Quickest Risk Read online

  I hold the phone out to Lukis on one good picture, and he slams on the brakes. The back of the Jeep fishtails on the road as it swerves into the side, the tires kicking up pebbles.

  Lukis grabs the phone from my hand as the Jeep comes to a complete stop. He throws it in park with a force so strong, I grit my teeth hoping he didn’t break a transmission or drivetrain— whatever it is that controls the vehicle.

  “How the fuck did you do this?”

  I shrug. It didn’t seem like such a big deal, but seeing the pure amazement written across his face as he swipes through the photos on my phone makes me happy and excited too. “My phone was already on silent so it didn’t make any noise, and I figure you were already distracting him. We were probably dead anyway.”

  He stops flipping pictures, his eyes staring at the last one as his head shakes in disbelief. Slowly, he turns in my direction. “You’re fucking amazing, Sugar Lips. We have to get these to Maine.” He leans across the space and unbuckles my seatbelt before pulling me across the Jeep. We kiss, his lips folding against mine as his hands weave into the back of my hair erasing the spot where Antonio touched earlier. Adrenaline still courses in my veins from our earlier escape, but now my heart beats rapid fire for a different reason. A mysterious man with a bag full of guns and a Jeep going nowhere in particular, but everywhere I want to see.

  Epilogue

  One Year Later

  * * *

  The light from the sign towering a few feet above us highlights our location on the Vegas strip. It isn’t the town that brought us together, but it’s close enough. Vegas is where I was headed when my car got stranded on the road one year ago and I met Lukis, the man who changed my life. It’s also the first place we stopped once we hightailed it away from the Last Chance Motel. I figured he’d drop me off once we hit civilization and tell me good luck, but here we are, still together.

  Elvis says something, his top lip curling higher on his face, and I chuckle. Who knew Lukis, of all people in the entire world, would want to be married by Elvis. And who in their right mind would’ve thought I’d agree to it?

  The last year has been full of surprises. We traveled the world together . . . Well not the world, but the continental United States. Everywhere his Jeep could take us. Most of the time, Lukis makes me sit in the motel room while he does spy things. It’s not as cool as spies in movies. When he isn’t listening in on someone’s motel room or stealing packages out of car trunks — don’t ask about the last one, it’s a crazy story —he’s sure to stop and let me see tourist attractions. And not just the big ones like Mount Rushmore. The little fish statues you find on the side of the road or the huge all-concrete prairie dog in South Dakota. My phone no longer has photos of upcoming drug deals but is full of pictures from the best tourist traps in America.

  It took thirty years, to get here, but this was the best year of my life.

  Lukis squeezes my hand, and I lift my gaze to meet his. He smiles, his eyes flitting over to Elvis. His expression is his way of saying, “What’s up with this guy?”

  I shrug and squeeze his hands back as Elvis continues comparing our upcoming marriage to his favorite song, “Nothing but a Hound Dog.” There’s a slight connection.

  More apt than he realizes. To say my family was not a fan of Lukis in the beginning is an understatement. My dad called him so many bad names, he may have even referred to him as a hound dog. Traveling the world as an assistant to a spy is not exactly what my family had in mind when they considered my career prospects. Or my marriage prospects. But after a few months of sending them nonstop pictures of us smiling in front of famous landmarks, they realized how happy I am. Or at least, they learned to shut up about it.

  For me, it’s been the best year of my life. Lukis is what I’ve been missing. Adventure and excitement. A chance to live life to its fullest, but we always end up back where we started. In bed together.

  You never know someone until you ride in a car with them for four days straight only stopping to sleep at night. He’s not just a guy who walks around the desert carrying a bag of guns, but so much more.

  My soulmate.

  Elvis prattles on about accepting Lukis for richer or for poorer and all those things I’ve already agreed to. When he stops talking, my eyes lock on Lukis and I stare at the tiny speckles of color in his sparkling eyes. The same set I’ve stared at so many times in the last year.

  “I do,” I say, smiling.

  I don’t know what the future holds for us. Where we’ll live, if we’ll have kids, or even what his next assignment will be. Lukis doesn’t just work for a guy named Ridge Jefferson in Pelican Bay. He also has a contact in San Francisco. He’s even been known to do work for the mob in Oklahoma. He’s a man of many layers. I don’t know where we’re going, but I know that wherever it is, we’ll be there together. We’ll do it in an ugly ass — yes, I still think it’s ugly — army green Jeep Commander arguing over music along the way.

  “You may kiss the bride,” Elvis says, howling like the classic. It’s the one part of his impression he does well.

  Lukis leans down closer, pulling me up to my tiptoes. I wrap my hands around his shoulders as his tongue slips past my lips and turns what I expected to be a cute wedding kiss into something far more X-rated. The witness provided by the wedding chapel hoots and hollers in the grass as cars drive by honking. My family will also be pissed when they find out I married Lukis and they weren’t here. But we wanted to do it.

  Well, actually, he wanted to do it. I’ve been planning my wedding since my fourth birthday when my grandma gave me a wedding Barbie. Lukis woke up this morning, and I popped open my birthday present to find a giant diamond ring. I have no idea when he bought it, considering we’re together all the time. It took me two seconds to say yes and then another one for him to suggest we do it today. Four hours later, we found ourselves in Las Vegas.

  There’s a small part of me that thinks he’s had this planned out. We haven’t been back this way in months and to have an Elvis impersonator ready to go on the fly? It all seems too perfect. But who am I to question it? My last year turned out to be a spectacular year and I know the next will top the charts as well. I’m starting it off as Mrs. Thompson. I couldn’t ask for anything more.

  Lukis pulls away and fist bumps Elvis. “I love you, Sugar Lips. Let’s get the hell out of here.”

  I’ve learned that where Lukis goes, I follow, so without another question, I take his offered hand and walk away, leaving the Las Vegas strip.

  “Are we staying on the strip tonight?” I ask, closing the door to the Jeep. This is a great way for me to decide whether Lukis had this planned. If we end up in a rinky-dink motel for the night, it was definitely a second thought. If we end up some place nice, he’s been planning this. He gets easier to read every day.

  Lukis starts the Jeep he parked on the side of the street next to the Welcome to Las Vegas sign and pulls out rather than making a U-turn back toward the strip.

  “I reserved room twenty-nine at the Last Chance.”

  * * *

  Thank you for reading Quickest Risk!

  Grab the next book in the series to find out what happens to our favorite former SEALS in Pelican Bay.

  Start the series with Security Risk

  Or pick up the next story with Aloha Cowboy. A freebie read available to my newsletter subscribers. Sign up NOW and once you’re email is confirmed you’ll receive your free download link.

  If you liked Quickest Risk please consider taking a moment to complete a review at your online retailer of choice. They don’t need to be long. Even a sentence counts.

  If you really want to share the love recommend this series to a friend. Word of mouth is the best publicity an author can ask for when it comes to this business. Every time you get a friend to buy a book a unicorn gets its wings.

  About the Author

  USA TODAY Bestselling author, Megan Matthews, writes smutty romance by day and hides behind her secret iden
tity as a responsible Pinterest mom when other parents are around. She believes morning shouldn’t start until noon and chocolate should be calorie free. Living in Michigan she prefers sun over snow, hot chocolate over coffee, and wine over beer.

  * * *

  If you’d like to stay up to date with books in my series or read about the other crazy things that I put on social media you can friend me at the following places. I love to hear from readers.

  Definitely take time to check out my other series, The Boys of RDA. The first book is FREE for readers.

  * * *

  | FACEBOOK | FB READER GROUP |

  | MAILING LIST | WEBSITE | BOOKBUB |

  * * *

  * * *

  Glitch, a holiday short story featuring Aspen and Finn’s first Christmas together is available as a FREE fan exclusive.

  * * *

  This story isn’t available anywhere else. Just tell me where to send your free copy.

  * * *

  Tell me where to send your free exclusive story by clicking HERE

  Acknowledgments

  Writing and publishing a book is hard work. I am so lucky to have a wonderful set of friends who help me along the way. Sometimes when I finally reach the end of a book I’m so ready to be done with it I don’t take the proper time to say thank you to those who have helped along the way. Plus, there is this ever present concern I’ll forget someone and feel horrible. If that happens now, please know I’m so sorry.

  This book would not be here today with my wonderful husband who feeds, clothes, and basically does everything around the house while I’m in deadline mode. Emily Robertson my author bff and co-writer who listens to me complain often. Verlene Landon who without her help this book would seriously not be available right now. She finally motivated me enough to get off my butt and finish the reprint. To Amanda B, my editor who fixes all my crap words and Jamie F who proof reads them to double check our work. I can’t forget the wonderful woman of Chatzy who answer all my random writer questions each day. And also, last but not least, readers. It is thanks you I’m able to have my dream job and help support my family. Thank you!

  Again, if I have missed anyone I am so sorry. I do appreciate all the help I receive for each book.

  Other Works By Megan

  THE BOYS OF RDA SERIES

  * * *

  Rush

  Lag

  Glitch - fan exclusive

  Grind

  Beta

  Quest

  * * *

  PELICAN BAY SECURITY SERIES

  * * *

  Security Risk

  Future Risk

  Holiday Risk

  Biggest Risk

  Sweetest Risk