“I can shoot the other guys,” San announces. Knowing him, his finger is on the trigger and he’s targeting one of them.
If this was an isolated place, I would say go for it and shoot the guys in the van. Since my orders were very specific and the quad is filled with people, I say, “We can’t draw attention to them, or us. I’ll let the boss deal with the rest—as he requested.”
“G, walk away slowly,” I command. “Get lost in the crowd.”
“I’m not new at this,” she protests.
She shrugs out of the black jacket she’s wearing and hands it to a homeless person. She takes off the hat and wig, tossing it into a trash can. She pulls off the skirt she’s wearing and shoves it inside her backpack. By the time she meets me, she’s a different person.
She’s now my G.
“Hey,” I say, taking her into my arms. “You were going to get in the van, weren’t you?”
When I release her, her gray gaze finds mine. She smiles, and there’s so much mischief in her expression.
“You’re either going to get me killed or give me a heart attack,” I say, pulling her close to me and kissing the top of her head.
She takes off the earpiece, turning it off. I do the same, and she finally speaks, “You would’ve done the same.”
“Probably,” I answer, swatting her colorful braid.
Her hair is always a different color. Today it’s teal. It amazes me how she can camouflage herself during a mission when she’s so colorful.
“Let’s go home. I’ll cook tonight.”
“Great, he’s cooking,” Fish says, joining us. “You heard that, Sir Byron Langdon. Drive your ass to Beac’s.”
“Just call him fucking Lang,” I say, hoping his communicator is still on and Lang can hear me.
As we approach my SUV, I spot Mane and San leaning against it.
“Lang says that everything is under control.” Mane fists bumps with G. “That was pretty badass.”
“My favorite part is when you transformed from naïve student to”—San glances at her and shrugs—“you?”
“Let’s go before people start recognizing us,” I warn them, unlocking the car and getting into the driver’s seat. “The plane is ready for takeoff.”
“I thought you were driving,” G says, pulling a granola bar and water out of her backpack.
“It’s faster to fly,” I answer casually, instead of saying, “Your father wants you back in Seattle, now.”
“So, what’s happening with your Dad’s will?” Grace asks.
Could we avoid talking about parental units for at least a day or two? I don’t bring up your overprotective dad. You don’t mention my fucking father.
I blame her for answering the fucking phone when my brothers called. If I had ignored them…well, they’d have come to find me. Our father’s will is too important to ignore. With a snap of his fingers, he can end the livelihood of thousands of people—and he’s dead. Who has that fucking power?
William Aldridge.
But, if he’s the Thanos to our world, I’ll make sure to pull a Dr. Strange-Ironman-Antman move on him and avoid any destruction.
“Have they found a way to get you off the hook?” San asks.
“Nope. So far, the answer is I have to live in Baker’s Creek for an eternity,” I answer, driving toward the airport. “They’re already building my studio. The contractors that will be building my underground home are already working on it too.”
There’s no way I’m going to share my space with them. I need a place where I can practice and another one where I can talk with The Organization in private. I’m still pondering how the hell I’ll do my job. I’m the team leader. There’s no fucking way I’ll let my people go into a mission without me. That’s like sending them to the grave.
“It’s only eighteen months,” Grace reminds me.
“We have work to do,” I protest. “A lot is happening in the world. I don’t have time to sit back and relax—while dealing with my brothers. All five of them.”
Knowing G, she has some kind of silver lining speech ready in case my brothers say, “There’s no other alternative. You have to move with us, now.”
“But—”
I shake my head. “Not today, G.” I don’t want to discuss my father, my brothers, or the stupid will. For now, I want to pretend it’s not real.
Chapter Five
Beacon
“You don’t pay me enough for this,” I joke when I enter Mills’ place. “Can we discuss your relocation?”
His glare shuts me up. “What happened?”
“I think they’re going to release me from my contract.” He sighs.
For a moment, I’m speechless. What can I say that will make him feel better?
“My agent threatened to drop my ass,” he continues. “It’s the stupid will. I already told him I’m not going to live in Baker’s Creek.”
“We’re not?”
After my father’s funeral, the fun part began. His lawyer announced that we’re inheriting all his shit. There’s a catch, though. We have to stay in Baker’s Creek for eighteen months, starting next week. Not only that, but we can’t leave town. William Aldridge was insane, even though the bloodsucking lawyer swears he was in his rightful mind when he wrote his last will and testament.
I don’t care about the fucking money or his assets. However, if we decide not to follow the stipulations, he pretty much ruins the town and all of his employees.
He scrubs his face down with both hands.
“Think about the implications,” he states. “My son will be three by the time we leave. He might get attached to a bunch of losers who can’t pick up the phone to say happy birthday every year. He’s had enough disappointment in his life, and he’s not even two.”
I pat his back. There’s nothing I can say because I’ve been there on the receiving end of getting attached and then disregarded. We could talk for hours about the pros and cons of the stupid will. There are no pros; the list of cons is lengthy.
I switch gears and propose, “Grace and I want you to come to live with us in Seattle.”
“You two are finally together?”
“I’m the one with the jokes, not you.” I head to his fridge, looking for something to drink. “Anyway, we can help you with Arden while you concentrate on getting that knee…I don’t know, fixed? Is that the term?”
“Home is here, in Vancouver,” he states.
“You want us to move here so we can help you?” I offer.
He smiles. “The other fuckers could learn a lesson or two about how to be a brother from you.”
“I know I’m awesome as fuck, but I’m serious, man. You and Arden are alone most of the time. Wouldn’t it be nice to have someone close by to give you a hand?”
He looks at his watch, then at me. “Why don’t I get through this meeting and then we can talk about the future?”
“Sounds like a plan,” I answer instead of arguing with him.
I don’t want to think that he’s in denial, but maybe he needs to reassess his goals. If I had an injury like his, I’d accept all the help I could get so I can get back on my feet. As they say, everyone feels and reacts differently. That reminds me of Hayes and his impromptu visit.
“Did Hayes come to visit you?”
He shakes his head. “Should I be expecting a visit from him?”
I shrug one shoulder. “Probably.”
“What did he want?”
“He apologized for being an asshole,” I respond and wave a hand. “It’s mostly a shitty campaign where he promises to do better but asks to please join him in Baker’s Creek.”
He snorts. “I don’t believe anything he says.”
“Grace says he was being honest.”
“Grace was there?”
“We were hanging out when he came to visit. I wasn’t going to answer the door, but you know her…”
“She’s the sensible one of the two of you,” he remarks.
&nbs
p; I scoff. “In any case, he swore to be a good brother from now on, but he asked me to go with him—for the town.”
He snorts. “What if you don’t go? It’s over?”
I shake my head. “Surprisingly, he said something like, if I don’t, he hopes we can stay in touch.”
He sighs.
“As I told Grace, if Blaire forgives him, I’ll do it.”
Mills laughs. “She’s never going to forgive him. Not in a million years.”
“So, we agree. If she does, we go.” I extend my hand, and he shakes it.
His phone chimes. When he looks at it, he grumbles. “The car service is here.” He points at the fridge. “The emergency numbers are there. I should be back soon. Wish me luck.”
“Good luck.”
“How’s babysitting going?”
I smile at the screen. There’s nothing better in the world than staring at Grace’s beautiful face. “It’s been a long-ass day. Arden is on his second nap of the day.”
“It sounds like you should take a nap too,” Grace jokes.
“I might stay for the night,” I state. “It all depends on how Mills is doing after the meeting. We were talking about going to Baker’s Creek.”
She sighs. “That inner battle is killing you, Beac. Just do what’s right for everyone.”
As I’m about to answer, the doorbell rings. I look through the peephole and grumble. It’s Henry and Hayes. “Let me call you in five, okay?”
“Great. We have not just one but two assholes visiting this humble home.” I move aside so they can enter.
“I see that you and Mills are close.”
“Very close,” I answer, and the bitterness in my words pushes me to continue. “So close that when you learn that your brother knocked up a puck bunny, you fly to check on him and visit him often to help him with his son. And when you learn that your brother’s grandparents died, you go to their funeral.”
Hayes sighs. “I had no idea that your grandparents died.”
“I’m sorry, Beacon,” Henry says. “You were not the only who lost a grandparent or had a shitty life. We all did. It is our role as older brothers to keep an eye on you, but don’t think that you’re the only one who needed that brother to stick with you. At least you had Mills.”
“You’re no different than William.” I pause and glace at them. “Both of you.”
“A few weeks back, I would have agreed, but after these few weeks, I discovered that I am nothing like William. By trying to avoid messy feelings and becoming him, I failed myself. We missed a lot of years. Fuck, I lost twelve years with my girlfriend,” Hayes says.
I feel those words deep within my soul. I haven’t lost eleven years of Grace, but how I wish we were together. I have a good reason; he’s just a fucking asshole.
“That was pretty fucked up,” I state. “I hope she doesn’t forgive you. She deserves better than you.”
“I agree. She deserves the best, but she forgave me.”
My gut clenches because this is what I told Grace and Mills, didn’t I? If Blaire stays, if she believes in him, then I’ll stay in Baker’s Creek. He has to be bluffing. “You two are back together?”
He gives me a sharp nod, then asks, “Where is Mills?”
“He should be back soon. He had a meeting with his people.”
Hayes glances around the house. “Why are you here?”
“He needed a babysitter, and I volunteered. Again, that’s what you do for your family.”
He bobs his head. This is so fucking awkward. Things don’t get any better when he says, “As a family, can you move to Baker’s Creek with us?”
“Are you sure Skittles forgave you?” I use Blaire’s old nickname.
“You can call her to confirm.”
I don’t want to believe him. Without losing any time, I call her right away. “Did you forgive his fucking ass?”
“Finally, Beacon! I need to find Mills, Hayes, or someone.” Her panicked tone is making me nervous. Where is the fire? “The lawyer came today, and we need to be here tomorrow by midnight.”
“What do you mean we need to be there by tomorrow?” I frown, check the calendar, and then say, “No, he said next Friday. I was there.”
“It’s a long story. I need you in Baker’s Creek now, kid. We’re all trying to do this for the town. I know Hayes screwed up, and you don’t want to forgive your brothers, but be the bigger man. I did forgive Hayes, and we’ve been patching things along the way. We all can give him a second chance. Now, let me keep looking for them. I need everyone in town tomorrow.”
I give Hayes my phone. “She needs to talk to whoever is in charge. I assume that’s you.”
The conversation between them doesn’t last long. He assures her we’ll be there on time and not to worry about anything. He reminds me of the sap he used to be back when they were in college and he was dating her. I was young, but I wanted Grace and I to have what they had.
At least it’s working for one of us.
“I love you,” he says before they hang up.
“She really forgave you.” I sigh. “So, we have to be there tomorrow then?”
“Yes.”
“What happened?” Henry asks.
Hayes explains to us that the lawyer’s timeline was off. They had to count from the moment all of us received the news, not from the day the lawyer read the will. Tomorrow marks thirty days from the day they reached out to Blaire. Jerome Parrish, our father’s lawyer and the executor of the estate, let it slide and added a note that he couldn’t find Blaire until four weeks ago.
According to the lawyer, our legal team at Bryant, LLP was informed of the issue. Pierce’s family owns the law firm. He’s in charge of contesting the will or finding a way to change the fucking stipulations. We don’t want the money, but if he can’t find any loopholes, we have to stay for the town.
When he finishes recounting the story, he calls Pierce who answers annoyed as fuck. “I’m on my way.”
“Did your family try to fuck us over?” Hayes questions. There’s a lingering rage in his voice, but he’s calm on the outside.
Pierce sighs. “Mom insists it was a mistake because they’re all busy.”
“And you believe her?”
“She doesn’t win anything if I stay or go. Why should I believe Mr. Parrish?”
I tune out the conversation. Instead, I text Grace and the guys. They can pack some of my clothes and ship them over.
After the conversation with Pierce is over, I ask, “What’s the plan? I could fly back to Oregon with you. I’m not sure about Mills though. Is Vance in?”
Hayes shakes his head.
Vance is not coming. Well, we’re fucked. I haven’t even looked into plan B on how to save the people and the employees if we fail. That’s my task for next week. I bet these assholes don’t even have a backup plan.
Should I tell them that we need to spend the night researching our options because if Vance isn’t coming, we’re fucked, and what’s even the point of moving to Baker’s Creek?
Mills enters the house in that moment. That gives me at least a few moments to text Seth and ask him to move our Monday meeting to tonight. We have a lot of shit to do before tomorrow—when Vance doesn’t show up.
“Why are you all here?” Mills looks around the house.
“We need to be there tomorrow,” Hayes answers without even saying where the fuck there is.
“No, I’m not going.” Mills grunts.
Uh-oh, that sounds like the meeting was a clusterfuck. “What happened during the meeting?”
He closes his eyes and sighs. “They’re releasing me from my contract. The doctor isn’t sure if I can skate again.”
“You can,” Hayes assures him.
I want to punch him in the face and tell him, you’re a few months too late, fucker!
“I can make that happen,” Hayes insists.
“Only if I move in with you?” Mills groans.
“No, you don’t have to mo
ve to Baker’s Creek. We’re setting up a practice, and you can visit us often. We’ll treat you until you’re ready to go back,” Hayes promises, and his conviction is contagious.
I want to say, yes, let’s do this. We will make that knee better as a family.
Which is why I vomit some words I never thought I would say in my entire life, “Just give the guy a chance and pack your things. Arden could use a break from the hockey life. Hayes needs us. Skittles already forgave him.”
Mills arches an eyebrow. He knows what I mean with that. We made a deal. If she forgives him, we go with him. I guess pigs can fly and Hayes can change enough to make that woman give him a second chance. “She did?”
I nod.
“It’s not just me. Henry and Pierce need you, too,” Hayes says in a big brotherly voice. “We’ve been working our asses off to ensure that everything runs smoothly. There’s a lot we have to figure out, but we have plenty of time, and hopefully, you two will help.”
Mills rubs the back of his neck. “Fine. You’re going to have to help me pack because I can’t leave Arden’s stuff behind.”
“Let’s take the essentials,” Henry suggests. “We’ll have Sophia come back for the rest next week. She’s the only one of us who can travel around.”
Hayes looks at me. “How about you, Beac?”
“Don’t worry about my shit. I can borrow clothes from all of you, and my bandmates can move my stuff when the studio is ready.”
I guess this is it. I’m going on an all-paid vacation to hell with my brothers. I grin. Let the fun begin.
Chapter Six
Grace
“The most boring man on the planet broke up with me.” I tap my chest a couple of times, outraged at what just happened earlier. “He dumped me.”
My cousin, Harper, introduced me to Hardy Roberts during her birthday party. She thought we’d be a match made in heaven. Stick to what you know—plants. Matchmaking isn’t your thing, Harp.
“This is the last time I let anyone introduce me to the ‘perfect guy,’” I complain.
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