Status Updates From Strike Fast (DEA FAST #4)

She mattered to him so much. He’d never thought he would fall for someone again after such a bitter divorce, but Tess had somehow managed to blast her way through all the walls he’d put up around his heart. Tough as he was, it was terrifying to hand his heart over to someone. He just hoped Tess was as ready to receive it as he was to give it.

He crumpled. His knees gave out and he dropped to the ground, barely even feeling the impact. Autumn was here. She was safe. He knelt there on the ground holding his daughter, and something inside him shattered. All the fear and anguish he’d bottled up came bursting forth in a rush of tears. Hard, wrenching sobs ripped out of his chest, raw and agonizing. “Don’t cry, Daddy,” Autumn said, her voice stricken.

Impatience pulsed through him. “Whatever it is, whoever it is, I want in.” They needed an agent; he was it. And he wouldn’t take no for an answer. Taggart folded his arms across his chest and stared at him. “You sure about that? You don’t even know what we’re thinking about yet.”
“Hundred percent.” If it meant getting his daughter back, he’d do f-ing anything. Including giving his own life.

He thought about all the milestones he’d missed, either because he was overseas or on a training mission somewhere. His career had cost him a lot. He couldn’t handle it if it cost him Autumn, too. Nothing was worth his baby girl’s life, and he felt sick that his job had been responsible for this nightmare.