Heated Pursuit (Alpha Security #1)(78)
He caressed the already darkening bruise over Penny’s cheek and prayed her tears were happy ones.
“I told myself I’d never ask you to sacrifice what you want out of life,” Rafe continued, pushing through the lump of emotion clogging his throat, “but I have to. I need to. I need you, Red. I’m begging you to give us a chance, and I’ll spend every damn day of my life proving to you—”
Penny silenced him with her lips. At her slight hiss of pain, he lifted to pull away, but her hands trapped his cheeks and held him close. He let her lead, not wanting to cause her any discomfort as he slipped his hands into her hair and gently kissed her back. This was where she belonged. In his arms. In his heart. Everything he had, body and soul, was hers.
By the time she slowly withdrew her lips from his, his head spun. The moisture welling in her eyes matched his. It was her turn to caress his face, her fingers gently brushing over his chin and mouth.
“You don’t need to prove anything to me, Rafe,” Penny murmured. “Ever. And there’s nothing sacrificial about loving you or wanting a life with you.”
“I’m not a knight in shining armor, sweetheart. I’m bossy and overbearing, a practical Neanderthal when it comes to keeping you safe. Despite the fact you’re more than capable of taking care of yourself, I want in on the action, too.”
She palmed his cheek. “And I wouldn’t change a single thing. I love you—Neanderthal parts and all. And if you don’t kiss me right now, I’m going to be forced to take matters into my own hands.”
“One more kiss and there’s no getting rid of me. You’ll be stuck with me. For life.”
She brushed her lips against his, making his soul tremble. “That’s exactly the life I want.”
EPILOGUE
Lebanon County, Pennsylvania
Six Months Later
Penny nibbled her lower lip, smiling and giddy as she stood in front of the weather-beaten door. Instead of rushing through, she took a deep breath. It was done. She was finished. The next phase of her life could officially begin, and the man—at least one of them—in the building in front of her would be part of it in a very huge way.
She couldn’t wait any longer. Heart trilling in her chest, she pushed through the front door of Alpha. Not yet opened for business, the former biker bar sat empty, its only occupant the fine layer of sawdust coating the floor. Plastic tarps hung in each doorway. Tables and chairs were tucked into one corner and new windows were stacked neatly along the far wall, waiting to be installed. Alpha, both the bar and the agency, was nearly done with its face-lift.
Finally.
Those that needed to find them could, but only if they already had one foot in the door or knew someone who did. When they weren’t being the official badasses behind Alpha Security, they were going to take over the lives they’d been comfortable portraying during their stint in Central America.
Bar owners. Bartenders. Bouncers. To everyone around them, they were a band of brothers, all former military, all not to be trifled with. But to Penny, they were family.
“Well? How’d it go?” Penny heard Charlie before she saw her. And then the other woman stood up from behind the bar, a crate of bottles in her hands.
“Flying colors.” Penny beamed. “Nearly as colorful as your hair.”
With a laugh, Charlie leaped the counter and wrapped her in a bone-crushing hug that Penny returned. “I told you that you could bloody well do it.”
“You were bloody right.” Penny chuckled.
Charlie snorted on a laugh. “You finally used bloody in the right bloody context. I’m so bloody proud.”
Penny chuckled harder. Much to the chagrin of the guys, she and the other woman had become instant friends. Charlie didn’t apologize for her colorful hair or her multiple tattoos, or for telling people the truth, regardless of its popularity. Her sharp mind and keen wit made her the perfect person to keep the men of Alpha in line, and Penny adored her to death.
No doubt sensing they were no longer alone in the front room, Charlie smirked. “We need tattoos to commemorate the occasion. I bet you that Axel down at the tattoo parlor would give us a discount if you let him put it on your arse.”
“No one’s putting anything on my lady’s arse except me.” As if summoned, Rafe leaned against the doorway.
Penny ran straight at him. He caught her easily, his palms giving her butt a firm squeeze as she instinctively wrapped her legs around his waist.
“See? My hands. Your ass.” Rafe waited a beat before lifting a single eyebrow in question. “Well? Are you going to tell me how it went or am I going to have to guess?”
With a squeal, she started peppering his face with kisses. “I did it! I really did it! The final is over, the credits are mine. Mine! Mine! All mine! You’re now looking at Alpha Security’s official trauma psychologist—or you will be once I complete the internship.”
Rafe’s coy smirk morphed into a true smile. He nuzzled into her neck and, for her ears alone, murmured, “Congratulations, Red. I knew you could do it.”
Like always, a simple hug turned into a hot clash of mouths and tongue. Penny tightened her hold around his neck and let out a soft groan of appreciation…right until the mixed sound of laughter and gagging had them pulling away. Slightly.