Jud put the car into park and glanced in his rearview mirror. Viviana’s family had been thankfully silent after sharing the cat story. Jesus. He was down for buying her a dozen of the things if they chased away the haunted expression on her face. He’d intended to take her to a nice dinner, catch a movie afterward.

A date.

How long had it been since he’d gone out on a traditional date? Neither he nor Viviana were traditional in any sense of the word, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t try. Things had gone to hell, though. First his parents wanted to spend time with her. He liked that. Then her parents piled in. No one liked that. So he’d added Dylan and Mary into the pile. Dallas tagged along. The jury was out on that being a good idea.

Her family fled the back of the vehicle and headed toward the restaurant. The mother was whining about something, but Jud didn’t listen to much past “that man.” He figured someone might take exception to him handling her parents the way he wanted.

Permanently.

He reached over and cupped Viviana’s face until she looked at him. Leaning over, he kissed her, lightly at first. She deepened the contact. The desperation in her kiss unsettled him. A new plan formed in his lizard brain. They were alone in the truck. He could haul ass out and let Dylan and Dallas sort out their families. Yeah, his lizard brain loved the idea.

But she deserved better than base instincts.

“Have I told you how beautiful you are?”

“A few times,” she whispered. “I’m starting to believe you mean it.”

“Good, because I do.” He smiled. “Let go eat.”

“This isn’t a good idea.”

“It’s going to be okay,” he assured her. He’d make sure it was. “Stay seated. I’ll come around.”

Jud went around the vehicle and helped her out. She was more than capable of handling it on her own. Hell, Viviana could do anything she put her brilliant mind to, but she was short and the flip-flops weren’t exactly optimal footwear. Cute as hell, but he didn’t want her tumbling, and they weren’t exactly the optimal footwear for a fast exit if necessary. No matter. He wasn’t leaving her side until they were back at the compound.

“You’re staring at my feet again. I’m starting to think you have a foot fetish.” She tapped his chest with a playful fist. “Eyes off my toes. You’ve had your requisite foot time when you gave me a massage.”

“I’m thinking I could develop lots of fetishes where you are concerned.” He whispered the admission into her ear and wrapped a protective arm around her. “Cute flip-flops, but you can’t run in those.”

Her eyes widened. She glanced down and wiggled her toes. Pink tinged her cheeks as she looked back up. “I can handle my own in a crisis, Judson Jensen. Don’t worry about me and my footwear. Keep your bad ass focus elsewhere.”

Cute as hell. He kissed her again, playful and quick. “Let’s go.”

He turned and almost knocked his parents over. They wore twin expressions of curiosity and amusement. Unfortunately her parents were on the opposite end of the spectrum. Arms crossed, they glared from their location nearer the restaurant than anyone else. Dallas, Dylan and Mary were all either grinning or laughing outright.

“I wish you would have let me change,” Viviana stated.

“I’ve said it before, I don’t give a damn what you wear. You’re beautiful in anything. You’d make a trash bag a fashion trend.”

“I’d be better off in a Hefty bag than this.” Her gaze swept the restaurant. “Seriously, Judson, this place is fancy.”

“Leave it be, girlfriend,” Mary said. “It took Dylan several trips to get me desensitized to this. I finally get it. They’d rather get time away from The Arsenal with us than waste it while we gussy up. Next time we’ll make sure you’re dressed to kill.”

Jud offered Mary a smile. She got what he was saying.

“Besides,” she pointed to her leggings. Zombies. “We match!”

The women laughed and headed toward the restaurant arm in arm. He shook his head and chuckled.

“You’re good with her,” Dylan commented.

“She makes it easy.” He regarded the two brothers, then looked over at his parents, who’d quietly followed his progression with Viviana. “This’ll likely be an awkward dinner. Her parents are…”

“We know, dear,” his mother said. “Let’s go.”

He closed the distance between him and Viviana as she and Mary made it to her parents. Dallas smirked and opened the door, motioning everyone into the restaurant. He let Dylan handle the seating situation.

“Oh, yes. We have your table ready, Mr. Mason. The order you called in is in works. It should be ready by the time you are ready to leave.”

“Appreciated,” Dylan responded. He turned and scanned the room as Mary snuggled closer.

The restaurant was a typical layout of several closed off sections, two of which spilled out onto a wraparound porch.

“Oh, miss, we’d love a seat outside.” Viviana’s mother motioned toward the double-doors.

“Inside,” he replied to the young girl escorting them.

“Inside,” Dylan affirmed.

“But it’s such a lovely evening. The breeze alone is worth being outside.” The woman looked genuinely confused.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t get your name earlier. I’m Jenna.” His mom weighed into the unfolding bout like a prizefighter.

“Olivia,” the woman offered. “Don’t you agree outside would be lovely?”

“Yes, it would.” She lowered her voice and touched Olivia’s forearm. “Can you keep a secret?”

The woman’s eyes widened, but she nodded at his mom.

“These three men aren’t here to take us to dinner. They’re here to keep us safe. Outside is lovely, but not secure. Would Prince William have dinner on a restaurant patio without adequate protection?”

Olivia scanned him, Dylan and Dallas. “Very well. Inside, though I hardly see the comparison. I suppose them keeping us safe since we’re confined to that compound is a good idea. I’d hate to drag this out any longer.”

“Excellent.” His mom nodded at the confused waitress. “We’re ready.”

“We have a private party room,” the girl offered. “I’ll put you in there and make sure my manager knows.”

Jud grinned. The girl had overheard more than was probably smart, but it’d gotten them inside a secured room. His mother flashed him a wink as they followed the woman to a back corner room. Sitting took a little negotiation. Richie needed an exterior corner, but he, Dylan and Dallas weren’t about to give those up easily. Viviana’s father relegated the sole end table position to his son and sat on the other side of Dallas. Dylan took the opposite side of the table with Mary at his side. Jud took the seat nearest the wall and pulled the seat beside that out.

Viviana smirked as she sat, but made no comment to the musical chairs. His mother sat on Viviana’s other side. By the time the dance was finished, Viviana’s parents had been effectively separated at the table. He offered a chin lift of gratitude to everyone.

“This is such a lovely restaurant. I love the lighting. Are those deer antlers up there?” His mom pointed to the wall nearest him.

“Those are moose if I’m not mistaken,” Dylan offered as he put a napkin in his lap. “The owner has a restaurant up north as well and hunts up there during season.”

Stilted conversation commenced in between drink orders. Heaving piles of dinner rolls were placed onto the table.

“No, thank you.” Olivia pursed her lips. “Some of us can’t afford to eat that many carbs. It goes straight to our hips. Don’t you agree, Viviana?”

“Right.” Viviana fisted the napkin in her lap.

Jud reached over and put a roll on her plate. He pulled the plate of butter squares closer. “Dad always taught me real men appreciate a woman for who she is inside, not her dress size. Eat up, Viviana, because you’re a hell of a woman.”

* * *

“In case I don’t get to say it later, Mr. and Mrs. Chambers, thank you for raising such a brilliant and competent daughter.” Dallas looked at Vi, then over at her parents. “She’s saved the lives of a lot of people I love and keeps us safe when we’re in the field. We couldn’t live without her, and we have you to thank for that.”

Vi almost choked on her tea. Where had that come from? She peered around the table and wondered if, like Alice, she’d stumbled into an alternate reality, one where everyone had lost their minds. She sat beside Jud and nibbled on her roll.

“I know firsthand how difficult it is to raise a genius. My grandson is a lot like your Vi,” Jenna said. “He’s nineteen and already working on his master’s at MIT.”

“That’s where Viviana went,” her father supplied. “And yes, you’re quite right. Raising her was…a challenge. It wasn’t easy being corrected by a child because she knew more than anyone around her.”

Her stomach soured. She had been a bit…difficult. At the time she’d merely wanted to share what she’d learned.

“Ah, yes, we still have that problem with our Jacob sometimes,” Jarold commented. “Then I figured out he wasn’t sharing to correct us or show how smart he was. He just had so much in his little brain, he was damn near exploding to share with someone. He didn’t make friends easy, still doesn’t from what I understand.”

It was like Jud’s father had read her mind. She breathed a small sigh of relief when no angered retort came from her parents.

“Well, I suppose that is true. She may have been precocious, but she never failed to impress us. Once she got her mind on something she wouldn’t stop until it was done.” Her mom laughed.

Laughed.

“Mom, Dad, do you remember the trip we took, the one where the RV died going up the incline?” Richie laughed and shook his head. “I still remember how pissed you were when you came in with that melted cup.”

“Oh my word,” her mom chuckled and looked around. “I’d almost forgotten. We were going up Rattone Pass and Ralph decided we didn’t need a tow truck to haul us up the steep incline. We’d manage just fine.”

“So of course we break down about halfway up,” Richie said with a laugh.

Viviana couldn’t help but join in. The bread in her stomach settled a bit at the levity. “Dad realized he could drain gas from the generator to get us started up again to help the vehicle not die in first gear when going against the sharp incline. It was a great idea. He was always good with cars.”

“Right.” Her dad cleared his throat. “Obviously I was a bit embarrassed I hadn’t just paid the money for the assist up the hill like a lot of the other RV owners were doing. So I march into the kitchen and grab a foam cup sitting on the counter. Viviana looks up and in that fiercely confident tone of hers and says, ‘That won’t work, Dad. It’s going to melt.’”

Vi looked down. Heat crept up her cheeks.

“Dad tells her off and marches out with the cup in hand. I’m sitting there laughing cause I don’t understand why it’s gonna melt, but I know it will. My sister wasn’t ever wrong about science stuff.” Richie smiled at her.

She forced a deep breath. She’d always assumed he was laughing at her.

“Oh dear,” Jenna said.

“Yes, well, I quickly realized I should’ve probably asked why instead of getting angry,” her father admitted.

“That’s a lesson we’re all still learning,” Dylan admitted. “When she or Mary or one of their friends says something, I’ve learned to accept it as fact and let the why sort itself out.”

“Smart man,” Jarold said. “When you’re in love with brilliance, taking a backseat to it saves the marriage. Take it from me. We’re going on thirty-eight years.”

“What do you do?” Olivia asked Jud’s mom.

“Oh, I’m retired now, but I used to be a professor at our local college.” She wiped her mouth. “Mathematics mostly.”

Vi smiled as she looked over at Mary. Jud’s mom was why he found intelligence beautiful. Because his father did. That was so damn adorable she wanted to drag him away from the table.

“Well, I can tell you, it’s not easy being engaged to a bad ass who keeps putting himself into danger. But we’ll sort it out.” Mary shoved against Dylan, who looked over at her with a big grin on his face. “As for Jacob, I know what he’s going through. Being the youngest person on a strange, lonely campus with no family nearby was terrifying. Thank goodness Vi and I had each other.”

“Oh, Judson moved close. He’s very near the campus to keep a check on him.”

“I doubt he appreciates that. He was probably itching to get away and learn stuff,” her mom said. “That was Viviana. She couldn’t wait to get away, like we weren’t good enough.”

Vi took a piece of her roll. When was that waitress returning with their food?

“Were you anxious to get away?” Jud asked.

She shrugged. “I guess so. I never fit in anywhere. MIT was like a beacon, a place I’d find people like me. Geeky freaks who were better at math and science than people.”

“That sounds like our Jacob,” Jarold said. “He’s talked nonstop about all his time hanging out with the Quillery Edge.”

“What is the Quillery Edge?” Richie asked. “It sounds cool.”

“It is way more than cool,” Dallas responded. “Your sister is Quillery and Mary is the Edge. They’re the most sought after back office operatives in the business. Jacob’s been spending time with them, sort of like meeting his favorite superhero.”

“Back office operative. What is that? A secretary?” Her mom set her menu down. “I’ve never really understood what Viviana does.”

“Intel is often our most important weapon when we go into missions. Your daughter and my fiancée can find anything and anyone. The knowledge they provide and the quick, decisive actions they take save lives.” Dylan put a hand around Mary as the waitress finally arrived.

Vi breathed a sigh of relief. They’d order, then she’d shift the conversation to something a bit less…heavy.

The waitress started with Jud, who ordered a steak with a baked potato and green beans. She cringed when he answered rare for how to cook it.

“I’ll have the same as him, but well done.”

“Really, Viviana. You can’t eat something well done. You lose all the flavor,” her father said. “Medium rare is at least acceptable.”

“If I don’t hear sirens because they burned the kitchen down preparing my meal, then the meat isn’t cooked.” She swallowed. “I don’t like blood. We see enough without it being on my plate.”

Whoops. Jud draped his arm around her shoulders. She looked over at him.

“Change my order. She’s right. I’ll take mine medium well.”

“I can handle medium well,” she told the waitress.

Conversation flowed, not river fast, but it wasn’t as awkward or stressful as she’d expected. Everyone stayed on safer topics. She ate and laughed with her family for the first time since childhood. Her gut still soured when she thought about them, but she’d gotten more insight into what they might have been thinking back then. She hoped they’d gotten the same. It wasn’t until the end of the meal when she saw an earbud in Dylan’s ear as he kissed Mary that she got the first hint someone other than the people at the table steered conversation.

Dallas excused himself to grab the to-go order. Jud guided her and the rest of the table out of the restaurant. Her gaze swept each table, and spotted her quarry at a two-seat table in the far back corner. Doctor Amanda Sinclair. Surprise merged with a hint of anger. Had the entire night been planned? An intervention?

What part did Jud play in it?

She remained silent as they left the restaurant and got into the vehicles. She’d had a lovely time. It was the first time she’d laughed and enjoyed herself in too long.

With her parents and brother there.

The shift in dynamics was too huge to hold onto the resentment simmering in her. She’d communicate her frustration to Jud and then move on. That was the smart thing to do. Tomorrow they’d likely be moving forward with the plan to take down The Collective. Nothing beyond that was guaranteed. Judson needed to be near MIT for his nephew and there was no way she could leave The Arsenal. Mary.

Her new family.

She noticed Doctor Sinclair heading toward the back where the bathrooms were. Viviana looked up at Jud. “I’ll be back in a moment.”

“Okay, I’ll pull the truck closer. Take your time.” He leaned down, kissed her cheek. “You okay?”

“Yes, I’m great. I’ll be right back.”

Vi scurried toward the bathrooms before she second-guessed her gut instinct to seal off this mental thread without confronting Jud. He may not have had anything to do with this. Besides, it’d gone quite well. She entered the bathroom. Doctor Sinclair withdrew a lipstick from her purse and smiled at her via the mirror.”

“I figured you wanted to have a chat,” the woman said. “You’re upset.”

“I’m more annoyed. This whole night was a setup, wasn’t it, like counseling for me and my parents over steak?”

“No.” She smoothed a layer of lipstick on and ran her lips together. “It was friends having your back by asking someone to help mediate the conversation from a distance. You don’t know me, Vi, but I’ve heard a lot about you from a lot of different people. Everyone is worried about how your parents interact with you. For the record, Jud doesn’t know I’m here, and I offered very little in the way of guidance tonight. His parents were quite good at herding your parents.”

Harold and Jenna were awesome. Vi smiled conspiratorially in the mirror. The woman had driven to Nomad and eaten dinner at a restaurant alone to help make sure Vi had a good, decent meal with her parents for the first time in almost two decades. “Thank you. That’s the smoothest meal I’ve had with them in a long time. I can kind of understand where they’re coming from more than before.”

“Well, the important thing is I’m thinking they’re starting to see things a bit differently, too.” The woman set her lipstick in her purse and turned. “You have a very different career than most, Vi. I hesitate to say most people would be terrified to have someone they love in this dangerous, downright terrifying world.”

Vi nodded. “Yeah, I know. But it’s me. I fit in here.”

“I know, but they don’t. Our job is to either get them to see that and respect your choice, or to move you on from them altogether. Your days are too rife with danger and troubles to have a toxic relationship with your parents added to the mix. It’s time you do what’s right for you rather than avoiding it altogether.” Doctor Sinclair took her hand. “You know where I’m at when you’re ready. No pressure. Just remember you aren’t alone. You’re surrounded by a lot of people who love the hell out of you. They’re the family you’ve chosen.”

Vi nodded. The woman was right. She’d realized as much earlier. “I’m thinking coming to see you and talking through some stuff wouldn’t be such a bad idea.”

“Great. I’ll see you then.” She looked at the door. “You’d best get back. Jud doesn’t strike me as a patient sort when it comes to you being away from him. Have a good night, Viviana.”

“You, too, Doctor Sinclair.”

“It’s Amanda.” The woman smiled as she headed out.

Viviana took a deep breath, suddenly feeling much happier about the way the night went than before.