ALEX WAS RUBBING swirls of shaving cream on his face as his wife prattled on and on. They’d been home a week, and man, what a week it’d been. Literally, except for the main house, everyone and nearly everything else on the property had changed.
Dylan’s first birthday was almost here. Lacey was pregnant. Cam was still M.I.A., but every day that passed without bad news, he counted in the win column.
Drae and Tori were in some sort of weird stasis. No movement. But so far, he hadn’t found Drae’s testicles strung from the ceiling. And Tori was slowly becoming her old self. Changes in her diet, daily yoga with his wife, bunch of essential oils, and some other female mumbo jumbo seemed to be making a difference.
Stephanie and Calder were on a disgustingly sweet high. His uncle’s mind being blown by the news he was going to be a fifty-something-year-old first-time father had changed the man in sometimes hilarious ways.
Calder was a self-proclaimed old hippy, and Alex found it terribly amusing the man was hyperventilating over getting Stephanie’s ass to the altar. She was in deep pregnancy bliss and hadn’t warmed up to his demands yet. Which in Alex’s mind was a good thing because off the beaten path in a corner of the property where an original homestead stood, a crew of specialists were transforming the crumbling adobe building into a small chapel.
The latest guesstimate for completion was mid-October. If Stephanie held Calder off long enough, they could get married there.
Running the razor across his face, he listened with one ear to his wife’s fascinating take on the election all the while making a list in his mind of things he wanted to do.
After thinking it over, he decided to pull his new security chief away from what he was doing and give him a new assignment. With the agency opening up to new clients and programs, the business side of the compound became a small city of activity. Sure, it was a fast-paced time, and all of their employees and contractors were busy, but he needed something else.
Their new head of security, Duke Winston, was a ‘Nam vet with a grudge against the world and the best damn guard dog instincts on the planet. Even better than Drae. Justice was lucky to have him on board. Not that his services came cheap, but putting the gruff older guy in charge of agency security had been a good decision.
But Alex wasn’t happy that at any time, another scene like the one Lacey described—of a caravan of black vehicles taking them by surprise—could descend out of nowhere and fuck up so much shit.
This was his land. The Valleja-Marquez family settled here a hundred years before Arizona became a state. There were conquistadors in his family tree, for Christ’s sake.
Respecting the government was one thing. But any of those guys who occasionally rattled their cages just driving onto his land was another thing.
He was going to put Duke in charge of security for the family. Not only that, but he also wanted a manned gate and security sensors deployed on the property.
About the time his wife switched to a debate about water rights, his mind drifted to a slice of happiness he found when they came home.
Brody and Heather were kicking ass and taking names. The unexpected family was settled, happy, and so far so good with Brody’s daughter, Bella. Alex liked the little girl immensely. She was a survivor like her daddy. And she adored Heather. It looked to him like those two were next in line for a happily ever after. Another reminder to kick the chapel construction into high gear.
“I found the same thing the other night on QVC, so I ordered a bunch.”
Uh-oh. Did she just say QVC? Meghan had a hard-on for the shopping channel. When David was in the kitchen or Jane was hawking shoes, she was a happy camper.
“Do you like this color?” she asked—holding her hand up. “I think it clashes with my hair. Maybe I’ll ask Amanda to bring her crew out here, and the girls can spend the day getting manicures. Take everyone’s mind off other stuff.”
Alex looked at her in the mirror. She was sitting where she always did when he shaved. Plopped on the lower vanity counter between the his-and-her sinks. She was naked, cross-legged, and relaxed. In the mirror, where he had a clear view of her backside, he focused on the griffin tattoo and felt his mouth automatically curve in a smile.
“I like pink,” he told her emphatically. “The color you wore when we went to dinner in Madrid. That one.”
She smiled. He knew it pleased her to no end when he remembered details. Especially small ones.
“It’s called Teddy Girl. I’ll order a case,” she teased with a sardonic smirk.
“Oh, did I tell you? Dinner with the family. Thursday night.”
“Here?” she squeaked. It astonished him that she still got nervous when they entertained.
“No. Pete’s. At Drae’s request.”
Her eyes narrowed, and though she tried to silence it, he heard a sharp hiss.
“Honey, you have to go. And you have to meet Finn part way. You heard what Heather said when you explained the situation to her. And she’s a therapist, so I certainly listened. Your brother needs you to see him as his own man. Running Pete’s is important to him. All you have to do is show up and be nice. That’s all it’ll take to start the healing.”
It was hard to see her this way. She was reeling from Finn’s hateful words. Heather pointed out that though Meghan was the recipient of her brother’s outburst, it was directed at the whole family. Since they weren’t here, it was up to her to make the first steps toward reconciliation.
“Why do I have to be the adult?”
“Hey. Believe me, I hear you. Do you know how many times I’ve had to smooth things out with my sisters?”
“You’ve talked to Finn, haven’t you?”
“Not face to face, but yeah. That dude is not my biggest fan. But he loves you, honey, and I think once he had his little outburst, he regretted it. Baby steps. It’s just dinner. Let’s give the guy a chance. He promises to make brisket.”
There was no way the snarky comment wasn’t going to get some part of a smile. He wasn’t wrong. She smirked and shook her head with a sigh.
“Okay. You had me at brisket. But what does Drae have to do with the invite?”
He wiped his face with a towel, leaned one hand on the mirror, and loomed over his wife, twirling a loop of her soft hair around his fingers.
“Baby, I’m going to tell you everything I know. Because you’re my wife and we don’t keep secrets. But you have to swear to me you won’t interfere.”
“Will I get a spanking if I disobey?”
“Meghan. I’m not shitting around. This is serious stuff. I’ll tell you everything, but you have to understand … We must let Tori and Drae get there on their own.”
She listened attentively as he told her the whole story. All of it. When he got to the part about what he knew of Drae’s plan, she gasped and clutched her hands over her heart.
“Damn. That man is going to make me cry.”
“He’s a good guy. Can’t remember a time when Draegyn St. John wasn’t my wingman. He knows Tori better than anybody does. If this is what he needs to do, all hands on deck in support.”
She ran her fingers down the center of his chest. Her husky, “Mmm,” got his blood pumping.
“If you ever shave your chest, I will leave you.”
His head rolled back when he laughed.
“I’m serious, Major.” She sniffed with an arched brow. “You have the sexiest happy trail around. I like a bit of shrubbery, and some landscaping is okay, but wild and free works for me.”
“You’re a poet and didn’t know it.” He chuckled when she rhymed.
“I have a question,” she said with a pensive look as she scratched her nose and nodded toward him. “Why don’t you have the same tattoo as Cam and Drae? Is there significance to the ink?”
Alex drew in a long breath and cocked his head to look at her face. Her brain was a marvel. One of the world’s greatest wonders. It was laughable that men thought they were such deep thinkers. Next to the mind of a woman? They were all amateurs.
“I’ll give you the CliffsNotes version and then we have to get a move on. I want you to sit in on my meeting with Duke about the new security.”
“Do we have time to make the bed together? You know how I hate leaving it for Carmen.”
Hmm. “Is making the bed the same as taking a nap? Just asking so I can keep my priorities straight.”
“It is indeed, Major.” She giggled.
Well, cool. Then this was going to be the shortest story in history.
“Six-man team. Search and destroy. They took heavy fire. Pinned down after dark, they tried to pull back. A shitstorm erupted. One man dead plus Drae was missing. Pitch black and Cam takes off after him. A bunch of bad guys were dragging him off. He found him unconscious and beaten to a pulp. The body count is Cam’s business, but he got him back, and they got the hell out of there. Drae owes his life to Cam’s uncanny Waldo skills. The matching tattoos happened when they had leave and went to Australia. Started with a river of cheap whiskey and ended with the tribal looking ink.”
“Wow.”
“Find out what you needed to know?”
“I did. Thank you, Major. I’m a little speechless.”
“Speechless, hmm? Well, let’s make the bed, and I’ll check your throat with my dick and see what that’s all about.”
Twirling her hair, she opened her mouth wide and then giggled, “I’m saying ahhh.”
He held out his hand and helped her off the counter. He was thinking about the undeniable pleasures of marriage when Meghan said, “Uh-oh.”
Searching her face, he stiffened when she went pale. His naked wife dashing to the bathroom stopped him dead in his tracks. When he caught up to her, she was hanging over the toilet and puking her guts out.
Oh, my fucking god.
Ten seconds passed, and then his brain screamed it louder.
Oh.
My.
Fucking.
God.
Was it possible his wife was pregnant?
The meeting with Alex’s security chief went well, she supposed. Half the time, Meghan had no idea what they were talking about, but her husband sure was enthusiastic.
The animated video presentation with the proposed security net for Family Justice was too technical for her, but judging by the gleam in her husband’s eyes, it was some form of nerd porn.
Yeah. Whatever. Her mind was busy trying to make sense of the morning puke-fest. Alex was mostly silent during the whole embarrassing episode. Vomiting into the toilet was hardly glamorous or sexy. Plus, she’d been a righteous mess after. But he took it like a champ. He kept her from falling face-first into the bowl and held her hair out of the way as she yakked. He even cleaned her up after while she huddled on a stool wrapped in a big bath sheet.
Neither one of them said out loud what she knew they were both thinking.
As Duke and her husband wandered around the head of security’s tiny office, she overheard them discussing moving him into the bottom of the old business center. He could have the entire first floor, and they’d renovate it any way he wanted. She was moved by the Major’s firm insistence that from here on out, he, his Justice brothers, and their families had round-the-clock security.
Stretching because she’d been sitting too long, Meghan pushed away from the conference table and stood up. The minute she moved a muscle, Alex’s eyes were on her. Smiling, she waved him off so he’d relax. She was fine.
A phone rang. It was Duke’s. He looked at the screen and said, “This is our man stationed at the cutoff.”
Alex explained. “Until we get the guard house built, Duke will keep a security detail in a Sprinter van to block the access road, so nobody can come up here without being authorized.”
There was some grunting back and forth which to Meghan’s untrained ears sounded like code and then the call ended. Duke looked at her and then at Alex.
“You’ve got a delivery. Be here in a minute.”
Oh jeez, she thought. Will every delivery van get stopped? That’d suck. Especially considering her QVC compulsion and Carmen’s addiction to Amazon Prime.
Alex must have read her mind. “We might have to figure out what to do about FedEx and UPS. Ben goes to town every day for the mail, so at least that’s not a problem.”
“This isn’t that kind of delivery,” Duke assured them. He looked straight at her and motioned to the chair she just vacated. “Ma’am,” he murmured politely. “You may want to sit down.”
They were in a new building not far from the recently constructed main entrance to what was now being referred to as Camp Justice. The military guys identified with the reference, and it had more meaning.
If the delivery was coming here, then that meant the security detail diverted it from going to the main house. Seemed like a lot of fuss to her.
Duke called out, “Major.”
Alex looked up. She saw him frown and then square his shoulders. A man she’d never seen before walked in. If she had to describe him, she’d use words like menacing, fierce, and unyielding.
The man saluted smartly and said, “Major Marquez, sir,” in a firm voice. “Sorry to interrupt,” he added with a half glance in her direction. Turning back to her husband, the man motioned with his head. “Think I have something that belongs to you.”
Shuffling awkwardly, a big man with long dark hair and a beard came through the door. With his arm in an elaborate sling, he moved slowly, skirting around the desk before coming to a halt in front of Alex. That was when her heart exploded with joy.
Cameron. Cameron was alive and looked to be in one piece, if only somewhat banged up.
He fell into an emotional hug with Alex that made her wipe away a tear. There was some conversation after that. Men talk. Military speak. She sat still and gripped the chair to keep from falling off.
After an eternity, Cam turned to her. “I’m not ignoring you, Irish. One foot, ya know?”
She covered her mouth, peered at him through tears, and nodded her head. Yeah. One foot. It was a saying she knew well. One the three of them used. It meant sometimes all you can do is put one foot in front of the other—and hope you keep moving and don’t fall.
Waving her hand, she gave him permission to ignore her completely. Right this second, she was too busy holding herself together.
A few more minutes of conversation ensued. As the shock of Cam’s return eased, Meghan focused on her husband. His bearing was strong, commanding. This was Major Marquez. She had trouble swallowing for a minute. The unnamed man delivering Cam into Justice’s hands set the tone for this strange encounter. She saw Alex’s reaction when he appeared.
Whatever they were discussing was serious. Alex raked his fingers through his hair, and her stomach bottomed out at the movement. It was one of his few tells. Her shoulders tensed when he rolled his. Crossing his muscular arms in front of his chest, she noted from her side viewpoint that his hands clenched into tight fists.
Every atom in her body felt tingly. She heard her irregular breathing and caught the shuddering rise and fall of her chest. It was a unique perspective—seeing him slide effortlessly into command mode. She’d always known her man was a natural dominant, and that it was in his blood. But when she saw those traits in action, something came over her. Remembering how handsome he looked in his dress uniform the morning of their secret wedding vows in the desert, Meghan shivered with awareness and sighed quietly.
His sharp gaze found her before the last of the breath left her lungs. A single nod. An unruffled calm swept over her. The Major had this. The outcome, no longer in doubt.
Cam murmured something to her husband. Alex put his hand on the man’s shoulder. She couldn’t hear his hushed response, but right away, Cameron appeared to relax. Alex held out a hand and waved her close.
When she reached them, Cam turned his head and kissed her softly on the cheek. She rubbed her hand gently back and forth between his shoulder blades while Alex spoke and Duke plus the creepy man left them alone.
“Honey, I want you to call Lacey. Tell her to meet you at the cabin right away. Make up whatever story you think will get her there.” His pointed look made her pause. What was he trying not to say? “Don’t freak her out, okay?”
Right. She understood and smiled as she nodded. Cam didn’t know his wife was pregnant, and Alex wanted to ensure Lacey’s absolute right to be the one to tell him.
“I’ll contact Drae and update him. Probably wouldn’t hurt for you to head to their place and lend a hand with the kids.”
Cam finally spoke to her. His voice was strained, gravelly. She wondered how much pain he was in. “Give my son a kiss from his papa.”
Meghan winked, kissed his cheek, and stepped back. The look her husband bestowed made her shoulders straighten and brought her chin even higher. Pride and admiration shone through his loving gaze.
“Give us a minute, baby.”
She mouthed ‘I love you.’ His lips quirked a tiny smile.
Leaving them, she wandered outside into the heat of the afternoon and took an enormous deep breath with her arms flung wide and her face turned toward the blazing sun.
“Thank you, God,” she whispered into a passing breeze.
Putting both hands on her tummy, she inhaled deeply again.
She looked at Duke where he stood a couple hundred feet away in deep conversation with what she was pretty sure was an out-of-uniform warrior.
Her eyes swept the edge of Camp Justice. Everywhere she looked, her eyes found new. New faces, new buildings, new systems, new challenges.
It felt to her as if a page was turning. Not just for the agency but Family Justice as well. Her family. The one she made here in Arizona and the one she came from back in Boston.
Changes.
Then she thought about the craziness. The chaos. The mayhem. The stuff that was the juicy center of this wonderful, sometimes difficult thing called life. All that and so much more were essential to the new chapter she felt gaining momentum all around them.
If she were pregnant, she’d be part of a miracle. Giving birth to what Nietzsche called a dancing star. Born from chaos but oh, what a wonderful light!
All of them were adding stars to the heavens. Dylan. Daniel. Even sweet baby Bella Mia. And now Lacey and Cam adding to their family. Stephanie and Calder too and God willing, her and Alex.
Parker and Angie weren’t far behind, but she smiled knowing the poor counselor had quite a few more hoops to navigate before his Desert Angel sealed the deal with a wedding and a family.
Now, if only Victoria and Draegyn would get it together. She thought about Drae’s plan to win his wife back and laughed out loud. Suddenly, she couldn’t wait for the family dinner at Whiskey Pete’s.