CHAPTER ONE
Jesse “Jump” Boulton laughed with everyone and took a sip of his beer, hiding the disappointment sweeping through him. He’d been seeing someone, and though it wasn’t serious, he thought it might turn serious. But it wasn’t to be.
No matter what he said about relationships with the guys, and sometimes to himself, he wanted what Cy and Foster had. They were happy now, like really happy.
It was easy to see that they were in love. Watching Pen and Foster was made harder as the bitterness of his last failed relationship ate at him. The woman hadn’t been right for him, but still, he wanted something that it looked like he would never have. Watching both couples was like eating a tray full of too rich chocolate sweets, making him feel a little heady, like something inside was off kilter.
Maybe there wasn’t a right person for him. That whole thing of waiting for the right person might just be total bullshit. What if some people were just meant to be alone? Maybe that was his deal, and he wasn’t supposed to have anyone special in his life.
The night started to wind down. He should leave. He finished his beer right when Wave stepped to the center of the room.
“Hey, so I wanted to tell you all that I’m taking a few weeks, maybe a month, might be more. I thought I was going to go before our last mission, but I talked it over with my mother and decided to stay here for a few weeks. But now things have taken a turn for her, and I can’t stay away any longer. I have to go help my sister.”
“Oh man, I’m sorry to hear that,” Cy said.
Wave nodded. “Thanks. I’m going home, and when I come back my sister will be with me.”
“We’ve got your back,” Bang said.
T nodded. “I’m here for you.”
“We’re all here for you, man. We’ve got you,” Foster said.
“And we’ll be here for your sister,” Willa said. “We’ve all got your back. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to call.”
Wave chuckled. “Thank you. You may be called on a lot. I’m not sure how to deal with a teenage girl. She’s eighteen, so she’ll argue she’s a woman, but I wasn’t a man at eighteen, even with joining the Navy. I think it took years for me to gain the maturity. Anyway, thank you for all the help I know you all will provide.”
Jump didn’t know what to say. He wouldn’t be any help with Wave’s sister. Teen girls were beyond his comprehension. He would support his buddy. The man had always been there for him, so he would be there for Wave.
“Hey, man, any time, anything you need. Just give me a holler.”
Wave nodded as they hugged. He would miss Wave, but his friend would be back. His life was changing, but Jump knew Wave wouldn’t give up everything just because his sister was coming here to live.
Jump took off. The drive home and late into the night, he kept having this thought that he needed to get his shit together. Things were changing, and he had to be smart and stop feelingsorry for himself. He was fine on his own and didn’t need anyone in his life.
Blakely Masters hadn’t had a good day in months. She’d tried making it on her own, but people and things kept conspiring against her. Maybe conspiring was too strong a word. It just seemed like nothing ever went her way.
She pulled up at her apartment, seeing her door cracked open. That couldn’t be good. Maybe it was just maintenance doing something inside her apartment, at—she glanced at her watch, seeing it was after nine. “Well, shit.”
No one should be inside her place. A sinking sensation settled in her stomach. Grayson, it had to be him. How the heck had he found her? This was going to get ugly real fast.
She ran upstairs to her apartment, determined to kick the guy out. He’d caused her enough trouble in the past, and she couldn’t keep dealing with him coming back to make her life hell.
She reached the third floor, her anger increasing with each step. When she was ten feet from her door, she squared her shoulders and yelled, “Get the fuck out of my place, Grayson! I don’t have it!”
She moved to the doorway and stopped as she searched for the bastard. She didn’t have what he was looking for, not here. But that bastard wouldn’t stop looking for what he thought was his. It wasn’t, though.
“Grayson, where the hell are you?”
Catching her breath proved difficult as she waited for Grayson to show his ugly mug. The bastard had been tracking her for years. Every time she got a handle on things, he showed up. There was only one way to guarantee he stopped, but shedidn’t have what it took. Ending up in prison wouldn’t be any better than life with The Faithful.
She stepped into her apartment just when the bastard came out of her bedroom. He hadn’t changed much. Except he looked even worse. His beard wasn’t trimmed, and his hair was unruly. He looked and smelled like he hadn’t showered in days. What had her father been thinking?
“Get out!” Blakely yelled.
“I don’t think so.”
No way would she ever go with him. He might think he could force her back into a life with The Faithful, but there was no way she would ever go back. “Get the fuck out of my apartment!”
