Chapter 13

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

“Are you sure this is a good idea?”

Beckett looked over at Evie and smiled. Her question was the exact same one Shadow had posed to him three days earlier, when he’d decided to make his impromptu visit to Evie at her East Hampton hotel.

At the time, his answer had been no. Truth was, he’d been nervous as hell showing up unannounced the way he had. But this…this was different. Here, he knew they’d both be safe from judgement or ridicule because they’d be surrounded by his teammates and closest friends.

Beckett reached for her hand and linked their fingers together. “It’s going to be fine,” he promised with a wink. “Trust me.”

“I do trust you, Beckett.” Evie curled her fingers around his and smiled. “With my life.”

Warmth spread throughout his chest as he experienced an overall feeling of weightlessness. Beckett was happy. Truly happy. And it was all thanks to the woman walking hand-in-hand by his side.

The last three days had been the best of his entire existence. Between that first magnificent night spent in the hotel and the last two days and nights spent with Evie at her friend’s place here in Charlotte, he couldn’t remember a time when he felt this alive.

Alive.

Happy.

In love.

Truth was, he was completely and totally head-over-boots in love with the woman. And anyone who wanted to debate his newfound feelings, well…

They can eat a bag of dicks.

It didn’t matter that it was fast, and he sure as shit didn’t care what other people would think. Beckett knew what he felt, and he damn well knew it was real.

The mind-blowing sex was merely a bonus.

“Relax, darlin’.” He gave Evie’s hand a gentle shake as they made their way up the sidewalk to Falcon and Avery’s home. “You’ve already met the team, and they love you.”

“They hardly know me, Beckett.”

“They know enough.” His lips curved upward. “Listen, the guys all know you’re comin’ and that we’re together. And they’re cool with it.”

“You really think so?”

“I know so.” He gave her shoulder a playful nudge. “Just like I know the wives are gonna love you.”

“Well, let’s hope you’re right.” Evie crossed two fingers on her free hand. “Otherwise, this is going to be a very long, very awkward afternoon.”

With a chuckle, Beckett followed the sidewalk’s curve up to the home’s front porch. Thanks to Avery’s decorative eye, the vinyl and rock sided arts and crafts-style home appeared as warm and inviting as he already knew it to be.

Located on a quarter-acre lot near Charlotte’s northeastern city limits, the secluded piece of property offered its owners a private backyard and patio perfect for casual gatherings. And since the men of Tac-Ops used any excuse they could to hang out and shoot the shit, this had become the team’s unofficial cookout headquarters.

Not bothering to knock, Beckett opened the front door and stepped to the side, motioning for Evie to enter. Once inside, he took the lead again, guiding her through the small foyer, past the home’s impressive kitchen, and through the open living room space to the back patio doors.

Beside him, he noticed the long, deep breath Evie had just pulled into her lungs. Knowing she was steeling herself for her first social interaction with the group, he paused long enough to give one final reassurance.

“Come here.” He pulled her to him. Releasing the grip on her hand, he brought both of his to each side of her flawless face. “Everything is going to be fine.”

“I know.”

Her words said one thing, but the greens and browns in her gorgeous hazel eyes were a dead giveaway that she was more than a little nervous. A sudden need to ease her unnecessary anxiety about getting together with his friends had Beckett leaning in for a kiss.

He pressed his lips to hers, keeping the contact publicly appropriate in case they were spotted. For her sake, only—because he didn’t give a fuck who saw them—he gave her a sweet, chaste kiss before pulling back and staring deep into her eyes.

“I know it won’t happen, but if at any time, you decide you want to bail, all you have to do is say the word, and we’ll go.”

“I’m good, Beckett.” Evie visibly shook her worries away. “It’s just a small case of the jitters, that’s all. Promise.” She rose to her tiptoes to give him a kiss of her own.

“Okay, then.” He slid the patio door open and held out his hand. “After you.”

The bottom portion of her light pink sundress blew against her legs with a passing breeze. In the back of his mind, Beckett had the fleeting thought that he was glad she’d decided to add the cropped denim jacket at the last minute.

He didn’t want her being cold, after all.

Dude. Pushing the protective bit a tad far, don’t you think?

No. No, he didn’t. The way he saw it, now that they were officially a couple, his job wasn’t solely about keeping her safe from terrorist pricks or asshole pseudo-fathers. He wanted to protect her from everything he could…for as long as he could.

Because he loved her.

“About time you showed up!”

Beckett looked up to see Falcon headed his way. The six-three sniper had two amber colored bottles in his hand. One with the cap still on, and one without.

“Dude, we’re like ten minutes late,” he told the former Army Ranger. “And”—he glanced over their host’s shoulder to the smoking grill several yards away—“Apollo just put the burgers on the grill, so the food’s not even ready yet, anyway.”

The man’s blue eyes gleamed with humor as he held out the unopened bottle and grinned. “That all you came here for? The food?”

“Don’t forget the beer,” Beckett teased, taking the offered beverage from his friend’s outstretched hand. “Thanks. You remember Evie…”

“Of course.” Falcon hurriedly wiped the condensation from his right hand before offering it to Evie. “Bones said you were in town and that the two of you had…reconnected.” He sent Beckett a knowing grin before refocusing on her. “How are you?”

“Better than the last time you saw me.” Evie chuckled and shook the man’s hand. “And thanks for letting me crash your party. You have a lovely home.”

“Thanks. We like it. And you’re not crashing anything. You know me and the guys…” The other man turned and pointed to the three women sitting around a stone firepit. “And that’s my wife, Avery, in the white sweater. The brunette to her right is her sister, Alex, and the blonde to her left is Nicki. She’s married to Apollo.” Falcon looked back at Evie. “They’re excited to meet you.”

“I’m looking forward to meeting them, as well.”

Beckett could tell she was still a bit nervous, but he knew without a doubt she’d fit right in.

No time like the present…

“Come on.” He jutted his chin toward the ladies. “I’ll introduce you.”

Another breeze blew past, lifting several of Evie’s curls. Still smiling, she reached up and brushed them from her eyes, tucking the unruly locks behind one of her adorable ears.

Beckett’s breath was literally stolen by her beauty, and he couldn’t seem to take his eyes off her. That was until he nearly tripped over a patio chair he’d missed seeing while under her spell.

“You good?”

Evie’s laugh was the sweetest of symphonies, and one he couldn’t wait to hear again.

“Always,” he drawled, wearing an unabashed smirk.

Then he turned his head to keep from falling on his ass.

He surveyed the pleasant scene before them as they walked toward the other women in attendance. They talked and laughed as they sat around the stone fire pit, their glasses of wine in various stages of consumption.

“Hey, Beck!” Avery Morgan shot up from her seat to give him a hug. “Glad you could make it.”

“Wouldn’t have missed it.” Beckett hugged the sweet woman back.

Before he got the chance to do it himself, Avery pulled away and turned her pretty brown eyes Evie’s way.

“You must be Evie.” She held out her hand. “It’s so nice to meet you. I’m Avery, Garrett’s wife. Of course, you probably know him as Falcon.”

“It’s nice to meet you, too.” His date for the afternoon smiled. “I was just telling your husband how great this place is.”

“Thanks.” Avery’s smile grew as she glanced around the peaceful backyard. “It’s a work in progress, but we really like it here. Oh, sorry.” She looked back at Evie. “Where are my manners? This is my sister, Alex.” She pointed toward the woman still sitting in the chair to Avery’s right.

“Hey,” Alex held up the glass in her hand and flashed Evie a friendly grin.

“Hi.”

“And that’s Nicki.” Avery motioned toward the attractive blonde to her left. “She’s married to Ethan.”

“And Ethan is…Apollo. Right?” Evie guessed.

“That’s him.” Nicki stood and gave her hand to Evie. “It’s nice meeting you.”

“You, too.”

“If you’ve got the nicknames down, you’ve already won half the battle,” Alex quipped.

Laughter came from them all, including Evie.

“I’m not sure I have the team names mastered, but I do have to ask…” Her gaze focused on Alex. “What’s the other half of the battle?”

Rather than answer the question directly, Avery’s sister leaned down, grabbed a clean wine glass from the handful waiting to be chosen, and handed the glass to Evie. “Pull up a chair and pour yourself some wine.” The extroverted artist gestured toward the empty seat to her right. “This is going to take a while.”

Everyone laughed, including Beckett. It wasn’t as if he could argue the woman’s claim.

“Sounds like that’s my cue to leave,” he half-joked. To Evie, he quietly asked, “You good here?”

If she wasn’t, he wouldn’t even think about leaving her side.

“I’m good.” Her dimpled smile was as genuine as it was beautiful. “Besides, from the looks of things, I think they might need some help.”

Beckett followed her line of sight, turning just in time to see Apollo and Falcon moving hastily in front of the grill. Flames shot up from beneath the appliance’s metal grate, and it was clear the two men were moving quickly to avoid burning their food to a crisp.

Standing a few feet away—and looking cool as a fucking cucumber—Digger took a sip of his beer while watching the humorous scene unfold. With a slight shake of his head, he shoved his free hand into the front pocket of his jeans as Falcon began dousing the flames with what Beckett assumed was clean water.

“I think you’re right.” Beckett’s gaze slid back to Evie’s. “Better go help put out the fire…literally.” He leaned in for a quick peck on her lips…just because he could. “You know where to find me.”

“I’ll follow the smoke.”

He laughed as he turned and walked away, laughing as he crossed the patio to offer aid to his barbeque-impaired friends. Beckett didn’t look back or second-guess his decision to leave Evie with the girls. He could already tell she was going to fit right in.

“Are you trying to turn those burgers into hockey pucks, or do you just prefer your meat overdone?” He couldn’t resist the dig.

“You think you can do better, be my guest,” Apollo groused back. “Damn thing got too hot too fast.”

“No shit,” Beckett snorted sarcastically as he held out his hand palm-up toward Falcon. “Give me the bottle and step aside.”

Falcon did as he was asked, grumbling something under his breath about Texans and their barbeque. In response, Beckett brought the plastic nozzle closer to the grate and sprayed.

“Say what you want, city boy,” he swiftly began extinguishing the unruly flames. “If it’s one thing I know, it’s how to work a damn grill.”

“Looks to me like you’ve been working something else.” Falcon jutted his chin in the ladies’ direction.

“And?” Beckett didn’t bother looking. “I already told you Evie and I were together.”

“Oh, I know.” Falcon took a swig of the beer he’d just opened and shrugged. “I just try to give you shit every chance I can.”

“Yeah, well…maybe next time you should try harder, ’cause that was totally lame.”

“My ass, it was lame. And you aren’t the only one on this team who can make a joke, you know?”

“Yeah, but…does it really count if nobody laughs?” Beckett pointed to Apollo as the other man began to chuckle. “See? Now that’s the reaction you want when telling a joke.”

“Fuck you, Bones.” Falcon flipped him the bird before changing to a more genuine tone. “Seriously, though. I like Evie, and I truly hope things work out for the two of you.”

“Yeah?”

The other man frowned. “You act like that surprises you. Told you on the phone the other day that I’m cool with it.” His gaze slid over to Apollo and Digger before bringing it back to Beckett’s. “We all are.”

“No, I know.” Beckett set the nearly empty water bottle down before grabbing the long, metal spatula to flip the burgers. “And I told her as much. I guess I just expected more blowback, what with Evie being a former rescue, and the fact that we haven’t known each other very lo?—”

“I fell in love with Avery damn near the moment I met her,” Falcon cut him off. “And need I remind you that she was also a Tac-Ops rescue… twice? ”

“So was Nicki,” Apollo chimed in. “Granted, she and I had a history before that fucker Be?ová tried to kill her. But still…”

The small group of men fell momentarily silent as memories from that tumultuous time came rushing back. Not long after, Falcon turned his blue eyes Beckett’s way.

“Time frame doesn’t matter when it’s right.” The former Ranger looked as serious as ever. “She handled herself damn well with those asshole terrorists, which means not only is she smart, but she’s tough. And there isn’t a person here who’d judge you for falling in love with a woman you rescued. I mean, at this point…” His intense expression gave way to a smirk. “It’s kinda what we do.”

Both Apollo and Falcon joined Beckett in a sudden state of laughter because…well…Falcon was right. Both he and Apollo had found the love of their lives in the midst of rescues and danger, and if this thing worked out with Evie, it would mean he had, too.

Three down, one to go…

His focus shifted to Digger, who wasn’t laughing or flashing so much as a smirk. While remaining as stoic as ever, the former SEAL gave a simple shrug of a shoulder. And for Dig, that was almost as good as a smile.

One of these days, I swear, I’m gonna figure out what it is that makes that man tick.

But until then…

He turned and looked to where Evie was sitting with the girls. Alex said something to the group, and they all burst into hysterical laughter.

Including Evie.

“See?” Falcon gave Beckett’s bicep a friendly slap. “What’d I tell you? She fits right in.”

As if she could sense he was watching her, Evie glanced his way. She gave him a tiny wave, and Beckett smiled back, his entire chest filling with warmth as his heart began to swell.

He’d assured her she’d get along with Avery, Nicki, and Alex, so it really came as no surprise. But seeing the proof behind that beautiful wide smile of hers, and Beckett knew…

I’m never gonna let her go.

“Uh oh. I know that look.”

Evie tore her gaze from Beckett to find Nicki looking at her from across the fire. Realizing the other woman was referring to her, she asked the pretty blonde, “What look is that?”

“The one currently plastered all over that pretty face of yours.” Apollo’s wife shot her a knowing smile.

I have a look?

“I don’t know what you’re?—”

“She’s right, you know?” Avery’s expression matched that of Nicki’s. “You look at Beckett the same way Nick looks at Ethan, and how?—”

“Avery looks at Garrett,” Nicki finished for the other woman.

Evie glanced over at Alex, who was taking a sip of her wine. “Don’t look at me.” Alex sat her nearly empty glass onto the small accent table between them. “I live a perfectly contented single life. But…”

“But what?” she was almost afraid to ask.

After a quick glimpse at both Avery and Nicki, Avery’s sister looked back at Evie and grinned. “They’re both right. And, for what it’s worth, Beck looks at you the exact same way.”

He does?

Unable to keep from it, she stole a quick glance Beckett’s way. Her heart leaped and butterflies flourished when she saw what the other three meant.

He does.

“Oh, yeah.” Alex’s confident tone pulled Evie back to the conversation. “Stick a fork in her, girls. She’s done.”

Not pretending to misunderstand the other woman’s meaning, Evie simply lifted her glass to her smiling lips, letting the sweet red vino pass slowly over her tongue. They weren’t wrong in their astute assessment of her feelings toward Beckett. She was far too gone where the hostage rescue specialist was concerned.

The last few days had been absolutely incredible. They’d talked and laughed… Evie couldn’t remember the last time she’d laughed as much as she had with Beckett. But they also had more important, more serious conversations, too.

Evie had told him all about her mother and how she’d lost her when she was eight. Bad weather and unsafe speed had been the official cause of the accident, but what Evie remembered most was how she’d felt so utterly and completely alone.

She told Beckett what it was like growing up surrounded by a bunch of snobby, spoiled, rich kids. And how, as she’d grown older, she couldn’t wait to get away from East Hampton and out on her own.

The best parts of their conversations were when he’d do the sharing. How his voice grew soft with affection when he spoke of his mom. The way his tone filled with pride when Beckett told her about his dad.

She loved that his mom was a retired schoolteacher, and that Mr. Stone had spent his youth protecting the citizens of his city. Beckett swore she’d love them both, and from what the man had already shared, Evie couldn’t agree more.

So yes, she was “done”, as Alex had put it, and there wasn’t a single part of her that was sorry. The only thing left for them to figure out now was how to make a long-distance relationship work.

A phone began to ring, the peeling sound cutting through the afternoon air. At first, Evie paid it no attention until another phone rang. And then…

Another.

She and the other women all turned and looked at the guys. All four had their cells to their ears, and from the expressions on their handsome faces, it wasn’t good news.

“Well, Evie,” Nicki spoke to her from across the flickering flames. “It looks like you’re about to get your first real test.”

“Test?” Evie’s brows bunched together. “What do you mean, test?”

“She means, the guys just got called up.” Avery pushed herself to her feet and sighed. “And that means, you’re about to see if you can handle being with a Tac-Ops man.”

Her gaze slid back to where he was standing, and her chest instantly grew tight. A giant fist reached inside and squeezed her heart as she thought of him running headfirst into danger.

A few days of awesome sex and in-depth conversations was one thing. But staying behind while the man she loved went to places unknown to risk his life for God only knows what…

If he and his team didn’t do what they do, you and the girls would be dead.

It was that thought that had her rising to her feet to make her way across the patio to where Beckett stood. As hard as it was to think of him risking his life, she understood better than most what an impact he and his team could make.

Besides, Nicki and the others were right. This was a test of epic proportions. And she intended to pass with flying colors.