“It was him, Serena. We have proof.”
“What? Phone calls? Some texts?” She pulled away from him and stood to pace the room. “Anyone could’ve sent those. Maybe someone stole his phone and used it to throw suspicion off of them.”
He exhaled slowly and shook his head. “There were funds sent to Spencer that tracked back to Nate’s bank accounts. It was him, Serena. I’m sorry.”
And he was. Sorrier than he’d ever been in his life. Even though it wasn’t his fault, somehow it felt like it was because he was the one who’d had to tell her, the one to break her heart.
Still, she didn’t seem to want to believe him. Serena crossed her arms and stopped across the room from him, scowling. “It makes no sense. None. Why would Nate want to have me killed?”
“My guess is the money.”
“Money?”
“Yeah.” He slumped back into the cushions and toyed with the hem of his shirt, not looking at her because it hurt too bad to see the pain in her eyes. “When your parents died in that crash, you told me they put you in charge of the company. You became CEO—with all the money and perks that come along with it. People have done worse things for less.”
“But Nate and I talked about it.” She threw up her hands. “I told him that it was probably just a formality. We were still going to run the company together. Nothing was going to change.”
“Except you’re a billionaire now and he’s not.”
“That’s a shitty thing to say,” she growled at him.
“Not as shitty as trying to have your own sibling killed,” Noah countered before he could stop himself. He’d never met Nate Carson, but right now, Noah could have killed him with his bare hands. “The police are with Levon and Clint organizing a sting to capture him.”
“I…” She snorted then turned away, rubbing the heels of her hands into her eyes. “I can’t believe this. I just can’t…”
Noah got up and walked over to her, pulling her into his arms despite her resistance. “Like I said, I’m sorry this is how it turned out. I really am. But at least now we know, and things can get back to normal again.”
“Normal?” She shook her head against his chest, her words muffled by the cotton of his T-shirt. “How the hell can things ever be normal again?”
Good question.
He’d been asking himself the same thing since last night. He’d woken up well before dawn to get ready for the takedown, but instead of getting up right away, he’d lain there in the dark trying to think of a reason for him to stay in her life after the mission wrapped up.
He couldn’t think of a one, except Gracie.
And damn if that didn’t suck. Because he’d been through that before with his own parents. The two of them only stayed together because of him, even though they were all wrong for each other, and look how that had turned out. Not good. Not good at all. And yes, he loved Serena—more than he loved anything on earth—but given how different their lives and goals were, sometimes love wasn’t enough.
After a few minutes of just standing there, holding her, Serena finally pulled away from him. She brushed her hands over her damp cheeks, and it was only then that he realized she’d been crying. The sight gutted him more than he’d ever imagined. He tried to reach for her again, but she stepped back.
“So, what now?” she said, her voice quiet and flat, the bright smile gone.
“With the mission, you mean?” Noah said, deliberately avoiding the elephant in the room. “Well, one they’ve executed their plan for the arrest, they’ll bring your brother in to police headquarters for questioning and then bring formal charges based on the evidence.”
She nodded, staring down at her toes. “And what about us?”
“They’ll want to talk to you too,” he said. “Interview you about the abduction and your time in St. Dourdane. Any interactions with your brother you’ve had since your parents died. They’ll probably want to talk to other people at your company, too. If you’ve got a legal department on staff, you might want to let them know what’s going on so they’ll be prepared if some detectives come by, wanting to talk to your workers.” He hazarded a look at her and found her watching him, her gaze solemn and serious. “And as far as everything else, it should be safe for you to return home in a few days, once the arrest takes place. After that, you’ll want to continue to take precautions for the time being, of course, in case anyone out of the loop thinks the price on your head is still active, but maybe—”
“Noah,” she said, giving him a stern look. “I’m talking about us. You and me and Gracie.”
His chest seemed to cave in on itself, a black hole emerging where his heart used to be and sucking all the joy out of his universe. But this was how it had to be. There couldn’t be a “them,” a family unit with the three of them. Not with his dangerous lifestyle in SSoF and her work taking her all over the globe. His life was here in Atlanta. Hers was wherever her corporation or charities needed her. Gracie would stay with her. He’d see the kid when he could, if he could. She’d probably be better off without him being around too much, anyway.
Knowing it was the right thing didn’t make doing it any easier, though.
Summoning the stoic reserve that had been trained into him in the SEALs, he gave curt nod. “As of now, there is no ‘us.’ The mission is over and we both return to our
