Rook Security Complete Series

by Camilla Blake

  That little minx! She was going to try to make him get a boner in front of all of his employees. In front of his kid! No way.

  He raised an eyebrow at her, as if to tell her that she knew the rules. She raised one back and stroked one of her bare feet up the inside of his leg.

  It was on.

  He grabbed her waist, pushed them up for air and slammed them back down into the water.

  She looked so young, laughing and twisting in his arms. After she had Ricky, May had kept her black hair in a short bob. But these days, he’d noticed, she was growing it out again. It was past her shoulders and seemed to fill his entire field of vision as they grappled in the water.

  He grabbed for her hands, trying to pin them down, but she used her toes to slip under the hem of his shorts.

  He twisted and so did she. They came up laughing and went under again. They played hard for a few minutes, until fatigue started to set in and their energy began to wane. This time, when they went underwater, they weren’t fighting so hard, but they were still clinging.

  He held her hands in his and her feet gripped him at the ankle. They spiraled in the clear blue of the pool, their eyes pinned to one another.

  Rook realized how little control he had over this moment. He couldn’t stop himself, not with their past playing like a movie in his head, not with May warm and happy in his arms, not with the sunshine through the water, just like before.

  His mouth came open, bubbles came out. He started to form words. May’s eyes watched his lips.

  Then they both turned at the torpedo of motion in the water just inches from them. Ricky had jumped in. Her eyes were laughing as she swam over, clamping on to her parents. Rook pushed off and surfaced all three of them.

  They all came up laughing and Ricky jumped onto his back. “Wanna play one-on-one pool basketball, Dad?”

  May, standing in the water in front of him, asked her own question of him, with only her eyes. Was what I thought was about to happen, really gonna happen?

  “Yes,” he answered both of them at the same time.

  ***

  May prowled around the kitchen that afternoon. She made guacamole and hummus. She made pitchers of fancy Margaritas. She made virgin cocktails for Elena. She oohed and ahhed over Bex’s engagement ring. Throwing out ideas for their wedding, making plans to take Bex wedding dress shopping when they got back to BK.

  She emailed Ricky’s field hockey camp counselor to ask a question about drop-off day that she’d forgotten to ask before. She parlayed with a customer at the dance studio over email. She downloaded a blockbuster to Moreau’s big screen for them all to watch that night. She cleaned up the kitchen.

  To the casual observer, she was a whirl of activity, living her best vacation life.

  On the inside, her brain was coated in molasses. Sweet, sticky molasses. She replayed the moment over and over in her head. Underwater with Rook, her hands in his, sunlight and blue water, and his eyes, lit from the side, revealing how secretly blue they really were. And his expression, just killing her. Only Rook knew how to look so serious and so vulnerable at the same time.

  He’d been about to tell her he loved her.

  And she… would have been absolutely wrecked. So she’d fled to the kitchen and thoroughly avoided him for the rest of the day.

  This whole thing had been a recklessly foolish idea. Vacationing with him was opening Pandora’s box. She needed to close that box with a nailgun. But also, she kind of wanted to put on some lingerie and climb inside the box.

  What would happen, she wondered, if she and Rook fooled around on vacation? It wouldn’t have to mean anything, would it? They obviously had a ton of history. And they had Ricky to consider. But it wasn’t like they were going to start up something in real life. It would just be in this hot and sweaty vacation-land. They could exorcise some of these feelings that were obviously still plaguing them both. And then maybe they could finally move on?

  She’d joined a newly divorced support group way back when and she couldn’t even have listed the number of times she’d heard this story. That divorced people very often had one more fling together after the divorce. Even if it was just one last kiss, or hookup, or even a dinner with one another where the feelings all came roaring back.

  She and Rook had never had that, and apparently it was only natural. It was the body’s way of getting rid of any residual feelings. She chewed her lip as she loaded the last of the dishes into the dishwasher. She heard the movie starting in the other room, the sun had set about twenty minutes ago.

  She felt him before she turned to see him. He was in the kitchen with her, setting her alight with those serious eyes.

  May turned all at once, gripping the counter behind her. And there he was. His hair freshly washed, a button-down shirt on, jeans and boots. And a look on his face that simply melted her. He looked like he had a hundred and one things to say. Like he wanted to lay her down and whisper against every part of her skin. He also looked… regretful.

  That’s when she noticed the duffel bag over his shoulder.

  “What’s up?”

  He set the bag down. “The plane is coming to get me. I’m flying home tonight.”

  She tried not to react as if that news made her want to hiss and scratch. “What? Why?”

  Had he sensed how close they’d gotten to breaking the rules? Was he fleeing from her right as she was convincing herself that maybe they needed to heat things up for a few days?

  “Wilkes called me. They found some CCTV footage of the intruder.” He moved closer to her but it wasn’t out of desire for her body. It was out of desire to comfort her.

  “Really?”

  “Yes. Remember how you said that the guy moved funny? Well, they analyzed the video and think that the guy most likely has a prosthesis. One that he isn’t really using correctly.”

  “Okay…” May said, not quite getting where Rook was going with this.

  “They didn’t get a look at his face, but apparently there’s one shot where you can see his dog tags.”

  “Oh.” May’s world shrunk down to the head of a pin as the truth crashed down on her. “It wasn’t someone that I know. It’s someone that—”

  “Someone that I know,” Rook said, something caustic and feral creeping into his expression. “I explained to Wilkes about what Tim Rather told me. About the other guys who were involved with the IED and he’s looking into them. But yeah. We’ve been out of touch. None of them know that we divorced. It’s very likely that it was one of them. Either trying to get to me firsthand, or using you and Ricky to get to me.”

  “Wow.” May leaned against the counter, crossing her arms over her chest. “Why does this mean that you have to go?”

  “Wilkes let me know that they have addresses for all of them. He doesn’t expect that they’ll be hard to round up. He wants me there for identification if necessary. He’s hoping we can get the arrest process underway before you and Ricky get back from vacation, that way you two won’t have anything to worry about when you get back. Besides, there’s some things I need to get ready in the bunker before you return to New York.”

  May blinked at him.

  He winced. “Sorry, I meant to ask, not tell. Ricky was right that asking was better than telling.”

  “I’m sorry. You spoke to our daughter about this before you spoke to me?”

  Somehow, her arms had crossed over her chest and one of her hips had popped to the side though she was barely aware of moving.

  “Ricky is the one who brought it up to me. She asked to go stay at the bunker. Well. Actually she asked if you two could stay at my house.”

  May blinked again.

  “And,” Rook continued. “I figured you guys would be more comfortable in the bunker. More space and all. If, after Ricky goes to camp, you feel like you want to move to my house, that’s fine. You can have my room and I can take Ricky’s—“

  “Hold the phone.” May held up her hand and he fell instantly silent. �
��You are telling me that I’m coming to live in the bunker, whether I want to or not? And not only that, I’ll continue to live with you after our daughter goes to camp?” May felt a little dizzy. “God. Is it even safe for her to go to camp? I hadn’t thought about it.” She sagged back onto the counter. She was mad and tired. Never a good combo.

  “May, I didn’t mean to make these decisions without you. My brain has just been moving a mile a minute since the attack on the house. The safety of my family is the most important thing to me. You know that. I don’t want you to be unhappy, though. I’ll be willing to do whatever it takes to make you feel comfortable with the situation.”

  “Oh, don’t treat me like a client.” She knew his tricks back and forth. Part of his philosophy with clients was that acquiescent clients were much easier to protect than belligerent ones. So he often compromised with them on lots of little details so they didn’t feel as if he was manhandling their lives and taking away their agency. Even though that was exactly what he was doing. “I know this game, Rook. You’re going to lock us up in the crow’s nests and never let us out of your sight but you’ll let me choose if I want cotton sheets or flannel sheets and think that makes us even.”

  He made a frustrated sound. “What I really want is for you and Ricky to be safe. Keeping people safe is my life’s work, May. I was born to do it. I’m good at it. Please, just let me do it.”

  “Answer my question about Ricky. Is she going to camp or not? And don’t pretend like you care about my input on this. We both know you’re going to make the decision on your own no matter what.”

  He sighed. “I would only make the decision on my own because I’m a personal security professional, not because I’m trying to commandeer the parenting on this, May. But to answer your question, I think we need to wait and see what Wilkes comes up with over the next few days. If he apprehends whoever did this, then we really don’t need to be overly cautious with her.”

  May would have argued, just for the principle of the matter, but she knew that no matter what, Rook had Ricky’s best interest at heart. That didn’t mean she had to fold on the bunker thing.

  “Why wouldn’t my own house be safe, Rook? Don’t act like you’re not already having every security measure known to man installed there. What does it matter? How is that different from staying at your house?”

  “Because the attacker obviously has that address, May. He already tried to burn it down. If we stay at the bunker, we have state-of-the-art security and the added benefit of the attacker not knowing where you are.”

  “I just…” she trailed off. She didn't want to stay at the bunker. It was Rook’s turf completely. There was nothing homey about it. It was what he had built in the wake of their marriage. It was what he’d dreamed about while their divorce had been materializing. It was irrational to hate that place, but she did. It was cold and impersonal and represented everything that Rook had once again chosen over her.

  She sagged. She knew she was being unreasonable. What was a few weeks spent in the bunker? “Will I still be allowed to work?”

  He cleared his throat. “I’d rather you didn’t until the attacker is apprehended.”

  “You mean that we’ll be on lockdown?” Not only was she going to have to stay in the bunker, she was going to be locked into the bunker.

  Rook slid his hands into his pockets and stared at her. “May, it’s very likely that this lunatic attacked you and Ricky because of me. Please, let me protect you my way. Do me the kindness of letting me sleep at night because I know for a fact that you two are safe. Please.”

  May threw her hands into the air and rolled her eyes. “No wonder you always get your way with clients. You come across as Honest Abe, but the truth is, you’ve just mastered the art of getting your way.”

  He laughed and shook his head at her.

  She strode up and poked him in the chest. “Fine. I agree to these ridiculous conditions. But don’t think I won’t tank your yelp reviews if you piss me off.”

  She strode out of the kitchen and into the TV room. Rook followed after her, pausing the movie to say goodbye to everyone. Ricky walked him to the door, but May didn’t watch. And she didn’t say goodbye.

  CHAPTER NINE

  The rest of the vacation moved very quickly. Ricky was a bit more subdued without her dad there, but everyone stepped up to do things with her. Sequence most of all. Sequence was quiet and serious and grumpy. Pretty much the opposite of goofy, happy Naomi who could talk the wings off a hummingbird.

  But Sequence and Naomi had Brookie, and as May watched Sequence invite Ricky to toss a frisbee with him, she couldn’t help but wonder if Sequence was practicing. His little girl was going to be a teenager someday and maybe he wanted to see if he’d be any good at it. Ricky was happy to play along.

  As much as May had resented Rook Securities, and all that it stood for in the loss of her marriage, she had to admit that it had also brought some pretty important people into her life. Geo and Elena, whom May was closest to. Bex and Naomi, whom May loved and was getting closer to every day. And then there was Moreau and Atlas, so different from one another, but similar in the ways that mattered. Moreau was classy and well-mannered, Atlas was silly and obliviously nosy. But they both were so friendly and kind, had such sweet hearts.

  Sequence was the person she knew the least well out of the group, but he was quickly winning her allegiance with how great he was being with Ricky. And then there was Cedric. The only member of Rook Securities that she still held at a length. She wished it weren’t true, because Elena was such a close friend. And because Cedric was such a good person. It was obvious. He was patient and kind, he loved laughing and was loyal to a fault. All things that May valued in a person.

  But he was also Rook’s closest friend. And she couldn’t help but wonder what Cedric thought of the whole mess of their divorce. She wondered if Rook ever confided in Cedric. Long story short, she wondered what Cedric thought of her.

  No one could fully understand a divorce unless they were one of the two people directly involved. But these days, May was feeling less and less like she understood. She was feeling more and more confused about the whole thing.

  As the vacation wore on and Cedric was very clearly the only person whom May never sat down next to or struck up a conversation with, she was beginning to feel awkward and a little uncomfortable. She wondered if it was as obvious to him as it was to her. She was relieved to pack her things and get back on the airplane at the end of the week.

  Her daughter, however, cried as she looked out the window of the seaplane, watching the villa shrink into the distance.

  “Don’t cry, Ricks,” Moreau said, from his seat across from her. “Geo and I will bring you back here again.”

  She brushed her tears away. “I don’t mean to be a baby about it. It was just so fun.”

  May tucked her arm around her daughter.

  “I wish Dad hadn’t had to leave early,” Ricky whispered. May’s throat tightened. Her daughter had taken it on the chin at the time, the same thing that she did every time her dad had to work, but it was clear that it was wearing on her.

  “I know. It was a treat to have us all together, wasn’t it?” The words felt like chalk in May’s mouth, even though she knew it was true.

  “Yeah.”

  They didn’t talk much for the rest of the trip. May couldn’t help but worry that maybe the vacation had done more harm than good for her daughter. Maybe this whole thing was just too confusing for her. Maybe May needed to get back on Tinder and find some dates and move on once and for all.

  “Dad!” Ricky shouted from the top of the staircase leading off the private plane at JFK. Rook waited on the other side of security, his arms crossed as he leaned against his SUV.

  Crap. The second she saw him there in his damn aviators she knew that any tinder date she went on was going to be total and complete crap. She didn’t want to date some guy, she wanted to get Rook out of her system.

  Rick
y sprinted across the tarmac and practically jumped into her dad’s arms. May loved that. How exuberant her daughter was. She was so teenagery in some ways and such a little girl in others.

  May hefted their bags and watched as Rook said something to Ricky. Moments later, Ricky bounded back over and reached out for her own bag. “Dad says not to make you carry everything.”

  “Smart man, your dad.” May handed over the bag and took a long, calming breath as she walked across the tarmac toward Rook. She implored herself not to get confused. Sure, she was getting in a car with Rook. Sure, he was picking her up from the airport. Sure, she and her daughter were going to go to a place where the three of them would live under one roof. But that didn’t have to mean anything. It only meant something if she let it mean something.

  Before she could let herself get too worked up, a pair of strong arms wrapped around her. “Loved hanging with you this week,” Geo said into May’s ear.

  Rook strode forward and took May’s suitcase from her and then Moreau was hugging her, saying goodbye.

  Next came Bex and Atlas, who hugged her all at once. May laughed into Atlas’s armpit and tried not to look too sad as she pulled away. “You two make sure you celebrate your engagement in style, all right? And Bex, when you’re ready for me to throw you a bridal shower, you let me know, honey.”

  Bex’s eyes widened in horror and delight. “Okay,” she said uncertainly.

  Brooke had started crying so Naomi and Sequence were rushing her into the car, but Naomi blew kisses to May and Sequence bumped fists with Ricky. Which left only Elena and Cedric.

  May quickly hugged Elena, making an internal note to drop around her house and bring her some of the pregnancy tea that she’d drunk by the gallon when she was pregnant with Ricky.

  And then, finally, Cedric. May held his eyes as he brought her in for a quick hug. She’d wondered if he’d noticed how deftly she’d avoided him that week, and now she knew for certain that he had. His eyes had a kind, but knowing, glint to them. She’d fooled no one. Least of all Ced.