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“All right, Jacob, it’s way past your bedtime.” Brynn stretched, raising her hands above her head. The position accentuated the curve of her breasts pressing against her tank top. She caught him staring, and she quickly lowered her arms.
Great. Just what she wanted. Someone leering at her. Fucking this up, scaring her off would leave him and Jacob completely vulnerable. Trust didn’t come easy for him, and it would be difficult to hand his brother’s care over to someone who didn’t know him well. “What’s the nighttime routine?” he said to push past the awkward moment.
She cleared her throat, and uncrossed her legs to slide off of the bed. “Some daily living activities like getting cleaned up and brushing his teeth. He takes several medications—anticonvulsants, muscle relaxers, and ones to prevent seizures. The dressings around his G-tube, that’s a port that delivers additional food directly to his stomach, needs to be changed. Overnight, he gets supplemental nutrition via tube. We get into pajamas, and set up his breathing treatments so they’re running while we read a chapter of whatever book we have.”
“Jesus.” He glanced at his brother, then at Brynn, and back. “I’m sorry. Sorry you have to deal with all this extra shit. You must be one hell of a brave kid.” Jacob offered no response, but the thoughtful look on his face indicated he was listening to each word.
“He is.” Brynn nodded and walked to the top of the bed, sitting at the side next to Jacob. “And resilient. Isn’t that right, Jacob? I’m going to talk about you for a minute.” She ran her hand over his hair. He liked that Brynn always told his brother what was happening. It must be hard to have people talk about you like you weren’t in the room, just because you couldn’t communicate in the same way. “But the thing is, despite what Jacob deals with on a day-to-day basis, your brother has so much joy. So much love he shares with his friends and teachers. With me. There are so many things he loves, too—books, the water, playing board games, and watching fish at the aquarium. And the way he brings people together with that deep belly laugh is amazing. In his old school, he played on several unified sports teams. Was very involved in the community. I’m hoping once we get settled in Virginia we can find programs and groups for him to belong to. What I’m trying to say is some people go through their whole life without knowing the kind of love, support, and joy that Jacob does.”
Something hard had wedged itself into the base of his throat, and he couldn’t seem to find words to share how beautiful he thought Brynn’s perspective was.
As if sensing his discomfort, Brynn cleared her throat. “Now speaking of books, that reminds me, I need to return the one we have to the library before we go anywhere.” Her expression was pinched. He shook his head, suppressing a grin. Goddamn adorable that she’d be so concerned about returning a book with everything else she had going on.
“Okay. We’ll return the book first thing,” he reassured her. His pocket vibrated against his leg with an incoming call. He fished the phone out of his pocket and glanced at the screen. It was Joker.
“Go take your call. We’ll see you in the morning.” Brynn was already unpacking a change of clothes from Jacob’s suitcase.
The bed creaked as he stood. “I was hoping to talk to you before you go to sleep.” He swiped his finger across the screen to silence the call.
Brynn hesitated, almost drawing back into herself. And of course she did. They’d just met. She’d taken a big risk by coming to the hotel, and he was pushing her beyond her comfort zone. He had questions about logistics. When it was feasible for her to consider leaving Boston and what needed to be prepared when they arrived in Virginia, but she didn’t know his intentions. When his team had discovered Jacob’s location, he’d arranged to meet his mother’s lawyer, and he’d hired one of his own to ensure Jacob’s best interests. She laid the pajamas on the end of the bed, then opened a bag containing a half dozen medications, before turning to him. “It’s late. You can ask me now or we can talk tomorrow.”
Telling her she was safe with him wasn’t going to ease her mind. He needed to gain her trust and Jacob’s. He nodded. “Tomorrow I have a meeting with the lawyer who is handling our mother’s estate, including the guardianship of Jacob. I’ve hired my own lawyer to be in attendance.”
“What time?” Her shoulders relaxed a fraction, but she still glanced over her shoulder with a wary expression when she turned her back to gather more supplies from her bag. Again, he couldn’t blame her for being smart, even as his stomach turned at the thought of her being afraid of him. He took a few steps back, moving closer toward the door.
“The firm sent me an email that they’ve had a cancellation tomorrow morning at eight o’clock, but if that’s too soon, we can keep the first appointment I made for two days from now.” His palm hit the cool metal door handle. The more space he gave Brynn, the more she seemed to relax. That didn’t sit well with him. Anger combusted and seared through his chest. Someone had mistreated her. His intuition was rarely off, but damn, he hoped he was wrong.
“Tomorrow’s fine.” Brynn stood near the side of the bed fidgeting with the plastic bag of supplies in her hands. “I’ll have Jacob ready.”
He felt like he should ask if there was anything he could help with in the morning, but didn’t know if he’d be overstepping.
“Thank you.” He held her gaze for a moment, wanting to thank her again, but not wanting to make her uncomfortable. “Night, Jacob. I had fun with you. Can’t wait for you to meet my teammates. They’ll be your brothers, too.” Jacob looked up at him in acknowledgment. His brother’s eyes were getting heavy, but he was offered a sleepy smile. His heart did a funny squeeze as he stepped into the hall and crossed to his room to call Joker back.
His friend answered on the first ring. “Where the hell have you been the last two hours?”
Joker had an intense and serious personality—part of the reason he earned his nickname. “Playing the Game of Life with my brother and his nurse at the hotel we’re staying in.” He rolled his tight shoulders. The day had been intense between meeting his brother and trying to convince Brynn he meant no harm.
“When Silver told me you found them and convinced them to go with you I didn’t believe it. Be careful, man. You don’t know this woman. She could be looking for a payday.” Joker was also extremely wary of people. He’d grown up in the Alaskan bush with his twin sister and their father. Their mother had left when they were both young.
“That’s exactly what she’s going to get.” He removed his room key from his wallet, scanned it, and pushed the door open. Conditioned air swept over him as he made his way into the room. “My mother stopped paying her four months ago. Four fucking months, Joker. You should’ve seen where they were living. And before then, they lived on the grounds of my mother’s estate—not in it.” He went straight for the minibar and removed a beer.
“Seriously jacked. But then again, are you surprised?” Joker asked vehemently. He might be moody and distrusting, but his loyalty to those he loved was fierce and profound.
“No. Just disgusted. I thought fucking up one kid would be enough for her. She must’ve gotten knocked up a couple years after I left. Probably around the time we were finishing BUD/S. I just keep thinking if I’d gone back, even once, I would’ve found out about Jacob.” He sank back onto the crisp white comforter covering the bed, feet still planted on the floor.
“Don’t do that. You could’ve, but you didn’t. What’s your next move?” Joker was never one for softening words. He held the cell phone between his jaw and his shoulder, and using the bottle opener on his keychain, popped the top off of his drink. Barley-scented vapor from the chilled bottle rose into the air. “Sad as it is, it only took Brynn an hour to pack up, and most of the possessions were Jacob’s. His medical equipment took up most of the space. She only had one garbage bag of belongings.”
“That set off any red flags for you?” Joker asked.
He did wonder how it was possible she had so little in the way of belongings, She sold her own things to support herself and his brother. If that didn’t say something about her character, he wasn’t sure what did. “I don’t think there’s anything suspicious about her if that’s what you’re asking. In fact, she’s a fucking angel.”
“So it’s like that.” There was a rare teasing note in Joker’s voice.
“It’s not like anything. She’s amazing with Jacob. Loves him like a mother. What she does for him on a daily basis blows my mind, and she makes it look easy. Having her come back to Virginia just makes everything that much more manageable. When we go out on missions, my mind will be at peace because I know she’d never let anything harm Jacob.” And if any one of his teammates tried to hook up with her like she was some woman they’d pick up at the bar, they had another think coming. An ugly burn roiled in his stomach. It wasn’t jealousy. He was feeling protective of her because she was important to Jacob.
“What do you need us to do? Doubt the commander will let you sit out on this next mission.” The next mission wasn’t an if, but a when. They were standing by for their CIA source to confirm reports of a key militant’s location. A new terrorist group had splintered off from the Islamic State – Khorasan Province and swelled in numbers when the United States withdrew from Afghanistan. The group was responsible for the malicious deaths of thousands of women and children, and intel suggested they’d have the means to carry out an attack on US soil within six months.
“Search some listings for me. A single family home—a ranch, or a condo unit with elevator access. The closer to base and the public middle school the better. Also, car dealerships in the area that sell accessible vans.” A dull throb began to pulse behind his eyes. The sheer number of things he needed to do to get Jacob settled in Virginia pressed heavily on his shoulders. Still, he wasn’t going to turn on his heel and walk out in the face of responsibility like his dad or just plain ignore it like his mother. Jacob was his blood, and he’d planned to do right by him.
