Page 23 of Rescuing Sadie

“All right, Annie. We’re comin’. Lead the way,” Chase told the little girl.

She marched toward them and got behind him. Then she put both hands on his butt and pushed. “Daddy told me not to leave the room without you. So you have to lead the way.”

Chase chuckled. “Smart man,” he murmured under his breath, but allowed himself to be pushed out of the bedroom.

Sadie followed along in his wake, smiling at the antics of Fletch’s little girl. She was precocious and adorable at the same time.

Chapter Eight

Dinner went surprisingly well. Sadie had thought she might be uncomfortable with Ghost and Fletch, but they were down to earth and reminded her a lot of the operatives who worked for McKay-Taggart. She had friends, but sitting around watching Rayne and Emily interact with each other and their men was refreshing. They showed their love for one another openly. They teased and laughed together, but it was absolutely done out of affection and respect.

Too many times in college Sadie had lost friends because of petty jealousies and perceived competition on their part. But it was obvious Emily and Rayne weren’t envious of each other. Maybe it was because they were older, maybe it was because they were with soldiers who they knew could be killed on any of their missions. Whatever it was, Sadie liked them. She enjoyed being a part of their inner circle. She wanted to have that true intimacy with another woman, or a group of women. She felt as if she had it with Milena and had missed relaxing and chatting with her over the last month. It was always great to have a boyfriend, but there was just something different about knowing you had women you could count on no matter what.

They were sitting around relaxing and talking after dinner when Ghost’s phone rang. He obviously recognized the number and didn’t care if the others overheard his conversation, because he didn’t bother getting off the couch to answer it.

“Ghost here. Hey, Fish, how are you? How’s Bryn?” He smiled at the group as he listened to whatever was being said on the other end of the line.

“Really? She said that? Shit, I love your wife, man. She’s awesome.”

Sadie felt Chase stiffen next to her right after Ghost began speaking, but she didn’t know why. Chase had the hand of his injured arm sitting on her thigh, as if they sat like that all the time, but for whatever reason, when Ghost started talking to his friend, his fingers dug into her leg almost painfully.

She looked over at him—and he was staring at Ghost with a gaze that was as intense as she’d ever seen. “Chase?” she asked softly, getting concerned.

Ghost was still talking. “When you get that new prosthetic, let us know. I’m interested to hear how you like it and if it’s as high tech as it’s purported to be. Annie says she misses you. She’s upset we got to come out and see you not too long ago. After she heard all about Bryn, she can’t wait to meet her.”

“What’s his last name?” Chase asked loudly, making Sadie jump. He wasn’t trying to be polite; he’d barged into Ghost’s conversation as if he had every right. He sounded pissed too. As if he was angry that Ghost was on the phone in the first place.

Sadie looked at Chase. His teeth were obviously grinding because she could see his jaw flexing. His lips were pressed together and his eyes were narrowed. He was still gripping her leg hard enough that she’d probably have bruises. Sadie wanted to do something to help him, but she wasn’t sure what was wrong in the first place.

Ghost went from relaxed and jovial to irritated—and possibly a little angry—in a heartbeat. “Hang on,” he said into the phone, then held it against his chest and stared at Chase. “What’s your problem?”

“You called whoever you’re talking to ‘Fish.’ What’s his last name?”

Ghost didn’t answer immediately, and the two men stared at each other for a long moment.

Rayne finally broke the tense silence. “Munroe. Fish’s name is Dane Munroe. Why? What’s going on, Chase?”

Sadie watched as all the blood drained from Chase’s face, as if he’d just seen a ghost. She didn’t understand what in the world was going on, but it was something big.

As if in a trance, Chase held out his hand to Ghost, obviously asking for the phone.

“Chase?” Rayne asked again, sounding extremely concerned now.

Ghost hesitated for a second, but whatever he saw in Chase’s face made him lean forward and hand him the phone.

Everyone in the room was silent, aware that something big was happening, but not sure what.

Sadie reached over and put her hand on Chase’s leg, but she didn’t think he even knew she was there. Hell, she didn’t think he was aware of anyone around him.

He slowly brought the phone up to his ear. Sadie could hear the man named Fish on the other end; his voice was loud and easily heard through the speaker of the phone since she was sitting right next to Chase.

“Hello?” Chase said tentatively.

“Who’s this?” Fish asked.

“Captain Chase Jackson. Who’s this?”

There was a long pause on the other end of the line, then Fish asked, “No shit? Jackson?”