Total pages in book: 155
Estimated words: 146417 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 732(@200wpm)___ 586(@250wpm)___ 488(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 146417 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 732(@200wpm)___ 586(@250wpm)___ 488(@300wpm)
A tender expression came over Jax’s face as though he knew what she was truly asking. “Ariel and Rob are still at The Garden. She had a baby ten weeks ago or I assure you she would be here. A girl they named…”
“Daraja. She always told me she would name a daughter Daraja.” Oh, she wanted to meet Ari’s baby girl. She would be as gorgeous and fierce and amazing as her mother.
“That’s her name. I haven’t met her yet but Rob’s got pictures. She’s beautiful. It should tell you how much they care that Rob’s here.”
“Did Beck ask you to help him?”
“Yes, but this is about you, too. I assure you I wouldn’t have left my wife and kids if Beck had just wanted to do a job. I’m out of that life. Many of us are, but we’re back here because we care about you and Beck.”
“When did he stop using Ezra’s name?” She’d been surprised when Owen and Jax had called him by his real name. At first she feared he’d done it because the real Ezra was alive, but neither man had hesitated or corrected themselves. They were used to calling him by his given name.
“A long time ago. We got together after it was safe for us to. Those first couple of years were rough because of the pandemic. But we kept in touch and when it was safe, we had a reunion in London and Ezra was suddenly going by Beck. I think he’d been Beck for a year by then,” Jax said, his voice low. “He’s a different man. He’s put in a lot of work.”
“Work?”
There was a sound from the doorway, and she looked up. Beck was standing there, looking all big and manly, and she wanted to wrap her arms around him and beg his forgiveness. But forgiveness wasn’t Beck’s strong point, and there wouldn’t be any of it for her. All her sins were laid out, and she feared his vengeance might be swift.
“Jax, I just got off the phone with Tag. He’s worried he’s got a leak in the office now,” Beck said. “If you could reach out and let him know you’ll help in any way, I would appreciate it. He might need an outsider, if you know what I mean.”
“Of course. I’ll call. I don’t think we have Wi-Fi here.” Jax pushed his chair back. “Tell me we’re not staying for long.”
“Theo’s working on it,” Beck explained.
“They didn’t get arrested?” She had to know if she was the reason Rob and Tucker and Theo had been thrown into jail.
“Your uncle is a quick talker,” Beck allowed. “According to Theo, once Levi realized you were gone, your uncle started in on the cops and pointed out that they were working with the CIA, who have no jurisdiction. Apparently Levi had given them some kind of story that fell apart pretty fast. So the good news is our guys are safe.”
Jax sighed. “And the bad news is Levi’s in the wind, and he’ll be looking for us. We need to move again. Do we have a way to get her back to the States?”
“I don’t think Dallas is a good idea. It’s the first place Levi will look,” Beck replied. “And he’ll have resources there. I know he’s not supposed to work in the States, but he’ll have friends who can.”
“I wasn’t thinking of Dallas. I meant she could come back to Bliss with me,” Jax replied.
Her heart leapt at the thought. And then she remembered that she would be bringing Levi down on all their heads. “No. I can’t go back to Colorado. It’s the second place he would look. I think he knows how much I loved it there.”
Beck’s jaw tightened but he moved into the kitchen. “I don’t think the States are going to be safe at this point. If Levi hadn’t shown up, I might have taken the risk, but he knows we’re involved, and he’ll have eyes out. Rob is making arrangements, but he’s going to need help. I set up a satellite connection for you. I assure you it’s better than Wi-Fi.”
Jax’s eyes lit up. “Thank god. It’s been a couple of hours. I don’t like being disconnected.”
He winked her way and then took his coffee and went back to the front room, leaving her alone with Beck.
She’d wanted him to say something, but now that they were here, she had the greatest desire to slink away and postpone this argument forever.
“Are you in love with him?”
She frowned. “Why would I be in love with Jax?”
“My brother. Are you in love with him?” Beck walked in and poured himself a cup of the dark coffee she’d brewed after she’d put Roman in bed.
“Of course not.” She should have expected this. When she looked at it logically, she could understand the question. “Roman isn’t Ezra’s son. I was pregnant when I went to Malta, though I didn’t know about it until a couple of weeks after I got there.”