by Aliyah Burke
“The thought had crossed my mind.”
“You’re stubborn and crazy.”
“Good traits to have, I would say.”
“Sure.” Shea sent her a pointed look. “Now, that we’re here, away from prying eyes and listening ears, why don’t you tell me why you’re hanging out with a man from Recon who seems to know you very well and care deeply for you.”
Shit. Should have known she would’ve picked up on that.
Shea drove straight through as they talked. Once back in Cottonwood Falls, Sarah directed Shea to her house. After convincing her mom that all was fine and it was just a car accident, Sarah crawled into bed.
Two days later, she was strolling around the town square with Shea. The morning had brought rain, but it had since passed on. The warmer temperatures were nice. She—and Shea—were passing time until her mom finished running errands.
She stopped to tie her boot when her phone rang. She answered it as she watched a helicopter coming in. Odd.
“Hello?”
“Captain, it’s Davies.”
She smiled. “Yes, sir?”
“How are you?”
What the hell is a chopper doing landing here in the middle of town? She shared a look with Shea, who appeared just as confused, given the way her face had drawn tight.
“Surviving.” The sleek black door opened, and two men hopped out. Damn! “What can I do for you?”
She’d pitched her voice to be heard over the loud rotors. One of the men had blondish hair and never-ending muscles along with the cocky assuredness she connected to military men. The other maintained a similar expression with a slighter build and brown hair.
“I wanted to let you know,” Davies said. “First, that you’re being promoted up to Major Mallery. I don’t want to hear any arguments; it’s in motion. Come by and pick up your new pins. Then, there’s something else, which I wish I didn’t have to tell you. But I do, so here goes. Everything was a setup.”
A major? His words took her attention from the gorgeous men gazing about and the one approaching them—Grey. “What was?”
“The addition of the SEAL in that op over in Hamburg. He wants to bring us down and sent in him as a spy, to glean how we worked.”
Ice coated her veins. “And my accident?”
He sighed. “You were to be bait for the others. To be exposed as renegades without respect for the rules, they would have been accused of going off half cocked and getting you killed.”
Her gaze snapped back to the man she’d been considering staying with after their two weeks on the island. Right now, it was anger that surged through her with an unrelenting force.
“I’ll be right back,” she said to Shea. “Thank you, sir. For the information.” She ended the call.
Sarah strode toward Grey, pain from her injury no longer a concern. Ignoring the two men approaching from the left, she went straight up to Grey and stopped.
He quirked a brow at her, the twinkle in his eyes creating a flutter in her gut despite her anger. The joy segued into confusion. Behind Grey, she spied not only her mother who’d come out to see this chopper but also Chase.
“Mallery,” Grey said.
“Out of everything low and conniving, I never thought you’d stoop so damn low.”
“Are you ready to go, Commander?” the blond interrupted.
“Hold on, sir.” Grey reached for her, and she didn’t even attempt to hide the wince. “You were injured?”
“All the sweet talking, the romance, the sex. You SEALs really go all out to get your information.” She glared up at him. “To think I even considered falling for your lines.” She trembled with the force of her rage, and she stepped closer still. “You risked the lives of my men and me.”
His brow furrowed. “What the hell are you talking about and what happened that you got injured?”
“Commander,” the man insisted.
“Wait one,” she snapped, not taking her eyes off Grey. She narrowed her eyes on his face. “Sign the motherfucking divorce papers.” She whirled away, only to whip back and punch him in the jaw, rocking him back on his heels. She felt a tear and knew she was now bleeding. The way Grey honed in on her shirt, he’d noticed it, as well. She blinked away the stinging tears as she walked away from the man who’d not only stolen her heart all those years ago but was the same man who’d betrayed her.
Grey saw stars. Sarah had one hell of a strike. His mind whirred with everything he’d not only just heard but seen. The blood on her shirt, extremely disturbing.
“Commander, we have to go now.”
Grey looked in the cornflower eyes of Captain Scott Harrington, leader of the famed Megalodon Team. “I have to—”
“Hold up.”
Grey turned his attention to the approaching man, Chase Ellery. He gazed past the scowling man to Sarah’s mother—his mother-in-law—and on to the retreating figure of his wife.
“What, Ellery?”
“What did you do to my Sarah?”
Grey snapped. He yanked the man up by his shirt, distantly aware through the red haze encompassing him that Chase had mimicked the action, not the least bit fazed.
“That woman isn’t your anything,” he ground out. “Sarah Mallery,” he glanced to her mother, “is my wife.”
“Commander!”
“Coming, sir.” He released Chase and jogged to the waiting bird, swiping his bag on the way. His heart was torn, but he was first and foremost a SEAL. He joined Harrier and Cade inside and drew on the headset as the door slammed shut while they lifted off.
“So,” Cade said, drawing his attention. “You’re married to Major Mallery.”
“Major?” Grey looked at both men.
The two men of the Megalodon Team shared glances. “You don’t know your wife’s rank?” Harrier posed the question.
“She was a captain, last I knew,” he replied defensively. “How do you know her?”
They grinned. “I make it my business to know someone who has accomplished all she has,” Harrier said.
He hated the jealousy hitting him. Drawing out his phone, he sent a text to Sarah.
“I thought they’d said she’d healed enough to be released from the hospital, but just now, I saw blood.” Cade’s observation made Grey’s gut curdle.
He’d seen the blood, as well. Hospital? What the hell has been going on here? He’d just left her after the vacation. Both men stared at him. “What?” he bit off.
“I get you’re distracted by this—whatever it is—but right now, I need you here.” Harrier passed over a file. “Here’s the mission info.”
With a final peek at his phone—still showing no response from Sarah—Grey opened the folder.
αβ
Sarah accepted the cup of tea placed before her and curved her hand around the porcelain, welcoming the heat. The chill hadn’t faded; if anything, it had blossomed. The bitter taste in her mouth increased with each heartbeat. Chase had rechecked her injury and put some gauze on it to stop the bleeding.
Currently, Shea was out, her mom sat across from her, and Chase occupied the seat to her right—as always, part of the family.
Her mother fussed with the tray holding the platter of brownies. Her heavy sighs doing more damage than any amount of berating could. She peered up, eyes spilling over with betrayal before she rose and walked away.
“I feel lower than a maggot,” Sarah admitted.
“You should.” Chase’s statement wasn’t unexpected.
“Don’t you have a wife to go home to?”
“I have to make sure my sister is okay, first. I can kill him if you’d like.” He shrugged. “I may just do it, anyway. I know you, Sarah. You have a reason for this—whatever it is—and not telling us about it. Just tell me how long you’ve been married to him.”
She worried her lip. “Ten and a half years or so.”
There was a tic in his jaw. “What’s he doing with the Megalodon Team?”
Shit! That’s who t
hat had been. They’d tinged her recognition when she’d approached Grey, but her husband had been her focus.
“Not sure, it’s not his Team.” She shook her head. “Maybe he’s been TAD to them.”
She drank her tea and rubbed her temples. “I have to go talk to Ma.” Leaving her mug there, she kissed Chase on the cheek and walked out of the familiar kitchen. She knocked on the door of her mother’s room.
“Come in.”
Sarah listened and pushed in to see her mom seating in her rocker, knitting.
“I’m sorry, Mama. I know I should have told you.” She shook her head. “There is so much I should have told you.”
αβ
Grey blinked away the snow that fell around him in a thick sheet of white. He scratched the brim of his knit cap. The thin air sucked, and he gazed about the view offered him as he stood on part of Nanga Parbat. No way they would make it to the top, not in winter, but thankfully, they didn’t have to go any farther.
“How’s the view?”
Turning to face the speaker, he nodded at the black man who neared. Hondo.
“Like I’m in a permanent snow globe.” He cracked a smile. “Can’t beat the view, however.”
They had come here for a two-part mission. Elimination and retrieval. He currently sat overlooking a small gathering of terrorists. They were anticipating one more to join the gathered Taliban. Many climbers feared these men storming into their base camp and killing them.
He and Hondo had the north side. Harrier and Cade had the south. Merlin and Ghost were on the east while Baby Boy and Jeb took the west.
“I hear you’re married to Bug.”
Christ, does everyone know her? “Do all y’all know her?”
Six confirmations filled his ear bud as Hondo nodded. Grey realized, right then, he truly didn’t—even now—know all facets of Sarah Mallery.
“We’ve all worked with her in some aspect or another.” Hondo lay out on his stomach beside him. “She’s one hell of an operative.”
Operative. Not a word he wanted linked to her.
“Looks like the last to the party is finally arriving.” Merlin’s calm voice halted the conversation.
He shared a look with Hondo, and they both spread out, slinking nearer. They were to take them all out. The men got closer. Three of them, the one in the middle had a hood over his head and hands tied behind his back. With a kick in the kidneys, the hooded man sank to the ground where they yanked off his covering. Black hair obscured the face, but Grey knew it was the one they’d also come to rescue. James “Maverick” Lonetree.
“The fuckers die, and we get him home to his wife and kids.” Hondo’s voice was monotone.
Grey knew every man down there would die. Maverick had been their prisoner for three months, and the Megalodon Team wanted their man back. So, did he. He may not be a member of SEAL Team Seventeen, but it didn’t matter. They were brothers. And Hondo had said it perfectly—it was time to get the man home.
Chapter Eight
Sarah stared at her newest scar. It had healed, yet she scowled before buttoning up her blouse as she went back to the bedroom. Her uniform hung on her mirror, and she paused before it.
A major.
She touched the gold oak leaf on the shoulder. Who knew her joy about a promotion would be overshadowed by the lingering sting of Grey’s betrayal.
Get over it. Move on.
Once she finished dressing, she grabbed her coat and walked out into the early spring snow, making her way through DC to the office of Admiral Davies. Her boots made very little sound as she crossed the highly polished floor. Steadily, she made her way up the stairs to the fourth floor.
“He’s waiting for you, Major. Go on in.” The woman at the desk gestured at her.
With a nod, she pushed through the tall oak door. Admiral Davies sat behind his large desk. He rose when he saw her, worry all over his expression.
“I’m so—”
She waved it off. “Not your fault.”
“Bullshit. I’m supposed to protect my own.”
“It’s done,” she said. “The others are okay. I’m fine.”
He lowered himself back to his chair, arms resting on the desk. “I never thought Fith would be so brash and stupid.”
“He didn’t expect me to get away.” She perched on the edge of a chair. “Like most, he underestimated me.”
“He did get a hold of your redacted file.”
She cracked a smile. “Is there one out there that isn’t redacted?”
Admiral Davies tapped his temple. “Only up here.”
Sarah laced her fingers and dropped her gaze to the tips of her shiny black boots.
“Something on your mind, Major?”
“Do you think he’s pissed about our group and the fact we have no use for him as SecNav or is this because he wasn’t allowed in SOG and still holds a grudge all these years later?” His eyes widened a bit, and she arched a brow at him. “I do know how to research.”
“Whatever his reasons, he will be made to pay.”
“He’s played his hand. We now know. Don’t focus on him. We still have missions to accomplish.”
“And, here, I thought I would have to be the calm, rational one.” Davies shook his head and leaned back. “Cooler was right; he said that would be your take.” He stood and put on his wool coat. “Come on.”
Instantly, she rose and strode to the door. To her mind, she was his bodyguard. And that was a job she took very seriously. She fell into step beside him as they moved to the elevator.
Silence lingered during their ride, yet she didn’t press for any conversation. He would have told her had he wanted her to know. On the ground floor, he led her to his waiting car. She slid in first, and he followed.
“To JAG.”
“Yes, sir,” his driver said.
What reason could we have for heading to JAG? She maintained an impassive expression, all too aware of his scrutiny.
“Not even curious?”
“No, sir.” Hell, yes.
He gave a small smile as if he’d read her thoughts. “I’m having a meeting with the Judge Advocate General.”
The car stopped, and she climbed out after him. “And, I’m supposed to do what during your meeting?” She ducked her head against the blowing snow. They hurried in the building.
“Wait,” he said, opening a door and waving her inside the small room. “You’re good at that.”
“Yes, sir.” She unbuttoned her coat and shrugged free as he walked out, leaving her alone.
She cracked her fingers and made her way to the window, staring out over the snowy landscape. She itched to be back at training, away from DC and the politics. Back with the men she trusted. Maybe I should have asked him if he knew what was going on with the Megalodon Team and Grey.
The door opened behind her then clicked closed. “That was a short meeting, sir.” She pivoted and froze. That was not the admiral.
“Hello, Sarah.”
She narrowed her gaze even as her body reacted on a purely visceral level. “Grey.” Damn him for looking so handsome. The cut of his black uniform made her weak in the knees. Her eyes darted to the trident pinned to his chest.
“You and I need to talk.”
Imposing. Stalwart. Panty-soaking.
“I don’t think so,” she uttered. “Leave before things get ugly.”
“Hell, no.” He stalked across the room, sending his cover to skitter to a stop on the tabletop. “First off, what the fuck happened that you were bleeding when I last saw you? I heard you were in the hospital.”
She crossed her arms, for protection or to keep from touching him, she wasn’t sure. “Can the give-a-damn act. You know damn well your mentor and friend sent a goon after me. I attacked him, and we got into an accident somewhere out in Rock Creek Park. I ended up with some broken ribs and lacerations.”
The green in his eyes, even more prevalent, nearly had her stepping back from him. “He did what?” A sli
ght headshake. “You honestly believe that’s what I was after and that’s something I would do?”
“Your man wanted control. Sent you in, wanting information on our team. He wants to shut us down.” She clenched her fists. “Is that why you married me to begin with? Because Fith knew Admiral Davies was interested in me?”
“No way.” He gripped her arms. “Don’t you fucking go there.”
“Why not? How should I take it? Where do you want me to go with it?”
“I married you for one reason.”
“I don’t give a damn. Another excuse? Save it for someone who gives a crap. Let me go!” She smacked him in the chest.
“Not happening.”
He kissed her. She froze, so shocked by his behavior. They were in JAG. Even so, the exquisite pleasure of his lips had her sinking into him. Two seconds—if it took even that long—and she was mush in his arms.
“I would never risk you like that, Sarah. I don’t know why he did what he did.” He held her gaze, and his large, square, and strong hands cupped her face. “Believe me, I will find out.”
Interesting. “You’re still angry.”
He clenched his jaw. “Of course I’m angry. I’m fucking pissed,” he bit off, his drawl thick and syrupy. “He went after you, my wife. What would he have done if it had been a successful kidnapping?”
“Used me as bait to lure in the rest of my team,” she imparted what she’d learned.
“I’m going to rip his fucking head off.”
She covered his hands with hers. “I can’t do this, anymore.” His anger seemed real, but she was suspicious and couldn’t continue messing with her heart as she’d been doing.
The look in his eyes was one she couldn’t decipher. Let it go. Let him go.
“I’m going to find what the fuck this is all about. Then”—he gripped the back of her head—“I’m coming for you.” He tightened his hold when she began to shake her head. “Don’t tell me no. I’m not asking for your permission; I’m telling you what’s going to happen. Do you know why I married you?”
She was barely aware of him moving them back until the wall stopped her, trapping her between it and him. Him. Every inch the capable SEAL and husband she knew him to be.