutmeg and frosted with cream-cheese frosting and toasted coconut.
“You had a ring all ready to go,” Will teased, nudging Taylor’s booted foot with his own.
Taylor laughed and shook his head. “Yes and no. That was your Christmas gift. I picked it up yesterday at that little shop in Hana before we stopped for lunch.” His mouth twisted. “I thought it was time you wore a ring too. Of course, half an hour later you were telling me you were leaving me.”
“Not what I said. Never. And not what I meant. Ever.” Will spoke without heat, was even smiling a little. They were past the misunderstandings and miscommunications. Maybe there was something to the idea of a formal commitment. “From this day forward, buddy boy.”
Taylor said, “I guess we’re going to catch hell from pretty much everyone for running off and getting married like this.”
“Probably.”
They smiled at each other.
Later, Taylor said thoughtfully, “What are we going to do about American Eagle?”
“I’ve been considering that. What do you think about splitting off the global security consultant side of the business from the other side of the business? We could promote Euphonia to project manager and let Schwierskott handle the meet-and-greet stuff. He’s pretty good at it.”
“Uh, what other side of the business?” Taylor inquired.
“Private investigations.”
“Private… You want us to become PIs?”
“Well, think about it. What’s in our wheelhouse?”
Taylor opened his mouth, and Will said quickly, “Investigating. Investigating is what we’re good at. We’re field agents. We’re not analysts. I believe it’s a natural fit for us.”
“Do you?”
“I do.” Will smirked. “No pun intended.”
Taylor’s mouth twisted. He said, “Hm. It’s going to be hard getting a letter of recommendation from our last client.”
Will winced. “Will you consider the idea, at least?”
“Yes.” Taylor relented. “Actually, I kind of like the idea.”
“Do you?”
“I do.” Taylor’s turn to smirk.
Will said, “I thought you would.”
“But we’re not moving to Hawaii, Brandt. And you’re not buying a Ferrari.”
Will snorted. “Deal.”
And much, much later that night in their hotel room, Will held up his left hand and said, “You know, I like the etched pine trees.”
Taylor said, “It reminded me of—”
“Me too,” Will said gruffly. “It reminds me of where we’ve been and where we’re going.”
“Which is hopefully not camping.”
Will leaned over to kiss him. He whispered, “Which is together. Forever.”
AUTHOR’S NOTE
Dear Reader,
It’s hard to say goodbye to characters I love as much—and for as long—as Will and Taylor. I think it’s one reason I kept delaying this book.
The journey of Taylor MacAllister and Will Brandt began in April 2008 when Loose Id published Dangerous Ground. The stories were intended to be quick, fun, episodic adventures, and I believe I’ve kept that promise. The boys have had a good long run, and it’s certain they will continue their adventures long after you turn the final page. Thank you for sharing the ride.
Thank you to Keren. Thank you to Kevin.
(As always, make sure you’ve downloaded the most up-to-date version of this book because in fiction, as in real life, things have a way of changing!)
For a free audiobook download sign up for Josh’s newsletter now!
About the Author
Author of over sixty titles of classic Male/Male fiction featuring twisty mystery, kickass adventure, and unapologetic man-on-man romance, JOSH LANYON’S work has been translated into eleven languages. Her FBI thriller Fair Game was the first Male/Male title to be published by Harlequin Mondadori, then the largest romance publisher in Italy. Stranger on the Shore (Harper Collins Italia) was the first M/M title to be published in print. In 2016 Fatal Shadows placed #5 in Japan’s annual Boy Love
