We stood together in the doorway of the apartment. My black bag was over my shoulder, and Vanessa was staring at me with eyes full of tears. Last time I left, she was stronger. But this time, all of her strength had disappeared. She’d been pushed too far, her heart beaten too severely.

It hurt me so much that I considered calling the whole thing off.

But I couldn’t do that to my boys. I could never betray my family. They had my back, and I had theirs—end of story. I just had to make it through one more time. When this was over, I would never hurt her again.

Vanessa sniffled then wiped her tears away. “Sapphire is going to go into labor at any moment.”

“I know.”

“You can’t miss that.”

“The timing is shitty. But there’s nothing I can do, baby. I have to do my job.”

Fresh tears fell down her face.

I hated it. Fucking hated it. I held up a single finger. “One more time.”

“One time too many,” she whispered. She covered her face with her hands for an instant, giving her a second to control her quivering lip. “Doesn’t matter if it’s the last time. What you’re doing is still dangerous. You could still get killed—”

“Not gonna happen, baby.” Any other man would get fed up with her disapproval, but I was better than that. If I was going to make her cry, then I was going to be the one to listen to it. I would stand there as long as she needed me to, go in this circle as many times as it took before she could let me go. “I promise you.”

“You never know…”

“Ask any Barsetti, and they’ll tell you I’m the strongest man they’ve ever met.”

“Even the strongest regimes fall…”

“Not me, baby. I’m not doing this for the money anymore. I’m doing this job right because I have to get back to you. I have something to live for, not something to die for.”

She tilted her gaze to the floor, her tears glistening in the light. “Griffin, I’m never going to be okay with this… I don’t want you to leave.”

“I have to. The sooner I leave, the sooner I come back.”

“What if you don’t come back at all?”

I dropped the bag on the floor then moved my hands to her hips. “Baby, look at me.”

She kept her chin angled toward the floor, her eyes closed.

“Baby.” I could redirect her gaze with my hand, but I didn’t want to. I wanted her to look at me when she was ready, to obey me when she felt like it.

After thirty seconds, she finally looked into my eyes.

My hand wrapped around the back of her neck, keeping her in place as I spoke to her. “I will come back, baby. You can do this. This is the last time, and it’s over forever. Instead of worrying about me, be happy that you never have to do this again. This will be the last time. I promise you. Even if Max comes to me and asks for a favor, I will say no. I made it clear these would be my last jobs. That was the deal we made. I won’t change my mind. When I return, we’ll be starting a new life together. I have no idea what I’m going to do, but I will find something. So spend time picking out what house you want. When I get back, we’ll buy it.”

“I want to do that with you…”

“Then pick your favorites, and we’ll visit them together.”

She rested her palms against my chest, her breathing a little less shaky. The tears stopped falling, but her eyes were still wet. “Okay…”

I rested my forehead against hers. “Have faith in me, baby. Remember who I am. Remember what I’m capable of. You shouldn’t be worried about me, but all the men who face me.”

“I don’t care how strong you are, Griffin. My fear comes from love. Love makes me irrational, makes me paranoid. I’m so scared of losing you that even a one percent chance is too high.”

“It’s not even one percent, baby.” I pressed my lips to her forehead. “I want that list of houses when I get back. And hopefully I return before Sapphire goes into labor. But if I don’t…tell them congratulations for me.”

“I will.”

I rubbed my nose against hers. “I love you, baby.”

She started to cry again. “I love you too…”

I kissed her tears away before I turned my back on her and grabbed my bag. I walked out the front door without looking over my shoulder, unable to watch her cry as I left her. The only thing keeping me going was the fact that this was my last mission before permanent retirement. After this, it would be a quiet life of…I wasn’t even sure. I would have to find something to keep me busy. If Vanessa was working in the gallery all the time, I couldn’t hover over her and distract her. And I certainly couldn’t work out all the time. When this mission was complete, I would give it more serious thought.

I got on the way and headed to the airport. I called Max through my headset.

“On the road?” he asked.

“Ten minutes from the airport.”

“Alright. The guy will meet you in Morocco. Before you take the trip to the mountain, he’ll meet you with the artillery.”

“Good to know.”

“Bad mood, huh?” he asked.

“Vanessa…”

“Gives you shit every time you leave?”

“I wouldn’t phrase it like that. It’s just difficult for her. I keep telling her it’s my last mission, but that doesn’t make her feel better.”

Max was quiet for a while. “So, you haven’t changed your mind, then?”

There was no possibility of continuing this profession. If Vanessa and I had to go through this every single time, we wouldn’t last. She would resent me in time and eventually leave me. And if we had kids, that would be even worse. If I wanted her to be my wife, I had to be the husband she wanted. That meant my job was to protect her, to protect our children, and be exactly what she needed. Vanessa was the perfect woman. She could replace me in a heartbeat if she wanted. “No. And I won’t, Max.”

He sighed. “That’s a shame.”

“It’s time for me to move on. I’m sure you understand that, even if you don’t agree with it.”

“I suppose. It just won’t be the same without you.”

“You guys are just as capable as I am. You don’t need me.”

“That’s not why, man,” he said quietly. “Now that you’ve moved and settled down…we don’t talk as much anymore.”

I’d been so busy with my own life that I hadn’t even noticed. I couldn’t remember the last time I spent time with the guys. After Vanessa and I got back together, they weren’t a priority anymore. “I’m sorry, that’s my fault.”

“Damn right, it is.”

“Things will be different, especially when I get married. It’ll be even more different when I start a family. But I will always make time for you guys. You’re my family. I’ll never forget that.”

“Whoa, a family?” he asked incredulously. “Since when did this happen?”

“Vanessa gave me an ultimatum. If I want to marry her, I have to give her a family.”

“And you agreed?”

“We both know I can’t live without her.”

“That’s some serious shit. When are you gonna propose?”

“I don’t know,” I answered. “There’s a lot going on right now. Her brother is having a baby in the next few days, so not anytime soon. And I have this mission, and I didn’t want to ask her to marry me before I left. Would just make it harder for her. I don’t even have a ring.”

“I don’t think you need one, man. Vanessa doesn’t seem like the kind of woman that cares.”

“I care. I want her wearing a fat diamond everywhere she goes, so every asshole out there can see me on her hand even if I’m not with her.”

He laughed. “Of course you do.”

We spent the next ten minutes talking, and I pulled up to the airport. “I’m here, so I should get going.”

“Alright, man. I’m glad we had this talk. Made me feel a little better about the whole thing.”

“Yeah, me too.” I didn’t have these kinds of conversations with the guys, but this one was necessary. It was okay to wear your heart on your sleeve sometimes. I loved my boys, and I knew they loved me too. “I’ll call you when I land.”

“Alright. Bye.”

“Bye.”

Morocco was a place filled with snake charmers, fire dancers, and a town square full of belly dancers, jewelry sellers, and stands with pots and pans. It was an innately poor country, but it still possessed so much beauty in the valley of the village and the mountains surrounding the area.

With my fair skin, I didn’t fit in. So I covered myself with a long-sleeved black shirt and a hoodie. I met with the arms dealer, grabbed my artillery, and then took the Jeep to the Atlas Mountains.

The man I was looking for lived in a palace at the top, isolated from the rest of the world. Men who lived on the outskirts of the city were always easy targets. The men along the perimeter were easy to take out, and there was no time for any backup to assist.

It was like shooting fish in a barrel.

It was under the cover of darkness when I emerged. I could see the fires from the city below, the thousands of people gathered in the town square for shopping and nightlife. I left my Jeep hidden under a tree then infiltrated the palace.

The man I was looking for was an impostor. He made deals in intelligence but fed the wrong information to important groups. As a result, he manipulated events to suit his specific desires. It affected nations as well as thugs. Taking him out would make the world a better place—literally.

I snuck up on the perimeter, snapped a few necks of the men who got in my way, and then made it inside the palace. The servants were on the bottom floor, but since they were innocent slaves forced into a life of servitude, I tied them up and shoved them into the closet.

I moved to the next floor with Max in my ear. He’d acquired a schematic of the place, so I knew exactly where to go. I didn’t need to make this death look like an accident, not when the man had so many enemies. It would be impossible to figure out who was behind his death.

I found him on the third floor, watching TV while he smoked his cigar and enjoyed his booze. The entire room was full of smoke because he inhaled the cigars on an hourly basis. The white color permeated the room, and it was difficult to breathe. I enjoyed a cigar once in a while, but that habit died when Vanessa made it forbidden.

I watched him for a moment, finding it ironic that his drapes were closed to secure his privacy. If they had been open, his guards would have been able to see what was happening. I had to get in and out of there as quickly as possible, so I approached him from behind with my blade drawn. Before he even realized what was happening, the knife was against his throat, and I slit it with one quick move.

He fell to the couch, dead in seconds.

I wiped the blade on the couch before I sheathed it in my belt. It was a quick kill, and now my only job was to get home. I moved back down the hallway toward the stairs, and that’s when I came face-to-face with someone who shouldn’t have been there.

His son.

Twenty-five and next in line for the throne, he stared at me with his ferocious brown eyes. He was unarmed, but he had something worse. A large horn that could be heard throughout the entire palace.

I pulled out my pistol and shot him.

But not before he hit the button and made a loud noise that shook the walls.

My bullet pierced him in the chest, and he was down.

But the damage of the horn was irreparable. Men were shouting and footsteps were pounding.

I had to get out of there—now.

I made it out of the palace and back into the mountains. There were too many men chasing me, so I drove the Jeep over a cliff and moved on foot, getting deeper into the mountains and into a location they wouldn’t be able to find unless they were on foot too.

The trail was dangerous, and I hugged the rocky outcropping until I was completely on the other side of the mountain. In the pitch darkness, it was dangerous. It was far more dangerous than murdering a powerful man.

When I made it to the other side, I called Max.

“What happened?” he asked immediately.

“His son saw me and sounded the alarm. They chased me for a while. But I ditched the Jeep into a gorge and climbed the mountain until I found a place where they can’t follow me. I mean, they can, but it’s unlikely.”

“Shit. I’ll send in a chopper.”

“Wait until morning. They’ll be looking for me all night, and if they see a chopper, it’ll be easy to figure out where I am.”

“It’ll be even easier during the daylight.”

“They’ll probably give up by then.”

Max listened to what I said and debated to himself for a moment. “It’s too risky, Bones. I’ve got to get you out of there.”

“It’s too risky for the pilot. You need to wait until tomorrow night.”

“That will put you back in the schedule by an entire day.”

“It’s the safest move—for everyone.” I would have to stay on the mountain for an entire twenty-four-hour period, but I could tough it out. I had water and food. It’d be cold, but I’d been in worse situations.

“The target is dead?”

“Yes.”

“What about the son?”

“Got him too.”

“Alright. We’ll do it your way. I have your coordinates on GPS. I’ll use the satellite feed to keep track of the people around you. If anyone comes close, I’ll know about it.” His fingertips typed against the keyboard in the background.

“Thanks, man.”

“Sleep if you need it. I’ll be awake.”

“Alright.” I wasn’t sure if I could sleep right now, not when all this adrenaline was pumping in my veins. “You need to tell Vanessa. But emphasize that I’m alright. I’m still coming back. It’ll just be a little longer than we planned.”

“Do you want me to tell her what happened?”

I didn’t want to lie to her. Lying wasn’t in my nature. And I didn’t want to mislead the woman I loved. But knowing her, it would kill her inside. She would panic and break down. “No. Don’t tell her. Just tell her that my target moved so we had to make a new plan before we went in.”

“You’re sure?” he asked, knowing I never lied to anyone.

“She’ll lose her mind, man.”

“Yeah, I know. It’s probably the best idea.”

“Then do it.”

“Alright. Will do.”