Chapter 1 #3
“But you’re another heartbreaker?”
Lately, yeah.
She stepped out of his embrace when he didn’t respond and offered her hand. “How about we take a walk on the beach?”
He was drawn to her in so many ways that went beyond attraction, which scared the hell out of him. Almost enough to turn and walk away.
He didn’t, though. He accepted her palm and laced their fingers together.
“You always so nervous about going for a walk?” she asked. “I won’t try and take advantage of you on the beach, I promise.”
He caught her smirk from over his shoulder, and he playfully flipped his eyes to the sky dotted with stars. “Well, I won’t resist if you do.” He tightened his grip on her hand.
“Tell me something about you,” she said softly as they walked at a slow pace.
“What would you like to know?”
“When’d you become a SEAL?”
He stopped walking and faced her. “What makes you think I’m a Teamguy?”
“I’ve been around enough sailors to know a SEAL when I see one. The accent threw me off at first.” She smiled when he’d yet to confess. “Virginia Beach or Coronado?”
He let go of her hand to palm her cheek. “Virginia.”
She turned her cheek, and her soft lips dragged across his warm skin. He wanted nothing more than to feel those lips on his mouth.
His balls tightened, desire gripping him like a tight hand around his shaft.
“The exes of our exes hooking up,” she whispered. “That’d be wrong, right?”
She was straightforward, and damn did he like it.
“I thought you weren’t going to make a move on me out here?”
She wet her lips, and he lowered his hand from her face before securing his palm around her waist to bring her flush to his body.
“And I thought you wouldn’t object?”
“I’m pretty sure that’d be impossible to do,” he admitted.
She pursed her lips together as if in thought, then murmured, “Hot sex on a California beach is on my bucket list.”
“Not Virginia Beach? Or somewhere else? Just California?” He raised a brow.
“Okay, so I don’t have a bucket list,” she began, “but if I did, I think that it would include sex on a—”
He united their lips, and she relaxed into him as he kissed her.
His tongue dipped into her mouth, meeting hers, and he let out a low hiss, a sort of growl from pent-up need. But hell, it was more than that. Something inside of him had awakened.
He was on a beach with a stranger, not far from his ex-wife’s wedding reception, but all the noise in his head grew silent. He could barely remember his near-death experience three weeks ago when an insurgent had set off an s-vest. Or the attack against his convoy a month before that.
The last several years became a blur with her lips on his.
All he could feel and taste was her. His entire awareness was Natasha.
Her nails biting into his back. Her fragrance. Her body pressed tight to him as if hungry to be even closer.
He nipped her lower lip after coming up for air even though he hadn’t wanted to stop kissing her.
“I want you, but in a bedroom,” he rasped before grinning like a kid with a golden ticket to the Willy Wonka Factory. “I have pretty strong memories of having sand in places it doesn’t belong when at BUD/S, and I’d prefer not to relive that while—”
“Understood.” She stepped back and offered her hand.
And was this really happening? Was he going to get laid at Clara’s wedding?
But fuck if he could stop himself.
Clara and Dale were happy, so why couldn’t two single people enjoy themselves?
“Your room or mine?” he asked as they started for the hotel.
“Yours,” she sputtered.
He dug his hand into his pocket in search of his keycard, but when he looked up toward the terrace and the glowing fire pit, he stopped in his tracks, practically yanking Natasha to an abrupt stop as well.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
“I, uh.” He resumed walking, and they climbed the steps to the terrace so he could face a man he assumed was there for him.
What in the hell was Luke Scott doing there? He’d recently, and very unexpectedly, quit his position as a Tier One operator, so this couldn’t be a grab your shit, we’re spinning up kind of visit.
Luke coughed into a closed fist at the sight of Wyatt and Natasha’s clasped palms. “Sorry to drop in on you like this. Can I have a word?” He tipped his head in apology to Natasha, and his blue eyes moved back to Wyatt.
“I can go back into the reception and wait,” Natasha offered.
“I actually need him to come back to my room,” Luke said in his stern, no-shitting-around Teamguy tone.
Wyatt turned toward her, disappointment thick in his tone when he said, “I’ll find you after.”
“Yeah, okay.” But something in her voice said she was doubtful he’d come back.
And he honestly didn’t know if he would return, but damn it, he didn’t want to leave a woman like her hanging. He leaned in and whispered, “If I can’t come back . . .”
She nodded as if she understood completely. There was forgiveness in her eyes. She was one hell of a woman, wasn’t she? And he hated walking away from her.
She pressed a quick kiss to his cheek.
Luke remained silent as Wyatt watched her cross the terrace and pull open the door to the banquet hall. Music spilled out into the evening air for a brief moment, then vanished along with Natasha as the door closed. She did, however, steal one last look at him through the glass.
He wanted to go after her. To chase after the moment they’d been having and allow it to continue into the morning.
But he couldn’t turn his back on Luke even if the night with Natasha had promised to be one he’d never forget.
Wyatt matched Luke’s quick pace as they exited the terrace and walked down the path to the second hotel building adjacent to the banquet hall.
“I would’ve waited until tomorrow to show up, but I’m short on time. Sorry to interrupt like that.”
“It’s fine,” he replied as they moved.
They stopped outside a first-floor suite a minute later, and Luke popped his keycard into the slot, then pushed open the door. “I’m not alone, by the way.”
Wyatt followed Luke into the room and halted at the sight of the woman sitting on the couch opposite the king-sized bed. “Jessica?”
She stood and extended her hand. “Good to see you again, Pierson.”
“You two related?” Wyatt’s gaze shifted between Jessica and Luke. Same last names, but Luke had never mentioned . . .
“He’s my brother.” She motioned for him to have a seat on the bed as she lowered herself to the couch again.
He dropped down, the soft mattress sinking beneath him.
Luke remained standing next to his sister. “Jessica told me you’ve worked a few operations together.”
“Just last year in Somalia, in fact,” Wyatt replied.
At first, the Navy had wanted to go kinetic on the site where a bunch of al-Shabaab terrorists had been housed, but Langley wanted the men brought back for questioning.
Jessica had been the CIA liaison between AFRICOM and his team, advising the best course of action to ensure they got in and out of the country fast. And, more importantly, without any of his people dying. Her intel had been spot-the-fuck-on.
All his guys had swooped in on a super-stealth bird instead of a Chinook and grabbed seven terrorists, which had ultimately led to the major takedown of additional players.
The After Action Debrief, the sanitized version of what had happened in Mogadishu, had left out the majority of the details of what had gone down, including the fact Jessica Scott was a badass and should’ve been awarded a medal for that op. It’d been damn perfect because of her planning.
So, did her presence right now mean Luke was back in the game and in need of Wyatt’s help?
“I didn’t know she worked at The Company,” Luke commented. “Just found out.”
“What’s going on?” His pulse should’ve climbed, should’ve picked up, but he was used to being thrown into unknown situations and forging ahead on reflex. This was nothing new.
What had spiked his pulse was when he’d first learned Luke-the-Legend-Scott had quit. Now—well, hell, he was just curious what was going on.
“Mind if I take point?” Jessica peered at her brother, and he nodded. She stood and walked toward the windows, then faced Wyatt. “After Neptune’s Spear, Tier One guys have been thrown in the limelight, and it’s been making your jobs increasingly difficult.”
Neptune’s Spear—one of the most famous SEAL operations in modern history because it was the op that took down Osama bin Laden.
And yeah, she’d been right. The media had been relentless in their pursuit to learn more about DEVGRU, or Team SIX, operations.
What bloody part of clandestine did they not understand?
“I’ve had an idea rolling around in my head for a while since that op,” Jessica began, “and I decided, what better time to implement the plan now that we have a new president. Fortunately, President Rydell agreed to the proposal.”
“Which was?” Wyatt rose, unable to remain seated any longer at the mention of POTUS.
“To assemble a team specifically earmarked to carry out operations for a few high-ups, including the president. Operations for which our DEVGRU people can’t get a green light. Both foreign and domestic,” she explained.
“Doesn’t POTUS already have dark money for his Delta guys who handle shit like that?”
“Yeah, but there are still proper channels the president has to go through for those ops as well,” Jessica countered. “We’ll be even more off-the-books.”
“We have approval for ten SEALs. Jessica and I have been tasked to lead this group.” Luke folded his arms. “But I’d like to break us up into two units. I’ll head up Bravo, and I’d like you to take command of Echo.”
“I’ve seen you operate as an assault leader, and you’re also one of the best snipers out there,” Jessica added. “We think you’re a perfect fit for this role.”
He blinked a few times, trying to wrap his head around the offer. “So, you didn’t actually quit?” His brows lifted in surprise.
“I need the world to think I retired, but no, I’m still active,” he explained.
“Listen.” He held a palm in the air as if sensing Wyatt’s concern since they were vague as shit.
“We’ll be working directly for POTUS. If Washington can’t approve an op but intel says our people are needed, we’ll be the guys he sends. ”
“Unlike POTUS’s Delta operations, we won’t have QRF on standby,” Jessica noted.
“No one’s coming for us if we’re captured,” Luke reiterated.
Because we won’t exist. Wyatt turned toward the wall, which had a picture of Mission Bay hanging above the bed.
It had been one of Clara’s favorite places to go when they’d been married.
But now he was pretty sure his kiss with Natasha would forever be burned into his mind whenever he thought about the bay.
“I know it’s a lot to ask, especially without too many details, but we can’t disclose much until you agree and sign some NDAs,” Luke said. “We’d be operating under the alias Scott and Scott Securities.”
“And we’ll probably take some private security gigs between ops to keep up with appearances.
Those jobs might also be a great way to fund us, too.
We’ll be working on a limited government budget to prevent anyone from discovering we exist.” Jessica’s voice remained confident. Determined, but not overly pushy.
“You can help pick four guys to be on your team.” Luke’s words had Wyatt twisting back to face the two of them.
“Why not recruit retired Teamguys?”
Jessica and Luke exchanged a quick look. “We want younger guys who can move up with us,” Luke said. “The risks will be great. And most of our retired SEALs are older and have kids.”
“I guess that makes sense,” he responded.
“Luke’s convinced me to hire some vets to work at Scott and Scott, though. It’ll help maintain our cover.”
“But they won’t know the truth?” He could practically feel his pulse pricking at his neck now.
“No one can know. The truth is too dangerous, especially if we want to make this last long-term.” She edged closer, her eyes set on him to get a read.
Jessica was blonde and blue-eyed. Attractive. Late twenties. Young for someone in such a high-powered role. And had he not seen Jessica in action firsthand, or hadn’t witnessed Luke operate in war, he’d probably already have left the room.
The idea of the team bypassing red tape and congressional approval was both appealing and terrifying.
“You’re thirty-one. In the prime of your career. To ask you to leave your men, it’s a lot, I know.” Luke was right, especially about leaving his brothers behind.
“Can I have some time to think about it?”
“POTUS has a mission he needs us on, and we’re scrambling to round everyone up.” Luke’s calm tone was a contradiction to his statement. “We don’t have much time.”
“My life has been filled with making quick decisions.”
Leaving England.
Marrying Clara.
Dropping out of uni for the Navy.
“And that means?” Jessica asked him.
He extended his hand to Luke and shoved away any doubts from his mind. “I’m not quite sure what I’m walking into, but that also excites me. Story of my life, anyway.” He gripped Jessica’s palm next and smiled. “So, why the hell would I do things differently now?”