Chapter 42

Nichole knew how to work crowds, but this wasn’t work, and she really wanted to make a good impression. When they arrived, the group was huge. She hadn’t expected this many people. Jesse had told her there would be the guys and their women, but there were kids, too, and it just seemed to multiply the group.

Danika waved her over to a group of women. “Hey!”

Nichole smiled and waved as she walked over. None of the women were looking at her like she was entertainment, instead they seemed genuinely interested in meeting her.

Danika gave her a hug and then turned to the rest of the group. “This is Nichole. Now, I’m going to go around and introduce you, but please forgive me if I don’t remember your names.”

The women all laughed. “Totally understandable,” one of the women said.

“Okay, we’ve got Rory, who is dating Harry.” A cute woman with reddish brown hair and green eyes flashed her a bright smile.

Rory stuck out her hand for Nichole to shake. “It’s nice meeting you.”

“Same. Thank you.”

Danika continued. “This is Ava.”

Ava had blonde hair and brown eyes. Her smile showed up in her eyes and she looked nice. “Welcome to the club.”

“The club?” Nichole asked.

Another woman chuckled. “I’m Ingrid. It’s kind of like a club of the best kind. We look after each other. It’s nice. When the guys go out on missions, we get together and have at least one day on the weekend to have fun?—”

“And drink,” Rory said.

“Well, as long as we’re not pregnant,” a very pregnant woman said. “I’m Haisley. I’m with Peach.”

Ava put her arm around Haisley’s shoulder. “And our newest addition.”

Danika pointed at the woman holding a baby. “This is Mel.”

Mel flashed a smile and shook her hand. “It’s great to meet you.”

“Thank you. Cute baby.”

Mel smiled even wider. “Thanks. We like her.”

“I delivered her,” Haisley said proudly.

The women all chuckled. “You did great,” Ava said.

Danika pointed to the one woman Nichole hadn’t met. She had shiny long hair that was beautiful. “And this is Jessica.”

“Wow, Jessica, your hair is amazing.”

Jessica’s cheeks turned pink. “Thank you. I’m glad you’re dating Jay. He’s a nice guy.”

“Do you all know him well?” She shouldn’t be digging, but that was what she did.

“He’s come over a few times. He’s good with the kids. I have two.”

Nichole glanced over her shoulder, seeing the guys playing with four kids. “Oh, which two?”

“The boy and the girl who are running away from Bear. That’s my man.”

Nichole turned back to the group. “So, do all of you use their nicknames?”

The women shrugged, and some nodded. “I like Bear.”

Nichole shrugged. “I met him as Jesse.”

Ava’s eyes lit up. “Oh, you knew him before?”

Heat filled Nichole. She hadn’t told many people about her week-long sex-filled vacation because she hadn’t gone there for sex, but it’s what it turned into.

Rory laughed. “Oh, you’re blushing. Must be juicy.”

Mel snorted. “You’ve got nothing to be embarrassed about. She’s a product of our second date.”

Nichole didn’t know what to say. She wasn’t sure if they would think she was too loose for jumping on Jesse the night she met him.

“He’s a good guy,” Jessica said. “You picked well.”

She shrugged. “I think he’s good. Sometimes, I pinch myself because I can’t believe I found someone I really care about.”

Jesse had come over without her seeing him, and he wrapped his arm around her shoulder. “Nice, you really care. That’s good because I love you.”

“Awww,” and, “So sweet,” went up around the group as Jesse pulled her into a heart-melting kiss.

“So you two are hot and heavy,” one of the guys said.

Nichole pulled out of the kiss, her cheeks heating as she glanced around, seeing that they had the group’s attention. She wasn’t used to standing out for something like this.

Danika reached out and squeezed her shoulder. “You two are way too cute.”

“How about food? Are you all ready to eat?” Bear held up the package of hot dogs, and she was glad for the distraction.

Jesse leaned in close. “You okay?”

She nodded. “Yes. Really, these people are great. I’m good.”

“Awesome. They are good people. The women on Wild’s team are tight.”

She nodded, liking that there was a group of women around her who were good friends. Being in the news industry, good friends were hard to keep because there was so much competition. With these women, she wondered how it would play out. Surely, they all knew who she was.

Two guys watched the kids, playing ball with them while the other men worked on getting the food ready. She was surprised that none of the women went over to the table with all the food.

Ava came close and nodded at the guys. “They like taking care of us. They’re all doers. Wouldn’t have made it through BUDs class if they weren’t. We all do so much at home, making sure they have what they need, they like doing everything at outings. It’s nice.”

Worry filled her. “What all do you do at home?”

Ava’s lips turned up. “Well, since none of us are military, when they get called out, we make sure everything is taken care of here.”

She nodded. “Like when Jesse’s team came over to rescue the medical group.”

“Yep. Jay’s neighbors help him. Otherwise, I probably would have driven by and made sure everything was okay. We take turns helping the single guys out. But you’ll probably travel for work.”

“Yeah,” Jessica said as she came over. “How is that going?”

Unease slid through her. Was Jessica digging? What did she want to know about? “Um, okay.”

“I kind of knew Jax before we got together. I work as a nurse, and I was overseas when I was abducted. It was bad. They held me for what seemed like forever. When the SEALs came in to rescue a group of Marines, Jax found me.” Laughter spilled from Jessica’s mouth. “I looked and smelled like shit. But he got me out, and now we’re together.”

Awareness slid through Nichole, and she realized she’d read an account of what had happened to Jessica. She reached out and grabbed onto Jessica’s arm. “I think I read an account of what happened before I took on this project.”

“I’m glad you’re highlighting how dangerous it can be. We need more people helping, but they also need more protection.”

Nichole pulled her into a hug. “I’m glad you were rescued.”

Jessica leaned back and met Nichole’s gaze. “I’m glad nothing more happened to you. I was worried when I heard what happened. Of course, it wasn’t until you’d already been rescued, but I was so worried about all of you.”

Jesse came over and put his arm around her shoulder. “Everything okay?”

Nichole wiped the tears from her eyes. “Yes. It’s all good. Just chatting with Jessica. She used to work for a medical group overseas, kind of like the group I interviewed.”

Jesse nodded. “Ah, yeah. I remember that.”

One of the guys she didn’t know came up behind Jessica and put his arms around her. She realized it must be Jax. “Hey, everything okay?”

Jessica turned her head enough to kiss his arm. “Yeah. Just talking about what happened.”

“Oh yeah, I guess you two had similar situations. Those medical units are needed, but something needs to be done.” Jax paused for a few seconds. “Burgers are done. Who would like one?”

Nichole glanced over at the guys manning the grill and it looked like they were pulling the meat off the grill. Her stomach decided to growl very loudly at that moment. They all laughed.

“Thank you for telling us. I’ll come over and get mine. I think I need it.”

Jax led Jessica away, and Jesse pulled her closer. “You really okay?”

“Yes. I didn’t know what to think about all these people, but they’re good.”

“They are. I think you’ll get along with the women.”

She put her hand on his chest, stopping him from moving. “At first, I wasn’t so sure, but just the brief conversations we’ve had I’m impressed. None of them are treating me differently though they all know who I am. I’m so used to people wanting to use me for my connections, but these women all just seem like they’re happy I’m here.”

Jesse glanced at the group and then leaned in closer, keeping his voice low. “They’ve all been through stuff like Jessica and you. Some of it is not as bad, some worse. They have their issues, but I can tell you this, they are all good people. They understand you’re a person, too, even if you have been on most of the morning shows and a few evening news shows, too. They will treat you like you’re a person, not an object.”

She nodded. “I’m getting that now.”

Apple came over to them, hugging both of them around the neck. She was surprised he seemed happy to see her. “Hey, you two, better come get a burger while you can.”

“Thanks.” It was nice to have Apple accepting her as part of their group. It was a vast improvement to how he’d felt before. She knew they probably still had work to do to be friends, but at least he wasn’t challenging her at their get togethers.

The food was great, and the conversation light. The four kids who were older were funny and asked silly questions. All the men were patient and kind with the kids. None of them seemed annoyed when the youngest girl asked them all to pick which rock in her hand was the best. They all gave thoughtful answers, mentioning something about the rock like they liked the shape or the color. It was sweet.

When it was Jesse’s time to judge the rocks, he picked the one in her left hand, telling her he thought it was kind of heart-shaped. Nichole agreed, that the heart-shaped rock was best. It was a nice set up. The parents watched their kids, but having twelve men and eight women keeping an eye on four kids gave them all time to relax and enjoy their time together.

After they finished eating and cleaning up, the men went out and played tag with the kids while the women packed stuff up. There were only a few buns left over, and she gave them to Ava, who was taking the leftover meat.

“What are you working on next?” Ingrid asked.

“I don’t know. I don’t want something that will take me into a dangerous area. I mean, I enjoy travel, and I like adventure, but ending up being held captive by those terrorists wasn’t my idea of fun.”

Ava leaned against one of the picnic tables and crossed her arms over her chest. “What about writing a book about your experiences?”

She shrugged. “Well, maybe. There’s a publisher I’m talking to. The contract would have to be good.”

“I hope it is a good contract.”

“Me, too. I’d like to spend some time here. I mean, I’m sure I’ll travel for work again, but I like spending time with Jesse.”

“Agreed,” Rory said as she came over to grab something. “I like being here with my guy. I mean, I used to be in the Marines, and work was great, but I like having time with my guy.”

Nichole laughed. “I never figured myself for the type of person who would be happy with a quiet life, but I am.”

“So you two are serious then?” Ava asked.

Her lips spread into a wide grin as she nodded. “We are.”

Danika came over. “These women have been so kind to me. I’m glad you’re with Jay. He’s a good man, and I like you.”

Ava pulled Danika into a hug. “Yeah, we don’t get together with your team enough. I do enjoy seeing you.”

Nichole hadn’t realized that when she agreed to come out and spend time with Jesse, she would gain an awesome group of friends who were just good people. Having Jesse in her life was great, and these people as friends was icing on the cake. She could see herself being friends with them. It was nice to have a support system in place, and women she actually got along with.

The decision to email Jesse might just be the best decision she’d ever made. He wasn’t just a good guy. He’d brought so many good things into her life.