Defending Zara (Mountain Mercenaries #6)(96)

She closed her eyes and thanked her parents, wherever they were, for looking out for Meat. She’d come really close to losing him, she knew that. If he’d been half as strong as he was, he wouldn’t have been able to drive himself out of wherever Renee and John had stashed him. He wouldn’t have survived whatever they’d drugged him with, and she wouldn’t be holding him in her arms.

“He’s going to be okay,” Allye told her.

“I know,” Zara said. “I know.”





Epilogue

“I can’t wait to see this bar you’re always talking about,” Zara said.

Meat grinned and reached for her hand as he drove them to The Pit.

It had taken him longer than he would’ve liked to completely regain his wits after being dosed so many times with midazolam. The doctors said that if he’d actually swallowed the last dose Renee had tried to force on him, his lungs would’ve stopped working, and his heart probably would’ve ceased pumping as well.

The gunshot to his shoulder had gone straight through, just as he’d thought. And while it hurt, it wasn’t life-threatening, and he’d already healed quite a bit in the last three weeks. He didn’t remember driving down Rampart Range Road and back to his house, but he did remember seeing Zara for the first time and hearing her tell him she loved him.

He hated what she’d been through, but it had strengthened her friendship with the other women, and for Meat had truly hammered home how extraordinary his bond was with his fellow Mountain Mercenaries.

At the moment, they were on their way to the bar where he and the other Mountain Mercenaries hung out. Where they talked business in the back pool room or simply enjoyed spending some man time together. They hadn’t gotten around to talking to Rex about limiting their future missions to the United States, but that was on the top of their agenda . . . after today.

“It’s nothing fancy,” Meat warned her, running his thumb over the back of her hand.

“It doesn’t have to be fancy to be special,” Zara responded.

That was very true.

Allye and Gray had decided not to wait any longer to get married. They hadn’t wanted a huge production, but of course it had turned into a big deal when all the kids Allye taught in her special-needs dance classes wanted to attend. So Dave said they could use The Pit for the ceremony, and then after the children left, when the bar opened for business, they’d use it as a reception hall.

“You okay with everything you talked about with the lawyer yesterday?” Meat asked. He’d gone with Zara to discuss putting most of her money into a trust for charities, keeping only enough to live off every year. The majority would be invested, with portions doled out each year to whatever charities she designated.

She’d also set aside a small portion of her fortune for her uncle, Alan. He was still an ass, but Zara had thought about it long and hard, discussing it with Meat, and had decided she could never spend all the money her parents had left for her anyway. She’d reasoned it might be worth it to get her uncle off her back. She’d explained she felt sorry for him now, more than anything. She had love and friends, and he had . . . nothing. Bitterness and a drug habit that would surely make him blow through the money he was given. But as Meat pointed out, that wasn’t her problem.

He’d also made sure Alan understood he’d never get another dime from her after this, and if he ever contacted her again, he’d regret it. Zara had no idea if he’d abide by their agreement after he spent the money, but ultimately, she knew Meat and his friends would handle him if he didn’t.

“Yeah,” she said. “It feels good to get it off my shoulders, so to speak. I know after word gets out about what I’ve done, people will think I’ve completely lost my mind for giving up so much money, but . . . I honestly don’t want it. Look at what almost happened to you because of it. I just want enough to live on and raise our family, and that’s it.”

Meat smiled over at her, lifting her hand and kissing the ring he’d put on her left ring finger the night before. “How many kids do you want?”

“Fourteen.”

Meat almost drove off the road at her answer, then stared at her in shock.

She held a straight face for about two seconds before dissolving into giggles. “You should see your face!” she said between gasps of air.

“Brat,” Meat griped, happy as could be to see her smiling and so carefree.

“I’m thinking two. Maybe three. You?”

“Two or three sounds perfect,” Meat told her. “I’m proud of you, Zar.”

She tilted her head at him.

“You went through something that would break most people. But you not only didn’t break, you came out of it stronger than ever. I’m also proud of you for putting the wheels in motion to start a clinic for Daniela. The money you sent will definitely tide her over until we can work through the red tape and get down there to get the building started.”

Zara shrugged. “She taught me a lot, and she’s helped so many people. You might say she saved Calinda’s life, because if she hadn’t taught me what to do when an umbilical cord was around a baby’s neck, the baby wouldn’t have survived.”

“And you’re okay with going back to Lima someday?” Meat pressed. “It won’t bring back any bad memories?”