by Joy Jenkins
When she stepped into the living room, Donovan's attention instantly jumped to her and he cut himself off mid-sentence. Right then all the annoyance of her closet and clothes were worth it for the appreciative look in his eyes.
"Oh, Hon," Maggie said, "You'll need a jacket. Stay here, I'll get it."
As she passed Carter, she whispered, "He's cute. Good job."
Carter laughed as Maggie winked.
"What kind of weapons are you carrying?" Carter's father asked, using Maggie's absence to his advantage.
Donovan forced his gaze away from Carter. "I have an ankle holster with a switchblade and in my glove compartment is an M45 with two extra clips."
Her father nodded in approval. When Maggie returned, she handed Carter her jacket. Thanking her, Carter slipped it on. With an ease that made her stomach flip, Donovan took her hand.
"I want her home by ten," Carter’s father said.
"Captain, seriously?" Carter deadpanned.
He shrugged, his face even. "Fine, don't go on a date."
"Ten it is, sir," Donovan said.
He squeezed Carter's hand, keeping her from voicing any more arguments. Her father smiled, the look more welcoming as he looked at Donovan. "Hurt her in anyway and I will shoot you. Connections or no connections. And it doesn't matter where you go. I'll find you."
Now it was Carter's turn to squeeze Donovan's hand, sensing the touch of fear that sank into his stomach. Maggie laughed and took Steve's arm.
"What he meant to say is ‘have fun’," she said.
He shook his head. "No, I meant what I said."
Carter pulled the door open. "We're leaving now."
Before she took a step, her father spoke. "I love you, Sarge."
She smiled at him. "I love you, too, Captain."
"Have a good time," he said. Then his face went serious. "But not too good of a time."
Shaking her head, Carter left, taking Donovan with her. They remained quiet as they descended the stairs, waiting for the click of the door. It finally came when they made it to the car.
The night was cool, the glow of house lights spilling into the drive and alleyway. Donovan looked back at the apartment. "What are the chances your father has a sniper rifle trained on me and will shoot me if I kiss you now?"
"Very low. He prefers a Glock and close quarters."
Donovan took a step towards her. He took her face in his hands, brushing his thumb along her cheek. She rested her hands against his chest, feeling the faint beating of his heart. He stared at her. In his blue eyes, she saw a feeling she knew her own eyes held. A feeling that coursed through her.
He kissed her, the feeling sending roots deeper into her chest.
"Look at that,” she said, “kissed me and still alive."
"I say that's a good sign." He laced his fingers through hers. "Where do you want to go tonight?"
"As long as I'm with you, I don't care."
"How does a romantic movie sound?"
She angled away from him and eyed him doubtfully. "Like you don't want this relationship to last very long."
"Shooting range and dinner it is."
"Good," she said. "It will give me a chance to beat you at something new."
Donovan gave her a serious look. "Carter, you understand I was assembling a gun by the age of ten, right?"
With a taunting expression, she cocked her head. "Are you scared of a challenge, Donovan?"
He kissed her. "From you? Never."
Turn the page to get
a glimpse of when
Link and Mason finally met
Bonus
Two Weeks Later
After The Attack
Link paced the length of the classroom and spun around to make the journey back, nerves carrying him from one end to the next. Carter sat on top of a table, her feet propped on a stool, watching Link's progress. Donovan rested against the table beside her, his arm touching her. Breathing out, Link ran a nervous hand through his hair. His mind was a frantic mess and he couldn't seem to gain control of it.
The classroom lay empty except for the three occupants. Outside the closed door, the muted sounds of students could be heard. No one tried to enter the classroom. If they had, they would have found the door locked. The minutes ticked on and no one said anything. The wait felt like it had lasted an eternity when they finally heard a knock. Carter and Donovan looked to Link, who stared at the door. What waited for him behind that door was something he didn't know whether or not he wanted.
"You sure about this?" Carter asked.
Link nodded but he knew they would see it wasn't the truth. Rising, Donovan went over to the door and flipped the lock. When he opened the door, Mason was on the other side, shadowed by Smith.
The two newcomers walked in and Donovan engaged the lock again. Silence settled over the room as Donovan took up his position next to Carter. Link stood frozen near the table, eyes glued on his half brother. In turn, Mason seemed unable to look at Link. All his bluster and posturing were nowhere to be seen.
"Why did you want to see Link?" Carter asked, getting bored of the quiet.
Mason stuffed his hands into his pockets and finally made eye contact with the boy who appeared to be his opposite. Mason was blonde, built, and bold. In comparison, Link looked like a little kid still growing into his teenage body.
"I don't know," Mason said. "I guess I wanted to see you now that...I know. And...talk."
Link nodded, his gaze dropping like he was the one to blame for who he was.
"Talking is fine," Carter said. She leaned forward, eyes boring into Mason. "But if you say anything remotely unkind, I will attack you so hard and so fast it will take both Smith and Donovan to stop me. Got it?"
Link held back a smile, drawing strength from her loyalty. Mason nodded but didn't seem scared. His demeanor was subdued and he looked uncertain. Link wondered if he had ever been uncertain in his entire life.
"Did you really not know?" Link blurted out.
Cautious, Mason rubbed the back of his neck. "I wasn't sure, but..." he dropped his hand. "You look a lot like him."
Link crossed his arms, building a shield. "Yeah, I know.”
Mason pointed to Link's hair. "But you don't have his hair color."
"It's dyed."
"Oh." A stretch of silence. "The glasses?"
Link took them off and laid them on the table. "Fake."
"Makes sense."
The two boys stood regarding each other. The boy who was known by everyone, talked about, and loved for being part of The Family.
And the boy who lived in the shadows, seen by few, and truly known by even fewer.
"Did you always know?" Mason asked.
"No, I found out six years ago."
"That must have sucked."
The sympathy caught Link by surprise.
"Yeah, it did," he said. "I hated him for a long time."
Mason chuckled. "You're not the only son to feel that."
The binding word of 'son' seemed to crack another layer of tension that hung between the two brothers.
"Why do you hate him?" Link asked, curious.
Mason leaned back on the closest table, crossing his arms. The posture was relaxed, like he had found common ground. "There are too many reasons. He became President. He cheated on my mom. His job comes before me."
Link shuffled his foot, staring at the ground.
"At least you see him more than I do," Link said.
"What delusion are you under?" Mason said. "I'm lucky if I see him once a week."
"I barely see him once a month and even that doesn't happen sometimes."
Mason looked away, holding in his thoughts. The room filled with a new sort of tension, one built from trying to decide who had it worse.
"I thought..." Mason started. "I thought I was the only target." The statement cracked the wall between them. "I'm the face everyone knows. I thought whatever was happening would only be about me. I had no reason not to belie
ve it." Mason broke his gaze with the wall and locked eyes with Link. "Then you were mentioned and I was so confused…and then pissed.”
"Were you scared?" Link asked, wanting to reaffirm that the person before him wasn't 'Wonder Boy'.
"I was terrified."
Link smiled and Mason's mouth curled upward. Before the smile could settle, Mason turned serious. "I'm sorry you were involved. Doesn’t seem fair to me."
"Nothing ever is."
Something like acceptance passed between the two brothers.
The bell rang, ending lunch and ending the meeting. Mason rose and took a step towards the door but stopped. For a moment he hesitated, debating. Link felt the same apprehension but fought it and extended his hand. Mason paused, then took it.
"I always wanted a brother," he said.
"Me too," Link said. "I guess we both got our wish."
When Mason and Smith slipped out the door, Link turned to Carter and Donovan wearing a dazed smile. Carter and Donovan exchanged a look, then Carter gave a heavy sigh. "I guess this means I can't hate him now, doesn't it?"
Acknowledgements
First and foremost to Jesus Christ for the gift of imagination and the ability to use it and for the gift of dying on the cross for my sins that I might spend eternity with Him. That is the greatest gift and story!
To Grace, for loving Carter from the first and sending me texts after every chapter encouraging me to keep going.
To Kelly, for telling me to make Link illegitimate and not make Donovan a cliche bad boy. Gosh, I can’t imagine how bad the book would have been without those two changes. Also for being my editor!
To mom, for telling me to keep the mahogany grandfather clock. And for spending two months on the first chapter equipping me with the tools I needed to move forward.
To Trisha, (Trisha Van Cartier) a wonderful sister-in-law who when I asked if you’d copy edit my book you didn’t hesitate!
To Kevin, for loving Gabby, a character that is now cut (RIP Gabby) but that you loved and made me laugh by loving. Also for being amazing and giving me the money to pay my cover designer.
To Murph, for inspiring the observational side of Carter.
To Joel, for giving me the money I needed to see this project to completion!
To Benjamin DeHart. Working with you on the cover was a dream! I could not have asked for a more understanding and amazing cover designer, thank you!
To Rachel Butler for being a bomtastic beta reader!
To Thea Bank, Gloria, Mia, Bianca Brümmer, Richard Kigo, Taysia Smith, Anupama Iyer, and for supporting me for so many years! You have my love and thanks!
To Nigel and Sushil, becasue when I needed help you both jumped in and blew me away. Thank you!
To Ally Carter for inspiring this Gallagher Girl.
To those people in my life who won’t understand that you had an impact on my life and will most likely never know or never see this: Brooke and Brenna Brean, Alex Bautista, Dylan Blakenbaker, and Jason Laws.
To the readers who were with Carter since the beginning. You are the reason that this book is a reality! From the bottom of my odd author’s heart thank you! *hands you ice cream*
And finally to You, the one reading this book! The one that decided to buy it and go on the jounrey ith Carter despite the fact that she can be a bit prickly. Thanks for giving her and me a chance!
Joy came late to the reading game, due to vision problems. She holds a strong love for Young Adult since it’s where her love of reading began.
Now she writes Young Adult hoping to inspire the next generation.
When she isn’t creating in her little writing studio outside of Boston, Joy can be found buried in a book or discussing literature and drinking tea with her family of artists.
joyjenkins.com
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