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Feet apart, arms folded across his chest and his lucky Charger’s ball cap on his head, HRT Commander Matt DeLuca stood in the mobile command vehicle and kept his gaze glued to the monitor in front of him. Blue Team was in position on the roof and ready to breach the veteran’s care building to rescue the hostages and apprehend the suspect on his order.
The camera angle sucked. There was too much going on, too many people moving around while police cleared the area for him in the shot to get a good look at the building. He tapped his earpiece to contact the team. “Tuck, gimme a sitrep.”
“Perimeter’s secure,” the team leader answered calmly in his Alabama drawl. “Nothing more from inside.”
After killing the first hostage over an hour ago, the suspect had gone quiet. The team had been en route to the site at the time.
Matt was aware of all the people around him as he studied the scene. Mostly FBI and local police. He didn’t spare them so much as a glance, all his focus on his team and the unfolding situation.
They would have to do a direct assault. A former soldier suffering from PTSD had snapped yesterday, storming the facility where he had previously received treatment, and taken employees hostage. Matt wanted the perp neutralized one way or the other before he took any more innocent lives. “Breach authorized. It’s your call.”
“Roger. Stand by.”
Matt switched his attention to the screen on the right, showing a feed from Tuck’s helmet cam. As team leader, Tuck’s place was at the back of the column, giving Matt a good view of the other six guys.
“On my mark,” Tuck murmured to his teammates. “Three. Two. One. Execute.”
Evers rammed the door open with a breaching tool. Bauer’s huge silhouette plunged through it, followed by the rest of the team. The seven-man-team swept the staircase leading to the lower floor of the care home.
“Clear,” Schroder said.
“Moving to hallway,” Tuck said.
Matt stayed silent, letting them do their thing. He felt like he was with them as he watched the infrared feed from Tuck’s camera.
His heart rate increased slightly as they rushed down the hall toward the room where the suspect was likely holed up with the remaining hostages, but he didn’t budge. Watching from the sidelines was the hardest part of this job. He’d much rather have been part of the assault but his days as a sniper and operator were long behind him now.
The team cleared three rooms before reaching the one the suspect was thought to be in.
The camera bobbed slightly as Tuck nodded at one of his teammates. Bauer reared back and slammed his boot into the door just beside the lock. It flew open, the team streaming into the room before it hit the wall.
“FBI,” Tuck shouted over top of shrill female screams. The feed showed three female hostages cowering in one corner of the room behind a large desk, their hands behind their backs.
Tuck’s head whipped around. The male suspect stood in the opposite corner, an arm locked around the fourth female hostage’s neck, a pistol to her temple. “Drop your weapon!”
More screams pierced the tense silence as the suspect refused to comply. Then he angled the pistol at his own head.
Two shots exploded simultaneously.
The suspect dropped, dragging the female hostage with him. Her sharp, short scream cut off, then turned into muffled sobbing.
Tuck stood his ground while two other team members rushed forward. The sound of a scuffle ensued, quickly ended.
Then quiet.
“Suspect deceased,” Tuck announced a moment later. “Room clear. All remaining hostages secured.”
Matt allowed himself a deep breath. “Copy that. Anyone hurt?”
“Remaining hostages appear okay. Schroder’s looking at them now.”
“Copy. Good work.” It was always such a relief when ops went this smoothly, though they rarely did, and he was acutely aware of the lives taken today.
It took a couple more hours to get everything wrapped up on his end so he could debrief the team, file the paperwork and head for the airport. He called Briar on the way but got her voicemail. He wasn’t even sure if she was home yet. For all he knew, she was still in West Virginia with Rycroft, who understandably couldn’t seem to take that final step into retirement. She loved working with him because she got to put her impressive and deadly skill set to use.
“Hey, it’s me. All good here and I’m on my way home. You back yet? Should be there by seven or so. Love you.”
He slid his phone back into his pocket and leaned his head back to take a snooze. The Bureau-chartered plane was still on the runway but the rest of the guys were already sound asleep in their seats.
All except for Schroder, who was staring out the window at the runway like his life depended on it, hands gripping the armrests in what Matt was sure was a death grip.
And no wonder, given what had happened a few months back.
Matt got up and walked back to take the seat next to Schroder. This was the second flight they’d taken since the crash that had nearly cost Schroder his life and temporarily blinded him, so no surprise he was having a tough time. Matt had been so wrapped up in intel reports on the hostage situation on the way down here that he hadn’t thought to check on his medic. “This is like flying first class compared to a C-130, huh?”
Schroder acknowledged him with a forced smile and broke eye contact, clearly embarrassed as he released the armrests and folded his arms. “Yeah.”
The plane’s engines powered up and they began their acceleration down the runway. Schroder visibly tensed. Matt hadn’t been with the team when the C-130 carrying them hit a civilian drone and crashed on takeoff. Matt glanced past him out the window. “Nothing but clear blue sky out there.”
“I’m good,” Schroder said without looking at him.
The plane’s nose lifted and Schroder was still rigid in his seat. Matt needed to distract him. “Won’t get much sleep when you get home now that you’ve got a newborn in the house. You should take advantage while you can.”
Schroder glanced at him as the plane lifted into the sky, then across the aisle at Bauer and Tuck, who were both fast asleep. “I gave Bauer a hard time about the whole fatherhood thing just before the accident that day. But he was right about the no sleep thing. Don’t want him to see me crumble.”
Matt chuckled. “He’s out cold, and you should be too. How’s Taya doing with you being away the first time since little man came along?”
A soft smile dissolved the tension on the former PJ’s face. “She’s in her glory. Tired, but loving it. We both are. I can’t wait to get home.”
“Glad to hear it.”
The plane shuddered as they hit a pocket of turbulence. Schroder’s face tightened briefly, his gaze darting back out the window.
Matt stretched his legs out. “Mind if I sit here for the rest of the flight? More leg room in this row.”
As he’d intended, Schroder looked back over at him. “Of course, go ahead.”
“Thanks.”
Schroder looked out the window again but the plane was climbing steadily now, the air smoother. Matt eased his seat back the whopping three inches it allowed and pulled the bill of his cap down over his face, secretly watching Schroder out of the corner of his eye. A minute later the medic finally relaxed, leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes.
Perfect.
After a nonstop two days on the job with little sleep, Matt was tired, but his brain wouldn’t stop spinning. Like Schroder, he couldn’t wait to get home. He missed his wife.
They’d only been apart five days this time, which was nothing. But something had been nagging at him a while now. He and Briar definitely needed a few days away together to reconnect. They hadn’t had much time together as a couple recently, due to their jobs and conflicting schedules.
Not okay. He knew better than most people just how short life could be, and that he couldn’t let this pattern continue. He’d lost too much already and made a point of regularly reminding himself what was truly important in life.
His wife. His family, and his teams, who he also considered part of his extended family. Everything else was just distraction and noise.
Briar was still such a mystery to him in a lot of ways, even now after being married for nearly a year. Her past made it hard for her to trust and open up, let alone lean on anyone, including him. It frustrated him sometimes.
He’d also never considered himself to be much of a romantic before, but compared to her he was. So he would take the reins on this one and plan something special for the two of them this week. Although for her, romantic was camping out deep in the woods someplace and shooting together. Was it any wonder why he loved her?
The flight back to Quantico was uneventful. Matt managed to sleep for the last few hours. Schroder even slept through the touchdown.
Matt nudged him awake with his shoulder as they taxied to the end of the runway. “We’re here.”
Schroder sat up, peered out the window in relief. “Already?”
“Yep. You ready to see Hudson?”
“Can’t wait. Bet he’s grown since I last saw him.”
Matt grinned. His guys were the best and toughest he had ever had the pleasure of commanding, and every one of them went all softhearted when it came to their kids and significant others.
The team unloaded and carried their gear toward the parking lot. Some of the significant others were there waiting. Matt smiled as Bauer, the biggest and hardest of them all, went all mushy at the sight of his wife and year-old daughter waiting for him there.
Bauer scooped each of them up in a giant arm and started kissing their necks, little Libby’s delighted laugh ringing out in the warm spring air. Vance’s wife was there as well, along with Cruzie’s fiancée.
Matt passed by the others as he headed for his truck, anxious to get on the road. When he stepped out from between two rows of parked vehicles he stopped short.
Briar leaned against the hood of his pickup, her lean body encased in skintight jeans and a formfitting top that made his tongue stick to the roof of his mouth. Her long, dark hair was loose around her shoulders, her deep brown eyes warming as her lips curved upward in a welcoming smile.
“Surprise,” she said, straightening and starting toward him with that sexy, confident stride he would never get tired of.
Grinning like an idiot, Matt hurried to her, dropped his bag and dragged her to him for a hug and a deep, thorough kiss.
BRIAR CHUCKLED AGAINST Matt’s lips, amused and secretly tickled by the fierceness of his reaction to finding her here. But when he tightened his hold on her and slid a hand up to tangle his fingers in the back of her hair, signaling he was intent on reducing her to a puddle of need right here and now, she went all melty inside. Apparently he’d missed her more than she had realized.
Not only the way he kissed her, that dominant, authoritative hold never failed to rev her libido. He made her feel like the most desirable woman on earth. The hum of anticipation at seeing him burst into flame, setting her body alight. By the time he lifted his head and eased his grip, her entire body pulsed with need.
Hands on his broad shoulders, she peered up at him. “That was a pretty great hello, but I came to take you on a dinner date. You up for it?”
His green eyes glowed with latent heat. “I’m up for a lot of things.”
She laughed softly and pressed her hips against his, the hard ridge of his erection impossible to miss. Her husband was a damn attractive man. He was also loyal, hardworking and protective. Sometimes she still couldn’t believe he’d wanted to marry her. “I can see that. Think you’ll live if you have to wait a couple more hours to do something about it?”
“No.”
She grinned and drove them to an Asian place she’d been wanting to try that served Korean BBQ. “So things went well in Colorado, I take it?” she asked after the server set their food down.
“Pretty well. Wish we’d been there in time to save the other hostage though.”
Briar nodded and managed to wrestle a piece of meat onto her chopsticks. So slippery and frustrating, but she was determined not to cave and use a fork. “Saved the others though.”
Matt made a sound of agreement as he swallowed a sip of his beer. “What about you?”
“Got our HVT along with his inner circle and didn’t lose anyone. So yeah, good.”
He studied her a moment. “Were you directly involved?”
“Recon and overwatch.”
He swallowed a mouthful of BBQ chicken, raised a challenging eyebrow. “Nothing else.”
One side of her mouth lifted. He knew her too well. “Maybe something else.”
“You seem pretty pleased about it,” he remarked with a half-grin.
She shrugged. “Might have saved a couple lives.” By taking one. Not that she was going to lose any sleep over killing a wannabe Nazi. “You know how it is. All in a day’s work.” They both had high security clearances but they rarely talked about the specifics of an op until the active investigations surrounding it were closed.
“Uh huh.” Matt chuckled and shook his head. “I shouldn’t find that so sexy, but I do.” Reaching for his beer, he fought back a gargantuan yawn.
“You sleep on the plane?”
“Not much.”
“How come?”
“Too busy thinking about you.”
She blinked and lowered her chopsticks. “Me? Why?”
A rueful look came over his face, then he chuckled as he shook his head. “Because you’re my wife and I missed you.”
Awww. “Well that’s nice to hear. I...missed you too.” She resisted the urge to glance around and make sure no one had overheard her.
Now his eyes laughed at her. “One day you’re going to be able to say it without sounding like you’re choking.”
She flushed. She was trying to be more comfortable with telling him how she felt, she really was. “I didn’t sound like I was choking.”
He let it go. “You about done there?” He nodded at her plate, an unmistakable gleam of male interest in his eyes.
“Someone’s in a hurry. And no, I’m not. I’m starving.” She stuffed another bite into her mouth. “I’m thinking a little delayed gratification is good for you.”
“That’s where you’re wrong.” He turned and flagged down their server to pay the bill while Briar finished everything on her plate.
She drove them home after. When she glanced over at him a few minutes in, Matt was fast asleep, his head resting on the passenger window. He wasn’t a napper, so he must be exhausted. Her heart squeezed at the proof that a man like him trusted her enough to completely relax and let himself go that way.
He woke when she slowed in front of their house and the front tires of the truck bumped over the edge of the driveway, inhaled deeply as he straightened in his seat. Going from deep under to totally alert in the space of a heartbeat, the result of spending his entire adult life in elite military service to his country. She was exactly the same.
Pulling into the garage, tiny jitters fluttered in her belly. A little nervousness, a lot of excitement. Would he react the way she’d imagined?
She followed him up to their bedroom, sat on the bed while he took his bag into their closet. For the past few hours she had thought over and over about how to tell him. Some women came up with cute or clever ways to do it. That wasn’t her. So she would just tell him straight up.
He came out of the walk-in, nodded toward the attached bathroom and raised an eyebrow. “I’m gonna grab a shower. You wanna join me?”
She smiled. “Maybe.”
He disappeared into the bathroom. The shower ran. She waited until she heard the shower door open, then got up and followed him. The sight that greeted her was more than worth the wait.
Matt stood facing away from her under the spray, the muscular glory of his back, shoulders and ass on perfect display. Mmmm, she would never tire of that view.
As if he sensed her stare, he angled a look over his shoulder at her. “Coming?”
“Not yet,” she answered with a coy little smile. “But hopefully soon.”
He beckoned her closer with a jerk of his head. “Get that sexy ass in here.” The heated, absorbed look he gave her sent heat punching through her.
She left her clothes where they fell on the floor, then stepped into the shower with him. The door hadn’t yet shut completely when he spun around to grab her around the hips and hoisted her off the floor. With one quick move he had her pinned to the wet tile wall with his hard, aroused body.
Briar wrapped her legs around his waist, smiling as he buried his face in the side of her neck and growled, both hands palming her butt. Oh yeah, he’d really missed her. “I have something to tell you,” she said before things inched closer to the point of no return.
“Later,” he muttered, dragging his tongue down her neck.
She shivered, closed her eyes a second. No. Wait. “I really think you want to hear this now.” She tugged at his hair. “Matt.”
With a groan he stopped and lifted his head to stare down at her with those hungry green eyes. “Fine, I’m listening. What?”
She bit the edge of her lower lip for a second, hesitating, savoring the anticipation as the moment stretched out. “I’m pregnant.”
He froze, seemed to even stop breathing as he stared at her, his expression going blank with astonishment. “What? Are you sure?”
She nodded, praying he would be as excited about this as she’d hoped. Of the two of them, he was the natural parent. She had a steep learning curve to navigate before the baby was born. “I took two tests when I got home. Both positive. I’ll go to the doctor to double check and make sure everything’s okay, but yeah. Looks like we’re having a baby.”
An elated smile broke over his face, filling her with warmth. “Oh my God,” he said on a laugh. He pressed his face into her hair, curving those hard, powerful arms around her hips to hold her tight. Another soft laugh shook him. “I can’t believe it.”
Smiling, she stroked his hair. “I know, it happened really fast.” Way faster than she had expected. Now it was a bit of a shock to the system, with the ultimate deadline looming in the distance. In less than a year from now, her whole world would change.
Matt eased her feet to the floor and straightened to stare down at her. His eyes were wet, and not from the shower.
Oh... Something caught in her chest. The sight of her strong, commanding husband standing there with tears in his eyes because he was overwhelmed with emotion turned her heart upside down.
“Don’t cry,” she murmured, wrapping her arms tighter around him.
He shook his head and slid an arm around her back, stroking her wet hair away from her face. “I just... I’m overwhelmed.”
Briar rested her cheek on his sturdy shoulder, loving him even more, thrilled that the news had made him so happy. “I know. Me too.” It thrilled her to be able to give them this. Matt had wanted a family for a long time and he’d been through so much, losing his first wife while she was pregnant with their child.
He’d grieved for them for a long time, and though he had moved on with Briar, he would never completely get over that loss. She had struggled with that initially, due to her own insecurities that she kept well buried, but now she understood why it would always affect him and didn’t begrudge him for it.
She kissed the edge of his jaw, rubbed her cheek against the rough stubble there. “So you’re happy?”
He nodded and hid his face against her hair again, seemed to struggle with himself as he held her.
It made her smile. She had known he would be deeply affected by the news, hoped he would be happy, but he was even more emotional about it than she had expected.
After a long moment he released her and eased back to blow out a deep breath. “How are you feeling?”
“Fine. Little tired, but not sick. I’m actually hungry all the time.”
He splayed a big hand over her abdomen, his expression awed. “How far along are you?”
“Almost five weeks.”
“So you’re due when?”
“Early January, I think. I’ll find out for sure when I see the doctor.”
A crease formed in the middle of his forehead. “What about your heart?”
There was no mistaking the deep concern behind the question, or the reason for it. “Matt, my heart is fine. I’m fine.”
He didn’t look convinced. “When do you see the doctor?”
“Thursday morning.”
He nodded once, his eyes burning with that familiar protectiveness she recognized all too well. “I’m coming with you.”
“Hey.” She reached down to take his hand. Laced their fingers together. “Babe, I’m fine. Everything’s gonna be fine.”
“Yeah.”
But he didn’t sound convinced and she knew him better than anyone walking this earth. And so she sensed the buried fear warring with the protectiveness in him. The ghosts of his former loss fighting with the vow to her written in his gaze. I won’t let anything happen to either of you. “Are you happy too?” he asked.
“Yes.” She lowered her gaze to the center of his sculpted chest, his HOG’s tooth bullet resting on his wet skin. “I’m nervous too. I don’t know anything about how to be a mother, and barely know anything about kids. I don’t want to screw it up.”
She had only a handful of memories of her own mother, and fewer still of her father. After losing them in the car accident she had been taken straight into the Valkyrie Program. There had been no nurturing there. Her trainers and handlers had done their best to turn her into a stone cold killer with her rifle, deprogramming any maternal instinct she might have had out of her. For their baby’s sake, she hoped there was still a bit of it buried inside her somewhere.
Matt tucked a finger beneath her chin and tipped her face up until she made eye contact. “You’re going to be a fantastic mother.”
She sure as hell hoped so. But his confidence in her was a definite boost. “Well, I figure if I can love you this much, then maybe I have what it takes after all.”
He made a sound of agreement and sank to his knees in front of her to rub his face against her lower belly. Her stomach was still flat as ever. It was so weird to think there was a baby growing inside her.
Matt kissed the spot below her belly button, his lips warm, lingering there. Arousal pulsed through her blood, heady and sweet.
With a saucy smile she threaded a hand through his hair and gave it a tug to make him move lower. “Seeing as I’ve already got you down there on your knees...”
He looked up at her, amusement and desire glowing in his eyes. “So bossy,” he murmured, curving his hands around to cradle her bottom. Holding her with a firm grip so she couldn’t move away as he kissed lower, lower.
A thrill shot through her bloodstream, her body tightening in anticipation of his tongue. “You love that about me.”
He made a low sound of agreement and then her thoughts scattered as he lowered his mouth between her parted thighs.
