“You’re Cindy, aren’t you?”
The woman stopped, her expression tightening slightly. “And you’re Durango.”
She was an older woman, closer to Jackson’s age than Durango’s. That was a surprise. She was tall. But, then again, everyone seemed tall to Durango while he was stuck in a wheelchair. And she was thin, built like a fashion model. Jackson liked his ladies that way.
“He tell you about me?”
“He talked about you a lot,” she said.
“He never told me about you. But that’s probably my fault.”
She looked down the hall, chewing her bottom lip for a second. “You really hurt him, you know. Not allowing him to go to your defense when you were on trial. And not telling him when your partner was killed. It hurt him deeply.”
“I know.”
“He only wanted to be a part of your life.”
“I know that, too.”
She was quiet for a second, glancing down the hall again as though she wanted to run as far from him as she could get. But then she focused on his face again.
“He doesn’t blame you for being angry with him over your mom. Hell, I’d be mad, too, if I was five and I’d heard something like that. But you’re a grown man now.” She shook her head. “You should be able to appreciate what that was like for him. You lost your mother, but he lost the love of his life.”
Axel cleared his throat, clearly growing uncomfortable hearing the conversation. She looked at him, a stain of color touching her cheeks. But that didn’t stop her from continuing.
“He loves you, Durango, and you’ve treated him like a dog long enough. It’s time for you to grow up.”
He nodded. “You love him. That’s good.”
Cindy shrugged. “He’s a good man.”
Durango didn’t know what to say to that. He didn’t know his father well, and that was his fault. But he was glad to know he had a woman like this, someone willing to go to bat for him, in his corner.
Chapter 23
Springfield, Illinois
Mastiff Security Headquarters
Six Months Later
Durango walked into his office, his leg aching from the cold that seemed to seep into everything, even in the heated office building. The doctor said that ache would probably stay with him for the rest of his life. Wonderful news. But at least he could walk with only a hint of a limp. They’d thought for a while he’d have to use a cane the rest of his life. Thirty-three years old and he’d have to use a cane like some ninety-year-old man. But his physical therapist was a genius.
“You have ten messages and a client on hold, Mr. Masters.”
Durango turned and smiled at his assistant. This one had hung on for a full month. He was optimistic about her tenure.
“Thanks, Jane.”
She handed him the little pink slips and walked out, closing the door behind her.
It was good to be back at work. He’d been stuck in Los Angeles for three months, then decided he needed to travel. He had to get his head back on straight before he could decide what he wanted his future to look like. So much had happened over these past six months that he needed to let it all sink in. But the longer he was away from Mastiff, the more he realized he missed it.
On his first day back at the office, Kyle’s father, Nathan Peters, had come by to congratulated him on his role in catching one of the most prolific serial killers in the country’s history.
“That FBI agent . . . there’ll be big things in store for her in the future!”
He was right. Gracie could write her own ticket after everything that had happened. Not only did she not get in trouble for breaking him out of jail but they gave her a medal. Last he’d heard, she’d been transferred to the Denver office where they wanted her to hunt down someone who was killing hitchhikers on one of the more remote mountain roads out there.
She had it made in the shade, as Jackson might say.
He was happy for her.
They hadn’t talked much after he woke in the hospital. She was busy, and he assured her he understood. She was happy to hear Jackson was recovering. And he was, too. Jackson had a longer road in front of him than Durango had endured, but Cindy was right there by his side, making sure he took his pills and attended his physical therapy sessions. He told the old man he should marry her. He’d just blushed and gave a slight nod.
Everything was working out. Axel and Abigail were about to tie the knot. The wedding was in less than a week. He’d heard Ryder and his wife had just welcomed a baby girl. Calder and his girl eloped months ago without bothering to tell anyone, which was the way to go if anyone asked Durango. And Zola was leading the operatives in cases, taking down three embezzlers and a cheating husband last week alone. She’d been a good choice to join their team.
Things were good.
So why did he feel like there was this huge, empty hole in the center of his chest?
Durango hated that Billy was the one who’d tortured him these past years, that his was the last face Sarah had seen before she left this world. He hated that he hadn’t seen the torture Billy’s soul was struggling with, that he hadn’t known it was his own brother the whole time. He should have seen it. And he hated that so many people he loved had to suffer because of his failings as a brother, as a man, as a human being. The guilt was so overwhelming at first that he couldn’t breathe when he thought about it. Still, this little part of him was just gone, destroyed by the truth. Six months it had taken him to get to a place where he could almost live with it.
He’d gone to see Sarah a few days ago, to kneel at her grave and say all the things he’d been holding in all these years. He felt surprisingly light afterward, as though he’d finally taken off a burden he’d been carrying for far too long. It didn’t fix what had gone wrong, but it was a step in the right direction.
He was working on it. Taking little steps.
Durango sighed, telling himself there was no point in dwelling on it. What was done was done. He pushed himself to work, to concentrate on the daily tasks of running a business. Axel was the perfect partner, and he’d made a gesture toward making that title official. But Axel was happy with the role he had to play. The office was running smoothly. They were looking for a new human resources secretary, finally deciding it was time to replace Gracie. Not something Durango wanted to be a part of.
Which was why, when an hour later Axel knocked on his door, he wanted to throw a paper weight at him.
“I’ve narrowed it down to three candidates. I thought you might want to meet them.”
“I told you, this is your thing.”
“I know. But it’s your company.”
Durango groaned, but he got up, rubbing his sore leg as he followed Axel out to the conference room. Two of the women were sitting nervously at the table, one tapping her toes against the chair legs, the other chewing on a nail. They both straightened when Durango walked in like he was some sort of celebrity they’d come by to ask for an autograph. The other was standing near the windows, her back to the room.
But there was something about that back . . .
“This is Rebecca Childress and Martha Sutherland. They were sent over by the employment agency. They have perfect references and . . .”
Durango wasn’t listening. He was studying the other woman, the one with the gold hair that was just a little tangled, the heavy sweater and bulky skirt that hid what he suspected were some pretty intense curves.
“Get out.”
Ms. Childress had stood, her hand held out to him. His growl made her step back a few paces. “Excuse me?” she muttered.
He pushed her aside with a touch of one hand and crossed the room, stopping just a foot or two from that other woman.
“And you are?”
She turned slowly, her pretty eyes filled with tears as she looked up at him. “Gracie,” she said, her voice thick, filled with emotion. “Gracie Colson.”
He stepped into her and buried his fingers in her hair, dragg
ing her up against him.
“It’s nice to meet you, Ms. Colson.”
Then he kissed her, possessing her lips as he’d desired to do for far longer than he’d ever admit to himself. She tasted so familiar, her body a perfect curve against his. It was like they were meant for each other, their bodies a perfect match.
“Is that how a woman gets a job around here?”
Durango could hear Axel laughing as he escorted the other candidates out of the room.
“What are you doing here?” he demanded of Gracie, pulling back to brush the hair out of her face.
“I was lost for a while. But then I realized where I was supposed to be.”
He nodded slowly. “You belong here. You’ve always belonged here.”
Relief blossomed on her face. He couldn’t believe she would ever doubt that fact.
“I love you,” Durango said softly. “Always.”
Gracie nodded, melting into him. “I’ve always loved you, too.”
~ END ~
Thank you for reading Mastiff Security! Love you all ~ Glenna
READING ORDER
Gray Wolf Security
Gray Wolf Security, Texas
Gray Wolf Security, Wyoming
Gray Wolf Security, Back Home
Dragon Security
Dragon Security, Vol. 2
The Callahans
Stone Security
Frost Security
Mastiff Security
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Mastiff Security: The Complete 5 Books Series Page 84