Guarded from Treachery (Blade and Arrow Security Bravo Team #4)

Chapter 21

21

ISLA

I don’t think there’s anything better in the world than this.

Sleeping in on a Saturday, with no alarms or schedules to keep or upcoming tasks niggling in the back of my head. Just laying in bed with the man I love, waking up as the morning sun filters through the curtains, casting a golden glow on Matt’s features, soft and relaxed as he sleeps.

Snuggling close to Matt as I rouse from sleep, resting my cheek on his firm chest, breathing in his familiar scent that always makes me feel like I’m home. Feeling his arm wrapped around me, a strong and comforting reminder that even in sleep, he’s protecting me.

I love seeing him so peaceful, the stresses of his job a distant thought, looking so much younger than his forty years. When we’re in bed together, his guards are completely down, and I love knowing I’m the only person he allows himself to be so vulnerable with.

The quiet part of the morning is special. When it’s just me and Matt enjoying each other. When everything else is pushed to the side, at least for a little while.

After months of stress and anxiety and fear, this time with Matt is a balm that helps me heal.

Then, once we’re closer to wakefulness than slumber, our morning becomes more sensual. Matt’s hands will wander, his touch feather-light as he caresses my breasts and stomach and legs. His lips move down my neck and along my collarbone, leaving a trail of electricity in their wake. And as my arousal grows more intense, he dips his fingers between my thighs, stroking and teasing as he brings me dangerously close to the edge.

He’s not the only one who takes an opportunity to play. On these lazy mornings, I take my turn bringing Matt pleasure, too. I nuzzle his neck, lingering at that sensitive spot below his jaw. I wrap my hand around his velvety heat, making that little move I know he loves, feeling him grow harder and thicker in my grasp.

Some mornings, I crawl down the bed and take him into my mouth, drawing out his arousal until he’s fisting the sheets trying to keep from finishing right then and there.

He could. I wouldn’t mind. But Matt likes to be inside me at that moment of completion, the aftershocks of my ecstasy bringing him to his own.

As my belly gets bigger—not big, not at only twenty-two weeks, but definitely noticeable—we’ve started experimenting with different positions. Side-by-side, with Matt’s big body spooned around mine. Me on top, straddling him, gazing down at his incredible expanse of muscles. And me on my hands and knees as he enters me from behind, his hands gently supporting me.

This morning we settled into my favorite position, with me riding him, which I love because we can look at each other the entire time. I can watch his cheeks turn a ruddy pink, not from embarrassment but from hunger. I can watch as his eyes turn from milk to dark chocolate, molten with desire. And I can see the love in his eyes, a reflection of how I feel for him.

Afterwards, we always cuddle, staying joined together for as long as possible. When our separation finally becomes inevitable, Matt insists on me staying in bed while he cleans us up. Then he makes coffee and brings it back to bed—full caffeine for him and half-and-half for me.

I almost worry that I’m getting spoiled. But like Matt says whenever I mention it, “I’ve never had anyone to spoil before, Isles. It makes me happy to take care of you.”

How can I argue with that? Especially when I love taking care of him, too?

As I wait for Matt to come back from the kitchen, I grab his old Army T-shirt from the bottom of the bed and pull it on, enjoying the feel of well-worn fabric against my skin. It still carries his scent, a comforting aura wrapping around me.

According to the clock on the bedside table, it’s just past nine AM, which means we still have three hours of lounging before we have to get ready to head into San Antonio for the day. Blythe and Sawyer—sorry, I can’t bring myself to call him Squirrel—are having a barbeque at their place and the San Antonio crew is going to be there, along with all of the B and A team.

I’m excited about going; meeting some of the people I’ve only heard about until now, like Cruz and his wife, Mickie, and Quint, who used to be Cole’s partner before Blade and Arrow even started. And I’m looking forward to doing something social with Matt. Not that I minded staying at Blade and Arrow all the time before—I knew it was necessary, and with Matt and his teammates here, it wasn’t a hardship—but this is nice, too.

In the two weeks since everything went down with Peter, life has slowly been getting back to normal. But Matt wasn’t too thrilled about me leaving B and A right away, and honestly, I wasn’t feeling that great about it in the beginning, myself. The first time Matt took me into Seguin to the grocery store, I almost had a mini-panic attack as my brain conjured up all sorts of terrible scenarios. Peter escaping from jail. A secret partner of Day’s coming after me. Or something completely unrelated, like a car accident or a tornado.

Everything was fine. We made it through the shopping trip without incident, although I came close to breaking Matt’s hand from squeezing it too hard. Peter is still securely in jail, awaiting trial. There weren’t any natural disasters. And thanks to the work of Blade and Arrow and the FBI, all the people involved in the adoption ring are in custody.

At first, I had a hard time believing it was all over. But as the days went by and more information was shared, eventually it sank in. The adoption ring was shut down permanently. No one would come after me or the baby again.

Some of the news was bittersweet, though. While I was glad to hear that the stolen babies were found and returned to their biological families, it hurt to know they would never meet their mothers. Brave women who protected their children up until the end but never got the chance to raise them.

I still cry whenever I think about them—the women who could have been me, had Matt not intervened in that parking lot.

Sometimes I feel guilty about it. Why was I the lucky one and not them?

For the rest of my life, I’ll be thankful for the tremendous gift I was given. A life even better than anything I dreamed of. Matt. Little Dove or Eagle. The Blade and Arrow family. A best friend who overcame her own insecurities to come visit last week, giving her full and enthusiastic approval of Matt as she whispered to me in the kitchen one night, “He’s perfect, Isla. And I’m just so happy for you.”

Even the relationship with my mother is getting closer to what I’d always hoped it would be. She’s back in New Hampshire now, staying with a friend a town over from my hometown of Keene, but I saw her several times before she left. I don’t know that I’ll ever forget how she treated me, but I’m willing to give her a chance. And above all else, I want my baby to have the opportunity to know her grandmother.

So we text. And call. I told her she could visit after the baby is born. It’s not the close relationship some of my friends have with their parents, but it’s a start. And I’m happy with that.

“Hey, gorgeous.” Matt walks into the bedroom with a steaming mug of coffee in each hand. He sets mine on the bedside table before climbing back into bed with me. His arm comes around me, snugging me into his side, and his lips brush softly across mine. With a pleased smile he asks, “Are you wearing my shirt again?”

With a teasing grin, I reply, “You mean my shirt?”

He chuckles. “Considering how much you wear it, I guess it is.” His gaze drags over the bold ARMY letters before coming back to mine. “It looks much better on you than me.”

My attention shifts to his bare chest for a second. “The way I see it, if I’m wearing your shirt, then you can’t.”

“Oh? So you like it when I’m not wearing a shirt?”

“You know I do.” My fingers trace the lines of muscle on his stomach. “Not that you don’t look handsome in clothes. But like this? You’re the sexiest man I’ve ever seen.”

Pink touches the tips of Matt’s ears, something I’ll never tire of seeing. “ You’re the sexy one.” He touches my belly, his hand cradling the swell of it. “And I can’t wait to see you with our?—”

Red floods his cheeks as his lips clamp shut. Before I can respond, he quickly changes the subject. “Oh. While I was making the coffee, Levi texted. He’s back in the States, and he’s going to have a few days leave coming up soon. He wanted to know if it was a good time to visit.”

“Of course!” I’ve heard so much about Matt’s younger brother, who’s been serving overseas with his own Green Beret team. “I can’t wait to meet him. When is he coming?”

“In a couple of weeks. But he said he’s going to try to get a longer leave after the baby is born. Since he?—”

Again, Matt cuts himself off. But this time, I decide to push him on it. “He what?”

After a few moments, Matt says quickly, “He said since he’s going to be an uncle, he wants to be here as soon as the baby comes.” A beat, and then, “I know he’s not technically an uncle, but…”

And there’s the unspoken question neither of us has found the courage to bring up.

What happens next?

Yes, I’m going to live here. And Matt is going to help raise the baby. But we haven’t talked about the specifics of it. Like marriage or birth certificates or what the baby will call Matt.

I’ve been hesitant to push the subject, afraid it might be too soon. But what if Matt has been feeling the same way?

My heart thuds hard as I gather up the courage to ask.

“Matt.”

“Isla.”

We both laugh nervously.

“You go,” Matt says.

“No, you.”

His face breaks into a grin. “Ladies first.”

I wrinkle my nose at him. “Fine.” Then I take a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I don’t mind if Levi calls himself that. Uncle. I… I like it.”

“You do?”

“Yes. Because… Well. I don’t know how you feel about it. But I would—” My throat goes thick. Tears threaten. In a rush, I blurt out, “I would really like it if the baby called you Dad.”

Matt’s expression goes perfectly still. He swallows hard before asking, “You would? Want me to be the dad? For real?”

“Only if you wanted to. I know it’s a lot to take on. And I understand if you’re not ready. Or you need to think about it. But?—”

“Oh, Isla.” He pulls me onto his lap and buries his face in my hair for a second. When he lifts his head, his eyes are shiny. “Of course I want that. I’ve been thinking about it for ages, but I wasn’t sure… I didn’t want to rush you. With everything else… I thought I should wait.”

“But you do? Want to be little Dove’s dad? Or Eagle?”

“Yes.” It’s rough with emotion. “Yes, Isla. So much. Nothing would make me happier—” He stops. Swallows again. “Actually. Something would make me happier.”

Lifting me off his lap, he leaps out of bed and practically sprints to the closet. Less than ten seconds later, he rushes back to me, this time with something small clasped in his hand.

Hope blossoms in my chest.

As he sits back down on the mattress, he takes my hand. “I love you, Isles. With all my heart. When I met you, there was just something… I couldn’t stop thinking about you. Worrying. Wishing I could see you again. I think I just knew from the start that you were the one.”

Tears sting my eyes. “ Matt .”

“But I don’t just love you,” he continues. “I love the baby, too. And I’ve been thinking… how much I want us to be a family. A real family.”

Then.

He holds out his other hand. Unfurls his fingers.

In his palm is a small, deep blue velvet box.

Just the size of a jewelry box that would hold a ring.

The hope takes wing, fluttering madly.

He flips the lid open to display a sparkling diamond inside.

The sun catches off the facets, spinning sparkles around the room.

“I know I won’t say this right,” Matt starts. “But… I love you. And I want to spend my life making you happy. Taking care of you. Not because you can’t. I know you can. You’re the strongest person I’ve ever met. But everyone needs a break sometimes. You deserve to have someone to lean on when times are hard. When you’re tired. Stressed. Sad.”

“Oh, Matt .”

“And I want to celebrate with you, too. Share the happy moments like holidays and birthdays and triumphs. I want to celebrate Dove’s first step. Her first tooth. I want to celebrate how wonderful of a mom you’ll be.”

He pauses. Takes a breath. “I don’t know much about being a dad. Or a husband. But I’ll do whatever it takes to be a good one. If you’ll give me a chance, I’ll spend my life doing my best to make you happy. To protect you. And love you with every cell in my body.”

“Matt.” My voice wobbles. “Are you asking…”

Moisture shines in his eyes. A dry chuckle slips out. “See. I told you I’d mess up.”

“You didn’t.”

Matt’s features go solemn as he holds my gaze. “Will you marry me, Isla Nightingale? Be my wife? And grant me the honor of letting me be Dove’s dad?”

Hot tears run down my cheeks. But they aren’t sad ones. They’re happy.

“Yes,” I reply. “Of course.” I lunge at Matt, flinging my arms around him. “Yes. A million times, yes. I’ve been hoping so badly that you would ask.”

A relieved sigh escapes. Matt stares at me for a moment before covering my lips with his. Then he looks at me again with tears shining in his eyes. “I can’t even… Are you sure? Really sure? You and Dove? And me? We’ll be a family?”

“Yes.” A laugh bubbles up. “I’m sure. Really sure.”

His face lights up. “Oh, Isles.” With a trembling hand, he slides the ring onto my finger. “You have no idea how happy you made me.”

“Yes, I do. Because that’s how happy I feel.”

Matt lifts my hand to his lips and presses a soft kiss to the back of it before looking back at me, his eyes shining with joy. “I’ll do anything , Isla. Anything for you and the baby. You are the two most important people in the world to me.”

As I look into his eyes, the eyes of my future husband, I ask the last question I’ve been hanging on to. “Would you want to be on the birth certificate? So you’d be the legal father? The donor doesn’t have any rights, so it’s my decision. And I was just thinking, if we’re married…”

“Yes.” He kisses me again. “Yes. Yes . I absolutely want to be on the birth certificate. I wouldn’t treat her—” He pauses. “Or him any differently if I wasn’t. But to be named as the father? It would be such an honor.”

“Okay, then.” Somehow I’m laughing and crying at the same time. “I love you, Matt. And you are going to be such a good dad.”

Matt puts his hand on my belly. “I’m going to do my best.”

A moment later, his eyes go wide. “Did the baby just move?”

I smile at him, feeling happier than I’ve ever been. “Yes. I think she’s happy, too.”

“Oh, Isla.” Wonder shines in his eyes. “I’m so happy. And I love you so much.”

“Matt.” I lean in to kiss him. “I love you, too. And I can’t wait to be married to you.”

As I meet his gaze, the baby moves again.

And I know I found everything I ever wanted.

My eye in the storm.

My silver lining.

My treasure at the end of the rainbow.