by Tess Summers
Reagan and Jacob looked at each other, as if silently asking, What’s this all about? But they both stood at the same time and walked toward the door.
The two sisters hugged briefly, then Reagan said, “We’ll be in the cafeteria if you need us,” before following Jacob outside the room.
Mason looked at Kennedy. He knew damn well she wasn’t there to simply debrief with him.
“How are you feeling?” she asked as she approached his bed and sat down in the chair next to him and patted his hand, careful to avoid the IV that was taped to his skin.
He gave a wry smile. “I’ve been better.”
With her hand still on top of his, the woman—who was now brown-haired—nodded absent-mindedly, as if she wasn’t really listening to his answer and was thinking about something else.
She removed her hand. “So apparently you and my sister are in love.” Her pursed lips indicated she didn’t approve—not that he blamed her.
“I didn’t mean for that to happen. It just did.”
Her grin was empathetic. “I understand how that goes.”
“So does my brother, apparently. Thank you for that, by the way. And for showing up today when you did. I definitely owe you.”
“You probably think keeping my secret will be a way to repay me, but you’d be wrong. I know you’re going to keep your end of the bargain with that.”
He had a feeling he knew where this conversation was going. “So what would be a good way to repay you?”
“You really need to consider ending things with Reagan.”
He frowned at the older Jones sister without replying.
“You can’t be with her, and you know it. What kind of life would she have? For fuck’s sake, she could have been killed today.”
Mason knew what Kennedy was saying was true. Hell, he’d been at war with himself over the same thing. Except his heart was imploring him, Find a way.
“Is that why you’re willing to help me? To ensure I end things with your sister?”
Kennedy shrugged in response.
“I can’t make that promise right now,” he told her quietly.
“I understand. But if you really love her, you’ll think about what’s best for her. She’s supposed to be back at work in two weeks, yet she’s willing to take a leave of absence next semester, give up her only source of income—for you. Think about that. You’re going to heal and be on your way, and she’s going to be left without a job until the beginning of next year.”
“I would make sure she was financially supported.”
“You know perfectly well I would never let her want for anything. What concerns me is her giving up her life for you—her job, her friends… but what happens to her life once you up and disappear for months—a year?”
He nodded solemnly. “I get where you’re coming from, I do. But I love her. You of all people should understand I can’t just let her go.”
“And I gave up my life, my role in the agency, my whole identity to be with the man I love. Are you willing to do that for Reagan?”
Mason remained silent. He didn’t have an answer for that. He hadn’t had enough time to process what being with her long-term would mean.
“Until you can definitely say yes, you need to tread lightly with her heart, Agent Hughes.”
Once again, he knew she was right.
Chapter Eighteen
Reagan
To her surprise, Jacob hadn’t been a jerk about her running across the street instead of going back to where he was observing in the office building. Quite the opposite actually, and she wasn’t sure what to think about it.
“You saved Marcus’ life—you realize that, right? Not me, not your sister, not your boyfriend—you,” he told her once they’d sat down in the hospital cafeteria. He took a sip of his coffee as he gauged her reaction to what he’d said.
“I wouldn’t exactly say that. I think everybody played a part; I just came in at the end and happened to be the one who found him stuffed in a closet.”
“What possessed you to go in there alone?”
“I just kept hearing your words look closer and knew I had to do something.” Reagan smiled around the straw in her mouth as she took a drink of soda. “Besides, I knew you’d see me and Mason would come back for me. That’s what made me brave.”
“You were brave indeed.”
“Do you think Mason’s going to be okay?”
“I think with some time and physical therapy he’ll be as good as new. He’s been through worse than this.”
“He’s been worse than this?”
“Yeah. We almost lost him a few years ago in an explosion—got hit by a lot of shrapnel.”
That explained the scars she’d felt on his back.
Reagan cocked her head.
“I was under the impression you didn’t work together very often. You’re someone he called as a last resort to fix things when nobody else could. But you come at a hefty price.”
He smiled. “I’m not cheap. And you’re right—we don’t work together often. But, I’m not called in on the easy jobs, so when we do, it’s usually dangerous.”
“Are you married? Have a girlfriend?”
His smile turned sad at her question. “No. I almost was once, but I realized I was asking too much of her. This profession isn’t for people with wives and families.”
Jacob’s words made her sad, which was probably why she confessed, “Well Mason and I fell in love and we’re going to figure this out.”
The sympathetic smile on his face suggested he didn’t believe Mason loved her. She’d dare say it looked like he thought she was pathetic and making things up.
“What? You don’t think Mason fell in love with me?”
He sighed. “You’re beautiful and smart, and would obviously make someone very happy, but Mason knows what’s at stake. He doesn’t fall in love—not for real anyway. I’m not trying to hurt you, but you need to know the score. I’d hate for you to get hurt worse because of false expectations. Once he no longer needs you, he’s going to send you on your way.”
Ouch. I think I would have preferred not knowing the score.
****
Her heart was a little heavier when they returned to Mason’s room, but her spirits lifted at his smile when he saw her walk in the room.
“Hi baby,” she murmured in his ear as he gripped her hand. “Did my sister leave?”
He nodded and blinked, his eyes slow to reopen.
“You need to sleep. We’re busting you out in the morning.”
Mason scooted over, lifting his wires and tubes to indicate she should lie down next to him, which she did happily, if gingerly, tentatively slipping her arm around his waist while he stroked her hair.
Reagan glanced over at Jacob watching them closely and tried not to appear smug.
You’re wrong—he is in love with me.
“I’ll see you two in morning,” he murmured as he walked toward the door.
“Hey Jake.” Mason’s raspy voice caused the man to pause and look at them. “Thanks.”
A small smile formed on the fixer’s lips. “Try to get some rest.”
****
Mason
The doctors weren’t thrilled with the idea of him leaving the hospital but acquiesced when he explained he was traveling on a private jet with a private nurse Jacob had hired. Once they learned that, they presented him with his discharge papers and bill, which they asked him to pay before leaving.
The amount was almost laughable. He paid it from the money in his wallet and still would have had some left over if he hadn’t given it to them.
“For the patients who need help paying,” he explained when the woman looked at him confused.
“You realize you have no way of knowing if she’s going to just pocket that money,” Reagan whispered once the woman left, and she started to gently help him get dressed in the sweats and t-shirt she’d bought him in the gift shop. The yacht had left with his clothes, and he neede
d something loose-fitting for stitches and bruises.
He shrugged. “You’re right. But that’s on her conscience if she does. Maybe it will help them feel less inclined to call the police about me being here.”
“Um, I believe Jacob already took care of that bribe.”
He closed his eyes and sighed. His bill for the fixer’s services this time was going to be astronomical. But he was grateful.
The orderly arrived with a wheelchair, and he was transported to the front of the building where the car Kennedy had sent was waiting for them.
Once they were situated inside, he held her hand and took a deep breath.
“Sweetheart, we need to talk about you going back to Fargo.”
Chapter Nineteen
Reagan
Her back stiffened and Jacob’s words echoed in her mind.
Mason doesn’t fall in love.
He’ll send you on your way when he no longer needs you.
This was it. He no longer needed her.
“What about it?” she asked curtly as she tried to withdraw her hand from his, refusing to look at him. He didn’t let go, and instead began to stroke her knuckles.
“I know a new semester is starting soon where you work…”
She raised her shoulders. “I’m taking a leave of absence and staying in Ensenada to be with you.”
“What if I went back to Fargo with you? So you wouldn’t have to take a leave.”
Well, that’s not what I was expecting.
She turned to look at him.
“I would love that. How long would you stay?”
“As long as I could.”
It was the vaguest, most non-committal answer in the history of answers, and still she was ecstatic. Mason was coming to Fargo with her!
“Should we stay in Ensenada at least until you no longer need a nurse? Bullet wounds might be easier to overlook there than in North Dakota.”
“Speaking of… do you know exactly where Kennedy plans on us staying?”
“I think at the villa where you kidna—er, picked me up.”
One corner of his mouth went up when she corrected herself.
They pulled onto the tarmac where Dante’s private jet was waiting. She was surprised to find Jacob waiting at the bottom of the stairs leading up to the plane.
“You made it,” the handsome fixer said as he opened the car door. Helping Mason out and toward the portable staircase, he asked, “Any trouble at the hospital?”
“Not a bit,” Mason replied as he gripped the rails and began his slow ascent to the plane’s interior.
They found Dante and Kennedy situated on one of the couches. Dante’s scary, brawny bodyguard was in a seat with a magazine in one of the corners of the luxury aircraft. Jacob helped Mason down the aisle, which was three times wider than any she’d seen the few times she’d been on commercial jets. Jacob sat down next to Kennedy; Reagan and Mason took a seat on the couch opposite them. He was slightly winded from the exertion of getting from the car to his seat on the plane.
“Thanks for taking care of the police questioning,” Mason said to the brown-haired American man when he’d caught his breath.
“It’s why you pay me the big bucks.”
Reagan was curious just how big those bucks were. She heard a baby’s cry from the back bedroom and raised her eyebrows at Kennedy.
“You brought Madison with you?”
“Of course. I’m still nursing,” she answered as she stood.
Reagan looked at her, smirking.
“What? I brought Rosa,” Kennedy said, returning the smirk. Then she made her way to the back of the plane where the baby was fussing. Dante was close behind.
She would say this about her new brother-in-law; he obviously loved his wife and daughter.
The pilot’s voice came from the overhead speakers as the jet started to move. “Please fasten your seatbelts. We’ve been cleared for takeoff and are currently number five in line for the runway.”
A gray-haired Hispanic woman appeared from the bedroom, sat down in the seat next to Reagan, and fastened her seatbelt. The younger Jones sister recognized her as one of the housekeepers at Dante’s estate.
“Rosa! So good to see you. What are you doing here?”
“I’m helping with la bebé.”
“Oh. Did Quinn go back to California?”
“No, no. She’s still in Ensenada.”
“I don’t understand.”
The woman gave a kind smile that reached her eyes while gently explaining. “Quinn is Bella’s assistant, not her nanny. Mr. Dante and Mrs. Bella aren’t hiring someone for that yet, so I’m helping out when needed.”
“Bella and Dante are lucky to have you. It’s important to have someone they can trust with Madison.”
Mason entwined his fingers in hers.
“Are you going to want a nanny for our kids?”
Huh? Our what?
Jacob must have heard his question because his eyes were wide with surprise when Reagan glanced at him.
“Um. I don’t know? I’ve never really thought about it. I mean, I’ve always assumed I’d have to keep working, so it seemed like daycare or a babysitter was a given.”
“Not your mother?”
Just the thought made her both cringe and chuckle. “Yeaaaah, no. Maybe for a Friday night date, but nothing regular or for a long period of time. My mother wasn’t exactly mother-of-the-year, although she has said she wants to be better for her grandchildren. She was always far more interested in whatever man she was dating at the time. Keni and I were lucky if she remembered to feed us regularly.”
He drew her hand toward his lips and kissed her knuckles.
“Maybe my parents will follow us to San Diego.”
She held her breath for a second before slowly releasing it.
“You mean Fargo. She might not be the best mom, but she’s the only one I have. With my sister being so far away, she kind of relies on me to help her. I can’t just abandon her.”
“No, of course not. We’ll put her in a condo nearby.”
“San Diego, huh?”
“Well, you said Key West has too many hurricanes, remember?”
She did remember that night. It was a wonderful night, pretending they had a long future ahead of them. Was he just continuing their game of make-believe, or did he really mean it?
Glancing over at Jacob’s face, still in disbelief, she wasn’t sure what to think.
Chapter Twenty
Mason
Reagan sat down in the seat next to him with the baby facing her in her lap. The little girl was adorable with her big brown eyes and toothless smile—a smile that she seemed to give without discrimination to anyone who happened to look at her. Mason couldn’t help but smile back.
But what caused his heart to skip a beat was watching the redheaded woman holding the baby. Her smile and animated expressions while she talked to the little girl stirred something inside him, and he couldn’t help but imagine what it would be like if it were their child she was holding.
What kind of father will I be like?
He’d always known he wanted to be one, but until their night of make-believe future on the yacht, he had just put it into the someday category.
Maybe someday was closer than he realized.
They were nearing the Ensenada airport; Kennedy was sitting on the couch with one leg tucked underneath her, clicking away on her iPad. She made a dramatic press of a button, saying, “Done,” then pointedly looked across the aisle where Jacob was sitting.
“I just transferred Mason’s remaining payment to you. I trust I will never hear from you again after today.”
“I appreciate that,” was the fixer’s only response, then he turned to look out the window. Kennedy demonstratively glowered at him, folding her arms at her chest.
“Jacob?” She posed it as a question, but Mason knew it was really more of a warning.
The dark-haired American looked away from the window and smil
ed sweetly at the former CIA agent.
“Yeah?”
“You are not to contact me again—ever. Do you understand?”
He shook his head solemnly. “I can’t promise you’ll never hear from me again. You know how small this world is.”
Kennedy’s eyebrows went up. “Let me rephrase then. It would be in your best interest if I never hear from you again.”
Jacob stubbornly refused to agree.
Dante moved closer to his wife and began to rub tiny circles on her back. To Mason’s surprise, instead of roaring out demands they never be contacted again or else, Dante remained quiet, a look of slight amusement on his face while his wife stewed.
They touched down on the runway and taxied to a private hanger where they were greeted by two black cars with tinted windows. Mason found descending the stairs to be much easier than ascending them, but Jacob went ahead of him, just in case he needed someone to break his fall.
Before sliding into the back of one of the waiting cars, Jacob turned to Mason. “Let me know when you’re back in business.” He cast a quick glance at Reagan and broke out into a grin, adding, “Or out of it,” then sat down in the seat and closed the car door before Mason could reply.
Out of the spy business? There was a time when the mere idea would have been unfathomable, but as he entwined his fingers with Reagan’s, Mason realized it was something to consider.
Kennedy had been watching him carefully. Her expression was hard to decipher, but he’d be willing to bet she wasn’t happy. Still, she remained quiet as they loaded into Dante’s limo. Madison smiled brightly at the bandaged-up man while her father strapped her into her carseat.
The car began to move but the only sounds in the backseat were the baby’s giggling. Mason leaned forward and offered Madison one of his fingers to play with.
“Thank you again for letting me stay in Ensenada,” he awkwardly offered in the too-quiet car.
Dante, who hadn’t said much to him on the plane, replied, “You’ll be safe here for as long as you’re my guest,” but then threw in a jab: “Unless your government decides to pay us another visit.” He was referring to when Mason and his team had landed a helicopter on Dante’s estate and extracted Kennedy against her will.
