Soreness stopped him from shaking his head. "No, Sugar baby. I want to talk to you."

"Good, 'cause I want to talk to you, too. When you're ready." She pulled back and started to hurry her words. "I don't want to rush you. If you need to sleep or want medicine, that's fine."

She wasn't going anywhere. Not from this conversation. Not from his arms. His heart beat faster, his cheeks tingled, and warmth rushed through him. He'd had a lot to say for a while, and there was no better time. But what did she want to say? With Sugar, it could be anything.

"I'm ready now." He pulled her back into his hold, and she relaxed, drawing in a contented breath. "What's on your mind?"

"You," Sugar whispered and kissed his chest. "What do you want to talk to me about?"

Her lazy kiss melted through the cotton layer of his hospital gown. His chest felt tight, like it might explode from the emotional pressure building in his heart.

"You." Jared caressed her skin, smoothing the sleeve of her shirt and tangling with her hair. "I love you, baby. I shouldn't have dropped a bomb on you at GUNS before everything started, but I'm glad you knew where my head was before I ended up here."

Sugar's chin rested on his chest; her watery eyes looked up at him. The tips of her fingers stroked the stubble on his jaw. "I love you, too."

"I was never the kind of man who believed in the long haul. In settling down with one woman who I liked as much as I loved. Just thought it'd be me and Thelma." He brushed her hair with his fingertips.

A half-smile teased. "She's a good dog."

"She is. And she likes you. I think that makes me love you even more."

Sugar batted his chest. "Very funny."

"I know who I am. You do, too. We're one and the same. So to say I never thought fairytale bullshit and love was possible would be an understatement. But we belong together."

She nodded. "I know."

"And a family? Well, hell. It seemed like a concept for other people. Worked out well for Winters. One of these days, Nicola's going to show up, asking for maternity leave, and I'll be out my Bond girl for a while. Christ, Cash will be a pain in my ass come time for Princess to deliver. What I'm saying is, I thought family was nice for them. Not me. But I was wrong. Me. You. Asal. Maybe more. I don't know what we want, but that's family."

Tears streamed down her face. "I want that, too."

Damn. He hadn't meant to upset her, not after all she'd been through. "Now's not the time to cry." He wiped her cheeks, wanting her to smile and laugh, wanting her to feel the same detonation of love in her chest, burning to escape and explode, as he did. "What do you say, Lilly. You ready to stop running, give up the Chase, and become a Westin?"

A brilliant smile broke across her face, and her blue eyes beamed. If happiness and love had been tangible, it would've been Sugar, in his arms at that moment. "Join Team Westin? Hell yes, Jared. Hell. Yes."

"Good answer, Baby Cakes."

As he leaned down, his neck wound screamed, but he kissed Sugar. The top of her head. Her temple. Her cheek. It'd been one hell of a chase. He pulled her tight, vowing to never let go. He'd summited a hellacious battle between his head and heart and found victory with the secretly sweet Sugar, who was curled against him in his hospital bed.

EPILOGUE.

"The happiest place on earth." Disney's tagline was no lie.

At first, Jared had raised an eyebrow to Sugar's suggestion, not only because the idea of bringing Titan to Disney World seemed more than a little absurd, but because, clad in leather pants, sexy heels, and polishing an automatic rifle, Sugar hadn't looked the Disney type.

But life had evolved. Winters and Mia had kids. He had a kid. Plus, as Jared found out, Disney wasn't just for the under-ten crowd. So it had been settled. Or rather, he'd agreed, which was an interesting part of marriage. With the backdrop of the Magic Kingdom, they were having a wedding reception and a belated Gotcha Day party.

Asal didn't know her birthday, so they celebrated the day they officially adopted Miss Asal Westin. Any girl of his deserved a big blowout for such a special occasion. Plus, Disney World gave Sugar an excuse to throw herself a wedding reception. Eloping in Vegas had been a ton of fun for them, but it hadn't given anyone else a chance to say congrats-or rib the hell out of them.

He couldn't blame them. If there were two people that looked less suited for marriage and a kid, it might've been Jared and Sugar. But looks were deceiving. And they could change. Case in point, he was holding a photograph of himself, with his arms around Asal and Sugar, while they rode the teacups. Giant, pastel teacups that spun, and sang, and made his girls smile.

But even better, he had identical pictures from the rest of his team and a few close friends who'd come along to help celebrate.

Roman had been chasing Nicola's best friend, Beth, who was doing an excellent job of ignoring him, although Sugar said Beth really wasn't. It wasn't his problem to figure out, but someone needed to put Roman out of his misery.

Rocco and Parker were on missions to meet-and-greet all the single women in the place, and neither was too concerned if they laid a good line on a married mom. They found far more interested ladies at the world of family and fun than Jared would've guessed.

The only one missing was Brock, and Jared still hadn't gotten over that wound. But he would forever owe the bastard for taking out Buck Baer when Jared didn't have a clean shot. The rumor mill churned out several stories about where Brock had headed off to, and the only thing Jared knew for certain was that his wife had taken his kids and left, saying something about being unsure that was the life she'd signed up for.

To each his own. He hadn't spoken to Sarah Gamble since, but Sugar had solid things to say about her. He only hoped that she found what made her and the kids happy and safe. He always wanted that for the direct or collateral victims whom he dealt with on jobs.

GSI shut down, and Titan absorbed all of their contracts. Jared had a lot of crap to sort through, but he'd been handed a few jobs that Delta Team could knock out immediately and let his home-based team take a breather. It was never a good idea to let those Delta boys sit around and stagnate. Without the structure of a mission, they went feral.

Jared placed the wallet-sized teacup photo next to the folded-up e-mail he still carried, that same one where Sugar said she wanted to kick him. He laughed because sometimes, she did.

Putting the wallet back in his pocket, he saw his wife and her sister, Jenny, walking arm-in-arm with Asal. The three of them were dragging a neon-pink stuffed animal that was as tall as Asal. Without a doubt, he knew that he would be carrying that damn thing within twenty minutes. But that was okay. He would do anything for his girls.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR.

Cristin Harber is an award-winning author. She lives outside Washington, DC with her family and English Bulldog, and enjoys chatting with readers.

Facebook: www.facebook.com/cristinharberauthor Twitter: www.twitter.com/CristinHarber Website: www.cristinharber.com Email: cristin@cristinharber.com Newsletter: Stay in touch about all things Titan-releases, excerpts, and more-plus new series info. www.CristinHarber.com For sexy, quick reads, check out two Titan novellas: GAMBLED.

CHASED.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS.

Thank you to romance readers and for the support this series has received.

Stephanie Spangler Buswell, I learned a lot from you. Thanks for your guidance. Three cheers for Lynn McNamee and Red Adept.

Throwing CC stars on my critique partners. Jamie Salsbury, Victoria Van Tiem, Claudia Handel, Kaci Presnell, Racquel Reck, Amy Anhalt, and Sharon Cermak. I adore you.

And as always, huge love and thanks goes to my husband. XO.

FIRST LOOK AT GAMBLED.

Afternoon light poured through the slats of the bedroom blinds. Brock Gamble had been home alone, drunk, for days. No wife. No kids. Just him and empty bottles of Jack and Johnny.

A freight train of nausea catapulted from his soured stomach, and he stumbled into the bathroom to dry heave, which was nothing new. Collapsing to his knees, his gaze tripped over the counter. It was free of all of his wife Sarah's necessities. He twisted his head toward the bathtub, where no one had touched the bath toys he always stepped on.

His loneliness echoed around him.

Time ticked by while he climbed further into his personal hellhole. At first, this had seemed surmountable. Sarah would come home. It would blow over once he could explain. But then a week turned into two, and she didn't.

I miss her so damn much. And the kids... The pain was incomprehensible.

One bad decision had led to another. When his family had been kidnapped, he hadn't thought clearly. He'd betrayed one person after the next. His family when he hadn't utilized any of Titan Group's black ops resources. His mentor, Jared Westin, who'd taught him everything the military hadn't. His men, the Titan team that bled loyalty. And he'd betrayed Sugar, a friend who he had abducted and offered in exchange for the safe return of Sarah and the kids.

It hadn't worked. Big surprise. He'd been led around by his nuts instead of making tactical, strategic choices.

Regret hit him like a brutal tidal wave. The same wave pounded him day in, day out. As it threw another mighty punch of guilt and betrayal, Brock knew he'd throw up and pass out soon. Just to have the sandman visit him with nightmares.

Finally, crawling back to the bedroom, he stood long enough to scour the room for a liquor bottle. Something, anything, as long as it was mind-numbing.

He needed another swig, so he would either die in his sleep or, if not that lucky, be able to forget whatever dream would torture him while he slept.

"Mommy." Kelly stomped in, followed closely by Jessica, who stomped just like her older sister. "Jess is copying me. She won't leave me alone. Tell her to go away."

Jessica stomped her foot exactly like Kelly had. "Jess is copying me. She won't leave me alone. Tell her to-"

"Girls, find Grandma. Tell her that you need something to do." If sibling antagonism was a sign of normalcy, Sarah's kids were going to be just fine. They'd survived an abduction and moved in with her mother, leaving her husband... who knew where her husband was. He hadn't come home, and she'd needed to get out of their house. Everywhere she looked was a memory of a life she didn't want anymore. She wasn't staying under that roof, married to a man she didn't really know. The decision was far from rational, but she'd pulled stakes and left him a note.

I never asked questions about what you did at work because I trusted you. I don't know you, and I don't know how you live with yourself.

It'd been harsh. She'd been emotional. And if she had to do it over again, she would have said something along the lines of I can't wrap my head around Titan, and how people you work with might want to harm us. I was in shock. Still am. You promised that whatever you did at work, we'd be safe at home, and I feel betrayed, confused, and vulnerable. This isn't just about me; I have to keep our children safe.

It wouldn't have mattered what she wrote, he hadn't been there after she'd survived a shootout. He hadn't come home to check on her, hadn't called about the kids. Sarah had known that he ran off to save the world while working with Titan. That he did things that were questionable, but he promised it was for the greater good.

So many questions. So many overwhelming emotions. And none of it was worth sticking around for if his livelihood endangered their children.

Learn more about GAMBLED: A Titan Novella at www.CristinHarber.com.

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