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Authors: Regan Black

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Matthew watched the crowd with a wary eye, as if Messenger would emerge from the woodwork and renege on the whole deal. Despite what Renata had told him, it would take time to come to terms with it all and he was more than a little relieved they planned to head to Italy tomorrow.

It felt precarious to him, balancing the rest of their lives on something
as delicate as the veil of blackmail she’d draped over the head of the man in charge of Unknown Identities. Matthew wasn’t without additional resources, he just hoped he didn’t have to call them into play. For the first time, he was grateful he didn’t need sleep and that Renata was strong enough to stand guard during the short times when he would be forced to rest.

Across the street, he spotted a familiar face,
the same face he’d seen at the farm and he set down his beer mug with a
thunk
against the table. Not a hallucination, Renata had seen him too, and yet he had to wonder if Messenger had already put some new threat in motion.

Renata covered her hand with his.
“You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” she said, following his gaze outside. “If this is too much, we can leave.”

“
No.” He shook his head, turning his attention to her and distracting himself from the uncomfortable thoughts. Her cousin Selena would join them soon, having also received an invitation to this party earlier in the day and he knew Renata was looking forward to meeting Selena’s new boyfriend, Adam. “No,” he repeated, trying to smile, but apparently he’d failed, based on her worried frown. “It will take some time to shake off the past.”

He looked back at the crowd
outside and the face he thought he’d seen was gone. It didn’t make him feel better.

“
New scenery will help. You’ll love Italy.”

“
I will love wherever you are,” he agreed, catching her hand and brushing his lips over her fingers.

“
We can …”

Matthew didn
’t hear another word over the sudden buzzing in his ears. The face, the entire man, who’d haunted him this past week stood directly behind Renata, his arm around a redheaded woman who beamed back at him with a wide, happy smile.

What the hell? Having a breakdown when he was finally free of UI
had to be the worst sort of timing.

“
May we join you?” the woman asked, stepping close enough to be heard over the boisterous crowd packed in for the party. “For a moment?”

“
It isn’t safe to stay much longer than that,” the man added.

So his hallucination spoke. Uncertain how he felt about that, he deferred to Renata.

“I don’t mind,” she said, looking around for an empty seat. “I’d say pull up a chair, but…”

Matthew stood abruptly, offering his chair to the woman. With any luck, Renata wouldn
’t hear the questions Matthew needed to ask.

“
I’m Amelia,” the redhead began, introducing herself to them both and beaming at Renata. “It seems you and I have something in common.”

“
Handsome men?”

Matthew caught Renata
’s diplomatic smile. She wasn’t sure what was happening either.

“
Well, that too,” Amelia replied with a laugh. “Matthew did me a great favor last week and to say thanks, I insisted on letting you know you won’t be alone if something goes wrong. Please take my card.”

“
How could you know –” Renata stopped short, looking up at Matthew.

“
Don’t ask,” he said around the lump in his throat. “Take the card.” He turned to the man beside him. “I’m glad I missed.”

“
We both know you didn’t.” He held out his hand. “John Noble.”

Matthew hesitated,
reluctantly accepting the handshake, half expecting the situation to deteriorate into a brawl. He’d shot the man in a small Boston town simply to follow an order. “Why are you here?”

“
Don’t worry, we weren’t followed.” John dipped his chin toward Amelia. “It was her idea. She said you needed to hear it from me that you can’t feel guilty about following orders.”

Matthew scanned the crowd behind John.
“It wasn’t right.” He shoved his hands into his pockets.

“
Turned out right for us,” John said with a hitch of his shoulders. “Can’t say it was easy, but I owe you a debt and I wanted to say thanks.”

“
Thanks?” Matthew stared at him, incredulous.

“
Yeah. You did your job well. If you hadn’t, Amelia might have been killed. That would have been a tragedy.”

“
I’m done with UI,” Matthew said. “Done with all of it.”

“
We heard.” John glanced at Renata. “Would’ve loved to see the bastard’s face when you told him.”

“
He barely flinched,” Matthew said. “He did the cufflink thing.”

“
Huh.” John smiled. “Still, if you have any trouble, don’t hesitate to call.”

“
We’ll be leaving the country. It’s time for a fresh start.” And, potentially, they would investigate some old documents, but only after some time to get settled with each other again.

“
All the same,” John said.

Matthew nodded. This wasn
’t the time or place to argue. He knew Messenger had global resources, and what John was implying didn’t make him happy, but the underlying threat hadn’t changed. It wasn’t anything he and Renata hadn’t already discussed. The difference between their situation and John’s was that he had a loaded gun of sorts aimed at Messenger. He assumed John’s advantage was Messenger thought he was dead.

“
If he doesn’t stay on his side of the playground, I’ll let you know.”

John
’s lips twitched. “If I learn he’s looking in your direction, you’ll get a head’s up from us.”

“
Thanks.” Matthew sipped his beer, searching for the right words. It would help if he knew what he wanted to say. Finally, he just blurted it out. “What are you after?”

John arched an ey
ebrow. “After?” He planted his feet, hooking his thumbs in his back pockets. “My experience says the system is corrupt. Too much leeway, not enough oversight. What may have started with valuable intentions has gone off the rails and good men and women are in more danger than they realize.”

“
Systems often go that way,” Matthew said.

“
Are you saying your experience was different?”

Matthew sensed the tension in the other man and knew he was treading on
thin ice. His eyes strayed to the perfect, unmarred skin where there should have been a terrible wound thanks to a bullet that he’d put through John’s skull.

Matthew couldn
’t contradict anything John had said, not that he wanted to. The UI system had changed him, beyond the physical results. The program had run roughshod over the fine line between willing service and forced servitude. After taking the shot at John, he knew he couldn’t blindly follow orders anymore, but without Renata’s viable threat he would have been stuck, staring at suicide as the only workable exit strategy.

She
’d given him new life. He thought of Tisdale and the few people he knew through his small section of Messenger’s program and wondered about their future. Getting out wasn’t something any of them discussed. Getting out wasn’t part of the standard-issue UI deal.

“
Whatever you need, count us in.” It was the only answer he could give in good conscience, the only answer he wanted to give. “I don’t know exactly what we can offer at this point, but we’ll do whatever we can.”

“
That wasn’t why we came by, but I appreciate it.” John patted his shoulder as Amelia rose from the table, smiling. “Happy New Year to you both.”

Epilogue

Times Square, New Year’s Eve, 11:59 p.m.

The crowd pulsed all around them, counting down as the ball dropped. John had his arm around Amelia. On some level it was good to enjoy the anonymity of being part of the crush. It might be the last time they enjoyed any outing that fell within the definition of normal.

Still, he couldn
’t help thinking of the ‘program’, that list of operatives serving Gabriel that Ben had handed over.

“
Happy New Year!” Cheers, horns, and music filled Times Square as midnight arrived and a new year began.

Amelia pressed her body to his and gave
him a warm kiss full of promises for the immediate future and the long term.

“
Happy New Year,” she whispered against his lips, then kissed him again.

“
Happy New Year.” He tensed, unable to shake off the awareness of the eyes of so many security cameras aimed on this very location. How long before Gabriel realized he and Amelia were alive?

“
John, relax.” Amelia rubbed the tight spot between his shoulder blades. “You did the right thing for Sandman. Ben got Messenger out of the city. We’re safe.”

“
It was risky.” None of this was truly safe. “They’re smart to get out of the country for a while.”

“
That’s the right choice for them. Tonight is about
us
.”

“
Right.” He smiled, an expression sure to throw off anyone looking for him. During his long, arduous tenure with UI, smiling wasn’t something he’d ever felt like doing. “Ben said he had a lead on someone who needs a little help.”

“
Good. We’ll get right on that. Tomorrow.”

“
Tomorrow actually just started,” he said, teasing her.

“
I know.” She batted her eyelashes at him. “I’m referring to the tomorrow that’s twenty-three hours and fifty-eight minutes away.”

“
Got a plan?”

“
For you? Always.” She tugged him along with the people heading out to warmer entertainments now that the official countdown was over.

His gaze roamed
the faces closest to them. What had he been thinking? This mass of humanity could work against them as much as it could work for them. End Game might be out here somewhere, just looking for the right moment.

“
Relax. We’re safe,” she said, bringing his face close to hers. “Do you hear me?”

“
Yeah but –”

She shook her head.
“Stop it. You’re the best. Together we’re even better. Let’s go back to the hotel and I’ll prove it to you.” She wiggled her eyebrows at him.

He gazed down at her, more grateful with every moment for the kindness fate had shown when she
’d fallen in love with him. “It may take a while to convince me.”

She laughed.
“Well, you know how I love a challenge.”

Dear Reader
,

Thanks so much for reading
Sandman, the third installment of the Unknown Identities romantic suspense series. Giving Matthew and Renata a chance to reclaim their lost love was a challenge and a joy throughout their story. You can be sure to see more of them as well as Ben, John and Amelia as the series continues.

If you enjoyed this story, please be sure to let other readers know by leaving a review where you purchased the book, or at
Goodreads, on a blog, Facebook, twitter, or wherever you like to share books with friends and fellow readers.

Have you signed up to receive notices of my future book releases and exclusive
monthly giveaways? If not, please visit my website at
http://www.reganblack.com
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’t pester you with emails, and I won’t share, barter, sell, or otherwise compromise your email address. Of course, you can always unsubscribe at any time.

When you write a review, please send me the link by email to
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’d like to thank you for your time with a free copy of one of my other titles.

Thanks again for your support!

~
Regan

About the Author

Regan Black, a USA Today bestselling author, writes award-winning, action-packed romantic suspense, paranormal
romance, and urban fantasy novels featuring kick-butt heroines and the sexy heroes who fall in love with them.

Raised in the Midwest and California, she currently makes her home with her family, two retired greyhounds, two arrogant cats, and two quirky finches in the South Carolina
Lowcountry where the rich blend of legend, romance, and history fuels her imagination.

You can visit her online anytime at
www.ReganBlack.com

Discover more exciting adventures by Regan Black:

Unknown Identities (dark, edgy romantic suspense)

Bulletproof
#1

Double Vision
#2

Sandman #3

The Shadows of Justice Series (dark urban fantasy romance):

Justice Incarnate, Book 1

Invasion of Justice, Book 2

Veil of Justice, Book 3

Tracking Shadows, Book 4

Shadows to Light, Book 5