Page 8 of Fierce Hope
Axel: Olivia’s at Bible study. I’m starving. Pizza run?
Before he could respond, another text popped up.
Axel: Unless you already cooked ...
Deke glanced at the disaster in his sink.
Deke: Define ‘cooked.’
Axel: That bad, huh? Stormy night at Casa Williams?
Deke: Category 5
Axel: No worries. Bringing umbrella. And extra cheese. DJ still like
supreme?
A genuine smile tugged at Deke’s mouth for the first time that evening.
Deke: Yeah. Thanks, man.
He set the phone down, turning to the window where storm clouds were gathering over the mountains. Snow was coming. Again. No wonder DJ hated it here.
His thoughts circled back to Jade like a compass finding true north. Something was wrong. His instincts screamed it, and those instincts had kept him and his team alive through worse than he cared to remember.
He shouldn’t get involved. He had enough on his plate with DJ, enough complications in his life without adding more. And a woman like Jade deserved better than a broken-down ex-SEAL who couldn’t even manage dinner without setting off smoke alarms.
But he could watch her back. Quietly. Carefully. From a distance.
Deke snorted, scrubbing a hand over his face. Right. Because that’s exactly what he needed—a covert op centered around his son’s incredibly attractive tutor.
At least it was something he was good at. Better than cooking. Better than parenting.
His phone buzzed again.
Axel: ETA 20. Bringing reinforcements. Kenji and Zara are hungry, too.
And fire extinguisher. Just in case.
Deke smiled despite himself. Maybe tonight wasn’t a total loss. But tomorrow ... tomorrow he’d start digging. Because whatever was going on with Jade Villanueva, he had a feeling it was more dangerous than burnt stir-fry.
And this time, he wasn’t going to fail someone who needed him.
Even if she didn’t know she did.
6
The scentof DreamBurger’s signature garlic fries wafted from the paper bag, making Jade’s stomach growl. Lauren Daggett might be living the dream with her successful restaurant chain, gorgeous Knight Tactical husband, and growing baby bump, but right now all Jade cared about was the double cheeseburger waiting to salvage her long day.
She shifted the bag to her other hand as she climbed the stairs to her second-floor condo, her heels clicking against the concrete steps. The sound echoed in the empty stairwell, too loud in the evening quiet. A shiver crawled up her spine that had nothing to do with the February chill.
The feeling that had dogged her all day intensified. Since finding the flowers—and that note—she’d been fighting the old instincts. The ones that had kept her alive in another life. Another time.
The instincts to run.
Stop it. You’re being paranoid.
But paranoia had saved her life more than once.
