by Wade, Maddie
Waggs
An Eidolon Black Ops Novel: Book 7
Maddie Wade
Waggs
An Eidolon Black Ops Novel: Book 7
by Maddie Wade
Published by Maddie Wade
Copyright © April 2021 Maddie Wade
Cover: Envy Creative Designs
Editing: Black Opal Editing
Formatting: Black Opal Editing
This is a work of fiction. Names characters places and incidents are a product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as fact. Any resemblance to actual events organizations or persons—living or dead—is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive non-transferable right to access and read the text of this eBook onscreen. Except for use in reviews promotional posts or similar uses no part of this text may be reproduced transmitted downloaded decompiled reverse-engineered or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system in any form or by any means whether electronic or mechanical now known or hereafter invented without the express written permission of the author.
First edition April 2021 ©Maddie Wade
Contents
Acknowledgments
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Epilogue
Sneak Peek: Jack
Books by Maddie Wade
About the Author
Acknowledgments
I am so lucky to have such an amazing team around me without which I could never bring my books to life. I am so grateful to have you in my life, you are more than friends you are so essential to my life.
My wonderful beta team, Greta, and Deanna who are brutally honest and beautifully kind. If it is rubbish you tell me, it is and if you love it you are effusive. Your support means so much to me.
To the ladies of Words Whiskey and Wine for Woman, you are my crew and I love you.
My editing team—Linda and Dee at Black Opal Editing. Linda is so patient, she is so much more than an editor, she is a teacher and I love you.
Thank you to my group Maddie’s Minxes, your support and love for Fortis, Eidolon and all the books I write is so important to me. Special thanks to Rowena, Tracey, Faith, Rachel, Carolyn, Kellie, Maria, Greta, Deanna, Sharon, Vicky, Rochelle, and Linda L for making the group such a friendly place to be.
My ARC Team for not keeping me on edge too long while I wait for feedback.
Lastly and most importantly thank you to my readers who have embraced my books so wholeheartedly and shown a love for the stories in my head. To hear you say that you see my characters as family makes me so humble and proud. Aiden and Aaron carved out a place for themselves in my heart and as the mother of twin boys this was an emotional book to write for me, but Aiden wanted his story told the way it was, and I hope I did justice to the bond twins share. Aiden and Willow finally get to be heard and I hope you enjoy their story as much as I did.
I am dedicating Waggs to Conner and Tyler.
Thank you for choosing me to be your mum.
Prologue
Tipping the bottle back, Waggs drained the beer before placing it on the headstone with the other full one. Five years had passed since his brother had been laid in the ground at the Camp Nelson National Cemetery, close to his parents’ home in Lexington, Kentucky, and not a single day got easier.
Waggs sank to the cold ground and propped his elbows on his knees as he read the headstone.
Aaron Wagner
9th June 1982–8th November 2015
A loving son and brother.
Waggs hated the epitaph that didn’t, not for one-second, capture the essence of his twin brother. Everything written there was true, but Aaron had been so much more than just a son and brother. He’d been a friend, the best damn friend anyone could ever ask for. His best friend. They’d shared everything from the first moment their hearts had begun to beat—first steps, first words, first fight, first girlfriends.
He and Aaron had done everything together, even joined the army together. Then they’d applied for Special Forces training together where their natural competitiveness had got them through ninety-five weeks of gruelling hard work, but they had both got through it, the bond they shared stronger than ever. Ending up in the 5th Special Forces Group stationed at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, together had been the icing on the cake for the brothers who were so close.
Serving alongside Aaron as a Green Beret had been the biggest honour of Waggs’ life. He’d become a medic, and Aaron had trained as a sniper. Between them, they’d been invincible, able to read each other’s thoughts and actions with the eerie accuracy that only twins could do. He’d often known before Aaron did when his brother was sick or hurt, happy or sad, and the same had been the case for Aaron.
When Aaron met Willow Yates, he’d been so damn happy for him, burying his own attraction to her until he was sure he had it under control, that nobody knew he loved Willow too, and not as the sister she’d one day become after Aaron asked her to marry him and she said yes. Then they’d deployed to the sandbox straight after the engagement, and a routine aid mission had gone to hell.
Waggs grabbed the bottle of whiskey and took a swig, enjoying the burn of liquid as painful memories flooded his mind.
A child no older than eight or nine had run up to Aaron in the village, which wasn’t unusual; it happened when they visited the villages, keeping peace among the people of Afghanistan. Yet this had been different. Waggs had an awful gut reaction that something was wrong. Everything around him dimmed until he could see the four men at the corner of the village watching the child.
He’d seen the looks of malice and triumph on their faces, and he’d known, but before he had a chance to react, the bomb had exploded. The force had thrown him backwards, to the ground, winding him and knocking him senseless for a second, and then he’d rolled, and his vision had blurred. As the smoke receded and he’d seen Aaron, or what was left of him. Waggs had scrambled to his brother, his brain trying to assess the damage. The medic in him knew it was too late, but the brother fought the horror of reality.
He’d grabbed Aaron’s hand as his brother blinked up at him in shock, the bottom half of his body mostly gone, the fact he was still alive giving Waggs false hope.
“Hang in there, Aaron. We’re gonna get you some help.”
He tried to see what he could do, but even if he had an operating table in front of him, the damage was too extensive. His bottom half was just torn flesh, blood, and gore, the stuff of horror movies, but this wasn’t a movie; it was his brother’s broken body.
“Aiden.” His brother coughed, and his lips were covered in the blood from his lungs, which Aiden knew were full of blood.
“I’m here, Aaron.”
“I’m scared.”
Waggs fought tears as he held on to his brother’s hand tightly, willing him to live despite everything. “Don’t be scared, Aaron, I won’t leave you.”
And he hadn’t. He hadn’t left when his brother drew his last breath and slipped from the world, leaving him alon
e for the first time in his existence. He sat by his coffin as they waited for a plane to take them home, and he sat by his side on the aircraft. Waggs never left his twin once until they lowered him into the ground and his casket was covered in mud.
Closing his eyes, he relived those days over and over, only allowing himself to do it on the anniversary of his brother’s death. If he let it out at any other time, then he knew he’d crawl into the ground and die like Aaron had, like he wished every day he had.
His brother had every reason to live, and yet he couldn’t save him. It was something he struggled to live with, but it was the guilt of what he’d done next that ate him up every night. It was the reason he fought to help so many find the peace they sought because he’d never have it again.
The funeral had been horrific, his mother sobbing, his father holding her up both physically and mentally, as Waggs had stood stoic in his dress uniform, knowing that if he let the grief free, it would consume him until he was a mess on the ground.
Willow had sat silently crying, with her aunt supporting her, and Waggs had once again wished it had been him who died. He loved Willow, and so had his brother. She’d chosen well with Aaron, not that it had been a choice. Nobody knew how he felt, and he’d make sure it stayed that way, but he’d look after her.
Aaron had loved her so much and Aiden would make sure she was okay. The only problem was he’d taken it too far; they both had. He’d left Kentucky for his last tour before he retired from the military, his heart no longer in it and hadn’t seen her again until the call that changed everything, telling him he was going to be an uncle, and it shamed him enough that he’d run thousands of miles away and joined Eidolon.
They were his brothers now, and he loved them and would die for them, but nobody would ever replace his twin because they couldn’t.
Standing on legs that were unsteady after drinking most of a bottle of liquor, Waggs poured the rest over the headstone. “Love you, bro. I wish every day it had been me who died.” He tried to swallow the sob that lurched up to his throat and failed. “I miss you so much, Aaron. I wish you were here, and you could see the beauty you created. If I could go back, I’d make sure you lived. I let you down and I’m so sorry.”
Tears tracked down his face as the silence of the cemetery surrounded him, and he let the grief out. Tomorrow he’d shore it up and go home, back to Hereford where he could breathe a little easier from the guilt and shame, but first, he needed to see her.
As Waggs walked the few blocks from the cemetery to Willow’s home on the outskirts of Lexington, he tried to remember the sound of his brother’s voice and couldn’t. It made him panic, so he called up his saved messages and played the last one Aaron had sent him. The sound of his brother’s voice almost made his legs give way, the loss was so intense. Physical pain never hurt this bad, this was like living with a dagger through the heart.
He got to the red door with pink and purple flowers in the front yard and stopped. Part of him knew he shouldn’t be there, that no good would ever come of it, but that didn’t stop him knocking on the door. He held on to the frame as he swayed, the alcohol he’d consumed catching up with him.
The door opened, and there she was, the love of both his and his brother’s life.
Willow gripped the door frame, and he could see him being there hurt her and yet he couldn’t stop. She was looking up at him with her dark chocolate brown eyes. Her long lashes swept across her pink cheeks as she closed her eyes briefly, her arms crossed over her middle as if to protect herself. “What are you doing here, Aiden?”
“Please, Willow, I won’t stay long.”
Willow sighed and his eyes went to her small breasts, her flat tummy, and down to her long-tanned legs that made his mouth water. She was wearing sleep shorts and a tee and looked so young. Yet the pain she held was there in her eyes.
Stumbling past, he caught her scent, and it was like coming home. It was so familiar and yet hurt so much. Fresh and floral, it danced around him. She uncrossed her arms, and he could see the points of her nipples through the top she wore. Her chestnut hair had waves in it today and fell to her shoulders. She looked pretty, but then she always had. Even grief hadn’t dulled her light.
Moving past him, she opened the bedroom door and stepped back. Waggs stopped, staring at the precious form of his sleeping nephew.
AJ was just five years old and had been conceived the night before he and Aaron had redeployed. He walked closer and sank to his knees by the bed, looking at the boy who was the image of his father in every way and, therefore, him too. He stroked the blond hair back from his head and wished his brother were there to see his son, to play catch and teach him to ride a bike.
Aaron would be horrified with the way Aiden had abandoned Willow and AJ, but he’d be furious if he knew the rest.
Waggs straightened and saw Willow leaning against the door-jamb, arms crossed over her middle as if it physically pained her to watch him with AJ. He leaned down and kissed the child’s head, wishing he were a better man.
Moving back into the hallway of the single storey home, he looked around and saw that it really was a home. Willow had made this a place for her and her son, with pictures of his father around the room, some including him in them, too. He picked one up and studied it, and it showed him and Aaron with their arms around each other’s shoulders the day they’d passed their Special Forces training. The smiles on their faces and the hope and excitement were gone now for both of them.
“You can’t keep doing this, Aiden. You’re only hurting us both.”
He turned and looked at her, the peachy flesh of her lips, the curve of her breast in the cheap white t-shirt, and he thought she’d never looked more beautiful.
“I know.”
Then he dropped the picture on the side and took her in his arms, backing her against the wall and kissing her like she was the air he needed to breathe. Each tearing at the other clothes as passion and grief, love and betrayal consumed them, and they did the one thing they shouldn’t do. It had begun the night they’d buried Aaron, and every year on the anniversary of his death they’d found solace in each other’s arms.
It was never spoken of or talked about—it just was. It was the one night he allowed himself to pretend that she was his, that life hadn’t dealt them the cruellest of blows. They spent the night in each other’s arms and then in the morning he was gone.
She was back to being a mother, and he went back to his life on the other side of the world.
Chapter 1
Waggs straightened the mint green tie at his throat and then turned to the groom at his side, who was making an absolute meal out of pinning on a button-hole. “Here, give me that.” Waggs plucked the white orchid from Gunner’s hand and proceeded to pin it on his lapel. Grinning, he patted the man he’d thought twelve months ago was his enemy on the shoulder. “There you go, all set. Not sure what a woman as gorgeous as Lacey sees in your ugly ass but that’s true love, I guess.”
Gunner chuckled. “Me either, bro. Me either. I’m just glad as fuck she does.”
The wedding would take place at Charleston Court Hotel, where they were currently getting ready. To say he’d been shocked when Gunner had asked him to be best man was an understatement, but he’d been honoured as well. He and Gunner had grown close since his return to the fold. In fact, the entire team seemed tighter, more unified, now. They still had issues to deal with, but those didn’t cause a fracture like the Gunner issue had.
“You ready to get married?”
Gunner sucked in a breath through his nose and blew it out a show of nerves not often seen by any of the Eidolon men. “Yes, I can’t wait to marry her.”
Waggs smiled and clapped his friend on the back, ushering him towards the stairs. The Charleston was a beautiful old mansion owned by the Duchy of Cornwall. It had been a gift to Gunner from the Royal Family, allowing the wedding to be held there.
Waggs saw the other Eidolon men on the right-hand side, all act
ing as part of the wedding party in some way, their significant others all seated behind them. The men and women of Fortis Security sat on the left side of the room with their children. There were so many kids now Waggs struggled to keep up, and he had a feeling it wouldn’t be long before Eidolon went the same way, if the way Alex and Blake kept fussing over Evelyn and Pax was any indication.
Gunner headed for his Amma and his sister Milla, who was wearing a beautiful gown to match the bridesmaids. Milla was an amazing person, and so was Amma, and they loved Gunner and Lacey.
Waggs took his place by Gunner’s side as the music began to play and Lacey walked down the aisle on her own. When she was asked why she was doing it alone, she told them it was because nobody had the right to give her away to another person except herself, and he understood that. She looked stunning in a white dress with lots of frills and lace, which Waggs didn’t have words to describe.
Her bridesmaids, Skye, Roz, and Bebe, stood behind her and everyone watched as the two became husband and wife. Promising to love each other and protect each other for life. Waggs knew that was never on the cards for himself, and he’d made peace with it. It was one of the only things he’d made peace with. To marry someone and drag her into his life when he’d always have feelings for another woman he couldn’t have, was cruel and senseless, and he was a lot of things, but that wasn’t one of them.
