Because Asher took up the whole doorway, Lexie was unable to see who it was. Then the woman spoke, and Lexie recognized the voice immediately.
Rising from the sofa, Lexie kept Fletcher securely in her arms as she moved to stand next to Asher.
Her mother stood on the other side of the door, looking unsure.
Shock rendered Lexie speechless for a moment. Gwen looked different. Better. More put together. The shadows under her eyes were lighter. Not gone, but not as distinct. And her usual rumpled clothing actually looked clean.
“Mom. What are you doing here?”
Gwen was wringing her hands, clearly nervous. “Hi, honey. I wanted to pop in to see you. I was wondering if we could talk?”
Lexie’s mother had never “popped in” to talk.
Turning to Asher, Lexie transferred Fletcher to his arms. “I’ll be back in in a few minutes.”
Asher’s gaze scanned the area once more before flicking back to Lexie. “Keep the door open.” Then he leaned down to kiss her temple before moving back inside.
Lexie stepped out and sat on the steps leading to the street. She only had to wait a moment for her mother to follow. Another minute of silence passed before Lexie eventually broke it.
“How did you know where to find me?”
Gwen was still fidgeting with her hands as she answered, “I knew you were in Marble Falls. I got to town and asked a few people. A lady at a bakery knew where I could find you.”
Ah. Mrs. Potter. World-class baker and holder of all of Marble Falls’ information. Including everybody’s whereabouts.
When Gwen didn’t volunteer any more information, Lexie finally asked the big question. “What are you doing here, Mom?”
Gwen swallowed before looking down at her shoes. “I need you to know that I didn’t tell them anything.”
“Them?”
“The people who came and asked about you. They offered money but I refused.” Gwen raised her worried gaze to Lexie. “I swear, Lexie. I didn’t say a word.”
“I know it was Albert.”
Gwen nodded, her eyes becoming misty. “I’m sorry, baby girl. I didn’t know. I got home one day, and he had all this money. I asked him where he got it and he told me. Lex, if I knew he was going to do that, I never would have told him you were pregnant. I was just excited for you. I left him the next day. I swear.”
“I believe you, Mom.”
There were a couple days when Lexie had questioned whether her mother would have passed that information on. It was obvious after Albert’s visit that wasn’t the case.
“I’ve been trying to clean myself up since I left him.” Gwen continued to stare at her hands.
“You look good.” Better than she had in a long time. Possibly ever. Or at least as far back as Lexie could remember.
Gwen turned her gaze to Lexie again. There was a big pause where she could tell the woman was working up to saying something important. “I’m sorry I was never the mother you needed or deserved.”
Lexie sucked in a long breath. Whatever she’d thought her mother was going to say, it wasn’t that.
“I appreciate that, Mom.”
Lexie couldn’t say she forgave Gwen. She didn’t know if she’d ever get to that point. But it was nice to hear her mother acknowledge her mistake.
“When your father left me, it destroyed me. But I should have been stronger. For you. I was never as strong as you, Lex.” The tears that had been glistening in Gwen’s eyes now dropped down her cheeks. “You’re everything I’m not. Strong. Independent. I don’t deserve you as a daughter. You will be an amazing mother to that baby. Far better than I was.”
Lexie’s eyes softened. “Fletcher. His name is Fletcher. And thank you.”
Gwen smiled but then looked uncertain again. “I was hoping that maybe if I stayed clean and got a place close by, you might let me visit you every so often. Be a small part of the life you’ve built. I know I don’t deserve it—”
“That would be nice.”
Hope flickered in Gwen’s eyes. “Great. Okay…well, I’ll pop around again soon, honey.”
Gwen stood and wiped the moisture from her cheeks. Lexie remained seated.
“I look forward to seeing you more often, Mom,” Lexie said, wrapping her arms around her legs.
“Me, too, baby girl.”
Lexie watched as her mother turned and left.
She hoped like crazy that what Gwen said was true. That her mother was finally ready to clean herself up and get her life together. If that was the case, then Lexie would do whatever she could to help.
A couple minutes later, Lexie felt Asher’s heat beside her as he took a seat on the step.
“Everything okay?”
Her heart expanded at the sight of the wonderful man holding their child. “I know you were listening.”
But she didn’t mind. What affected her life, affected his.
Asher shrugged his big shoulders. “I may have heard bits and pieces.”
Bits and pieces my ass, Lexie thought.
“Everything is more than great. It’s perfect.” About as perfect as Lexie could have pictured her life.
There was still threats in the world. Uncertainty. But she and her child were protected. And loved. And they would get through any hurdles. Together.
“He’s so beautiful.” Lexie sighed, her gaze once again drawn to their son.
“Takes after his mama,” Asher murmured.
Her eyes met Asher’s. The grin was gone. All humor absent.
“Have I told you how amazing you are?” Asher asked quietly.
“Only ten thousand times in the last week. Feel free to keep it coming, though.”
He leaned toward her, stopping just before their lips touched. “You’re amazing. And I love you.”
Lexie was sure he’d said that ten thousand times, too, but she wasn’t complaining. “I love you, too, Asher. I love our little family.”
Finally, his lips touched hers. Closing her eyes, she let the outside world disappear.
Too soon he pulled away. Lexie pouted her lips, receiving a chuckle from Asher.
At the same time, a small coo sounded from Fletcher. Asher and Lexie glanced down at their baby boy.
“I didn’t know I could feel this way. As a father. A partner,” Asher said quietly.
“What way?”
“So damn happy. Like I have everything I could possibly need or want right here.”
“I knew you could feel that way, it just took a while for you to trust me.”
She expected a laugh from Asher. But the man didn’t even crack a smile. “I don’t know what took me so long.”
Then his lips returned to Lexie’s, and one again, she was at peace.
30
Mason unscrewed the cap on his beer, eyes sliding to his team around him.
Hell, they weren’t just his team. They were his family. Brothers. If Mason had learned anything in his twenty-nine years, it was that family wasn’t only born, it was built. Through blood, sweat, and tears.
He’d been in enough life-or-death situations with these guys to know that they had his back, just as he had theirs.
Looking over to the women who sat in Asher’s living area, Mason conceded that he now had sisters to add to the family. Women who were just as tough as the men, if not tougher. Plus, the newest addition—baby Fletcher.
“He’s fucking gorgeous,” Bodie cheered, clapping Asher on the back. “And Lexie’s a warrior.”
Asher’s gaze heated. “She is.”
He held Fletcher in his arms while Lexie sat outside talking to her mother. The three of them made a damn cute family.
“I’ll tell you what, I’m fucking glad you guys got there in time,” Asher said quietly.
Mason’s grip tightened on the bottle in his hand. It had been close. Too close for any of their liking.
“That was Evie,” Wyatt responded as he crossed his arms over his chest. “When we discovered you’d been taken, I searched for Project
Arma warehouse-type locations, while she looked at local buildings.”
Luca shook his head. “When she realized the pizzeria had a basement, we thought there wasn’t a chance they’d taken you there. It was too close to home. Then she hacked different road cameras and found they’d headed to that very spot.”
“I’m glad that woman of yours is a genius, Rocket,” Asher confessed…before going still.
The whole team listened to the retreating steps of Lexie’s mother.
“Time to see my baby mama.” Asher smiled before heading outside.
A small smile of his own stretched Mason’s lips. He liked seeing his brother happy. More than happy, Asher was fucking beaming. It was about time the man had grown a pair and committed to his woman.
And now they were safe to be a family.
Mason was angry. Angry that they’d missed things. They’d missed the men moving in across the street and Bill’s involvement.
Trust didn’t come easily to him, and now it took another hit.
The team had searched for Bill over the week. They’d used every resource at their disposal to find him. But they found nothing. Which likely meant he was dead. Project Arma had found him first.
Mason felt zero sympathy for the man. He put too many lives at risk for his own selfish gains.
“I can’t believe that asshole Commander Hylar is a part of all this,” Oliver said, shaking his head.
Mason immediately tensed at the mention of their commander. He’d seen the man briefly that day a week ago. It had been the first time Mason had set eyes on him in years.
He hadn’t had time to stop and chat. He’d been too busy fighting for his life against the other SEAL team. They were the best of the best. Just as Mason’s team was.
As soon as the commander had left, the other team had swiftly disengaged and taken off. Clearly, Carter’s team had been under orders not to kill. Not that Mason or any of the guys would have let that happen.
Carter’s SEAL team were enemies. Just like everyone else connected to the project. And they would be taken out eventually.
“He admitted to being the fucking mastermind behind it all,” Kye sneered, as angry as the rest of them.
The commander had made a deadly mistake when he’d admitted that bit to Asher. But Mason was glad the older man had confessed. “He made this easy for us. We know what we have to do now. Locate him. He’s our target. Cut off the head of the snake.”
Silence followed for a moment.
“There was a time I would have questioned whether I could have killed the man,” Eden admitted, eyes fixed on Shylah in the living room. “That time has passed.”
That time had passed for all of them. The man had lied and betrayed them. Threatened their family. His death was necessary.
“Evie and I will change the parameters for some of our searches,” Wyatt said. “It won’t be easy to locate him.”
Mason snorted. “Since when is anything easy with Project Arma?” He lifted the beer partway to his lips before he heard her.
Sage. Her voice filtered in from outside, making Mason’s body tighten.
Christ. He didn’t know what his deal was. He’d never reacted to a woman the way he reacted to her.
But Sage couldn’t be trusted. She was a woman with secrets, and Mason’s gut told him that those secrets led back to Project Arma.
Then why couldn’t he get her blue eyes out of his head? Not to mention her sweet curves that made him itch to run his hands over every inch of her body.
Mason’s attention caught on Sage as she walked through the front door, Asher and Lexie trailing behind with Fletcher.
Scanning her body, Mason’s focus drifted from her shapely legs right up to her intelligent eyes. She was short, much shorter than Mason’s six foot five, but the woman had curves in all the right places.
When her gaze clashed with Mason’s, he caught her short gasp before she snapped her eyes away. The doctor was affected by him, too. She’d never said the words out loud, but her body language said everything Mason needed to know.
Directing his attention away from Sage, Mason moved closer to Wyatt. “Did you bring it?”
Disapproval washed over Wyatt’s face as he looked at him. “You sure you want to do this?”
Mason had gone back and forth on the answer to that question. He always came back to the same place.
Tapping her phone so that he received every message sent and received, every call, wasn’t just to ensure she was playing on the right side of the field. It was also to keep her safe. If there was anything that Mason had learned over the years, it was that secrets were deadly.
“Yes.”
Wyatt’s expression didn’t change. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out the small device.
Taking it from his friend’s fingers, Mason slipped it into his own pocket. Mason knew how to insert the bug. He just needed the opportunity.
Luckily, he didn’t have to wait long. About twenty minutes in, Sage’s phone rang. Standing, she moved away from the women and headed outside.
Mason didn’t hesitate. Placing his hardly touched beer on the kitchen island, he followed the doctor down the steps and outside.
“Hello?” Sage answered, hesitancy in her voice.
Mason observed her from behind. Her spine was straight and her shoulders stiff. Whoever was on the line remained silent.
“Jason, is that you?” Panic mixed with hope in Sage’s voice.
Jason. Her twin brother. Also, the boy in the photo that Sage had stored in her go bag.
After going through her room at the inn and discovering her the picture, the team had gotten Wyatt to find images of Jason. After all, keeping a gun, cash, a burner phone, and an old picture stashed in a cushion was not normal, everyday behavior.
What Wyatt had discovered was, not only was the boy in the picture her twin, he was also nowhere to be found.
Unfortunately, not even Wyatt or Evie could locate the guy. There was no evidence of him anywhere as of three years ago. It was like he’d dropped off the face of the planet.
“Jase, if you’re there, please talk to me. I miss you. Mum and Dad miss you.” Sage paused for a moment. “Come home.”
The words were whispered from her lips, desperation thick in her voice.
Then the line cut off. Sage’s shoulders slumped.
Mason felt a strong urge to reach out and pull Sage into his arms. Provide comfort and reassurance even though he knew nothing of her situation.
Taking a step closer, Mason stopped when Sage turned.
The doctor jolted at the sight of him, a small gasp escaping her lips. His attention was drawn to her chest as it rose and fell in quick succession. Damn but the woman was alluring.
“Mason. What are you doing out here?”
Whatever I can to be close to you.
“I just came to see if you were okay.”
Sage’s brows rose while, at the same time, she opened and closed her mouth.
“I’m okay.” She raised her hands to her chest almost like she was trying to slow her speeding heart.
“Be careful coming out here alone, darlin’. Being involved with us could make you a target.”
And he hated that.
Sage’s cheeks flushed. “I can look after myself. But thank you for your concern.”
Mason almost smiled at that. The five-foot-five doctor barely reached his shoulder. He couldn’t imagine how she intended to protect herself against people like him.
Mason took a step to the side, giving her space to move past. The bare minimum of space. “Doesn’t hurt to be careful.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
Stepping forward, she moved back toward the stairs. Her body brushed his.
Once she had returned inside, Mason lifted the phone he’d swiped from her back pocket. Withdrawing the tool from his pocket, he worked quickly, removing the screen of the smartphone and inserting the chip inside.
Once the phone was back in one p
iece, he moved up the stairs.
Sage was now sitting on the couch, laughing with the women. Stunning.
Moving to her side, Mason crouched down and handed Sage her phone.
“You dropped this, sweetheart.”
Sage swung her head toward the phone in his hand, her eyes widening. “I didn’t realize.”
As she took the cell from his hand, her fingers brushed against Mason’s. A zap went through every limb of his body.
Jesus, what was it with this woman?
Sage’s eyes lifted to Mason’s, pupils dilating once again. She felt it, too. There wasn’t a doubt in his mind.
A moment of guilt hit him about what he’d just done. But he quickly squashed it. He was doing what needed to be done. What was necessary. Sage hadn’t been honest with the team. She was hiding something. So it was up to Mason to make sure her secrets didn’t put anyone in danger. Including Sage herself.
“Thank you.”
Mason stood and moved back to the guys. But his gaze returned to Sage more than once over the afternoon. He couldn’t stop looking.
He would figure out her secret, not just to keep his brothers safe…but to keep the delectable doctor out of harm’s way. Whether she wanted him to or not.
CLICK HERE to order Mason today!
Also by Nyssa Kathryn
PROJECT ARMA SERIES
(Series Ongoing)
Uncovering Project Arma
Luca
Eden
Asher
Mason
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About the Author
Nyssa Kathryn is a romantic suspense author. She lives in South Australia with her daughter and hubby and takes every chance she can to be plotting and writing. Always an avid reader of romance novels, she considers alpha males and happily-ever-afters to be her jam.
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Asher: A steamy contemporary military romance (Project Arma Book 3) Page 24