Chapter 1
ALEX
Alex’s heart raced as he shifted on the mattress, carefully reaching over Ava to snatch her incessantly chiming phone from the nightstand.
After the drama of the last evening’s party turned hostage crisis, he didn’t want anything disturbing her sleep.
His sleep, however, had suffered greatly. While Ava had snuggled next to him and fallen asleep once they’d gotten word that Sierra Harrington would be all right, he’d lay awake staring at the ceiling for most of the night.
The tension-filled standoff with the gunmen and Chris’s unexpected return weighed heavily on his mind.
Sebastian’s wolf-like behavior toward Ava and Raven’s ominous warning only added to the chaos, making sleep impossible.
His fingers curled into fists as he recalled their aviary ally’s advice to continue to pursue the relationship with Sebastian Bancroft.
Ava had thought she’d found a way in, a way to gain access to the Bancrofts, but he didn’t like this new avenue.
He would have preferred her to cozy up to Vivienne Bancroft than her obviously charming, handsome son.
Maybe it was the man’s charisma that bothered him or that chiseled jaw, or the fact that he had both of those and the type of money that could rival his.
In short, the man could easily steal Ava.
And Ava was planning on spending lots of time with him.
It wasn’t that he didn’t trust her, it was Sebastian Bancroft he didn’t trust.
Alex heaved a sigh as his features fell on Ava’s peaceful face, her lips slightly parted, her features serene.
He wished he could sleep as well as she had after all of that excitement.
Her phone chimed again, the screen lighting to alert her to an incoming text. He flicked open the display to turn the device onto silent when he noticed the message sender.
Sebastian.
The incessant chiming of Ava’s phone combined with the name on the screen made bile creep up into his throat.
He quickly toggled off the display, determined not to creep into his wife’s messages. He trusted her.
“Stupid Sebastian,” he murmured. “I mean, who texts another man’s wife at this time of the morning?”
His fingers curled around the phone, his knuckles turning white. “A man who’s looking to steal your wife with his chiseled jaw and perfect stubble.”
Alex puckered his lips as he toggled on her display and swiped into her phone, pulling up the message. His jaw dropped open as he read it. Is it just me or are you still feeling like Mr. and Mrs. Smith this morning?
Frustration mixed with the fear of losing Ava bubbled up inside him as he frowned at the message.
His thumbs pounded across the virtual keyboard, drafting a message to send back to the meddling man. No, I feel like Ava Collins…Alex Stone’s wife, because that’s who I’m married to.
He stared at the message for a second, his shaky thumb hovering over the send button before he glanced at Ava.
His heart tore in two. He wanted to protect her, to assert his claim to her, but he also didn’t want to upset her. And sending this message may very well do that.
With a deep sigh, he grimaced at the phone.
“Oooh, that’s a pretty nasty look you’re giving my phone,” Ava’s sleepy voice said next to him.
He startled, dropping the phone as he pressed a hand to his heart. “Geez, Ava…you scared me.”
“Sorry,” she said as she pushed up to balance on an elbow and kiss his cheek. “You okay? You look tired.”
He shifted, trying to avoid her gaze, too afraid she’d see the guilt in his eyes. He’d have to try to get that draft message off of her phone before she saw it. “I’m okay.”
Her soft fingers caressed his cheek. “You didn’t sleep at all, did you?”
“I’m good. I’m okay,” he said as he shifted from under the covers, discreetly grabbing her phone as he went. “I was going to make some breakfast. Your favorite pancakes. How does that sound?”
“Sounds like you need to get back into bed and try to sleep instead,” she answered. “And why are you trying to pretend you don’t have my phone?”
“What?” he asked, his voice coming out shrill.
“Alex,” she said with a teasing grin as she flopped back into the pillow, “what is going on?”
“Nothing. Just…your phone was chiming, and I didn’t want it to wake you. And I was going to make pancakes is all. That’s it. Nothing else going on. Nothing—”
“You’re babbling…and when you babble, you’re nervous or hiding something.”
He puffed out his cheeks. “Okay, you got me. I–I didn’t sleep well, and I was awake worried about Sierra and–”
She snapped the covers back and patted the mattress next to her. “Come back to bed and get some sleep.”
“I’m fine. I’m good. Really. Just going to make those pancakes.” He backed his way from the bed toward the door.
“Alex…”
“Yeah?” He wrapped his fingers around the knob.
“Can I have my phone? I’m not going back to sleep, so it won’t disturb me.”
“Ahhh, I broke it,” he muttered, his voice unconvincing as he swallowed hard.
“You did not.”
“Well, actually, I was going to replace it with a snazzy gold one. This one is so…last season.” He huffed out a nervous laugh. “So, I’ll just…do that and run it right up.”
She knitted her brows before she curled her finger, signaling for him to come to her.
“I won’t be long.”
“Alex…” Her voice was a warning, sending a shiver down his spine.
“Avs,” he said, his features melting into a worried expression as he shuffled back to the bed and eased onto the edge.
She held out her hand, a silent demand for her phone.
He dropped it onto her palm, his grimace deepening. “Ava, before you look at your phone, I just want you to know that I did it out of love. And fear…more love than fear. I’m not a controlling jerk.”
Her features pinched as she toggled on her display, swiping into the last screen that had been open. She tilted her head as she scanned the message.
His heart pounded hard as he imagined her response. “Alex, how could you go into my private messages and do this?”
He slid his eyes closed.
Silence reigned between them until he finally opened his eyes, finding her staring at him. “Are you mad?”
“Extremely,” she answered before her features broke into a smile, and she shook her head. “Oh, Alex, how could you think I was mad at you?”
“I–I went into your phone and almost answered that message from Sebastian. I just…thought he was kind of…presumptuous to text you so early in the morning.”
“You didn’t actually answer it—and good thing, because this response is kind of silly.”
“It is not,” he argued, his pride taking a hit. “It was a good response.”
She playfully tapped his lifted chin as she giggled. “No, I feel like Ava Collins, Alex Stone’s wife, because that’s who I’m married to?”
“It’s a basic fact.”
“It also sounds like I’m five,” she said with a laugh as she erased the draft text.
He peered over the top of the phone, trying to see what she typed instead. “What are you sending?”
“I said, ‘Not really. That wasn’t my first rodeo.’”
“Oh, that’s sort of good…but also sort of flirty.”
“It’s not,” she answered with a giggle. “Stop reading into it.”
He leapt from the bed and paced the floor, running a shaky hand through his hair. “I can’t help it. I hate this guy. And I hate it even more with Raven, one man trying to steal you from me, telling you to cozy up to the other man looking to steal you from me.”
Ava tossed the phone aside and patted the bed next to her. “Alex, you’re tired. And when you’re tired, you get upset and paranoid.”
He huffed out a laugh. “I’m not paranoid. I’m not…paranoid is what you are when you are unreasonably suspicious, but I am reasonably suspicious.”
Her eyes followed him as he ambled back and forth at the foot of the bed. After a second, she scrambled from the bed and placed herself in his way.
“Ava, don’t tell me–”
“That you’re not reasonably suspicious? Alex…” She gave him a knowing glance. “I’m committed to us, okay?”
“Yeah,” he said as he flicked his eyes sideways.
“You don’t, though, because you won’t look at me.”
He heaved a sigh, forcing his gaze to meet hers. “I know you are. I just…worry.”
She offered him a soft smile as she traced his jaw. “I know you do. But you don’t have to.”
He wrapped his hand around hers, giving her fingers a kiss. “I’m sorry.”
“You don’t have to be sorry, Ace, but I hate seeing you like this. I just want you to be happy.”
“I am happy. I’m happy that you stayed, and that we have a real relationship. And that’s the reason I worry. What if…” He hesitated, shaking his head. “What if Sebastian outlines all the ways he’s better than me?”
“He couldn’t. Because there are no ways–”
“That he’s better than me? I’m pretty sure there are a lot of ways, starting with that chiseled jaw and what looks like a six-pack hiding under his custom-cut tuxedo.”
She clicked her tongue. “If you would have let me finish, I would have said there are no ways he’s better for me than you are.”
Her phone chimed as he rubbed his thumb against the back of her hand. “That’s probably your boyfriend inviting you over to drink coffee off of his abs.”
“Well, I’m otherwise engaged with my husband right now.”
He pressed his head against her forehead with a soft smile. “Thanks, Avs.”
“Now, we actually do have things to discuss so either we can do that, or you can try to get some sleep. It’s up to you.”
“Mmm, sleep,” he answered, weariness overcoming him as some of the worry wore away.
She nodded, tugging him back to bed and climbing in. She propped herself up with pillows and opened her arms. “Come on.”
“You’re not going to sleep?”
“No, I can’t sleep anymore. Just put your head down and try to get some rest, though.”
He pulled the covers over him and settled against her chest. As he closed his eyes, he became acutely aware of her muscle moving as she typed on her phone.
“What are you doing?”
“Huh?” she asked. “Oh, sorry, am I jiggling you?”
“Are you texting him?” Alex asked, lifting his head up.
Ava tugged her lips into a wince.
He flopped over onto his pillow and buried his head in his hands. “Ugh, okay, let’s talk. I’m not going to sleep.”
“Alex, it’s fine. I’m not even texting him. Go to sleep.”
“Who are you texting then?” he asked.
She stared down at her screen, her thumbs flying across it. “Raven. I was asking if he had a six pack I could drink coffee off of.”
Alex grabbed her phone, playfully tossing it to the side as she laughed. “Okay, let’s talk. What do we need to discuss?”
“Next steps. I have a few leads we may want to follow up on.”
“Do they involve your new boyfriend’s six pack?”
“No,” she said with a shake of her head, “but they do involve the security cameras they have all over that house and how we could tap into them to monitor for information.”
Alex pushed himself up to sit as he glanced at her while reaching for his laptop on the nightstand. “Really? Do you know their security company?”
Ava narrowed her eyes. “Didn’t they have a sign on their fence that said GuardDog Security?”
“Oh, good catch, Avs.” His fingers pounded on the keyboard as he accessed the security company’s login. “Did Sebastian happen to give you his password?”
“He did not,” Ava said. “Maybe it’s tattooed on his six-pack.”
“Yeah, I’ll figure it out, babe—don’t make any sacrifices to see those abs, okay?”
She shimmied closer, pressing a kiss to his cheek as she watched him work to gain access to the security company’s system and locate their account.
His eyes narrowed at the screen as he bypassed encryptions and located exactly what they needed to view their security setup.
“You in?” she asked as sensors and alarms filled his screen.
“I am. Welcome to Casa Bancroft. Hmm, do you think Sir Sebastian is still in bed? How about a rousing fire alarm to get him moving?”
“Don’t,” she said with a playful slap on his arm. “Where are the cameras?”
“Uh…here,” Alex said as he toggled into the setup. “Front door, garden…”
Ava leaned closer, eyeing the six cameras. “Where are the rest?”
“What rest?”
“The rest of the cameras. The interior ones.”
“Uh, nope,” Alex said with a shake of his head. “No interior cameras, which makes sense. I mean…they’d want privacy, and these cover all the entry points.”
“No,” Ava answered. “No, I saw them. They had cameras all over the house. Because I used them to search for you when the gunmen took over that party.”
Alex’s forehead creased as he glanced at her before he returned his gaze to the screen. “Well, they’re not here, are you sure?”
Ava offered him an unimpressed stare. “Alex, I was in that panic room for long enough to know exactly what I was looking at. Cameras. Dozens of them showing rooms all over the house. I saw them. Those are the cameras we need.”
Alex crinkled his brow as he stared blankly at the cameras on his screen, his fingers drumming against the laptop case. “Any chance you could get back into that room?”
She cocked her head as she eyed him. “Mmm, I’m pretty sure I could.”
“Without seeing Mr. Chiseled Chin’s abs?”
“Uh-huh,” she said with a confident nod. “I think I can do it.”
Chewing his lower lip, he wondered if their new way in would end up costing them more than he dared to hope.