A shot rang out from somewhere beyond the trees and the knife hit the ground. Robby didn’t miss a beat. He pulled the gun from the waistband of his shorts as he whirled around and fired in the direction the shot had come from. The third shot to split the early morning serenity came slightly from the right of the first and buried in Robby’s head.
Movement out of the corner of Alec’s eyes caught his attention. Roumduol was making a break through the trees on the other side. There was no fucking way Alec was going to let the bastard make it out of these woods alive.
Fighting against the rope again, he screamed for the men with the guns. “He’s getting away, damn it!”
“No, he’s not.” Alec froze at the sound of the calm, cool, female voice. “Stop, or I’ll shoot you dead.”
Roumduol had frozen, too, and Alec’s jaw dropped when he saw Jennifer step into view in front of Roumduol, a gun aimed steadily at his chest. There was a gun at Roumduol’s waist, and Alec saw the man’s hand twitch. Apparently, Jennifer saw it, too.
“You go for that gun, and you’re a dead man. If you think I won’t because I’m a girl, try me. We’ll see how it works out for you.”
“Christ, Jennifer.” Alec’s heart thudded as he watched the woman he loved face off with his worst enemy. She had barely a few seconds before Roumduol would come out of his shock and attempt to pluck the gun right out of her hands. Or worse, take his chances, draw his own gun, and shoot her before she could react.
Her stance was good. Alec had to give her that. The gun was even steadier now as she’d adjusted it into a two-handed grip and the expression on her beautiful face meant business. But was she fast enough to get off a shot when Roumduol made his move?
“Don’t try it, Roumduol.” Adam’s calm, authoritative voice rang out as the man moved in at Roumduol’s back. He circled Roumduol, claiming the gun in Roumduol’s pants as he put himself in the man’s line of vision, letting him see that someone else who was bigger, stronger, and all male was taking over. “I’ve got this, Jennifer. Go help Cabelly with Lexie and Alec.”
Jennifer didn’t argue. She lowered the gun—Alec’s gun, he realized—shoved it in the waistband of her shorts at the small of her back, and hurried over. Cabelly stepped over Robby’s dead body, carried Lexie a good distance away, and lowered her to the ground.
“Jennifer, come stay with your friend,” Cabelly told her. “I’ll take care of Alec.”
Jennifer looked at Alec, her expression unreadable as she passed him to follow Cabelly’s order. Then, Cabelly was closing in on him, the knife that had been shot from Robby’s hand now in his.
“I can see you’re not all right, but can you stand?” Cabelly asked as he rounded the tree to cut the rope from Alec’s wrist.
The fear was gone from Alec’s system, replaced by a heavy, untainted dose of sheer adrenaline he knew would keep him upright. “Yeah, I can stand.”
“I was so scared,” he heard Lexie saying to Jennifer as Cabelly cut the rope. “I thought… Oh, God. Go. Alec is free now. Go check on your man. I’ll be okay until you get back.”
Jennifer hesitated only a moment before she got to her feet where she’d been kneeling next to Lexie, turned, and sprinted back to Alec. He saw her arms jerk up as if she were about to wrap them around him, but she seemed to think better of it and lowered them again.
Alec heard Adam talking to Roumduol, but didn’t focus on what they were saying. They were wasting time. He knew Roumduol, knew the man was only biding his time, waiting for the right moment to make a move. Still, he couldn’t help but waste a few more precious seconds. He hooked his right arm around Jennifer’s waist and yanked her in, ignoring the pain that shot through his system when her perfect body collided with his.
“I was afraid I would hurt you,” she whispered as she gazed up at him, her eyes glistening.
“Never.” He wanted to hold on to her forever, but he knew he couldn’t. At least, not yet. He moved his hand to the small of her back and tugged the gun from the waistband of her shorts. “I believe this is mine.”
She gave him a watery smile. “You’re more than welcome to have it back.”
He reluctantly let her go, stepped back, and glanced toward Lexie. Cabelly was at her side again, talking into his hip radio, requesting an ambulance. Satisfied that was covered, he turned to Adam and Roumduol.
Adam was still holding Roumduol at gunpoint but shifted his gaze to Alec’s. “I don’t have cuffs on me. Grab that rope.”
Alec bent to pick up the rope Cabelly had cut off his wrists, scooped it up with his left hand, and cursed a blue streak when the pain of both moves caused him to see stars and stumble.
“Are you okay?” Adam asked at the same time Jennifer called his name, her voice thick with concern.
“I’m fine,” he answered both of them simulations. It hurt to move, to breathe, but he didn’t believe Roumduol had inflicted any serious internal injuries. He probably had a couple of bruised ribs which would hurt like a bitch for a time, but they would heal. If anything, he decided Roumduol had actually done him a favor. The fear, the beating, the reminder of the past had brought his memories back…all of them.
“And the team says I’m immortal,” Adam muttered. To Roumduol, he said louder, “Turn around and walk that way.”
Roumduol’s gaze was cold and calculating when it met Alec’s as the man turned and took a step forward. Alec saw the spark of a plan move through the man’s face, saw his body brace for action a nanosecond before Roumduol executed a roundhouse kick on Adam in an attempt to knock the gun from Adam’s hand. Roumduol’s plan didn’t work. Adam had been braced and ready, too, his grip on his gun strong.
Still, Alec didn’t think, he didn’t hesitate. He had a gun in his hand, too. Confident he had a shot without catching Adam in the crossfire, he raised the gun, pulled the trigger, and planted the bullet in Roumduol’s skull.
Adam’s gaze dropped to Roumduol’s fallen, lifeless body before lifting to meet Alec’s. “I had that.”
“So did I. Tell you what. You write it up as self-defense, and I won’t bust your balls for not telling me the real reason you came to the island.”
He’d known all along Roumduol was closing in on Alec again. Alec saw that in the man’s expression, he’d figured it out almost the instant he’d seen Roumduol.
Cabelly stopped at Alec’s side, his gun holstered, and his thumbs hooked in his belt. “Roumduol resisted arrest. Fearing for his partner’s life, Alec reacted. That’s the way I saw it.”
Not exactly self-defense, but not exactly the truth either. In the eyes of the law, Alec had fired an unnecessary kill shot, one that could land him in a world of trouble. Roumduol had been unarmed and, though he had resisted arrest, correct procedure demanded different, less fatal action.
Adam nodded once. “That’s the way it happened.”
* * * *
Jennifer sat on the sofa in the waiting room of island doctor Kip Weller’s office with Lexie. Adam was standing at the window, his gaze fixed on the empty street outside, and John Cabelly was kicked back in a chair in the corner. Alec was in the exam room with the doctor.
She studied Lexie. Her friend had already been examined and deemed to be okay, save for a bruised jaw and busted lip. She hadn’t been raped, which had been Jennifer’s worst fear. She’d assured all them of that.
“How are you holding up?”
Lexie sighed, and her busted lip hinted at a smile. “I’ll be okay. I’m am okay,” she corrected herself, sounding more confident.
Adam turned from the window and leaned against the wall beside it. “What happened when you went into that cottage last night?”
“Robby, or whoever he was, told me I had made a big mistake. He said he couldn’t argue about me wanting to go inside his cottage in front of Alec and Jennifer because it would’ve raised questions. The other guy…”
“Boran Roumduol,” Alec supplied.
Lexie nodded. “He was already inside there. He’
d been hiding out there since Robby came to the island. Robby told me he’d been watching Alec, learning his routine, and setting the stage to get to him without anyone knowing he did it or that Boran was involved.” She turned her attention to Jennifer. “He saw you with Alec our first night on the island, knew you and I were friends because he’d seen us together at the café, and decided to use me to get closer to him. He actually apologized more than once for having to kill me and said he wouldn’t have if I hadn’t insisted on coming into his cottage where I saw Boran. I tried to scream once.” She tenderly touched her jaw. “That’s when he hit me. He tied me up, which freaked me the fuck out after…”
After the way her captors before had kept her tied up and drugged, she didn’t need to spell that out for Jennifer.
“Anyway, just before sunrise, he gave me some kind of drug that knocked me out. When I came to, I was alone in those woods tied to that tree with a gag in my mouth so no one would hear me when I screamed. I don’t know how I got there.”
“Alec said the guy laced the water Alec drank from him with the same drug,” Cabelly said. “He’d been watching Alec, knew his routine, and expected him to go for a morning run. It looks like he thought fast, decided he couldn’t wait any long to make his move, and staged the whole thing with Roumduol.”
“And failed.”
The new voice in the room drew everyone’s attention to Alec. He, too, had a bruised jaw and busted lip. Still shirtless, there was no way to miss the bandages wrapped tightly around his midsection.
At Jennifer’s questioning look, he said, “A couple of bruised ribs. Nothing major.” His gaze shifted to Adam. “And you’re right, boss. The way you handle yourself around the office and on assignments has had the speculation flying around the bureau for years as to whether or not you're even mortal. I guess, as many times as I’ve managed to escape death, now they’ll be wondering that about me, too.” He grinned, though Jennifer could see it caused him pain. “I kind of like that.”
Adam chuckled. “You really do remember every fucking thing, don’t you?”
“Yeah. Never thought I would be able to thank Roumduol for anything, but I do owe him one for that.”
“I believe you gave it to him in those woods today,” Cabelly commented as he got to his feet. “I’m going to head to the office and wrap up all the loose ends. Cooper, I’ll need your help with that when you get Alec, Jennifer, and Lexie settled.”
“I’ll be there in a little while,” Adam told him.
“Actually,” Lexie said as she stood, too. “If you don’t mind, sheriff, I would like to walk with you. I want to go to the café and talk to Ari.” She stepped in front of Jennifer and leaned down to grab Jennifer’s hands. “She told me, if I decided to stay on the island, I could move in with her. I’m not going back to Waterston.”
Only marginally surprised, Jennifer gave her friend’s hands a gentle squeeze. “I’ve expected that almost since we got here, but I wasn’t sure if what happened today would change your mind.”
She shook her head. “I’m not going to let it change my mind. I love it here. I think I’ve found my place here. And wow, I sure know how to pick them. I think I’ll go back to steering clear of men for a long time, but otherwise, I’m pretty sure I’m going to be happy here.”
“Then you should stay,” Jennifer told her. “I’ll help you wrap up everything in Waterston and pack all your things and ship them to you when I get back.”
Lexie bent to kiss Jennifer on the cheek. “You can wait and bring it all to me when you come to visit.”
Jennifer laughed. “Deal.” She watched as the sheriff followed Lexie out of the office. When the door closed behind them, she heard herself say, “She really is going to be okay.”
“She’s a strong woman,” Adam commented, “and something about this island has given her the courage to go on with her life.”
“She’s not the only one.” Alec moved to the center of the room, his attention locked on Adam. “It’ll take a while for the ribs to heal, but once they do, is my job still open.”
“You’re damn right it is.”
Jennifer gaped at Alec as she got to her feet. “You’re going back to the FBI?”
He closed the distance between them and gingerly pulled her into his arms. “It’s who I am, who I’ve always been.” He shook his head as he glanced at Adam. “I’m not going to do the intense undercover assignments anymore, but I need to be back in the action. Today, getting my memory back, told me that.” He waited a beat as he dipped his head and brushed his lips over hers. “And I need to be with the woman I love if she’ll have me.”
A lump formed in Jennifer’s throat and her vision blurred. She’d been battling a war in her head for days, trying to decide if she truly wanted to move to the island, too, or return to Waterston. Either decision had meant she would be leaving one of the men she’d fallen in love with behind. With Alec’s decision to return to the FBI, he’d effectively settled the war for her. All three of them would be returning to Waterston.
Blinking back the tears, she smiled up at Alec. “You’re damn right she will.”
“A ménage relationship in Waterston is going to raise some eyebrows,” Adam said as he moved in behind her. “But I’ve got news for you, McIntyre, you’re going to be sharing the woman you love with the other man who loves her, too.”
Jennifer gave him a watery laugh as she let her head fall back on his chest and rolled it to look up at him. “You’re damn right he will be because the woman you both love is in love with both of you, too.”
And there was no way in hell she was ever going to let either of them go.
Epilogue
Waterston, Mississippi – Two months later
Jennifer paced the master bathroom in the house she now shared with Adam and Alec, thinking about the life the three of them had begun to build in the last three months as the seconds on the timer she’d set on her cell phone ticked away. Alec had returned to the FBI. After deep consideration, she had decided to keep her job at the clinic, though that might change depending on the results of the test.
As if on cue, the buzzer on her phone sounded the zero second. Taking a deep breath, she moved to the counter and stared at the positive line across the pregnancy stick. The home test boasted about being ninety-nine percent accurate. The birth control she was on had claimed the same about its reliability, which was why she, Adam, and Alec had stopped using condoms. So, which one was wrong?
She placed the stick on the edge of the counter, backed against the closed bathroom door, and covered her face with her hands. She knew the answer. The bouts of morning sickness she’d been experiencing had been the reason she’d purchased the test to begin with. The test wasn’t wrong. Her birth control had failed. She was officially pregnant.
She jolted at the knock on the door at her back.
“Baby, are you all right in there?”
Baby. What an interesting time for Alec to decide to use that term of endearment.
Taking another deep breath, she squared her shoulders and opened the door. Her expression must have been a dead giveaway because Alec’s eyes immediately filled with concern as he cupped the side of her face.
“You’re not all right. What’s the matter?”
Jennifer bit the insides of her lips together. “The three of us need to talk.”
“Uh-oh.” Adam’s voice came from the bedroom behind Alec. “When a woman says that, the outcome is rarely good.”
Jennifer actually felt herself smile at that. She flattened a hand on Alec’s chest and gave him a gentle push back so she could get out of the bathroom. “That all depends on how the two of you feel about being fathers.”
Okay, maybe she shouldn’t have dropped the bomb quite like that, but when it wasn’t met with an explosion, she figured she’d done okay after all. They were stunned, and the expression on their faces was almost comical. Adam was sitting in the bed in his boxer-briefs. His back had been leaning against the hea
dboard, but he’d sat up straight at the news, a world of emotions flashing like an old-fashioned slideshow in his eyes. Alec’s jaw had dropped, and his eyes were so wide he looked like a deer caught in a set of headlights.
The men exchanged a wordless look that her anxiety ramping up another notch. Adam was the one who finally spoke.
“You’re pregnant?”
Jennifer gulped and nodded.
“Holy shit.” Alec’s whisper was filled with awe. “How did that happen?”
Jennifer couldn’t help it. She tried, but when Adam chuckled, she lost it. She cracked up. “Do we really need to explain the birds and the bees to you?”
Alec dragged a hand down his face and grinned. “No. I meant, well, you’re on birth control.”
Jennifer nodded again. “Which is apparently not as effective as it claims to be.”
“You know what is as effective?” Adam asked as he got out of the bed and came to her. He pulled her into his arms and brushed the tip of his nose over hers. “Our love for you.”
Alec shifted to stand behind her, reached a hand between hers and Adam’s bodies, and flattened a hand over her belly. “And we’ll feel the same for our baby you’re carrying.”
Relief brought tears to her eyes. “You’re not mad?”
Alec leaned his head over her shoulder to look at her. “You really thought we would be?”
Her heart in her throat, she found it hard to speak. “I don’t know what I thought.”
“How do you feel about it?” Adam asked.
“I’m still in shock. I mean, I’ve suspected it for a few days, but…” She hesitated as she gauged the emotions surging through her. “I’m scared, nervous, definitely happy,” she quickly added, “and worried.”
Alec brushed his lips over the side of her neck. “Why are you worried?”
Jennifer turned her head to smile at him. “Because, in nine months, I’m going to have a baby one of you created. I already have my hands full with the two of you. How am I going to handle a third one?”
Safe and Assigned to Ecstasy [The Heroes of Silver Island 5] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Page 14