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Honestly, he’s not a bad guy. I’ve never had the same opinion of him as I have of Reid. He’s just always seemed… a little lost, I guess.
He’s followed Reid around like a lost little puppy for as long as I can remember. But he seems to be a great soldier, a hard worker and a loyal friend. Any bad decisions he’s made are because of the leader he follows. And spending time with him at Reid’s place has only solidified those opinions.
Although I must admit, even as much as I hate it, he seemed less lost over the past few days, and I fear that might have something to do with the woman not so far away.
I’m hardly surprised; she does possess those kinds of magical powers. She sure sucked me in good and then refused to release me from her tight hold. She didn’t even know she was doing it either.
Movement from deeper in the cabin hits my ears and I drag myself from my thoughts and tug the fridge open, surveying the contents for something for dinner.
I might not have skills like Reid does in the kitchen, but I’m more than capable of rustling up something edible that will hopefully give us some energy after all our… activities.
13
ALANA
My muscles are tight and my core aches in the most delicious way as I silently pad toward the kitchen where Mav is crashing around like he’s destroying the place. He’s always been a noisy and messy cook.
Memories of watching him in our kitchen at home bring a smile to my face, but it falls a little when that image suddenly morphs into someone else moving effortlessly and flawlessly around his own state-of-the-art kitchen.
Shaking him from my thoughts, I continue forward.
This right here is everything I ever wanted.
My husband all to myself—and not holding anything back—the beach, peace and quiet with the knowledge that the men of my past are being taken care of for us.
So why is it that I don’t feel as relaxed or as content as I always thought I would when this time came?
Today has been all kinds of incredible. Having Mav finally shed his fear and open up to me, both mentally and physically, was everything I could have wished for, and it holds the promise of so much more.
I should be satisfied, complete.
But something within me is still as unsettled as ever, and dread sits heavy in my stomach.
We’re safe here. I have no doubt about that. It’s not fear of being found. Even if Victor knows that we were at Reid’s, I really doubt he cares enough to embark on a wild goose chase to find where we’ve gone. He’s got bigger issues with what his oldest son is attempting to do. And if he does know about our location, then he must be suspicious as hell about what Reid is up to.
Reid and Mav’s rivalry is well known through the Hawks, add in my fucked-up situation with Victor and he’s got to be coming up with all kinds of scenarios about how we ended up there.
I guess all we can hope is that Reid manages to pull off whatever he’s planning, sooner rather than later, so we never have to worry about Victor’s next move again.
For a moment, I try to imagine what it’ll be like. The freedom, the lack of looking over my shoulder waiting for the next strike.
Will my nightmares die with them?
I guess that could be one wish too many. Something tells me that I’m going to be stuck with the horror of my past for the rest of my life.
But knowing we’ve protected numerous little girls and women from the lives that Kristie and I lived… A smile twitches at my lips.
I just want it to be over. To stop the pain and the abuse of those too young and innocent to understand what is going on around them.
Refusing to lose myself in my dark thoughts when everything around me is so good, I take another step forward and round the corner to find Mav putting the finishing touches to sandwiches.
The second he realizes I’m here, his head lifts and his eyes find mine. And the second they do, the widest most sincere smile I think I’ve ever seen spreads across his lips.
“Hey,” I say, my stomach a riot of butterflies as the air crackles between us.
His pupils darken as he drops his gaze down my body, taking in what I’m wearing.
“That’s my shirt,” he states, almost sounding in awe.
