I met my wife at the door when she came back from the beach with her friends. I took the baby from her arms and gave my sweet little girl a kiss on both cheeks as I walked towards the lower office, with my wife on my heels. "Did you two have fun?""Yes, we did, our girl was the perfect little angel, weren't you honey. In fact, all of the kids were. I never knew mommy yoga could be so much fun.""I'm glad you enjoyed it. Shawna is an expert at such things." She's also a kickass marksman, but the women don't need to know that, no more than they need to know that each time they step outside the door, they have a shadow. My people are trained well enough not to be seen or heard, which is something the other men gathered here on the island are grateful for, I'm sure.Of course, Lyon had to test them, since as he said, he had more skin in the game with nine kids, his parents, in-laws, Cy, and of course, his wife. I'm pretty sure had it only been Kat and him, he'd have done the same. Hi
As far as they know, he worked for some shadow government team before going maverick, which none of it is true. As much as I want to give Marcus the peace of mind to bring his brother and nephews in, I'm hurrying that along for the sole purpose of getting Roman, Catalina, and her grandfather together in a lab. But that's another story. Right now, my main focus is to get this first meet between my wife and Roxana out of the way so that we can move on. I'm not sure what the girl's plans are after she does what she came here to do, but I'm sure Jason isn't about to let her leave here. That little hiccup wasn't planned for. I didn't foresee the two of them getting together, didn't know the boy was going to fall ass over heels in love with her at first sight, but if she turns out to be a good one, as I've come to expect, then it works out perfectly."Breakfast should be ready soon, let's go find the others.""Are we eating on the lanai or inside?""It's being set up outside, bu
"Do you mind? I have to get cleaned up, and I heard someone say something about breakfast." He'd heard it too since the staff member had announced it just a few seconds ago. He eased back and away from me, barely giving me enough room to pass. "I'll wait here for you.""You don't have to; I'm sure I'll find it. Didn't she say we were eating outside?"When he didn't answer, I looked back at him, ready to get annoyed. "What? You don't trust me to be on my own in this big old fancy house?" There was a look that crossed his face very fleetingly, but not fast enough for me to miss it. He looked almost…pained. What the hell is wrong with him?"It's not that. I don't want you facing all of them alone…look, it doesn't matter, just go get dressed and I'll be right here to walk up with you." I wanted to say something snippy back to him like I didn't need him, but that look gave me pause. He seemed genuinely worried about me facing a roomful of strangers on my own.I, on the other hand, c
I learned a long time ago to choose my battles. If someone wants to give me a handful of fancy clothes while I was here, then so be it. It's not like I'll be taking them with me when I leave because hey, I won't ever need them again. I prefer to be practical instead of shooting myself in the foot. Add the fact that the clothes are new. I can't remember the last time I wore something that wasn't a hand me down or used.I thought all of this before I got a glimpse of one of the price tags. It was obvious that someone had tried tearing some of them off, but there were a few that they'd missed. I held the sheer looking beach top up and almost cried at the waste. Do you know what I can do with a thousand dollars? Who pays that much for a shirt?And why would she give it to me? Does she even know that her brother had brought this stuff to me? I snatched the door back open again. "Did you steal this stuff?""What? Of course not." He looked confused, but I was even more confused by the f
I didn't lose time or place; as soon as I opened my eyes to find myself being cradled in Jason's arms, I knew exactly where I was; and she was there. Leaning over me with a look of concern on her face, and those stupid tears started again and that tightness in my chest that I had to fight unless I wanted to make an ass of myself again. Of all the reactions I imagined I'd have upon seeing her, this was not one of them.I grabbed for and gripped her hand as her husband stepped forward. "No, Hank, she's not hurting me. You made the statement that I was real before you fainted, does that mean that you know me?" I read the confusion on her face as I struggled to sit up. "No baby, you need…" Jason started to stop me, but I patted him with my other hand, trying to console him since he sounded like someone was strangling him. I imagine I'd given everyone a good scare, passing out like that. I didn't feel any aches and pains, so my assessment that he'd caught me before I landed face-first
I'm a trembling mess, but I'm holding it all together for my wife. As soon as Catalina and Lily Anna got up to follow my wife and Roxana inside, I knew what they were up to. Since I didn't have anything set up because I was expecting Roxana to tell Cierra whatever she had to out in the open, I had no choice but to follow them after telling the others to stay put.I had to come up with something quick so as not to alert them to the fact that I was onto them, so I pretended that I had some leftover work in the lab. Catalina was not pleased neither was she amused, but they headed off to their room under the pretense that that is where they were headed all along, and I went into the lab to the computer.I read along to everything Roxana was saying until she got to the part about my wife being the one they'd been after. I know her well enough to know how something like that would hit her. Now she's in warrior mode. At least she was no longer trembling in my arms like a scared little gir
There was still a lot I had left to do; what if I screw up by telling them where I'd come from? My heart felt sick as I realized I was at some sort of crossroads. Honestly, I hadn't thought this far ahead, which is stupid now that I think about it. It would've been my first question had I been the one in her shoes.Jason squeezed me where he was now hugging me around my shoulders, and for some reason, I wanted more than anything to trust him. It's been less than twenty-four hours, and already I find myself wanting to accept that he was genuine, something that scares me more than a little bit. I haven't trusted anyone anywhere for a long-long time. Even uncle Mike has been kept at arm's length since my escape, but that's another story.The look in Jason's eyes was so comforting that I wanted to believe, needed to. For the first time in five years, I realized that I was tired. It felt as if I'd been going on autopilot this whole time, and had they not interrupted me; I'd still be goi
On the screen, Cierra spoke up again. "Okay, so tell me, Roxy, this guy that killed my family, where is he?""What? She knows where he is? How? Is that why she wanted to see you?" Kat asked."What's going on, Mancini?" Lyon came to stand beside me. "How come you let her go without getting what you were after?"I reached beneath my desk and switched off the little device there. "I never told Cierra that Roxana was coming here just to see her.""And? I don't get it." I hit a few more keys on the comp, and another image popped up on the wall next to the room where the women were. "What's that? What's Mengele doing? One of her experiments?""Not exactly." F*ck, I wasn't looking forward to telling him the truth about this, not yet. It's funny; he's, in essence, my boss, the one I'll be passing off the reigns to. I have no issue giving him everything else, but when it comes to his kid, I find myself walking a very tight rope. To him, she's just his little girl, and I doubt that eve