Trusting Lucas

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Trusting Lucas Page 11

by Casey Hagen


  “What did he agree to pay you for blowing up the prison?” Lucas asked.

  “Enough that I’d never have to worry about money again. Now where is it?” Vic said, jamming the barrel against the back of his head.

  “Do I look like I’ve got a few hundred thousand on me?”

  “Try million. Three million,” Vic growled.

  Lucas whistled, working his way around to facing Vic, shielding Chloe’s body from his gun. If he got an itchy trigger finger, Lucas would take it, and Zane would get Chloe out of here.

  Zane shuffled toward the window, his gaze darting to the men outside. All they needed was one of them to spot the situation unfolding and take Vic out.

  “You actually believed he had three mil? Even if he did, he would have had to use a fair amount to pay his men for storming New Hope.”

  Vic’s eyes jumped between Zane and Lucas.

  “You know you’re not getting out of this, right? It’s over. We’ve got forty men here, and there’s you. There’s no way you’re making it out of this alive,” Lucas said.

  “The fuck I’m not. I shoot you, I shoot him, and I head right out that way,” Vic said, pointing to a dark tunnel heading underground behind him.

  “You’ll never make it. The minute they hear a single shot, you’re done.”

  “Maybe I’ll even put a bullet in your girlfriend here for good meas—”

  Pop.

  Blood spattered against the wall over their heads, droplets raining down over them.

  “Have I told you how much I hate cocky fuckers who talk shit?” Tex said. “Oh, and I dig tunnels. They’re kind of my thing. Just ask Zane.”

  Lucas blew out a breath and closed his eyes.

  “Lucas?” Chloe whispered.

  He slid his arms under her shoulders and lifted her off the floor. “Yeah, baby. I’m here.”

  “No more kidnapping. Home. I want to go home.”

  His face split into a grin, and he laughed, the sound more relief than humor. “Me too, baby. Me too.”

  Epilogue

  “Just tell me where we’re going already,” Chloe muttered from the seat next to him.

  She’d come out of detox with a low tolerance with a low tolerance for bullshit, not that he’d complain. She’d come out, and that was the point.

  “Anyone ever tell you that you suck at surprises?” Lucas asked, rubbing his thumb over her knuckles.

  “I tried to count how many seconds before we made a turn and keep my bearings. Liam Neeson makes that shit look way too easy in Taken,” Chloe muttered next to him, bracing her elbow on the window and her chin on her hand.

  “It’s easy to keep track when it’s fiction,” Lucas pointed out.

  She slapped her hand against her thigh, her look of pure indignance. If you could call a woman with her hair in a high ponytail and a red bandana tied around her eyes the picture of indignation. “Are you saying his skills are bullshit and don’t exist outside of Hollywood?”

  “Oh, some do, but to have all of those contingencies ready at a moment’s notice, just because he was an enforcer? Bullshit.”

  She pursed her lips and jutted her chin. “I think you just don’t like that the badass makes me all giggly.”

  “Oh please, I made you giggle last night. Then I made you chew your pillow so the kids didn’t hear all your naughty sounds,” he said. He pulled up to a metered spot on Broadway.

  “A gentleman wouldn’t be so uncouth as to bring that up,” Chloe pointed out. “Can I at least take this off so I can get out?”

  “Nope, I’ll guide you.”

  “Great,” she muttered.

  He climbed out of the car and took a deep breath of the salt-tinged air of Long Beach. Circling to the passenger side, he opened the door and took her hand. “I’ve got you tight against the curb.”

  She reached out her arms, running her hands through the air, making her way down Broadway looking like a walking mime.

  He chuckled. “I’ve got you; you can just walk.”

  “I know, it’s ridiculous,” she said, continuing to wave her hands in front of her. “My brain just can’t seem to make my body act natural.”

  “I’ll put you out of your misery. We’re here.” He slid the blindfold off her eyes and turned her to face the building.

  “A tattoo shop?” she asked, craning her neck to look back at him. “Or is there something here I’m missing.”

  “I don’t want you to spend another day feeling like you need to scrub away your past, but I know seeing the mark there bothers you. So, I thought maybe we could get a tattoo to cover the area and turn some bad memories into good ones.”

  She glanced down to where she rubbed at the very spot in that moment without realizing it. “All this time, and I never once thought of that,” she said, smiling up at him. Pushing up on tiptoe, she wrapped her arms around his neck. “It’s perfect.”

  “You’re sure?”

  “Yup, I think we should get matching ones,” she said before brushing a soft kiss over his mouth.

  “Isn’t that a sure sign you’ll break up?”

  “Only if it’s names. Anything else is free game,” she pointed out.

  “So, what if we got the symbol of the phoenix? It’s an addiction and recovery symbol. Or maybe that would just be one more reminder.”

  “A reminder that there is only one man who completely understands me. Who’s lived the pain. Unwilling addicts. How many of us can there really be? I think it’s perfect.”

  “I love you, Chloe. Every single day I plan to show you. Well, if you ever agree to marry me.”

  “One thing at a time, Hotpants. Tattoos today. We’ll talk marriage next week. Or next month, because I love you enough to stay with you without being married.”

  “Back to that again,” he muttered, opening the door for her.

  “Well, am I wrong?” she asked, patting his cheek as she stepped past him.

  He took a minute, just a minute to appreciate the bounce in her step, the life force that just radiated in every direction from inside her.

  He glanced up at the dark blue sky overhead. “Yes, Mom. I can finally admit the man upstairs is real. You can stop giving me signs now. I’m okay,” he said quietly before joining Chloe inside.

  Two hours later, each with fresh ink on the inside of their left elbows, they headed for the car. Chloe's cell vibrated in her purse.

  "Hang on, it might be the kids," she said holding up a finger.

  "Zane? Everything okay?" She asked plugging her one ear against the thrum of traffic on Broadway.

  She nodded and glanced at Lucas. "Yeah, he's right here. Hang on."

  She handed him the phone. "He said he tried your cell."

  Lucas took the phone. "Hey, man. What’s up?"

  "They finally managed to ID the Jane Doe at New Hope."

  "Good. Did they find any family?" He tilted the phone away from his mouth and spoke to Chloe. "They know the identity of the woman at New Hope."

  "Lucas?" Zane said. "It's your sister."

  About the Author

  To see all books from Casey Hagen, go to:

  www.CaseyHagenAuthor.com

  While you’re there…sign up for her newsletter!

  ABOUT CASEY HAGEN

  Casey Hagen pens her snarky, passionate stories from the salty air of Kennebunk, Maine. She’s a born and raised Vermont native, a New England girl to the core, with Ben & Jerry’s in her heart and real Vermont maple syrup pumping through her veins.

  She’s the proud mother of three girls and a soon-to-be first-time grandma with an insatiable addiction to Fall Out Boy, and a new, rather concerning obsession with tattoos and piercings. Can you say “cool grandma?”

  The inked and pierced grandma spends her time tucked away in her office, coated in cat hair, alternating between tearing her hair out trying to find the perfect words and being one step ahead of her three scheming fur babies she is positive are plotting her demise with every swirl around her ankles

at the top of her office stairs.

  She loves writing stories about real people, with complicated histories, relatable everyday problems, and giving them the hard-won happily-ever-afters they deserve.

  And she thanks every last one of you who picks up one of her stories.

  Casey is done talking about herself in the third person.

  *Casey out*

  Fierce Protectors Series

  Shielding Nebraska

  Shielding Harlow

  Shielding Josie

  Shielding Blair

  Trusting Jake

  Trusting Zane

  Trusting Lucas

  Tallulah Cove Series

  Tallulah Heartbeat

  Tallulah Nights

  Tallulah Trouble

  Tallulah Bargain

  Tallulah Speed

  Tallulah Homecoming

  Tullulah Crush

  The Devlin Brothers

  Blind Spot

  Twisted Instincts

  Falling in Paradise

  Falling in Fiji

  Falling in Angels Falls

  Prime Time Editions Series

  Safe House

  Wolves and Warlocks Series

  Bewitching Her Warlock

  Captivating Her Warlock

  Enchanting Her Warlock

  Enrapturing Her Warlock

  Other Books

  Operation: Girl Next Door

  Rock Me Hard

  Consumed by the Dare

  A Daring Proposition

  Bare Souls

  There are many more books in this fan fiction world than listed here, for an up-to-date list go to www.AcesPress.com

  You can also visit our Amazon page at:

  http://www.amazon.com/author/operationalpha

  Special Forces: Operation Alpha World

  Christie Adams: Charity’s Heart

  Denise Agnew: Dangerous to Hold

  Shauna Allen: Awakening Aubrey

  Brynne Asher: Blackburn

  Linzi Baxter: Unlocking Dreams

  Jennifer Becker: Hiding Catherine

  Alice Bello: Shadowing Milly

  Heather Blair: Rescue Me

  Anna Blakely: Rescuing Gracelynn

  Amy Briggs: Saving Sarah

  Julia Bright: Saving Lorelei

  Victoria Bright: Surviving Savage

  Cara Carnes: Protecting Mari

  Kendra Mei Chailyn: Beast

  Melissa Kay Clarke: Rescuing Annabeth

  Samantha A. Cole: Handling Haven

  Sue Coletta: Hacked

  Melissa Combs: Gallant

  Anne Conley: Redemption for Misty

  KaLyn Cooper: Rescuing Melina

  Liz Crowe: Marking Mariah

  Sarah Curtis: Securing the Odds

  Jordan Dane: Redemption for Avery

  Tarina Deaton: Found in the Lost

  KL Donn: Unraveling Love

  Riley Edwards: Protecting Olivia

  PJ Fiala: Defending Sophie

  Nicole Flockton: Protecting Maria

  Michele Gwynn: Rescuing Emma

  Casey Hagen: Shielding Nebraska

  EM Hayes: Gambling for Ashleigh

  Desiree Holt: Protecting Maddie

  Kathy Ivan: Saving Sarah

  Jesse Jacobson: Protecting Honor

  Silver James: Rescue Moon

  Becca Jameson: Saving Sofia

  Kate Kinsley: Protecting Ava

  Heather Long: Securing Arizona

  Gennita Low: No Protection

  Kirsten Lynn: Joining Forces for Jesse

  Margaret Madigan: Bang for the Buck

  Kimberly McGath: The Predecessor

  Rachel McNeely: The SEAL’s Surprise Baby

  KD Michaels: Saving Laura

  Wren Michaels: The Fox & The Hound

  Kat Mizera: Protecting Bobbi

  Mary B Moore: Force Protection

  LeTeisha Newton: Protecting Butterfly

  Angela Nicole: Protecting the Donna

  MJ Nightingale: Protecting Beauty

  Sarah O’Rourke: Saving Liberty

  Victoria Paige: Reclaiming Izabel

  Anne L. Parks: Mason

  Debra Parmley: Protecting Pippa

  Lainey Reese: Protecting New York

  TL Reeve and Michele Ryan: Extracting Mateo

  Elena M. Reyes: Keeping Ava

  Angela Rush: Charlotte

  Rose Smith: Saving Satin

  Jenika Snow: Protecting Lily

  Lynn St. James: SEAL’s Spitfire

  Dee Stewart: Conner

  Harley Stone: Rescuing Mercy

  Jen Talty: Burning Desire

  Megan Vernon: Protecting Us

  Police and Fire: Operation Alpha World

  Freya Barker: Burning for Autumn

  KaLyn Cooper: Justice for Gwen

  Aspen Drake: Sheltering Emma

  Deanndra Hall: Shelter for Sharla

  Barb Han: Kace

  CM Steele: Guarding Hope

  Reina Torres: Justice for Sloane

  Stacey Wilk: Stage Fright

  As you know, this book included at least one character from Susan Stoker’s books. To check out more, see below.

  SEAL of Protection: Legacy Series

  Securing Caite

  Securing Brenae (novella)

  Securing Sidney

  Securing Piper

  Securing Zoey

  Securing Avery (May 2020)

  Securing Kalee (Sept 2020)

  Delta Team Two Series

  Shielding Gillian (Apr 2020)

  Shielding Kinley (Aug 2020)

  Shielding Aspen (Oct 2020)

  Shielding Riley (TBA)

  Shielding Devyn (TBA)

  Shielding Ember (TBA)

  Shielding Sierra (TBA)

  Delta Force Heroes Series

  Rescuing Rayne (FREE!)

  Rescuing Aimee (novella)

  Rescuing Emily

  Rescuing Harley

  Marrying Emily (novella)

  Rescuing Kassie

  Rescuing Bryn

  Rescuing Casey

  Rescuing Sadie (novella)

  Rescuing Wendy

  Rescuing Mary

  Rescuing Macie (Novella)

  Badge of Honor: Texas Heroes Series

  Justice for Mackenzie (FREE!)

  Justice for Mickie

  Justice for Corrie

  Justice for Laine (novella)

  Shelter for Elizabeth

  Justice for Boone

  Shelter for Adeline

  Shelter for Sophie

  Justice for Erin

  Justice for Milena

  Shelter for Blythe

  Justice for Hope

  Shelter for Quinn

  Shelter for Koren

  Shelter for Penelope

  SEAL of Protection Series

  Protecting Caroline (FREE!)

  Protecting Alabama

  Protecting Fiona

  Marrying Caroline (novella)

  Protecting Summer

  Protecting Cheyenne

  Protecting Jessyka

  Protecting Julie (novella)

  Protecting Melody

  Protecting the Future

  Protecting Kiera (novella)

  Protecting Alabama’s Kids (novella)

  Protecting Dakota

  New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal Bestselling Author Susan Stoker has a heart as big as the state of Tennessee where she lives, but this all American girl has also spent the last fourteen years living in Missouri, California, Colorado, Indiana, and Texas. She’s married to a retired Army man who now gets to follow her around the country.

  www.stokeraces.com

  www.AcesPress.com

  [email protected]

 

 

 
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