Chapter Seventy-Three

It was clear to Colton that this was no random meeting. Angel must have reached out and asked him to come. He would have had to fly here, and rent the truck.

When they were only ten feet from each other, Colton couldn’t stand it any longer. “John!” he said, his voice cracking with emotion.

They rushed to close the distance and grasped each other tightly. Then Colton stood back to take his brother in from head to toe. He couldn’t believe it was really him.

Oh my God, such a welcome sight!

John wiped tears from his eyes while laughing, and Colton had no idea what to say. “I’m not dead,” he eventually managed to squeeze past the giant lump in his throat.

“Yeah. I guessed that when you asked me to meet you here.”

Words wouldn’t come. Colton opened his mouth and made a few strangled noises, but it was Angel who explained.

“Actually, that was me.” She gave a little wave and a smile. “I wanted to surprise him.”

“Thank you,” Colton said before kissing her hard with gratitude and a bunch of other emotions he couldn’t identify at the moment. “Thank you.”

He was definitely surprised.

“I’ll leave the two of you to catch up. You know the rules,” she said as she turned to go.

“I’m not allowed to tell you where I’m living,” Colton told his brother as he soaked in the sight of him and grinned ear to ear.

God. John was really there. In the flesh.

Unable to help himself, he pulled his older brother into another big hug and pounded him on the back.

“Not a problem,” John said, his voice muffled by their hug. “I don’t really care where you’re living, as much as that you’re living.” He pulled back and wiped his eyes again. “I had a feeling when I saw her at the cemetery, but she wouldn’t confirm.” He nodded toward Angel who was walking away from them.

“Because it wasn’t safe,” Colton explained.

“I get that. But it meant I wasn’t really sure. I was left hoping I wasn’t delusional. I wanted you to be alive so much, but I didn’t want to lie to myself, you know? I wouldn’t have been able to get past it when I still had hope.”

Hope was a vicious son of a bitch.

“Not delusional. I’m alive.” Though that was up for debate. Until Angel showed up, he wasn’t sure if he had been living as much as simply existing.

“Were you really shot six times, or was that just to sell it?”

Colton’s answer was to pull up his shirt so his brother could count the round scars.

John let out a low whistle. He’d been shot once on the job. He’d taken a hit to the arm. Carson and Brock also had battle scars. They all liked to show them off. Back then, Colton had only owned a few scratches. Now he would have won the competition hands down.

“They all go through?” John asked.

Only a cop would ask that. Colton grinned wider. “This one got stuck. They had to go in after it.” He pointed to the scar that was bisected by a thin line and the telltale trace of stitches. “This one almost finished me off.” That one had nicked his lung. It was the worst one. Or so he’d been told when he woke up.

John shook his head in awe. The only good thing about it was that Colton didn’t remember a damned thing. He didn’t remember being shot or being left for dead as he bled out onto the cement.

He still didn’t know what had tipped Viktor off. For two years, the man had treated him like a son.

“Damn. It was a close thing,” John whispered as Colton pulled his shirt back down to cover the scars. His brother’s eyes had gone shiny again.

Colton wanted to hug him close and never let go. But he resisted embarrassing them both. “It was touch and go for a few days in the hospital, but thankfully, I don’t remember any of it.”

“Probably for the best.” John’s gaze moved over Colton’s shoulder so he turned to see Angel throwing a stick for Pudge.

“Are you sure this is safe?” John asked.

“Coming to see you? I don’t see what it will hurt, as long as you keep your yap shut.” Colton grinned to let his brother know he was joking.

John was a cop, he knew how to keep things quiet. Even the normal exception of sharing with one’s spouse didn’t apply when it came to something like this.

“That’s not what I meant. I’ve seen her picture all over the news for the past month. Her hair color might be different, but she’s Angel Larson, The Mantis.”

Colton grimaced. Not surprised a cop would have recognized her immediately. “I’m hoping you’ll keep your yap shut about that, too. And whatever you do, don’t bring up that stupid nickname to her face. She might be small, but she can take you down, for sure.”

John nodded. “No problem. She brought my brother back from the dead, so I owe her big.”

“She didn’t kill him.” Colton felt the need to defend her.

John raised his brow skeptically. “They never do, do they?”

At that moment, he reminded Colton of their dad. The same look paired with the same comment. How many times had their father told them how well people lied?

Which was all true, but—

“I know her,” he said resolutely. “I trust her. She didn’t do it.”

“I see.” John pressed his lips together and nodded slowly, a different look taking over his features. It was the same look John had given Colton when he came back from the prom with Jenna Buckley—and without his virginity.

“What do you think you see? You don’t see anything.” It was like old times. John was older than Colton by two years, but he acted as though he had decades of experience over him. “You’ve been with the same woman since eighth grade. You don’t know shit.”

When it came to women, Colton had his fair share, while John had always only had eyes for Robin.

“I see someone being awfully defensive. Why would that be, unless you like her?”

“I swear to God, if you start singing about kissing in a tree, I’m going back to being dead.”

John laughed and held up his hand. “Relax. I’m not going to sing.” When he got himself together, he slapped Colton on the shoulder once. “It’s good to see you. I wish I could have brought Tyler.”

“I saw pictures. He’s a giant,” Colton said of his nephew. “Are you still going to name the new kid after me?” He remembered Robin’s Facebook post.

“Yeah. I think I will.” He nodded. “You gonna marry her?” He nodded in Angel’s direction.

Colton looked over his shoulder again. Angel was sitting on a picnic table, Pudge had his head on her thigh. “Doubtful. She’s not up for that.”

“But you would be?”

Colton shrugged. “Maybe. I’m living a normal life now. You settled down and had some kids. Why not me?”

John searched his face. “It’s the best. I mean, I like all the action on the job, but it’s nice to come home and sit on the sofa with my wife, and have my son crawl up in my lap to tell me about his day. Some guys might say it’s giving up the good life, but it’s not. It’s getting a hell of a lot of great stuff instead.”

“Maybe someday. We have a couple of things to take care of first.”

John choked out a laugh. “I’d say. By that, I’m guessing you mean a murder rap, and being technically dead.”

Colton laughed, too. A bit of an understatement.

“Yes. But aside from all that, I’m still figuring things out.” He gave another glance at Angel, and imagined what his life could be like if she would stay.

And really, really hoped he’d get the chance to find out.