Page 135 of Snow

Nova smiled as they stepped inside. She had met his parents over FaceTime while Snow was still in the hospital. What was supposed to have been a quick introduction had somehow turned into Darcy interrogating Nova about herself while Snow repeatedly tried, and failed, to end the call. His father had mostly sat in the background laughing at his son’s misery.

She liked them both already. Especially Darcy.

“Tell her I said hi.”

“You can tell her yourself. She wants to plan a trip to come out to Virginia Beach.”

“I can’t wait to meet her in person,” Nova said, resting her head against his shoulder as the elevator carried them toward the lobby.

A few weeks ago, she hadn’t known what her life would look like if she stopped being Leonard Hart’s daughter first and Nova second. She had spent so many years doing what was expected of her that walking away from the firm should have terrified her.

Instead, she felt lighter.

She was going to stay with her sister for a while. She was going to compete in that kickboxing competition. She was going to figure out what was next for her career. And she was going to see where things went with the Navy SEAL currently holding her hand.

For once, Nova didn’t have a five-year plan.

When the elevator doors opened, Snow squeezed her hand and nodded toward the lobby.

“Ready?”

Nova looked back once at the offices she had spent so much of her life trying to earn a place in, then turned toward him.

“Yeah.”

This time, she really was.

CHAPTER THIRTY

Snow sat in the stands, leaning forward with his elbows braced on his knees, his attention locked on the ring like everything else in the arena had faded into background noise. The entire team had made the trip to Orlando—the guys, wives, kids—all of them turning out to support Nova.

They had sat through a few earlier matches, smaller bouts that had the crowd warmed up and buzzing, but Snow couldn’t have told anyone a single detail about any of them. His focus had been building steadily, tightening with every passing minute, because he knew what was coming.

Nova had made it to the championship round.

Now she was about to face Martina—the fighter with a reputation for bending rules and taking cheap shots whenever she could get away with it.

As soon as the announcer’s voice echoed through the arena, calling out that Nova’s match was next, Snow felt it hit him all at once. His leg started bouncing without permission, his fingers flexing against his thighs as if he needed to burn off the energy building inside him.

“Hey,” Bear said beside him, giving him a sideways look. “You good?”

Snow exhaled and scrubbed a hand over his face. “Yeah. Just… nervous.” He let out a short, humorless laugh. “I’m so damn nervous I’m shaking.”

And that wasn’t like him. He had been in situations far worse than this. Missions where everything had been on the line, where lives depended on split-second decisions, and he had handled it without blinking. But sitting here, waiting to watch Nova step into that ring? This was different.

Bear grinned and gave his shoulder a firm squeeze. “She’ll be fine. She wants this. She’s put in the work.”

Snow nodded, but his gaze was already drifting back to the ring as the announcer called Nova’s name. Their section exploded with cheers, the team rising to their feet as her name echoed through the arena.

Then Martina was announced, and the crowd answered with just as much energy.

Snow stayed on his feet, his eyes tracking every movement as the two women stepped into the ring. The noise around him blurred, fading into something distant and indistinct. All he could see was Nova.

The bell rang.

Snow dropped back into his seat, leaning forward again as if getting closer would somehow give him more control over what was about to happen.

He watched her movements like he understood every detail—the stance, the footwork, the rhythm of the fight—even though he didn’t. Not really. But it didn’t matter. He was all in.