by Elle Boon
Anger poured off him in waves. Brooke wanted to soothe him, but Jack reached his hand out, handing the block to Jase. “Block,” Jack said, smiling up at Jase.
Jase blinked down at Jack. “Thank you, little man.” He looked up at Brooke. “Go on,” he said in a toneless whisper.
Her father had been in the military her entire life. She’d been around enough to know when to obey an order and when not to. The absolute fear for her son had her stepping around him, grabbing Jack’s blanket on the way out. Her son loved many things but was truly only attached to the blue thermal blanket with ships on it, which had a silky edge and a teddy bear. Jack’s little chubby hands pulled the blanket against his chest as she made for her closet. Why she was listening to Jase, the man who’d left her heartbroken and pregnant, she had no idea. The only thing she was sure of was that Jase was back, and he looked harder. Deadlier. The man in the other room wasn’t the same guy from years ago, who made her fall in love with him without even trying. “No matter. We’re Frazee’s, and we face our battles head on,” she whispered as she rubbed her forehead against Jack’s.
“We battle, mama?” Jack asked rubbing his eyes.
She stared at the best thing in her life and kissed his nose. “No, little man.”
Inside her closet, she put Jack down as far away from the door as she could and pulled out the lockbox. Jase may have taken one of her guns, but she had a spare. She pulled the Sig Sauer P320 out, double checking it was loaded and the safety was on. Her hands shook slightly as she waited for Jase to come or heaven forbid, the other men.
She bundled up a blanket and placed it around the bottom of the door, hoping it kept the light from showing into her bedroom. A glance at her cell phone she pulled from her back pocket showed they’d been in the closet for a little over seven minutes and counting. How long did it take to…eliminate the threat? God, did that mean he was going to kill the men, or was he calling the police? Shit! Should she call 911? Her finger hovered over the screen and stopped. If Jase had told her to call, she would’ve. Something had her trusting him, even though he’d devastated her. “Cause I’m a fool,” she muttered.
One of the old wood floorboards creaked outside in her room. She stepped back, moving the safety off as she held the gun up.
“Brooke, it’s okay, it’s just me. I’m opening the door,” Jase said loudly.
She pushed the safety back on, but kept the gun at her side. “What happened?” she asked as he opened the door, keeping her body between him and Jack.
Jase tilted his head as if knowing what she was doing. “I figured you had another weapon in here,” he said instead of answering.
A wet spot on his shirt had her moving toward him. “You’re hurt.” Her finger stretched toward his side, but he moved out of her reach.
“I’ll be fine, just a scratch. Come on, we can’t stay here. You need to pack a bag for you and your son. Enough for a few days. Does he need diapers or formula? Crap! How old is he, anyway?”
“He just turned two,” she said. “He’s potty trained, except at night and I only put trainers on just in case. As for formula,” she narrowed her eyes at him. “I breast fed him, so no there wouldn’t have been any need for that, but he’s two. He doesn’t nurse or take a bottle anymore. Do you, big guy?” She swept Jack up as he ambled over to hug her legs. Why she was rambling and telling him things that were none of his business, Brooke didn’t know. She turned away from his penetrating gaze.
*****
Jase was struggling with the knowledge that Brooke had not only moved on, but clearly done it so soon after they’d broken up. Hell, the kid was probably Daryl or Darron what’s his name’s.
He nodded. “That’ll make it easier. I’ll get you both to a safe house and figure out what’s going on.”
Brooke took a deep breath. “We need to talk, Jase.”
“Yeah, we do, but not here and not now. Those two are…no longer going to bother you, but they could have a backup team waiting for them. We need to move and move quick.” He stepped out of her closet, the feeling of being too close to a flame and being burned washed over him, only his flame was a petite blonde with hazel eyes that saw too much. His side throbbed from the knife wound. “I’m going to stand out in the hall and listen for traffic. If you need any help, holler.”
She bit her lip. “I’ll be quick.”
In a time of crisis, the woman did just that. She sat her son on a large faux fur rug, whispering to him as she tickled his stomach. Jase clenched his teeth so hard he worried his next dentist visit would be to replace his back molars. He walked back down the hall, pausing outside the kid’s room. He grimaced at the broken window from where the intruder had tried to come in. If little Jack had been in the room, flying shards of glass could have hit him. Whoever sent the hitmen didn’t care if there were casualties. Brooke and her son needed to get gone quickly. “Erik, I’m gonna need a clean up here.”
“I figured as much. That means it’s personal. How much bleach we talking?” His friend sighed loudly.
Jase thought of the two men lying the kitchen. “Roll around back and pick up your delivery. A few gallons will do you.”
“Fuuuck, man. Why I always gotta do the dirty work?” Erik groused good naturedly.
Jase stepped back into the hall as Brooke came out of her room with a duffel bag. “I already packed some of Jack’s clothes from the laundry I hadn’t put away. Let me grab a few of his favorite toys and we can go.” She indicated he should step out of the way.
He shook his head. “There’s a lot of glass all over the room. I’m not sure if any of it got on his toys or not.”
She inhaled loudly. “He’s got some in the living room. I’ll grab a few from there, and before you veto that, let me tell you a child likes his things. Familiar things keep them happy. You do not want a small child to be unhappy. I promise you that.”
His gaze zeroed in on the sturdy little guy staring up at him from his mom’s arms. “You’re the expert. Let me take your bag.”
Jack held his hands out. “Hi, I’m Jack.”
He froze, unsure what to do as the boy held his arms out.
“Jack, you want to help mommy pick out some toys to go bye bye with us?”
“No, Jack want him.” Jack pointed at Jase.
Brooke’s eyes met his. “Can you hold him? It’s past his bedtime, and seriously, he’s getting heavy. This is the time when things can go two ways. Cranky, or quiet. From previous experience, it’s not gonna be the latter.”
He watched her bounce her hip with Jack still holding his arms out. Stubborn kid. Holding his arms out, he plucked the boy from Brooke, careful to keep him away from his injured side. “You’re gonna be a holy terror when you grow up, aren’t you?” Dark eyes stared back at him. If he was a betting man, he’d have bet his last dollar the boy was sizing him up. Ridiculous since the kid was only two.
“You tell stories?” Jack asked.
Jase froze, wondering if all two year olds could talk, and do it well. “Um, not right now. How about we go see what your mom is getting for you. Do you like trains?”
At the mention of trains Jack started making choochoo noises and squirming to get down. Jase couldn’t allow him to do that, not unless he had a way of blocking the kitchen access, which he didn’t. “Hey, is that your train?” Jase asked trying to distract the wriggling mass of boy in his arms. He looked over to see Brooke with a grin on her face.
“He’s a lot tougher than he looks. Come here, Jack. Help me put your toys in the bag.” Brooke looked behind the counter, letting Jase know she was aware what was behind it.
Moving so his body was blocking the space, should Jack decide to make a run for the kitchen area, he looked at his watch, gauging the time. “We need to move, Brooke.”
“I’m ready,” she said, holding onto Jack’s hand.
“We’ll go out the front. Do you have a car seat for him?” Jase had come prepared for Brooke, not her and a child. He ran his eyes over
the pair, feeling as if he’d missed out on an entire life.
“In my salon, I keep an extra one for…well, emergencies it would seem.” She walked past him, only to come up short as he put his hand on her arm.
“I go first. Stay behind me, and do as I say,” he ordered.
Her eyes widened then narrowed. “I’m not going to put my son’s life in danger any more than it already is, Jase. Clearly, this is your area of expertise, but know this, once we’re some place safe, you and I are going to have a talk. Now, lead the way, soldier.”
He couldn’t control the grin that quirked his lips. Although he did keep himself from bending and covering her saucy lips with his own. Barely.
After double checking the street was clear, he led the way back to his vehicle, cursing the entire way inside his head. His plan had been to make sure she was safe then figure out a way into her father’s office. The old man wasn’t stupid enough to keep any records in his office at work where the good people of the United States Government would have access, so that left his home. Why did he think this mission was going to be easy?
At his vehicle, he held his hand up. If anyone had been around the SUV while he’d been inside with Brooke, Erik would’ve alerted him, but it was still second nature for him to double check. He did a quick scan of the car’s exterior, looked underneath before opening the back door and placing the car seat inside for Jack. The kid stared at him over his mom’s shoulder. Dark eyes pinning him in place as if the kid was daring him to hurt him or his mother. Jase shook off the absurd notion, and indicated it was safe for them to get in.
“I’ll ride in back with Jack.” Brooke didn’t look at him as she fastened her son in.
Jase stopped scanning the streets at her words. “We need to talk, and it’ll be a lot easier if I’m not having to look over my shoulder.” He’d been doing just that for the past several years and didn’t want to have to do it in the vehicle if he didn’t have to.
Brooke let out a puff of air, drawing his gaze to her chest. When they’d been together, she’d been tall and slender. Not much had changed except her body had filled out a little more. His fingers itched to trace the curves of her body that didn’t appear the same. He’d loved her tomboy ways, but this version was stunning.
“You’re staring, Tyler.”
Her use of his new identity had him freezing until he realized she was calling him by his last name, something that was common in military families. “You’ve changed,” he answered, holding the passenger door open for her.
“Yo, you might want to get your asses out of there, Romeo,” Erik grumbled. “I’m coming in on your left and really don’t want your girl to see me pulling in with the cleaning crew, if you know what I mean.”
Jase shut Brooke’s door before he reached around and buckled her in, chastising himself on the short jog around to his side. He could see the nondescript van at the stop sign a block away. With a quick twist of his wrist, he had the engine on and was buckling up as he put the vehicle in gear. “I’m assuming he doesn’t require anything special to eat or drink, right?” A primal urge to punch the bastard who’d knocked Brooke up had him spitting the words out.
“His name is Jack, and no, he doesn’t require anything special that you or I don’t eat or drink as long as it’s healthy. I don’t feed him junk or sugary things. I like to make sure he has a well-balanced diet and tries everything on his plate. He has a fondness for the strangest things, so I let him indulge every once in a while.” She crossed her arms over her chest and looked out the window.
Her defensive posture and mama bear attitude made him wish for things he couldn’t have. “What do you mean, strange?”
She shrugged, but didn’t answer right away. Jase was beginning to think she wasn’t going to until he heard her sigh. “He likes peanut butter sandwiches with banana slices on them. It’s the strangest thing, ‘cause one day I’d made him a sandwich and I had a banana. The little monkey held his hand out and said nana. I gave it to him, thinking he wanted my banana. He opened his sandwich and squished them together. He made a huge mess, but watching him eat it was like watching someone win the lottery. You’d have thought he’d died and gone to heaven. I have it on video.”
Jase stilled at her words. His favorite snack was a peanut butter sandwich with banana slices. Of course, lots of people liked it he was sure. “Kids got great tastes,” he said.
“I’ll admit I tried it, and it’s not bad. So, where are we going? Obviously anywhere I know of won’t be safe.” Her hazel eyes met his. He could see uncertainty written on her face.
“I’ve a safe house about an hour from here. We’ll go there tonight, and I’ll explain what I can. There are things I need to ask you, and I’m sure you have questions. Some things I can answer, others I can’t.” He put his hand on her leg, halting the nervous bounce that had started.
Brooke bit her lip. “There’s definitely some things we need to discuss. I can’t promise not to get upset, though.”
“Fair enough.” Jase kept looking in the rearview mirror as he got on the highway. When he was confident they didn’t have a tail, he took the next exit and hopped back onto the highway, heading the opposite direction.
“Um, you realize you just did a circle?” She twisted in her seat to check on Jack and looked out the windows.
“I wanted to make sure we weren’t being followed before I went toward our destination.” He glanced back at Jack, watching the boy as his eyelids started drooping. “He’ll be out in no time.”
“Yeah, when he was a baby he always fell asleep in the car, which sometimes was a blessing and a curse. If he slept while I drove, he was rearing to go when I was ready to drop after a trip.” Affection laced her words.
“Where’s his father?” Jase’s fingers gripped the steering wheel, hating the unknown man.
“Are you kidding me?” Brooke asked, her words came out in a low hiss.
His jaw ached from grinding it together. “Why would I joke about something like that?” The woman was confusing the hell out of him.
Brooke turned in her seat, lifting her leg up so it was bent and crossed the other over her foot. Her arms folded in front of her as she glared daggers at him. “Jase Tyler, I can’t believe you can sit beside me and question who his father is. I mean look at your mini me back there. Anyone would think it was obvious you were his biological dad,” she whispered.
Everything seemed to freeze in that moment. The dark eyes that reminded him of the ones that stared back at him every time he looked in the mirror. The too serious face of a little boy who he’d seen in pictures, only they’d been his pictures, not the little boy in the backseat. Hell, she was right. Looking at Jack was like looking at a miniature version of himself. Only, they’d used protection. “How?” he choked out.
She looked back checking on Jack, making sure he was sleeping before she continued. “I don’t know. I…was on the pill, but I guess the low dose didn’t work with your super SEAL sperm or something. I’d never missed a pill, not once. I told the doctor that, too. She said it happens. That’s why it’s not a hundred percent effective. I wasn’t on the pill for birth control, but for my,” she looked away before continuing, “anyway, I wasn’t on it for that specific purpose, therefore I was on a lower dose. Clearly, it was too low for…that.”
Chapter Five
Brooke was utterly mortified to be having this conversation with Jase. Not the fact he was Jack’s dad. Heck, he should’ve known from the beginning he was a father. If things had worked out differently, she’d have loved to of had him be a part of her son’s life. When he’d up and left, telling her dad to explain to her, it had been worse than had he just disappeared. She could’ve handled that a lot better than having her father pat her on the shoulder with a look that to this day still mortified her. Somehow, knowing your parents were aware you’d had sex and presuming it were two very different things. Her growing stomach had been a glaring reminder she and Jase had done a lot more than held
hands three years ago. Seeing the look of torment on her dad’s face made her wish things were different, while her mother had actually been excited once it was known Brooke was having a little boy. Of course, Nancy wanted her to name Jack after her brother, but she couldn’t do that. No amount of crying or cajoling could get her to do that to her child. No, Jack would have his own identity, although his name was similar to his father’s. He was his own person.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Jase’s harsh words pulled her from her memories.
She let her hands fall into her lap. “At first, I admit I was being a selfish bitch. You just left me. I thought you cared, but after you left, my dad gave me your message. I was,” she turned to stare out the window of the SUV, giving herself a second to gather her thoughts. “I was wrong. I should’ve told you when I found out, or at least when I had Jack. However, I’d heard about your…well, you know. And then, I had a baby to raise and protect. I’m not saying what I did in the beginning was the right thing, but after…well, Jase, I’m sorry, but you went to prison for crimes against our country. Crap, I just don’t know what to say. I did what I thought was best for Jack.”
Jase sighed loudly, the sound of him adjusting himself in the leather seat had her chancing a glance at his profile. His jaw was throbbing visibly, and his fingers were gripping the wheel with one hand while he rested the other on his thigh, making her wish things had been different.
“What did your dad tell you exactly?” he gritted out, finally.
“Does it really matter, Jase?” Thinking back to the night her dad had come into her room and explained that Jase was leaving and didn’t want her contacting him had nearly killed her. If she hadn’t had a little baby growing inside her, she would have crumbled into a heap right then and there. Instead, she’d nodded and shut the door on her dad’s face.
“Yes, it fucking matters. He stole two years of my child’s life from me. I could’ve been there for his birth, even before that. I could’ve watched him growing inside you. I could’ve done things differently.” Both hands gripped the wheel now. His words came out so low and tortured she wanted to offer him comfort but didn’t think words would help.