A/N: Here it is—the final chapter! Thank you to all of my amazing reviewers and to those who have followed along. I may end up doing a sequel at some point if I feel up for the challenge. I love the family man side of Deacon and think that would be fun to write.

My song choice for the bar scene in this chapter is "Llegaste Tú" by Luis Fonsi & Juan Luis Guerra.

Enjoy! :)

Reagan opened her eyes to see the last colors of dusk splayed on the walls of their motel room. She blinked and glanced down, catching Deacon looking over at her across his pillow.

"Hi," he said, smiling.

"Hey," she answered with her own sleepy smile.

"How're you feeling?"

She snuggled into the sheets and stretched just enough to not pull her stitches. "I haven't felt this good in a long time." She noticed the cuts and bruises on his face and reached out to gently run her fingers over them. "What about you?"

"A little sore, but I'll live."

"Thank goodness, because I'm not done with you yet," Reagan said, letting her hand wander to his bare chest. She sighed as she stroked a dark bruise and her smile disappeared.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"I'm sorry for everything I put you through."

"Reagan—"

"If we hadn't been in a relationship and complicated things, you wouldn't have risked your job to get me back. You would've followed protocol like you were supposed to."

"Says you. My team is everything to me. I would do anything to help one of my own."

"Okay, well, you could at least let me feel a tiny bit special," she said, nudging his shoulder playfully.

He laughed. "You have no idea how special you are. I was losing my mind, Reagan."

"I'm so sorry."

"No more of that. I made my own decisions. I wanted us to be together. Besides, you were taken against your will. It's not like you did it on purpose."

"I know," she said, "but you all had to come down to this shithole and clean up my mess, putting your lives and jobs on the line."

Deacon stared at her in disbelief. "We know you would've helped, but you were kind of preoccupied."

Reagan shrugged. "A little gutting can't keep me down for long."

He laughed, rubbing his hands over his face and releasing it on a groan. "Oh babe, what am I going to do with you?"

"I can think of a few things," she said, grinning.

He glanced back at her and remained silent, looking like he wanted to say something. He caressed a hand over the outside of her arm and she squinted at him.

"Out with it already."

Deacon's lips twitched into a smile. Then, he said, "Tell me about your brother."

Reagan rolled onto her back and threaded fingers through her thick hair. "Wow, you sure know how to kill the mood."

"You need to talk about him. I know Wendy will hit you up when we get back, but I'd like to think that you and I have a closer relationship."

"I should hope so. I mean, I like Wendy, but she's not really my type."

Deacon snorted. "Are you ever serious?"

Reagan blew out a heavy breath. "Ugh, yes, I'm sorry. I think it's my defense mechanism."

"I understand that. Life can be too serious, but if you don't deal with it, it will eat you from the inside out."

She nodded, and finally spoke. She told him about her little brother—their falling out after their mother's death, how they hadn't talked or seen each other in ten years. "I knew from following his record that he wasn't up to any good, but I had no clue it would come to that."

"Did he hurt you?"

"Physically? No."

"Where do you stand now?"

She laughed, but the sound was short. "Your guess is as good as mine. He's in the wind now. La Eme is after him, along with the police. The latter would keep him alive, but I'm sure he doesn't want to take that risk. They have plenty of connections on the inside." She paused. "He could've let me die, but he didn't. He's still my little brother—the only family I have left."

"That's not true," Deacon said with a gentle smile.

Reagan looked at him and nodded. "You're right. I've gained a whole new family and I shouldn't take that for granted."

Deacon dropped a kiss onto her shoulder and she reached for him, turning so she could sweep her mouth against his. Already undressed, he covered her body with his own and made them one.

An hour later, they walked into the dive bar and immediately spotted their team at a table among the sparse crowd.

"Cassie!" Luca yelled, jumping up from his seat and running over to give her a hug. She laughed as he spun her around. "What are you doing here?"

"I couldn't let you guys have all the fun without me!"

When he let her go, Chris stepped up and they exchanged a quick squeeze.

"Thank you for your help," Reagan said at her ear.

"Happy to. Four guys on the loose in Mexico? I could use the extra help."

"I thought there were only three suspects?"

Chris jabbed a thumb at the table. "I'm talking about these bozos."

They burst out laughing and Hondo moved in for a hug.

"What's so funny?" he asked.

"Don't worry about it," Chris quipped.

When Hondo stepped back, Street was there, leaning against the table. He appeared to be hesitating, but Reagan closed the space and wrapped her arms around his neck. He held her for a few seconds and then released her.

"You look great," he said, his words sincere and not a come on.

She smiled. "Thanks. It's great to see you."

He nodded in response, and she appreciated the fact that after everything they had become good friends.

In the next moment, their dinner was brought to the table.

"Comida!" Luca said, clapping his hands once and rubbing them together. "We got a little bit of everything! Come sit down."

He pulled out a chair for Reagan and she thanked him. Deacon sat down next to her and they smiled at each other.

Familia, she thought to herself, and reached under the table to take his hand.

After dinner, they ordered another pitcher of margaritas and cerveza, and then another. Chris and Reagan danced over to the jukebox and flipped through the albums, finding songs to play that suited their fun mood.

"This place kinda reminds me of O'Malley's," Reagan said, leaning against the jukebox to admire the carefree atmosphere and scuffed, wooden dance floor in front of them.

Chris looked over at Reagan, a slow smile spreading across her face.

"What?" Reagan asked nervously.

The other woman didn't reply. She flipped through the songs with the same laser-focus determination she used on a raid. Finally, she pressed the buttons for her selection. Slow, romantic music flowed throughout the room.

Reagan watched Chris walk over to Street and grab his hand, yanking him onto the dance floor. Then, she looked at Deacon and saw him gazing back at her. Before she could make her way over, he pushed away from the table and stood up. He strode across the bar, looking ridiculously handsome in his coral-colored polo and fitted khaki chinos.

"You look like you need a dance partner," someone said from next to Reagan. She instantly realized it was Hondo, having just walked over from the bar after seeing her standing alone.

Deacon reached her a second later and the men exchanged a look.

"Uh, I was hoping to get this one," Deacon said, sliding his arm possessively around Reagan's waist.

Hondo narrowed his eyes at them, his chin tipped up and lips parted. "Are you…?"

Reagan nodded. "We're together."

"Oh, damn. I'm sorry, Deke. I wasn't tryin' to steal your woman."

Deacon laughed. "I know. I appreciate you watching out for her."

"It's what we do," he said, and they bumped fists.

When Hondo walked back to the table, Deacon pulled Reagan close and she fit to him perfectly, as if their bodies were made for this. They swayed to the music, enjoying the intimacy of the moment.

Then, Reagan asked, "What happens now?"

Deacon's dark gaze met hers. "What do you mean?"

"I didn't hear the final details of the deal you all made with Hicks. I can be quite persuasive, but I wasn't sure how far he would go to help you out."

"Well, we lucked out a little bit. The local authorities were onto Lopez and his affiliates, but with the gang having so many connections down here, and limited police resources, they were having trouble making any headway. When they heard from Hicks, they were happy for the assistance."

"So they didn't mind that you guys dropped three dead bodies in their streets?"

"Not at all. No civilians got hurt. We did what we came here to do. They were grateful."

"And what about Hicks? Chris said something about probation?"

"Yeah, we're all on probation for a bit, but we should be back to work next week."

"And Tan is coming back as well?"

He nodded. "He couldn't come with us this week because his mom had an important appointment. The doctors gave her a clean bill of health."

"That's amazing."

"It is. The band will be back together."

Reagan frowned. "I'm very happy for you, but I'm gonna miss you guys."

"I know the feeling is mutual. You're one of us now, active team member or not."

She smiled and angled up her chin to give him a brief kiss on the lips.

"How long are you on medical leave?" he asked, still moving them slowly with the song.

"My follow up appointment is next week. I hate to admit it, but I think it will be a few weeks until I'm completely ready to come back. Just dancing has made me tired."

Deacon stopped and backed up a step. "I'm sorry, we can stop…"

"No, this is nice. Chris wore me out," she said, laughing, as Deacon pulled her in again and she nestled into the comfortable nook under his chin and against his shoulder.

Deacon rubbed her back and she closed her eyes. When he cleared his throat, she lifted her head.

"What about us?" he asked, the words tentative. "What comes next for you and I?"

Her brow flinched and she shrugged one shoulder. "I don't know. What did you have in mind?"

"What if we got married?"

Reagan's lips parted and she stopped dancing.

"There's a chapel down the street. We could go tomorrow…"

A laugh exploded from her chest, but when she saw real hope shining in his brown eyes, her smile vanished. "You're serious."

"I love you, Reagan. I've been waiting my whole life for you. I don't see a point in delaying the inevitable."

She continued to stare at him, grasping for the right thing to say. "David. I would like nothing more than to marry you."

He began to smile.

"But I think it's too much, too soon." She sighed at the disappointed look on his face—the look she had tried to avoid. "What if we move in together?"

Deacon glanced away and made a sound similar to a laugh, but he didn't seem pleased. "Once upon a time, people got married without knowing if they could function in the same house ahead of time."

They had reached a standstill. Literally. They were no longer dancing and had moved to one side of the floor.

"What if…" she began, and they made eye contact once more, "we move in together as an engaged couple? We can start planning our wedding when we get back."

Deacon didn't answer right away.

She touched his cheek and held his gaze, speaking clearly. "I love you, David. I want you to be my husband, and I want to be your wife. But I want to do it right. We don't even know if it would be legal down here."

Finally, he sighed out a breath and smiled at her. "You're right. I guess I got wrapped up in the moment. So…are we engaged?"

"Sure feels like it, fiancé."

"This is not as romantic as I had envisioned it," he admitted.

"You are such a romantic," she said, kissing him. "And I love that about you."

"So I guess I have another question then."

"Oh yeah?" she asked.

"Your place or mine?"

Reagan glanced at the nearby table in thought and a cunning smile graced her lips.

"I don't know, you guys," Luca said, looking around Deacon's large apartment. "The windows aren't east-facing. I love watching the sunrise."

Reagan held back a giggle. "You can go on the roof anytime."

Luca rolled his shoulders, clearly not liking such a precise answer. "It's just so quiet here…"

Street scoffed from his spot in the doorway. "Most people like that."

"But it's just a really big place for one person. Are you sure you and Deacon don't want to stay here instead? I like being by the beach…"

Reagan shook her head. "I own my house. This is just a rental. I'm not looking to sell."

At that exact moment, Chris walked into the room, leading a Labrador retriever.

"Who's this?" Luca asked.

"This is Duke—your new roommate."

"No way! You got me a dog?"

"I used to train him. He's in retirement now and needs a new home. I think you two will get along just fine," she said, watching them wrestle in the living room.

"He's gonna ruin my carpet," Deacon said, referring to the spotless white flooring throughout the unit.

"It's not your place anymore, Deke," Luca said as he scratched the dog behind its ears.

"Oh really?" Deacon asked skeptically. "So now it's yours?"

They all laughed until a thud in the hallway interrupted them.

"Dude, I had a bad grip. That's what I was trying to tell you halfway up!" Tan complained to the man on the other side of Luca's new recliner.

Hondo scowled at him. "Well you didn't have to drop it on my foot."

Tan looked at the amused crowd in Deacon's—Luca's—apartment and said, "It's nice that you guys are just laughing and hanging out while we do all the work."

Reagan shrugged. "I'm not allowed to lift anything over ten pounds."

"Excuses, excuses," Hondo teased.

When the sun began to set and Luca seemed content to be left alone, Deacon and Reagan headed down to the parking lot. Her Chevelle sat alone in one corner, like the prized car that she considered it to be.

"You know," Deacon said, capturing her attention, "you told me you'd let me drive her one of these days."

Reagan grinned. "Did I?"

"You certainly did."

"I'm pretty sure I said I'd give you a ride..." She tossed the keys in her hand, as if in deep consideration. "We can spar for it."

Deacon laughed. "Well, you're still healing. I'll give you a few weeks before we do that. I don't want to beat you too badly."

"Oh! Big talker over here!" She stopped at the driver's door and rested her arms on the roof. "Okay, three weeks from now? If you win, I'll let you drive her for a week. If I win, you wash her for a month."

He gave her one of his striking smiles. "You're on."

A/N: Again, thank you for taking this journey with me! If you enjoyed it, please drop me a line! This reboot just keeps getting better and I love connecting with other fans! :)

Until next time...

~Ariel