Chapter 19
Nineteen
“Y ou disappeared on me. Are you okay?”
Sloane reached for the towel to dry her hands and let out a small shriek in the middle of Mae and Hawk’s guest bathroom.
“You just scared me,” she hissed.
“Sorry. I wanted to make sure you were feeling okay.” His eyes dropped to her stomach before popping back up. “We don’t have to stay long. I’m sure everyone would understand if we took off early. I can even say it’s because of me?—”
She reached up to touch her pendant, moving the chain so the clasp traveled to the back of her neck. “We don’t need to go. I’d actually like a bit of normalcy. For tonight, can we just be a couple hanging out with their friends?”
Gage leaned in, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “Okay. We can do that tonight.”
“Thank you.”
His fingers reached up, running along her necklace. “When was the last time you charged that?”
“A few nights ago.” She winced, knowing exactly what lecture was about to come out of his mouth. It was normally her top priority, making sure the tracker never went below half-charged. But she wasn’t alone anymore, and always having someone by her side had made her feel safe.
“You know the battery in the tracker is good for a week, but I don’t want to take any chances with it. Let’s charge it tonight and try to do it every night from now on, okay?”
“Okay.”
“Good, now let’s get-”
“Oh, sorry!” Courtney’s eyes went wide as she turned into the hallway. “I asked Mae where the bathroom was and she directed me this way.”
“You found it.” Sloane pushed against Gage’s chest so she could step out of the way.
“Thanks.” Courtney slipped past them and shut the door just as Gage wrapped his hand around Sloane’s.
“Here’s to a normal night with our friends.” His lips pressed into her hair before he walked towards the table where all the guys were sitting.
* * *
“Let me get this straight.” Mae stared over her glass of white wine at Sloane. “Gage had supplies on hand, made sure you had a heating pad and medicine to help with your cramps after you showered, and dried your hair for you when you were too tired before you went back to sleep?”
“He did.”
“Oh, Sloane. That man is in love with you.”
Her face grew warm. Love was very much growing between them, but that wasn’t quite something she was ready to share with anyone else. “Well, to be fair, he had pads and tampons on hand for you and Lily should you ever be over and need something.”
“Okay, why is that making my heart all fluttery?” Courtney giggled.
“He’s a keeper, for sure. I’m not sure any man I’ve ever been with would do that for me.” Sloane followed Mae’s eyes as she looked across her apartment towards Stone, who was sitting at Hawk’s round dining table playing poker with the rest of the guys.
“Not even Stone?”
“Shh!” Mae’s eyes went wide with panic. “What are you doing? Trying to get me in trouble?”
“You know everyone knows about you two, right? It’s like the worst kept secret in Silver Springs.”
Mae shook her head. “Hawk doesn’t. He’d kill Stone if he did.”
“See, I don’t understand that. Stone is one of his best friends. Wouldn’t he be happy for you?”
She shrugged her shoulders. “Even if I am a grown woman who is completely capable of making her own choices, my idiot brother will only ever see me as his baby sister. I think he’d be worried about Stone taking advantage of me. But let me tell you,” Mae took a sip from her glass. “The only person getting taken advantage of is Stone, and he likes it.” Her wink had Sloane giggling into her water bottle.
“Alright! Who’s ready for more wine?” Lily’s singsong voice called out as she approached the sofa.
“Are you going to have a glass?” Mae asked, and Sloane could immediately hear the unspoken question.
“Not tonight. Probably not for a while. I don’t like to feel out of control and things have been very…”
“Out of control lately.” Lily supplied.
“Exactly.”
“Well, we certainly don’t have to talk about anything you don’t want to.”
“Thanks, guys. I think, just for tonight, I’d like to take a pass on talking about me.” Sloane took a sip of water. “Actually, Courtney, I wanted to ask… are things official between you and Elias now?”
Courtney’s face blossomed into a beautiful smile. “We talked about it last night. We’re not labeling it right now… but he’s not seeing other women, and I’m not seeing other men, so…”
“That’s so exciting. You are so cute together!” Lily sighed as she looked across the room. “He fits right in with the guys.”
“He really does. It looks like they’re having a good time.” Courtney smiled. “Oh, should I grab the snacks I brought now that the wine is coming out?”
“Probably a good idea. Some of us tend to be lightweights.” Lily giggled.
“Sloane, can I borrow you for a minute? I think I brought more than I can carry out.”
Sloane jumped up, setting her water on the coffee table. “Of course! I’m happy to help.”
The chatter from their friends faded into the background as Sloane followed Courtney into the kitchen.
“Alright, where are these snacks?”
“I lied.” Courtney grimaced.
“About what?”
“I need your help, but it’s not really about the snacks.”
Her mind went on alert, immediately watching the way her friend twisted her fingers together. “What’s going on?”
“I overheard you talking to Gage about your necklace.” Sloane took a sharp breath in. No one was supposed to know about her tracking device. That was the whole point of it being so discreet. “I don’t know why you have it, and I’m sure it’s not something you want just anyone to know about. I’m so sorry I overheard as I was walking to the bathroom. I just… well, I was wondering if that was something he could also do for me?”
Alarm bells started sounding off. “Are you okay? Is it Elias? Did something happen?”
“No. No. Not at all. It’s my parents. They’re trying to force me back to Colorado. Getting a therapist out there involved. Calling the police, saying I’m a danger to myself and need treatment. They’ve always been a little out there with trying to protect me, but I’m honestly worried that they might do something extreme.” She rolled her eyes. “I’ll never be their perfect baby boy, but even in my thirties they still feel this need to keep me safe since I’m the only kid they have left.”
“Have you talked to the sheriff’s department here? I know the sheriff personally, I could go with you?—”
“No!” The panic in her voice had Sloane taking a step closer.
“Okay. We don’t have to do that.”
“It’s just… A deputy came to my house yesterday. My parents called for a wellness check. I had to explain everything to him and it was so humiliating. I’m hoping maybe Gage could walk me through how a device like that would work, and how it’s monitored if I got one in case they try to…” Her voice trailed off, ending in a broken crackle.
“Court. I’m so sorry you are going through this with your family. I’ll talk to Gage and you can come into Montgomery Defense whenever you want to. We’ll get it sorted out for you.”
“Thanks.” She swiped a tear out of her eye. “I know I shouldn’t be burdening you with this. But I appreciate the help. It’s like once my brother died, something broke inside of them. I don’t even know who they are anymore, and they really don’t seem to know me either.”
“It’s not a burden, Court. You’re my friend. This whole apartment is filled with people who will have your back. Okay?”
“Okay.”
“Good. Now let’s get this food out to Lily and Mae before they start dancing on the coffee table.”
Courtney giggled, and Sloane tried to give her a reassuring smile as they took the snacks and plates out to the living room.
* * *
“Those girls are doing an awful lot of laughing over there. Reap, you better keep an eye on your wife.”
“Christ. She shouldn’t be drinking.”
“Breastfeeding moms can have alcohol,” Stone mumbled. “Besides, I think that looks like water in her glass.”
“Yeah, breastfeeding moms can drink, but pregnant ones can’t.” Gunner’s eyes were laser focused on the glass in his wife’s hand.
The guys all went silent. Gage searched his best friend’s face as he stared over at Lily. “No shit. Congratulations, man.”
Gunner’s face remained blank. “We don’t know for sure yet. Lily swears she’s not. Says she’s just late cause her body is still out of whack from having Sage.”
“Why don’t you just buy her a test?” Hawk asked. “Seems like if you get her one, she won’t be able to put it off.”
“I’m trying not to be a pushy fucker about it. It wasn’t exactly planned.” He took a sip of his beer. “We had a little oopsie moment one night celebrating Sage finally going to sleep in her own room, and Lily is pissed at me. Hell, I’m pissed at myself.”
“I thought you both wanted another kid? What’s the problem?” Hawk chuckled.
“The problem is, she fucking collapsed in my arms with postpartum preeclampsia after she had Sage and we’re not fucking sure what that means for future pregnancies. And as much as I dream about seeing her belly grow with another baby…” Gunner raked his hand down over his face. “I mean, Christ. Watching her go through labor and delivering Sage was so powerful, but when she got sick after, and I almost fucking lost her? No. She doesn’t want to be pregnant again this soon, and as much as I want another carbon copy of her to hold in my arms, it doesn’t mean anything if she gets sick again and I lose her.”
Gage nodded, worry twisting in his gut.
“Okay, so no congratulations yet. But Reap?” Stone smiled.
“Yeah?”
“If she is pregnant, you know you guys can lean on us for anything, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Good. Now enough of this sappy shit. I’m ready to whoop your asses in poker!” Hawk grabbed the pile of cards in the center of the table and started to shuffle.
“Elias.” Gage turned to his left and smiled, happy to switch topics but acutely aware of the worry simmering in the back of his mind for his friends. “Ellie was telling me a while ago you started working on a new forestry project.”
“What the hell does a forester actually do?” Hawk asked, butting into the conversation.
“Yeah, Gage, I’ve got a few new projects I’m juggling right now. Mom loves to brag to anyone who will listen about it.” He chuckled. “But honestly, it’s not that exciting. I help evaluate an ecosystem to present a cohesive plan for logging companies that allows the forest to remain unharmed by the demands of their business. Deforestation is a huge problem, but with a little technology and some cool looking spreadsheets, I show executives how to maximize their profits without destroying our planet.”
“That’s pretty cool,” Stone said as he sipped his whiskey. “You travel a lot for it?”
Elias’s eyes moved over towards Courtney, softening as he looked at her. “Yeah. I do, which used to be fun. I was just up in New York and next week I’m heading out to Washington. It’s a lot, but last year I left my corporate job and struck out on my own. Have to keep my face out there in the industry so people know to look for me and not my former employers. I’m sure you guys know how it goes. Former SEALs to security experts now. Running your own business and all that.”
“Thank god a lot of the boring part falls on Sebastian and Gunner,” Nash laughed. “Track, probably on you too, with all that coding you’re constantly working on.”
“I like it.” Gage shrugged, looking away from his buddies. Truth be told, he was mesmerized by Sloane. Her whole demeanor changed when she was with the other women, and he could sit and watch her smile and laugh all night long.
“Oh, you code?”
He nodded, returning to the conversation. “I basically run everything for Montgomery Defense and The Trident. It’s nothing crazy, just some standard program coding.”
“Fuck that, Track. Christ, you’re like some computer nerd extraordinaire,” Hawk laughed. “You’d be better off trying to hack into something the Pentagon put into place, rather than go up against something Gage coded.”
“That’s cool, man. I dabble a little in coding too,” Elias said. “My mom asked me to put together a website for the shelter, but that’s not what interests me.”
“Oh no? What does then?” Nash asked as he sipped his beer.
“I’m interested in ethical hacking. You know, like working counter-intelligence stuff. Trying to catch the bad-guy hackers. Got into it when I was working on the coding for my proprietary algorithm to use for my calculations. I’ve tried some simulation stuff, but I have a bad habit of leaving a trailing slash in my code. Poor Courtney had to sit through a whole ten minute vent session the other night after I did it again. I’d love to pick your brain sometime.”
“You know, I actually have a contact at the FBI in the Cyber Crime Unit. I could give him your info if you want to know more about their programs.”
“That would be awesome. Thanks, man.”