“Mason, please.”
With only minutes separating me from meeting him, the pit in my stomach turned into a chasm. He might not be receptive to revisiting his time in the military. If my brother died on a mission, that probably meant things had gone sideways at some point. It might be a difficult topic. But I wouldn’t back down now. I needed answers like I needed my next breath.
Declan hefted my bag over his shoulder and motioned for me to follow him. The path led around the main house and past a building with an art gallery sign. There was a small cabin nestled among a patch of trees near a large garage-style building. He opened a door on the side of the larger building and stepped inside.
The first thing I noticed was the smell of oil and machinery. Then, all I saw was him.
A broad-shouldered man with short, dark hair and a tight expression stood up from where he was crouched next to a small tractor with the hood open, his piercing blue eyes trained on me. He grabbed a rag and wiped his hands, gaze never wavering. I couldn’t read anything in his eyes. They were shuttered, blank of all emotion. But I felt a pull to him I could only describe as magnetic.
I wanted to walk up to him and smell him. Touch him. It was insane. I’d experienced attraction to men before—at twenty-seven, I hadn’t lived a nun-like existence—but this was another level.
And I needed to shut it down. He had the answers I wanted. He knew the truth of what had happened to Aaron.
TWO
Mason
What was she doing here? My head and my heart pounded, threatening to burst from my body. The urge to shift and escape filled me. I’d found it nearly impossible to walk away from her five years ago, and the time since had only added to her allure. I wasn’t sure I could do it again, but I needed to. Too much stood between us.
Declan’s head swiveled back and forth, his narrowed gaze seeing too much. I had to keep him from realizing who she was to me. Otherwise, my brothers and their mates would be relentless in throwing us together.
I cleared my throat. “How can I help you?”
“Mason?”
“Do I know you?” It killed me to pretend she was a stranger. Even before I first saw her in person, I felt like I knew her. Aaron had told countless stories about his baby sister, younger by three minutes. I could have passed an exam about her. Her likes and dislikes, her dreams, the trouble the two got into together.
“You and my brother Aaron were in the same special ops squad.” The line of her shoulders was tight, and she drew in an uneven breath. “He mentioned you in an email to me.”
“Oh, Aaron. Yeah, he talked about a sister once.” I kept my voice casual, light and dismissive. “I don’t remember your name, though.”
“It’s Brooke.” She folded her arms across her waist and glanced at Declan. “Do you mind if I talk to Mason alone for a minute?”
He looked at me, and I shrugged a shoulder, giving no indication of my inner turmoil. My bear was itching for me to claim my mate, but I shoved him down, calling on all my special forces training to keep him at bay. I’d had to learn greater control than most shifters, as I couldn’t just shift whenever I wanted or needed while on deployment.
Declan held up her bag. “I’ll drop this off at your cabin. Mason can show you the way when you’re done.”
“Thank you.” Brooke gave him a small smile, and my bear roared in my head, wanting all her smiles for himself. Declan tipped his hat and left.
I gritted my teeth and leaned against the worktable, arms crossed over my chest. “What can I do for you?”
She bit her lip and stepped closer, resting her hand on the workbench that ran down the side of the workshop before turning to face me. “I’ve thought hard about how to ask my question, but I’ve realized there’s no good way, so here goes. How did my brother die?”
Even my breath stilled at her question. A bang sounded in my head, followed by crashing and yelling, threatening to drag me back to my last mission. I couldn’t let it. Not now. I let my fingers shift, just slightly. Just enough for the bite of claws to dig into my palms. The pain grounded me in the moment.
“The army would have notified you of the details.”
“They’re claiming it was a training accident. But he wasn’t on a training exercise.” She shook her head at me when I started todisagree. “Don’t bother repeating the army’s line. Aaron and I had a code. He was on a mission.”
I inhaled deeply, and her scent filled me. I swallowed hard, resisting the urge to go to her and claim her as my mate, knowing I had lost any chance I might have had with her long ago. “If you know that much, you know I can’t tell you anything.”
“I’m not planning to call the army out on its lies. I just need to know.” Her voice held a pleading note. “Was it quick or did he suffer? Was he alone? I lose sleep wondering these things.”
I dropped my gaze, unable to look her in the eye. How could I tell her? I couldn’t. Even though I’d given up any hope of claiming my mate, just thinking about the look in her eyes if she learned the truth broke me. She was better off not knowing.
“I can’t answer your questions.” My heart cracked at the despair on her face. “Let me show you to your cabin. Dinner will be starting soon.”
Her jaw tightened, and she jerked away from the workbench. “Just point me in the right direction and I’ll find it.”
