Total pages in book: 60
Estimated words: 57237 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 286(@200wpm)___ 229(@250wpm)___ 191(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 57237 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 286(@200wpm)___ 229(@250wpm)___ 191(@300wpm)
Hmm. Plausible. I probably had a friend who knew a friend of his and so on. For as great as we were at keeping shit to ourselves, we were masters at sharing insignificant gossip. Veterans who loved to vent were a dime a dozen, and I’d been in the game long enough to admit I was one of them. So while I never shared personal information, pour me a pint and I could tell anyone about Belize, Baghdad, and Bosnia.
Twin brothers with great potential who left the Army right after finishing boot camp were, on the other hand, not a dime a dozen. Couldn’t have taken Danny long to find out who they were.
I accepted his response and dug out my car keys, and I handed them to Reese. “Go get the truck. I’ve promised you beer and steaks.”
“Yes, sir.”
The twins jogged down the porch steps.
In the meantime, Danny and I maintained eye contact.
“Nice. Send away the kids so you and I can be alone…” He winked.
Cute.
The answer to my next question would determine if I let Danny stay for dinner.
“Have you been in contact with any of my family members?” I asked.
A man with honor wouldn’t cross that line unless they were bringing home very bad news.
“Yes,” Danny replied bluntly.
I clenched my jaw, anger welling up inside me, and I let my arms drop again. That was un-fucking-acceptable. “If you went anywhere near my sister, my nieces or nephews—”
“Oh, calm yourself, man.” He eased back to sit on the railing again. “I reached out to your brother. Soldier-to-soldier, you know? One of your buddies in the US knew him too, and Arden was a lot easier to find. Turns out he and I have something in common.” He scratched his nose and smirked. “Once I told him my plan, he was more than happy to give me all the info I wanted.”
I composed my face, but on the inside, I was fucking reeling. Was Danny even telling the truth? I couldn’t always tell with my brother. Arden could surprise me—and he was currently not very happy with my “life choices.” So it all depended on what this plan of Danny’s was. It had to be one hell of a plan for Arden to give an Emerson 101 to a stranger.
Regardless of how badly I needed a weekend away from everything, I was driving my ass back into town to the nearest pay phone.
“The hardest part, really, was to pin down your identity,” Danny said. “Took me a fuckin’ year. ’Cause we never knew anything beyond Emerson Payne, a name that comes up absolutely nowhere—and what I presume is a fake rank. You’re not actually a captain, are you?”
I wasn’t anything anymore. I’d gone private.
“The SAS ranks look a little different…” He eyed me pensively. “But now you’re at the Hillcroft Group in DC.”
Jesus.
I could admit, that took me aback. He knew the bloody agency I worked for? If Arden had told him that, he and I were gonna have a serious problem.
Now I had to know. “What is it that you want, Danny?”
His eyes lit up. “Now, that’s a good question. For starters, I wanna be invited for beer and steaks. I already went through the effort and got you a fire started in the living room. Brought in fresh spring water too.”
I nodded and rubbed my jaw. “Right—thanks for trespassing and breaking in to my cabin.”
He’d been here long enough to find my map of the springs in the area. I kept it in a drawer.
He pursed his lips. “Can it be considered trespassing if the place has no electricity or running water?”
I didn’t respond. I was in no mood to play games.
“Wait—I have a better question.” He got up and walked toward me, a little too close for comfort. He stopped right before his chest could touch mine, and he peered up at me. “Are you fucking the twins?”
I felt my jaw tick, and he fucking noticed. Typical Danny—he loved shock value, and he could go to great lengths to get a reaction.
Safe to say, I didn’t answer. I didn’t even know what River and Reese were into, though I had my guesses. Either way, I didn’t shit where I ate.
Danny wasn’t done pushing. He took another step forward and pissed me off when he leaned in and grazed his nose along my jaw.
“Are they het or don’t-ask-don’t-tell?” he murmured. “Never mind. Your brother is better at giving answers—about the man who matters anyway. I asked, and he told. Or confirmed, rath—”
That’s fucking it.
I couldn’t bloody help myself. He got to me. So I spun on him. In a fraction of a second, I grabbed him by his throat, knocked the knife out of his sheath and onto the floorboards, then shoved him up against the door and towered over him.