I’D PROMISED ANNIE I WOULD finally meet her parents now that we were together. I drove my rusted truck up the I-5 North toward Annie’s parents’ home in Encinitas. The damn truck still ran, thanks to my buddies taking care of it. With all the money I’d saved up during deployment, I briefly considered upgrading it to a brand new Ford Raptor. I needed to put down some roots, maybe buy a condo. But in this real estate market, the chances of doing that were slim.

I arrived at Annie’s house, and I flashed back to dropping her off here six months ago. She’d been so scared, so hopeful. She’d already come so far.

The grand gate opened and I pulled into their driveway. It was sad that with all the resources her parents had, they hadn’t been able to find Annie. Just hire former SEALs to bring her back home—real SEALs, not some asshole pretenders. But Dave said he’d seen some guys looking for Annie—who were they? I knew a few security contracting firms filled with former Team guys who could’ve gotten the job done. I’d sell every possession I owned to save my daughter. Give my life.

I glanced in the car mirror. I wore a collared shirt and khaki pants. I’d even shaved. I looked like a preppy asshole—should fit right in.

Annie came around to the side of my truck, carrying Gabriel. I recognized her parents immediately from all the news coverage. Her father had a distinguished white beard and piercing blue eyes. Her mother looked like one of those reality television housewives—long, shiny black hair, almond-shaped chocolate eyes, and porcelain skin.

I removed my sunglasses and stepped out of the truck. Her father observed me coolly, and offered a hand, which I took. “It’s an honor to meet you, Patrick.”

Her mother gave me a quick hug. Tears shone in her eyes as she looked up at me. “Thank you for saving my baby.”

“You’re welcome. I didn’t do it alone.”

“Yes, but you risked your life and career for her.” Her mom hugged me again and I could smell her strong perfume. “You brought our Annie back home.”

“Okay, Mom, can we at least go inside before you start losing it?”

“Of course, baby.”

I followed Annie up to the elegant entry stairs. The view of Moonlight State Beach from the living room blew me away. This home had to be worth at least three million dollars. I felt more at home in the brothel than I felt in this palace.

Her father stood in front of the bar. “So, Patrick. Can I get you something to drink? A martini perhaps?”

Who did they think I was—James Bond? What twenty-five-year-old guy drinks martinis? I grunted. “Thank you, sir. That sounds great.” Fuck. I didn’t even know how to talk to these people.

I studied Annie as she sat with her back erect on the white leather sofa and bit her nails. This was her home, but she didn’t seem comfortable. And it sure as hell wasn’t kid friendly for Gabriel. Sharp-edged glass table, ceramic vases. Couldn’t they hire someone to child proof now that they had their grandson living here?

This place was so pristine, like a museum. If her parents had seen where she had been living for the past five years, they would’ve had heart attacks. Well, at least with their cover story, no tabloid would return to Aruba and try to retrace Annie’s steps, expose what had happened to her. The brothel burnt down, so even if they ever went back her parents wouldn’t know how bad her existence truly had been.

But I would never forget. The smells of sex, drugs, sweat, and smoke were permanently ingrained in my head.

When I looked up, I met her father’s glare. He’d returned a few moments prior and by the narrowing of his eyes he must have seen me watching her. Great.

Her father handed me the martini, his cold eyes assessing. “Can I have a word with you on the deck?”

The martini even came with the standard-issue blue cheese stuffed olive. Bonus. I took a sip of the liquor. I suddenly had a feeling I would probably need all the alcohol I could get.

“Sure, sir.” I followed him out to the redwood deck. I’d rather be interrogating a terrorist than be alone with this former Naval Officer. I downed the rest of the martini.

I breathed in the salty ocean air. I would never own a house like this. My own one bedroom rental could fit in the size of their living room.

“So, Patrick. Annie told me everything. How you met, how you rescued her. I’d like to thank you for your service.”

My service? “It was the right thing to do.”

He reached into his pocket and placed a folded piece of paper in my hand. “This should cover your expenses.”

I opened it. It was a three hundred thousand dollar check made out to Patrick Walsh. I’d be able to help my mom out, buy a new truck, and put a down payment on a condo. Pay off debt. I could live a fairly comfortable life for years on the amount of money I held in the palm of my hand.

I didn’t hesitate to hand it back to him. “I can’t accept this.”

Mr. Hamilton laughed; his nose lifted in disgust, and shoved the check back into my hand. “Yes, you can. I knew men like you in the Navy—pieces of shit who would cheat on their wives with hookers. I hope you can leave us alone to heal. In private.” His eyebrow rose. “Annie has been through enough. Seeing you is a reminder of her past. How you used her, forced her to get you off. I don’t want scum like you hanging around my daughter.”

My own vision narrowed, I opened my stance and took a few controlling breaths. Who the fuck did this guy think he was? “I can’t be bought off. If it wasn’t for me, Annie would still be shooting up heroin and screwing strangers. Or dead. You think I’m scum?” I sneered. “You should’ve seen her pimp.” I ripped up the check, went back inside, and charged toward the front door.

No one was going to tell me how to live my life and who I could see.

Annie was waiting in the dining room, her mother close by her side. Their heads both shot in my direction as I strode through the perfectly appointed kitchen and then past them. I ignored the smirk on her mother’s face and the frown on Annie’s.

“Are you leaving?” she called after me. “We haven’t even eaten yet.”

If I left, I’d be doing exactly what her father wanted. He wasn’t going to win. I wanted to be with Annie and no one was going to stop me.

“No. I just need a second.”

“Okay, do you want a tour?”

“Sure.”

I took the stairs behind her two at a time and followed her into a room, where she sat down on the bed; her shoulders hunched inward, hands lying limply on her lap.

“This is my bedroom,” she whispered.

I glanced around the room. Its stark white walls had weird pictures of Victorian children in frames above the sleigh bed, and tiny little porcelain dolls arranged on an antique vanity. It reeked of a combination of mothballs and potpourri. “Your room? Are you eighty? This place is creepy. You actually sleep in here? No wonder you have nightmares.”

She gave me a dazed expression. The same one I had seen back on the boat. “Well, my mom had it redecorated after I went missing—used it as a guest room. I understand, I guess. They had me declared legally dead. For insurance and stuff. I don’t see the point in redecorating it. I’m going to move out at some point. I don’t really feel comfortable here.”

“How do you not feel comfortable in your own home? Didn’t you grow up here?”

“Yes.” She stroked the flowery bedspread. “But it feels so different now. All traces of me had been removed. I don’t blame them for moving on.”

What the fuck was wrong with her family? I didn’t understand rich people. My mom worked two jobs to support me. She still lived in the same crappy thirteen hundred square foot house I grew up in back in Sacramento. Even when I brought my ex-fiancée back home to meet her, she hadn’t changed one thing about my room. Hadn’t Annie’s parents wanted something to remember her by when they thought they’d lost her forever?

“Can I see Gabriel’s room?”

“He…he doesn’t have a room. He sleeps in here. I like him close.”

“Are you serious? This place is huge and he doesn’t have his own space? Where does he put all his toys?”

“We play outside, and in the basement. He doesn’t have too much stuff.”

I swallowed around the knot in my throat. I couldn’t believe what I was about to do. “Why don’t you and Gabriel move in with me?”

“What? I thought you wanted to take things slow.”

I took a step closer so my knees bumped hers. I lifted her chin with the tips of my fingers. “I do. Physically. But I want you around me all the time and I love that little boy. He can put his trains and toys all over my place.”

“Maybe. I don’t know. I don’t want to impose. I haven’t even seen your place yet.”

“That’s fair. Tomorrow you guys come by and I’ll make you dinner.”

“What about dinner here, tonight?”

“I’m sorry, Annie. I tried, but I really don’t feel comfortable here.” I wanted to tell her what her father had said to me, but my desire to protect her made me keep it to myself.

“Okay. I’ll walk you out.”

I followed her down the stairs to the entryway. Her parents hovered behind her; Gabriel sat in the corner, seemingly hypnotized by an iPad. Her mother’s face was Botox-tense and the smile she wore was more of a sneer. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes and instead turned to pull Annie in a hug. They shared a look which I caught from over Annie’s head. Fuck them. I didn’t need their approval. If anything, they should want their daughter to be happy considering what she’d been through.

We bypassed her parents and went down the hallway, out into the yard, and back down to the driveway. I looked up at the expansive glass windows, and could see her dad watching me. I wasn’t intimidated by him. He wanted to watch? I’d give him something to watch. I pulled Annie to me, cupped her face, kissed her lips. She was mine, and I wasn’t going to hide our relationship from anyone. She’d spent enough of her life hiding.

A moment passed and I just stared at Annie. Even though we’d only known each other for a short time, there was an ease and comfort level between us that I’d never experienced with anyone. “I’ll pick you up at five.”

“Sounds good.”

I slid into my truck and drove away.

It wasn’t just that her family was loaded; I couldn’t shake the feeling something wasn’t right with her family. And I was going to find out what it was. For Annie’s sake.