Page 15 of Mason

“I think he’s still working for the military. I found a file folder at his house the other day. The same kind of file they used to give us when we were being debriefed for a special ops mission.”

“That doesn’t make sense,” Mason argued. “He’s out. We’ve seen his honorable discharge papers.”

“That don’t mean shit,” Viktor told him. “If they want Conner to do something, they can recall him to active duty.”

“Some missions are better completed with a one-man team than a squad,” Kade confirmed. “It makes sense. He’s not been telling us the truth since he moved here, and when we went to rescue Mateo? The guys he got the guns from called him The Executioner. Made me wonder what he was up to then.”

“Then he needs to fucking tell us what he’s up to.” Viktor slammed his fist on the desk, clearly angry. “He’s starting to come back to us, but if they put him back into all that shit again, we could lose all the progress he’s made, and then we’ll never get our brother back. I miss him.”

Viktor and Conner were identical twins. Mason understood why this was so hard for Viktor, but he also understood Conner’s side. They grew up in a military family, and as such, they’d all serve if called upon, even Mason. It was an honor, just not one he wanted to willingly partake of. He didn’t want to be a soldier, but he would if necessary. Conner had a deep sense of pride when it came to his service. And if his missions were classified, he’d never tell them what was going on, and Mason respected that.

But if he was up to shady shit?

Man was gonna get busted.

“We’ll deal with Conner tomorrow,” Kade decided. “Right now, we have to deal with Mason and his upcoming nuptials.”

“I’m not getting married!”

“You really going to go back and tell Papa he was mistaken?” Kade asked.

Fuck.

He was trapped, and he knew it.

“How do you think Jo is gonna feel when she finds out I asked her because of this?”

“She doesn’t have to know.” Viktor nodded and stood. “We’ll just explain to Mama, Papa, andBabushkayou were planning on asking her, and it slipped out this morning before you had a chance to pop the question.”

“You need a grand gesture,” Kade agreed. “Make it special for her.”

“Like I wouldn’t make a marriage proposal special?” Mason had the urge to punch the fuckers right in the face.

Viktor shrugged. “Mase, you’re…”

“A goofball,” Kade finished. “That’s not a bad thing, but it doesn’t lend itself toward grand, romantic gestures.”

Anger flashed hot and bright inside. He knew they all considered him a screwup, someone flitting through life without a real plan. But he didn’t think they actually thought he couldn’t treat Jo with the care she deserved.

“Screw you.” He stood and marched toward the door.

“Mase, wait—”

“Fuck off,” he snarled and all but ripped the hinges off the door and stomped out of the office, determined to prove them wrong.

He was a goofball.

He was a screwup sometimes.

But he loved his girl more than he did his own life.

She always came first and always would.

The rest of them could just fuck the hell off.

Jo cursed as she bumped into the desk, sending her big toe into wails of shooting pain. If there was a way for her to injure herself, she’d do it. Being the worst klutz in two families was not fun. Mason’s brothers were always teasing her about her inability to stand on her own two feet. She wasn’t that bad, not really. Well, maybe she was, but they didn’t need to remind her of it. Rude.

“Hey, girl!” Cara Mallory, her roommate, plopped down on her bed. “I swear they’re trying to kill us. Every single professor I have is demanding three times as much homework this week as any other week in the semester. They’re acting like finals are next week or something. Crazy.”

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