Chapter Fifty
CHAPTER FIFTY
LUKE
“ G uys, I got him!” Ryan shouts through the house. I slam my laptop shut and skid around the corner into the den where we have all the equipment set up. It’s been nearly seventy-two hours since we dropped Jace off, and to say we’ve all been anxious for him to check in is a fucking understatement.
“Where?” I say, leaning over Ryan’s shoulder just as I hear the rest of the team barreling through the house. Jesus, I glare up at the ceiling, then back at the monitor.
“Here. Twenty miles outside of town.” He points to a little red dot on the screen.
“He’s okay?” Leena says as she runs into the room, her big eyes searching Ryan’s for an answer.
“Okay enough to report back, and we have his location now.” He smiles before getting back to work.
“Thank fuck. He cut that one close,” Sebastian says, crossing his arms. And he’s right. We gave him three days to check in, or we would come looking for him. Today’s day three, which means that tomorrow probably wouldn’t have gone over well. Barreling into not one, but three known hideaways looking for our friend wasn’t part of the plan at all.
“What can I do?” Ava asks from behind us.
It’s Leena who turns to answer. “Jones, pull up all the maps and satellite images you have of the area surrounding that compound. Let’s go over every single way in and out of that place again, and start digging deeper, anything we don’t already have. County records, building permits, whatever you can find without drawing attention,” she says.
“On it, boss!” Ava settles into a chair in front of one of the large double monitors.
“Chen, think you can hack into any local cameras or the utility companies so we can get an idea on how active they are at this location?” she says.
“You got it!” Ryan says, pulling up another screen and clicking away.
When Leena turns to me, I smile. I’m so fucking proud of this woman.
“Grab your weapons, boys. Let’s go put up some cameras.” She smiles.
—
“Fisher, if you don’t stop singing, I will personally tattoo you with a spade and leave your ass in Diamond territory,” Sebastian growls out, gripping the wheel a little tighter than he needs to.
“Oh come on, man! We’ve been driving around for hours, and it’s past fucking midnight. Let us have a little fun,” Colton retorts.
“This is not fun. You’re making my ears bleed.” Sebastian glares at our friend in the rearview mirror.
“Be fucking nice!” Leena reprimands.
“No.” He smirks back at her and she slaps his bulky arm, as if that will do anything, but it makes him chuckle. I shake my head.
“There,” I say, pointing to a utility pole that’s down off the side of the road. We’ve spent the past few hours putting up hidden cameras along every roadway in and out of Jace’s location. Our team will make sure that every single car, license plate and fucking woodland critter that strolls past those cameras is on our radar. If Jace leaves the compound, we’ll know. If he doesn’t check in when he’s supposed to, then we need to know what we’re dealing with in order to get his ass out of there.
“Is this the last one?” Leena asks through a yawn. She’s hardly slept since we dropped Jace off. Hopefully tonight will be better, now that we know where he is.
“Yeah, last one. You guys wait here. Just call us if you see anyone,” Sebastian says as the two of us get out of the car.
We hike down the slope of the overgrown hillside until we’re out of view of the road, then walk together along the culvert. We’re far from town out here, so the night is quiet. The full moon casts enough light on the vibrant green of the grass and surrounding forest that we’re able to see without using the flashlights.
I suddenly realize that this is the first time I’ve been alone with Sebastian since we arrived in Jamaica. Between sharing a house with the team and having both Leena and Colton in our bed, we haven’t had a minute to ourselves. Not that I’m complaining about the bed situation, that’s been strangely… comfortable. It’s just been hectic.
“Seb?” I finally manage to say.
“Yeah?” he replies, dropping the gear at the base of the pole and scrunching his eyes up to where we will need to mount it.
“Why did you decide to tell the team? You know… about us, ” I ask.
He immediately pauses what he’s doing.
“I don’t know. I just… It just… I don’t know how to talk about this, Lu,” he says, looking down at where he’s fidgeting with the screws between his fingers.
“I don’t either. Neither of us ever wanted a serious relationship. But this is working, right? I’m not fucking it up by not telling my family? Or by asking too much of you?” I ask, because I feel like as well as I can read him, this is so new for both of us. And he told the team, so now it’s just me holding back.
I told him that I love him, well, I wrote it, but I haven’t been able to say it out loud. And he hasn’t said those words to me.
“No, Lu.” His eyes shoot to mine. He drops the tools to the ground, walking closer to me. He pinches the bridge of his nose and squeezes his eyes shut. When they open, I stare into the dark blue of them, illuminated by the moonlight. I find so much emotion there, but I truly don’t know what he’s thinking at this moment. “I didn’t realize how much I was hurting you… hurting myself, until Leena fucking pointed it out. Our woman sees everything.” He lets out a huff, I do too, because he’s right. “It felt really fucking good telling Colton. And…” he pauses, pulling out his wallet and handing me a folded slip of paper from the bill fold.
I open it, already knowing what I’ll find. I stare down at my handwriting, at the “I love you” I finally put into words and found the courage to give him last week.
Except this paper feels soft, like it’s much older.
It feels like he’s held it a hundred times.
I take in a breath. Maybe he has.
I’m still looking down, my brows furrowed at what this might mean, when his large hand covers mine, holding it. I look up at him.
Is he?
No. He can’t be.
His eyes are glassy as if he’s about to cry.
I’ve never seen this man cry.
“You aren’t asking too much, Lu, because I want to give it. I just… don’t know how sometimes.” He’s quiet for a long moment, and I watch him work out whatever it is he’s trying to say. “Luke…” His voice breaks, and I feel like my heart is going to beat out of my chest. “Lucas, I love you.”
I stare at him, my jaw tense with emotion at hearing those words I’ve only ever pictured him saying, and thought he never would.
I know he’s always loved me in some sort of way, the same way I’ve always loved him. But for us to finally put a name to this thing between us. To say the words out loud?
My eyes suddenly sting. I didn’t expect to feel this way. Didn’t expect… any of this.
“Seb.” My voice is barely a whisper. “I… I love you, too.” I let out a breath, feeling the relief of finally telling this man how I feel.
He steps closer, clasping our hands together, trapping my note with our promise inside.
“So, we still in this?” he breathes.
“Yeah, we’re still in this.” My eyes don’t leave his, and we both chuckle, unable to hide our smiles. We lean in slowly, taking our time with this moment. I study every hard line of his face in the moonlight, breathe in the familiar scent of his cologne, of him, just as his loving eyes look at me. Our lips finally find one another’s, pressing together and parting slowly as if we’re stuck moving in slow motion.
Normally when we kiss, it’s rough, igniting a fire through my entire body. This kiss is more of a slow burn. One that makes my skin feel warm, but causes a shiver to run through me at the same time.
I feel his lips, a soft caress against mine. And for the first time, I feel… him.