by Dahlia Rose
She didn’t know how long they laid there. He moved and pulled her close to his side while kissing her neck lovingly. They got up and showered together, washing each other’s skin with intimate conversation and laughter. Later, they ate brownies in bed and she found herself falling more and more for him with each passing minute.
“You make me feel like I’m a completely whole man,” Stavros said on a sigh. He fed her the last bite of his brownie.
“Mmmm. Who knew brownies from a box were this good.” Amari laughed and lay back with him before getting serious. “I wish you would stop thinking of yourself as flawed. Stavros, you are whole. The fact that your body is healing a few scars doesn’t change who you are.”
“My father came into my life when I was five,” Stavros said in a low voice. “My mom couldn’t give a hell about me, so when he came and said he was taking his son, she said to go ahead, packed up my small bag and closed the door in my face. No hug, nothing.” He sighed, and she could tell that he was trying to keep emotion out of his voice. The past still bothered him even if he didn’t want to admit it.
“What happened with your father, being raised by him?” She asked softly.
“He was no better than my mom except he liked to train me with a fist or a slap.” He gave a sarcastic laugh. “I thought anything could be better than living with my mom and her lack of caring or affection. There were times I longed for the world I left, where I was non-existent in her life. At least she made sure I was clean and fed. I could sit in my room and watch TV, draw, go skateboarding with friends as long as I kept out of her way. With him, he made sure I had nothing and felt like nothing. As a tiger shifter, I was to be a loner, and if I got hurt he made sure to drill it in my head that I was worthless. I should just crawl away in to the wilderness and die. So when I had the chance to leave him, I was gone.” Stavros gave as short laugh. “Eighteen, and I told him fuck you. He came at me and I was strong enough to knock him down. Anger is a fuel that I used, and what he taught me made me a great mercenary and thief until Casey found me and gave me a purpose. Those guys became the family I never had. I love them all.”
“You should call your friends, the ones who you consider family, and let them know you’re okay.” Amari sat up and looked at him. “Stavros, don’t let the fucked up world of your father dictate your future.”
“I limp, Amari. In my tiger form I should be healed by now.” Stavros sat up and threw the blanket off his legs, exposing the scars. “How can I go back to the unit and watch while they put themselves in danger and I sit back and do nothing?”
“You were in an explosion and your body was peppered with shrapnel, you never went to the doctor so who knows what still in your body that’s hampering your healing.”
He made a sound of frustration. “My body expelled it all.”
She shook her head. “Your don’t know that. And going home to them, getting checked out the right way could be the way to finish healing. I could only do so much treating your burns and your external wounds. Your friends could do so much more.”
“What do you know about it?” Stavros snapped and she jumped in surprise at the anger in his voice directed towards her. “You ran away from everything you knew. It was taken from me by some fucking insurgent with a death plan. Casey, Zane and all those guys don’t need a shell of who I used to be.”
How dare he? Amari scrambled out of his bed and began to pull on her jeans. She spoke as she dressed. “You think it was easy leaving my sister and go to Anchorage every three months to call her from a payphone to tell her I’m okay? Or even better, emailing her from my friend’s home so the IP address can’t be traced to me. I get to say six words. I am okay, I love you and that’s it.” She pulled her shirt over her head and didn’t even care that her hair came free of the scrunchy holding it back. She flipped her hair out of her face. “So you think I ran away and I said kiss the sweet spot of my ass. You ran away, Stavros, and you’re still running. From your mom, dad and your friends, plus you want me to coddle you while you make the dumbest decision ever. Wrong! Someone needs to go upside your head with the truth, buddy. You’re scared, and that’s just plain and simple. Don’t push it off on me.”
“Amari…”
She held up her hand. “Don’t even talk to me. I’m going home and you can sit here and wallow in self-pity. I hope you fall into a brownie coma.” She turned to walk away and then she thought better of it and walked back to snatch up the brownie box. “Never mind, I’m taking them with me. You don’t deserve goodies!”
With her head held high, she walked out and made sure to slam the door of his cabin when she left. The gravel kicked up under the wheels of the truck as she pulled out. On the main road, she had to pull over and calm her breathing before she continued on. God, he made me so mad! She headed into Hiko and her apartment. If he freaking wanted to hide away from life, then so be it. But to act like she was… Oh no, he didn’t make me out to be a coward. She’d stood up in between all the threats and the harassment, losing her job…everything. She did what was right.
She walked into her apartment and went straight into the bathroom for a shower. Warm water always made her feel better, and right now she wanted that and a slice of chocolate cake. Her steam was slowly dissipating when she finally stepped from the shower and dried off. She picked out a pair of pajamas to put on. It was their first fight in almost a year of knowing each other. Maybe I should’ve seen it from his point of view. She wasn’t known for a lot of thinking when she got angry. The doorbell rang and she frowned, thinking he’d come to apologize. She wasn’t sure if she was ready to forgive him yet.
She walked with bare feet to the front door with no peephole and called through the barrier. “If you’re here to say I’m sorry, you better have chocolate cake in a box.”
She opened the door and her eyes widened in surprise and fear. Oh no, not here, you shouldn’t have been able to find me here! Amari tried to close the door and two sets of powerful arms pushed it open and they forced their way inside. She struggled with all her might, she opened her mouth to scream but a large hand clamped over it.
“You have people who need to talk to you, Ms. Montgomery,” one deep voice said calmly.
Those were the last words she heard before he placed a sweet smelling cloth over her nose and her consciousness fell away. Fear clutched her heart as darkness consumed her. It seemed she would be facing her past sooner than she ever thought.
Chapter Four
Stavros walked a trail in the already worn floorboards of the cabin. Well, you’ve gone and done it now, idiot. He berated himself for how he acted with Amari. He picked up the scrunchy that fell from her hair and held it to his nose. It smelled just like her. Lashing out was definitely the wrong thing, and she’d left angrier than he’d ever seen her. Which was never, since she was the most patient and kind woman in the world. But man, when she got angry she let it all fly.
He stopped and smiled, remembering the fire in her eyes and the way she talked to him. Amari Montgomery mad was a definite turn on. She was right in many ways and he was a damn fool. It was about time he called Casey and the others, but a year of pretending to be dead… How the heck will this reunion go? Hey guys I wasn’t really dead from that explosion, oh and the body parts you buried weren’t even mine. Yup I’ve been hiding away for months.
Before that even happened he had to make it right with Amari and tell her how he felt. It was because of her he was alive, he would have wasted away and died without her coming each day and just filling his life with something new and exciting. She was the first really good thing in his life. Instead of shifting, he decided to take his beat up truck. Lord knew there was no way he could stand naked at her front door. The neighbors would definitely talk.
He wasn’t coming back without her, wasn’t tackling his previous life and not taking the woman who helped him survive and that he loved. Stavros stopped with his hand on doorknob and grinned. Yeah that’s right, I’m in love. He flipped his
dad the bird in his mind and sent a mental fuck you. The bastard had tried to destroy him and here he was alive and ready to go on. He would face it all with Amari at his side.
He pulled the truck out of his gravel driveway and headed into the small town. The drive took less that twenty minutes because he pushed the truck to its limits. Even the older model Chevys were supposed to be built tough, so he had no doubt the engine could handle it.
He pulled up to where she lived and saw her truck parked in front of the small duplex she rented. He could tell something was off as he moved toward the front door. He doubted that Amari was one that would leave her door flapping in the wind. His training took over and he stepped inside, pressing his body against the wall, staying in the dark. He clenched his fist in anger. Stavros had known there was more to what she said. Nothing is that cavalier when it comes to men with money.
He went up the flight of stairs that led to her apartment door. That, too, hung wide open and he could see signs of a struggle. He lifted his nose and scented the room. The sickly sweet aroma of chloroform still hung in the air. He easily picked the sweat and cologne of two assailants. Not from around Alaska, no one he’d smelled around the area wore expensive aftershave. Her past had caught up with her and she was still alive when she left this place. There was no blood or the smell of it having been cleaned up.
They wanted something from her, which meant he had a window of time to get her back and make them pay. A growl rose up in his throat, and even to his own ears it was vicious. They took his mate and they would suffer. There was no reason to go back to the cabin. Everything he needed was in his pockets. The timing was off and it was a helluva way to make his way back into Army Beasts, but he needed their help to find her. He called Camden’s cell. If there was one guy he could reach in a pinch, it was him. The phone rang three times before Camden answered, his hello held happiness and Stavros heard a breathless laugh in the background.
He cleared his throat. “Cam, buddy, this is Stavros.”
Cam’s voice turned cold. “Fuck off and don’t ever call this number again.”
Stavros sighed when the call disconnected and hit redial. This was not going to be easy.”
Can picked up again. “Whoever the hell this is, I will fucking find you and strangle you with your own tongue for speaking his name. You’re one sick fuck.”
“It’s me Cam, Stavros Bravo Echo Four. That’s my emergency call sign. I’m sure you didn’t have to change it since you thought I was dead,” Stavros said quickly. “Don’t hang up, man. You guys thought you lost me in that fucking shack in Iraq. I held on the lead wire so Casey could go home to Nia. Casey went back shit crazy, Zander and Zane had to drag him out before it went off. Please believe it’s me.”
There was silence on the other end for the longest time before he heard Cam speak and his voice cracked. “Stav? We buried you, man, we fucking buried you.”
“It wasn’t me…” Stavros began, and emotion closed his throat and he had to clear it yet again to speak. “Listen, I need to come in. I need help. Someone kidnapped a friend… well not a friend, a woman that I love.”
“Of course, I’ll get you hooked up and let the others know. Shit, did you call Casey?” Cam asked.
“I tried… I’ll just see him when I get there. It’s better I explain in person anyway,” Stavros replied. “I’m flying in to Raleigh, or are you getting transport to Bragg?”
“We privatized. We’re in Georgia now. We have our own facility,” Cam replied. “A lot has changed since you’ve been gone, Stav. I’ll have a private jet waiting in Anchorage for you at three a.m. You need to head there now.”
“Private jet, huh? It seems that a lot has changed.” Stavros chuckled. “I heard a female laugh when I called before.”
This time it was Camden who laughed. “That’s my wife, Sable. We’re all married now.”
“Wait, even Malachi?”
“Oh yeah, that big bear is a puppy now around Mae.” Cam laughed and then the laughter drifted away. “God, Stavros, we all died a little when we buried you. You’re going to have a fucked up time trying to explain why you didn’t come back, especially to Casey and Zane.”
Stavros sighed. “I’ll take my licks when it comes to them. As long as I find Amari and she’s safe, I can take anything.”
“Gimme her full name so I can start a search by the time you get here,” Cam suggested.
“Amari Montgomery,” Stavros replied. “I’ll head out now and see you in a few hours.”
“God, it will be good to see you man,” Cam replied.
“You too… Find her for me man.” Stavros swallowed hard. “I need her in my life.”
“I got you man. Army Beasts all the way,” Cam said.
“Thanks.”
Stavros hung up and went downstairs. He made sure to lock the bottom lock of her door and headed to his truck. He headed toward Anchorage, and from there back to the life he left a year ago. He had a lot of apologies to make, and a whole lot of making up to do to his friends. Worrying about Amari, along with Casey and the team, filled his thoughts as he drove the dark roads heading away from Hiko, where he’d met the love of his life. He took the blue piece of stretchy cloth from his pocket and inhaled her scent again. She was coming back to him, he would make certain of it.
* * * *
Okay here it goes. Stavros took a deep breath outside the conference room in the new Army Beasts facility. The hours that it took him to get there seemed to fly by quickly, hurtling toward the people who thought he was dead.
He looked around again to the sleek walls and the gleaming marble fixtures along the hall. This place made the old building the army stuck them in outside Fort Bragg look like a dump. This building was made for CEOs and high-powered executives. Yet he could see Casey running things here as easily as in his office from the old facility. Someone saw the worth of the Army Beasts, more so than the military big wigs that were scared of who they were. Still, they had no problem with sending them into every dangerous situation.
He couldn’t stand out there any longer, musing over the past. It was time to face the music. Stavros opened the door and stepped inside. There was an audible gasp when he stood before the people that made up his unit. They were all their: Casey, Zane, Zander, Camden, Kale and Malachi. Nia stood next to Casey, and Stavros could see how he gripped her hand like it was his lifeline. Their eyes met and held, and he saw the turmoil and anger in Casey’s gaze. Nia wrenched her hand away from Casey and rushed over to hug him. Her movements seemed to break the tense silence.
She cupped his cheek with tears running down her face. “I heard you… Stav, you were gone.” She hugged him again. “Oh, thank god you’re alive.”
“It’s good to see you, Nia,” he said with a smile. He’d had a genuine fondness for her from the time she joined the team. “You have a niece, you know. She’s almost a year.” Nia gave a watery laugh. “Damn you for making me cry.”
“I’m so very sorry for causing you pain,” Stavros replied. “I can’t wait to meet the baby.”
Casey stood and moved toward Stavros. It seemed like everyone held their breath waiting to see what would happen next. Nia stepped away and Stavros faced the man who had been his best friend for so many years. There was only silence, and then without warning Casey threw a punch that caught him on the side of the jaw and made Stavros’s ears ring.
“What the fuck, Casey!” Zane shouted.
That catapulted the rest of the team into action. Zane held Casey back as he fought the arms that bound him. Stavros lifted his head and wiped the blood from his mouth with the back of his hand.
“I guess I deserved that,” Stavros said. He could feel his lip beginning to swell.
“You deserve that and so much more,” Casey shouted. “How the fuck could you let us think you were dead?”
“I’m sorry, Casey. I was broken and fucked up so bad, I thought I was going to die.” Stavros shook his head. “That’s what I crawled away to do. I
barely managed to shift into tiger form and I thought that was it for me.”
“How did you get out man?” Zander stepped forward from the group, and he became the second one to give Stavros a hug. The action actually surprised Stavros, because Zander never seemed the type to reach out on any level of emotion.
“Some Russian mercenaries found me. They had a ship off the coast of Turkey,” Stavros explained. “The one guy wanted to keep me as a pet. I jumped off the boat in my shift form when they passed close to the coast of Alaska in the Bering Sea. I thought for sure I would drown, but some how I made it to the coast. Floated into the rocks more that swam.” He gave a husky laugh. “I guess I wasn’t meant to suck salt water. I made it to civilization, accessed my accounts and bought a cabin.”
“In all that time you didn’t think to call us?” Casey bit out.
“Which account did you access? No alarms went out. I would have known if you took money,” Camden said.
Stavros gave a laugh. “You have the information for all but one. I was raised to keep secrets.” He turned his attention to Casey. “This is why I didn’t contact you, to have any of you pity me or feel obligated to take care of me. It was better for me to die than to put you through that. I was raised like that. You know how fucked up my life was. A wounded tiger dies honorably.”
“That’s a load of bullshit and you know it,” Casey practically growled and threw his arms wide. “None of us would have felt that way and you know it. You didn’t die honorably, you took the coward’s way out. We’re family. You do this kind of shit to your family?”
“I know that now,” Stavros replied. “Old habits and training die hard, and even before I trained with you I was trained by a fucked up man who thought he was some kind of leader. When the only thing he could claim was that he was an abuser who liked to knock his kid around. Amari tried and tried over the last year to get me to call you guys, and it took her walking out and being kidnapped for me to see the truth. Do you think I like that? I called you a few times and hung up. I just didn’t know what to say.”