Unchained

by Suzanne Halliday

  “You okay?” he asked. “Seem a little pale, baby. The heat too much?”

  “Oh, I’m all right,” she chided. “Stop worrying.”

  Undoing his tie the rest of the way, she pulled it from around his neck and rolled it around her hand. He’d pushed up his sleeves when on the floor with the dog, and without the tie, he appeared relaxed and in high spirits. She feathered her fingers through the hair above his brows that threatened to cover his forehead.

  “I’m surprised there wasn’t a greeting party.”

  “Do you imagine changing the subject is going to deflect my concern?”

  Her mouth quivered with amusement. “Was worth a try.”

  “Talk to me, Meghan,” he urged. “Pale is one thing, it’s your damn Irish coloring, but I’m sensing something else.”

  “I love you so much,” she replied in a rush. “Do you know how reassuring it is?”

  He looked at her with a question on his face.

  “Knowing you’re the one taking care of me.” Was she explaining this feeling right?

  “I will always take care of you.”

  “I know. And really, I’m fine. Unless I’m dreaming, Carmen is making tea as we speak. I think my blood sugar dipped earlier. No big deal. The excitement. The flight. The time difference and yeah, the heat. But I’m good. I’ll eat something and sip some tea.”

  He ran his hands up and down her bare arms. She wished he’d grab her butt again.

  He wasn’t convinced, and Meghan sensed his hesitation. She’d responded to his concern and didn’t feel any more discussion was necessary, so she backtracked to her earlier observation. “So where is everybody?”

  “Before I explain, I’d like to ask a question.”

  “Sure.”

  “Why haven’t you used your phone at all? I thought you’d alert the troops to your return.”

  He’d noticed. Well, my goodness. The Major didn’t miss a thing, so she didn’t balk at explaining.

  “The truth? I got overwhelmed. Talking to Ben while you were with Parker and seeing the model of the compound, well, it got to me a little.”

  “Now, do you understand why I imposed the no-information zone?”

  “Yes.” She kissed him softly. “And thank you for being such a badass dominant at the perfect time. You were right. Focusing solely on ourselves was a brilliant tactical maneuver, Major Marquez. I’d salute, but it’s more fun touching you.”

  “Ease back slowly, honey,” he murmured. “This isn’t a race. If you need time to chill, that’s totally cool.” He smiled and tucked some hair behind her ear. “I guess it’s good everyone is scattered and not all here with their loud and crazy antics.”

  She didn’t disagree.

  “I’d give Lacey a ring when you feel ready. She was here, but Dylan was grumpy. Ben mentioned teething, so she took him home to nap.”

  “Okay.” She could do that.

  “Don’t know where the fuck Drae is. Our arrival wasn’t a secret, so fifteen points from Hufflepuff for being a d-bag.”

  Oy. She heard the displeasure dripping from her husband’s voice.

  “Your brother keeps busy in town. That’s a direct quote from Ben, and I have no idea what it means.”

  “Jesus,” she muttered. “Continue.”

  “I’d keep an eye out for Calder and Stephanie. Please don’t freak out; Ben told me some wild tale about menopause and stuff like that. I think the word fainting might have been spoken. He says Calder dragged her to a doctor to get things sorted out.”

  “What? Did you say menopause? Who came up with that? Good lord! That’s not how it works. What’s been going on around here while I was gone?”

  She was kidding. Kind of. But not about the menopause. Meghan was pretty certain it didn’t happen out of the blue one morning when you woke up. Stephanie was barely fifty. And she knew for a fact that her cycle was regular and as predictable as Big Ben. An odd piece of personal information, but it’d come up right before the wedding when Tori was making baby noises.

  Alex didn’t chuckle at her attempt to be funny. She focused on him and saw the tension around his eyes. Who hadn’t he mentioned?

  “And Victoria?” she said when the obvious hit her broadside.

  He sighed heavily. “She’s here.”

  Meghan glanced toward the hallway leading past Alex’s study that split off to a quirky labyrinth of oddly shaped rooms where his absent-minded professor’s lab was situated. And the music studio. Among other things.

  He silently nodded when he saw where she looked.

  “She needs you.” It was all she could say. “Go.” Meghan gestured with a jerk of her head. “I’ll be right here if you need me.”

  After a brief kiss and a delicious booty squeeze, she reminded him as he walked toward the tech zone with Zeus obediently at his heel, “If she has Daniel with her, you bring me that baby!”

  He laughed and gave her a thumbs-up. Good. Sending him off with a smile to what she suspected would be an emotional reunion was the right thing to do.

  “Tea, Meesus. A new one! It’s called Soothing Sunset. And Ria, she sent up a big jar of cactus honey. Come. Sit.”

  Another tremendous tsunami-like surge of emotion overtook her for the good people who were such a big part of her life.

  Ben, the trusted jack-of-all-trades, who managed Alex’s life. Carmen. Jeez, Carmen, the longtime Marquez caretaker. She’d been making Meghan’s life easier and waiting on her hand and foot from the moment she showed up at the Villa for what was supposed to be a simple lunch.

  If she sneezed, these people said, “God Bless You,” and passed the tissues. If she needed her car washed or a dinner party planned, all these things and so much more were taken care of for her.

  Was that another reason why she and Alex were so perfectly bonded? Without the minutiae of every day clogging her schedule and thoughts, she was free to concentrate on her husband and the wacky extended family living with them.

  Carmen ushered Meghan into a comfortable chair, poured the tea as though she were serving the Queen, and shoved a small dish of oatmeal raisin cookies toward her. They were a favorite. Tears briefly blurred her vision when she thought about the dear woman baking up a storm making Meghan and Alex’s favorite treats to fill their homecoming with comfort.

  Boy, she thought on a bite of the soft, cinnamon-spiked indulgence, I had better get a grip before all this happy heart stuff turns me into a blubbering baby.

  MAKING ZEUS SIT and stay in the hallway took a minute. The dog was not happy about being pushed aside, but she’d just create havoc.

  He saw Tori walking around in her office, so Alex watched her for a good few minutes through the smoked glass partitions, conscious of the sluggish way she moved. He was used to his feisty assistant being something of a whirlwind, so seeing her appear reserved and cautious wasn’t reassuring at all.

  Moving stealthily, he closed the distance and heard her softly tease Daniel. “You do a better commando than Daddy.” Lifting his gaze, he peeked around a line of tall cabinets and spied his young nephew, much bigger than he was the last time Alex saw him, scooting about on his belly.

  Tori sat cross-legged on the floor now, picking baby toys out of a brightly colored plastic bin. She tossed him a noisy plastic key ring and a bunch of soft fabric blocks. He saw his opportunity and took it.

  Stepping into the room behind her, he chuckled sternly and said, “Is this what I pay you to do?”

  Her head whipped around in shock. “Alex,” she choked out before jumping up and coming to him for a fierce hug.

  Was he concerned when she grabbed tight and didn’t let go? A little. But he understood what she needed, so he stood there and held on, patting her back softly and not saying a word.

  When she pulled back and wiped away some tears, he was relieved to find her smiling sheepishly. “Sorry,” she mumbled with a self-deprecating laugh. “I’m Wanda Waterworks lately. Shit. Cried watching a soup commercial the other day.”


  He draped an arm around her shoulder for a fatherly side hug and kissed the top of her head. “My wife informs that not all tears are cause for alarm.”

  “Your wife is a know-it-all,” she fake sneered.

  Daniel belly flopped and squirmed his way across the carpet, arriving at Alex’s feet with the plastic key ring clutched in his hand.

  “And just who the heck do we have here?” he asked, remembering just in time to check his language. “Is it?” he asked with a laugh. “Why, I do believe it’s young Daniel Alexander.”

  Bending to pick up the chubby youngster, he hefted him up and down a few times, as if he was on a scale, and said, “Not quite twenty. Am I right?”

  “Of course,” Tori answered as delight bubbled in her throaty laugh and pride for her son shone in her eyes.

  Cradling the cute kid on his hip, he took his time taking in every detail. His hair was a dirty blond with some of his mother’s brown undertone. He had his father’s interesting steel blue eyes and Tori’s distinctive lips. The kid was going to break a thousand hearts someday—just like his daddy had.

  Daniel was beating the crap out of Alex’s back with the plastic toy still clutched in his hand. A huge burden of unspoken worry vanished once he was assured the boy was in good shape. At least, there is that, he thought.

  “Here,” Tori said, her mouth in a lopsided grin. “Let me put his nibs in the play zone.”

  Alex laughed heartily and handed the boy to his mom. “Oh my god, Tori. I’ve missed your mouth! His nibs.” He chortled with unrestrained glee. “My mom used to refer to my dad that way when he was acting like a dick.”

  She snickered. “Yes, well, in this case, it refers perfectly to his lordship here,” she motioned with mocking snark. “Like his father’s father, he thinks he’s all that and then some.”

  “Ah. The dubious St. John pedigree.”

  She looked momentarily shocked at Alex’s playful but sarcastic reply.

  With Daniel settled in a clever six-sided play zone, he took Tori by the hand and led her to the small loveseat in the corner, had her sit down, and then grabbed a rolling chair that he placed at her knees. When he sat, she gave him her hands without his asking.

  “I’m all ears.”

  She smiled. “Am I in trouble for calling?”

  “Fuck no,” he ground out. “I’d be more annoyed if something was wrong and you said nothing.”

  Tori nodded and tried to look relieved. “I don’t know where to start.”

  He felt like he did when, as a commander, he’d sit with a group of men for a debriefing at the end of a harrowing mission. Sometimes, the best place to jump off from isn’t the beginning.

  “I know Drae’s been driving to Flagstaff and that he’s there now. In the Lamborghini.”

  She blanched. Had he been too direct, too quickly? He wanted to kill Draegyn.

  With pursed lips, which on Tori had quite a dramatic effect, and pinched expression, she dipped her chin, stared at their clasped hands, and then raised her eyes to his.

  “First, you should know I’ve had a consult with an amazing doctor.”

  “A doctor? Jesus, fuck me Christ, Tori. What’s wrong?”

  “That’s the thing, Alex. Something’s been wrong this whole time. To explain bluntly, looks like I have a case of postpartum depression. P-P-D for short.”

  Alex barked out questions like commands. “Depression? Does Drae know this? Why the fuck isn’t he here helping?”

  “Settle down,” she murmured in a hushed voice. “I’m just coming to grips with this myself.”

  He took a deep breath and steadied himself. “Okay.” He thought a minute and said, “I know you, Victoria. You’ve done the research. Give ‘em to me one at a time.”

  He was asking for causes and symptoms so he’d understand better. She did not act like she wasn’t prepared for the question.

  “Hold on to your hat.” She gripped his hands tighter and spelled out her agony in simple terms that still managed to rip a hole in his heart. Poor Tori. Fuck.

  “Classic case. Feeling sad for no reason. Crying jags. Insomnia. Sudden anger. No appetite. All my thoughts—unhinged, off the hook, unchained. Difficulty concentrating. Feeling inadequate as a wife.”

  He growled by reflex when she said it. Killing Drae seemed like a real possibility.

  “Yeah,” she said in a tense, brittle voice. “I think that’s quite enough for now, don’t you?”

  He wasn’t sure what to say. How to react. He’d known she had a tough time. Everybody knew. Daniel’s wasn’t an easy birth, and her pregnancy was a challenge.

  “What are you supposed to do?” Here was one time when he wished for some sort of clue about female shit. He vaguely recalled his mom having problems after Angie was born, but he was a kid then, so what the hell did he know about anything?

  “Well,” she assured him with an earnest smirk, “it’s not terminal, so that’s a bonus.”

  “Tori, come on. This isn’t the time for cute.”

  “All right, all right.” She cleared her throat, hemmed and hawed a bit more, then told him something he already knew. “I need to talk to Meghan. Have a ten-page printout of diet changes and stuff like that. All natural. That’s the only way for me, but I’m a little manic right now, so I’m not sure what the hell I’m doing.”

  “Understood. And you know damn well she’s waiting with bells on at the end of the hallway. Now, back to crying phone calls and Flagstaff-bound spouses.”

  “I need my hands back for this,” she pleaded.

  “Why?”

  “’Cause you’re gonna freak out and start yelling.”

  He reared back as if he’d been slapped. “Are you sure?”

  “No doubt whatsoever.” Her tone was solemn. Serious. “But please don’t go off on a tear, Alex. You have to let me handle this.”

  He stood up, scraped a hand through his hair, and went to stand at the play zone to stare at Draegyn’s son. Tori had a reason for telling him about the PPD first. She might be a mess in her current state, but she was a smart lady at the core. He had to trust that she knew what was in her best interest.

  But as for Draegyn, he was another matter altogether. Alex didn’t get it. At all. Drae was so insanely infatuated and in love with Tori that his absence and the unsettling tension between the married couple was worrisome. Had something happened? Or fuck … someone?

  “Who’s Carol?”

  Tori sat back heavily in the chair, her mouth gaping wide and stared at him. “Fuck my life,” she muttered with a hasty glance at the baby as if she was gauging distance and whether their vulgarity was audible. “You’ve been back, what? An hour? And already the gossip machine handed you a name?”

  “Everyone is worried. Now, stop bitchin’ and explain what’s going on.”

  He looked at his watch. “Oh. And do it in five minutes or less because I think that’s about how much time we have before my lovely wife marches in here and demands that you hand over that kid.”

  “Oh shit.” She chuckled. “A timed challenge. Okay. In a nutshell then. I think my crazy hormones and depression created a glitch in the matrix.” She held up her hand and sniped, “Let me finish.”

  Crossing her legs, she looked calm, but he sensed her turmoil.

  “We’ve had problems communicating. Before the baby and after. My fault. I see that now, but maybe the realization came later than would have been advantageous.”

  “Oh god. Stop talking in niceties. Problems communicating? Your fault. Cut the crap. Did he do something?”

  “I don’t know,” she responded. “We don’t talk like normal people do. One minute, I’m doing stupid shit like jumping off buildings and-”

  “What?” he barked, cutting off what she was saying. “You what?”

  “Long story. Not important. My point is one minute up. Next minute down. Not fertile ground for nurturing our communication skills. He pushed my buttons, so I pushed his. Now, he’s hiding something
, and I have no idea what although when I’m on a downward swing, I’m positive he’s cheating on me.”

  An angry primal growl rose from his throat.

  “Easy, big guy. The other side of that is when I’m on a high, he’s like he’s always been. Loving. Funny. Attentive. I don’t know what to make of it.”

  “So who the hell is Carol?” he asked more confused than before.

  “No idea. None. Is it a person? A business? A code word? Coming up empty.”

  “Have you asked him?”

  She gave him a deadpan sneer. “Um, did you hear the part about the PPD?”

  He knew Tori. If she asked the question during a manic swing, she’d probably do it with a stick of lit dynamite in her hand.

  “I can tell you this,” she said at last. “He thinks he’s protecting me. Whatever this is, he’s got it in his mind that I’m being protected.”

  “From?”

  “Him,” she replied succinctly. “He’s protecting me from him.”

  Oh, how lovely, Stephanie thought. Gazing out the passenger window of a sleek, luxury Justice SUV, she watched two puffy heart-shaped clouds slowly chase each other across a brilliant blue sky as the soft white contrail from a high-flying jet shot through their middles connecting them by a thin thread.

  The sight seemed terribly romantic. Side-by-side hearts linked together by a tiny unexpected strand of white.

  One of the hands resting calmly in her lap moved to cover her stomach. Her head turned, and through the dark shade of her sunglasses, she saw her fiancé with what she swore was a silver aura pulsing off his body. His hands had a death grip on the steering wheel, and he was clenching his jaw so tight, she wondered if his teeth would survive the punishing clamp.

  Her eyes shifted briefly to the driver’s display and widened. A one-legged man in a butt-kicking competition moved faster than the car was. It would be funny if she didn’t have to pee.

  Stephanie laid her head on the rest and kept an eye on Calder. It was a real hardship not to laugh. And not just because she was overflowing with numb happiness but also because he just looked so damn cute with his stupefied expression. Poor man. He didn’t know whether to check his butt or scratch his watch.