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26
NOAH
As someone who had actually been captured and tortured by enemy hands, it was saying something that I found my quick mission to Oregon to be the worst one I had been on. It probably had a lot to do with the fact that I left my heart in Southern California. Leaving Everly and Skylar had been the hardest thing I’d ever had to do. The fact that there was a chance I would miss her thirteenth birthday had me seriously considering living off my trust fund, so I never missed another day of her life. As it was, we were back a day before that special day.
The way Sky had held on to me had left a lump in my throat and had me questioning my career for the first time in my life. She reminded me that champs started in two weeks, and I needed to hurry back so I could see her win. That was a week ago.
As we stepped back onto the plane that would take us back to California, I was grateful to the Grimms who could loan us their private plane. Of course, if I had asked my dad he would’ve as well. But he still did not know about his granddaughter or Everly. Or that I was working in the private sector.
Not that I was ashamed. Not really. I mean my mother could be embarrassing and overbearing but I learned a long time ago not to take her seriously. She was tiresome and annoying, but I could handle her in small doses. And now that I had my first mission for the Salingers out of the way, I could relax a little. A successful mission was something I was desperately in need of.
We caught that asshole Randall Baker red-handed. The DEA was able to make the arrest they needed, and another bad guy was put behind bars. If only we could get a handle on Everly’s stalker just as easily.
I looked over at my team. They were all as exhausted as I was. Bex had crashed almost as soon as I finished the after action meeting on the plane. Jared’s eyes were closed too but I was almost certain he was still awake. Both Nick and Oliver were wide awake, but the signs were there that they were anxious to get home as well.
Trey seemed to be agitated. That could just be how he was after a mission. Like all of us, he wanted to get home. That was normal. Still, something felt off with him. The mission did teach me a thing or two about him. His nickname was Goose. Because his last name was Gosling.
Something he said to me on our flight to Oregon stuck with me. “Trey, you said you worked with Ronnie. That must’ve been after we went our separate ways. I don’t remember you.”
“Yeah.” Trey looked startled to be taken from his thoughts. “We were in the Marines and then he got me that security job at The Dane.”
“Oh, right I remember that on your resume.” Ronnie had only been at that job a few months when his girlfriend was shot, and he took over her security. “Ronnie and I are still good friends.”
He nodded and narrowed his eyes at me. “I remember you visiting him once. There was an album release party or something that night and you just walked in.”
“Yeah, the Moore name tends to do that in LA.” I smiled thinking about the night he was referring to. “That was the night I met Everly. Small world.”
“It is, indeed.”
He turned back to the window, effectively ending our conversation. The rest of the four-and-a-half-hour flight seemed to take forever. All of us were anxious and eager to see our people. As far as I knew, Trey was the only one with no ties in Marina De Ferrier, and yet he was just as eager as the rest of us.
There could’ve been a girlfriend I knew nothing about. Or maybe he just didn’t like flying. Who knew? We all handled our shit differently, and just because I sometimes got a weird feeling off the guy was no reason to judge him.
It wasn’t long before we landed, and everyone went their separate ways. None of us had told our families we were on our way. All of them were only expecting us back in a week and it was still a little earlier than when we all usually did our daily check-ins. My skin itched with the derma-tag we’d each placed on our arms. I couldn’t wait to see if it came off in the shower. Nick said it would eventually dissolve in the next day or two, and to stop fidgeting with it. Sometimes I was sure he channeled his mother when he spoke to us.
Fortunately, most of us had left our cars at the small airstrip in Marina De Ferrier. I offered to drop Bex off at Forte Femme before heading to Jake and Cassie’s place to fetch my girls.
Her phone rang and she put it onto the speaker. It looked like she was too exhausted to even hold the phone.
“Logan why are you—”
“One of the nurses texted me to say she saw a convoy of SUVs leaving the airstrip. Was that you guys?”
“Um yes. Are you keeping tabs on us?”
“We live in a town the size of a penny. Tabs are part of the territory. Especially when your brother drives an Escalade and Noah drives that Ford. You guys don’t exactly blend.”
“Lo, can we have this conversation later. I need a shower and sleep, and to see my nephews and nieces. Not necessarily in that order.”
There was a beat of silence and I wondered what was happening. “Uh, yes. Sorry. Get some rest.”
I’d heard rumors that the confident doctor had a thing with Bex when they were younger. And judging by the nerves that were clear in his voice that thing was far from over. Only Bex could not see it.
Once I dropped her off and helped her carry her bag into the house, I hightailed it over to Jake and Cassie’s house. Jake’s car was in the driveway, with Everly’s alongside his. I guessed that Cassie’s was in the garage and that Jake had a daily struggle convincing Ev to park hers in the second garage at night. As I pulled up in front of the house, I checked my watch. Sky would be home. Unless they decided to increase rehearsals the week before champs, Thursdays was meant to be her off day.
I knocked at the front door and Jake opened the door with a smile. “Hey. Congratulations. I hear your first mission went off successfully.”
I took his outstretched hand and nodded. “Yeah, but I believe that’s not a coincidence. Apparently, Nick and Lilly have a one hundred percent success rate.”
