Page 12 of Torn in Half

She’d made him promise to contact her, no matter what time it was in Tampa, as soon as he could after the raid. She quickly swiped the screen and lifted the device to her ear. “Ian?”

“Yeah, Angel, we got her. Mom and her nurse are okay and—"

The relief she felt at that news tempered her fear that she was going into labor with Ian on the other side of the world. “Oh, thank God! Can I—can I talk to her?”

“She’s in the vehicle behind me, but I want you to go back to sleep. I’ll have her call you around 7:00 a.m. your time, okay? We’re almost at the airport, and we’ll be taking off within the next thirty minutes or so. How are you and Little Bit doing?”

Taking a deep breath, she let it out slowly. “So far so good. I just . . . I just really need you back here as soon as you can.”

“What’s wrong? Are you all right?”

“Yeah! Oh, yeah, I’m fine, honey. I miss you, and I guess I’m a little anxious. It’s just the hormones. I’m sorry—there’s nothing to worry about.” He had so much else on his mind and couldn’t get back to Tampa any faster than he was already doing, so she omitted the fact she thought she was in labor. She didn’t want him to fret about her. If that added another spanking to the ones she’d intentionally and unintentionally racked up these past few weeks, so be it. A Master took care of his sub, but the sub also took care of her Master, and that’s what she was doing now.

“You’re sure, Angel?”

“I’m sure.” Another contraction began to radiate from her back, and she tightened her hold on the phone. She struggled to keep the strain out of her voice. “Give your mom a hug and kiss from me, and tell her I’ll talk to her later, okay?”

“I will. We’re pulling into the airport. I’ll call you in the morning, your time, and see you in about eighteen or nineteen hours. Love you, Angel.”

“Love you too, Master.” The second she disconnected the call, Angie groaned out loud as the contraction reached its peak. “Shit, shit, shit.”

Chapter Twelve

When the call disconnected, Ian pulled the phone from his ear and stared at it.

Nick glanced at his front-seat passenger and noted his frown before returning his gaze to the road before him. “Something wrong?”

Devon was operating the SUV behind them with their mother onboard. All members of Trident’s Alpha and Omega teams would be in the air as soon as they were cleared to take off. Carter and Jordyn had Xiao at a secure location, waiting for their MSS contacts to pick him up and return him to China. Nick doubted the man would ever see the inside of a courtroom—odds were, he’d be tortured during an interrogation. After he gave up his secrets, he’d finally be rewarded with a swift death.

Before heading back to Scotland, the Steel Corps team was escorting Jocelyn to the clinic and then putting her on the next commercial flight to Manila where her parents still lived. Although she was still shaken from the entire incident, she was unharmed. Nick wondered if she would stay with Operation Smile after this or find a permanent position in a nice, safe hospital somewhere.

Tucking his phone into one of the thigh pockets of his black BDUs, Ian shook his head. “Angie said no, but . . .”

“But what?” Nick’s eyes widened as he split his attention between his brother and the road. “You don’t think she’s in labor, do you?” He met Jake’s gaze in the rearview mirror. His husband’s eyes narrowed in a “shut-up” expression. Yeah, Nick probably should have kept that question to himself. There was nothing Ian could do for Angie from the Philippines, and verbalizing that fact, even in a roundabout way, was going to do nothing but freak him out.

Biting his bottom lip, Ian whipped out his phone again and hit a speed dial button. When the call was answered, he said, “Egghead, get a location on my wife’s cell phone.” He paused. “Tell me if she’s at the compound or at the fucking hospital having my kid, damn it . . . no, I’m not kidding, asshole. Find out now or you’re a dead man.”

A few minutes later, the vehicles pulled into the hangar where Chuck was waiting with the two pilots. The relief Nick saw in his father’s eyes when he pulled his wife from the first SUV and into his arms almost brought him to tears. From the back seat, Jake tapped his shoulder. “Let’s get the family back to Tampa in time for Little Bit.”

Nick glanced around and saw they were the only two still sitting in any of the three vehicles. Everyone else had poured out and were quickly transferring all the bags and weapon cases into the jet. He hesitated a moment to wipe his eyes, and Jake squeezed his shoulder in support. “That’s going to be us in thirty or forty years—hopefully not on the tail end of a kidnapping, though—but our love will still be going strong, just like theirs.”

He met Jake’s green eyes in the mirror again. “Think we’ll have grandkids by then?”

His husband snorted. “Now there’s a scary thought. I guess that’ll be up to our kids if we do or not, but I’d like to think so.”

“So do I.”

“Come on. Let’s get going before Ian starts bitching.”

From the relaxed look on his older brother’s face when Nick and Jake got out of the vehicle, it was clear Angie was still at the compound. Good, she wasn’t in labor yet. Hopefully, she’d stay that way until the jet landed in Tampa.

Thoughts of Jake and him having a child or two occupied Nick’s mind as he helped load the gear until well after they’d taken off. Should they adopt or use a surrogate? Either way, they’d have at least a year or so to plan for the arrival. That seemed so far away and yet it wasn’t. Images of Jake holding a baby had Nick smiling to himself. It was probably a good thing they lived right next door to his brothers and sisters-in-law and their growing families because Nick and Jake had a lot to learn about raising a kid.

“What’s that smile for?” his mother asked as she took the seat next to him that Jake had just vacated a few minutes ago. Nick’s father had finally released his wife’s hand—he’d been holding it for well over an hour, as if she’d disappear again if he let go. The couple had been sitting on one of the jet’s couches toward the back of the plane, while Nick and Jake had been relaxing in one of the rows of first-class-style seating toward the front of the cabin.

Grasping Marie’s hand, he brought it to his lips and kissed her knuckles. “Just glad to have you back in one piece.”

“Nicholas Charles Sawyer, I’ve been able to read your expressions since you were a toddler. I always knew when you were up to something.” She winked before adding, “Like now.”

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