“That’s incredible.And what about you, Jane?How did you meet Sully?”Ivy was almost afraid to ask, but she desperately wanted to know these women’s stories.
“Well, Sully and Red had just gotten Thalia back onto U.S.soil when Sully was temporarily assigned to the Virginia SEAL Team.One of their teammate’s wives was having a baby.Added to that, the SEAL’s sister, an anthropologist, joined the mission as a government contractor.I was one of the hostages Sully was sent to rescue and he was shot in the process.Long story short, he developed an infection and I just kind of stayed with him.”
“There’s a lot more to that story,” Thalia said pushing a cover onto one of the coffee cups.
Ivy filled a cup for her and one for Jude, breathing in the bitter scent of ground coffee beans.She covered both, leaving them black the way they both liked.
“And both of yours, too,” Jane said staring at Vivienne and Thalia with disbelief.
“We’d be here for days if we really got into them though.”Vivienne laughed.
“And I thought the way I met Jude was strange,” Ivy mused, completely floored by the other women’s stories.
“How did you meet?”Thalia asked as they started out of the cafeteria, each holding two cups of coffee.
“I’m a home inspector and was called out to an estate under some uncommon circumstances.Two men entered the estate before I finished.They didn’t see me at first and something about the way they were talking made me start recording the conversation on my phone.They were discussing their plans for the estate, which had nothing to do with family or a white picket fence.I ran out the back door, but not before they started following me and shooting.I fell down a steep ledge.I guess I got knocked out and Jude found me outside the cabin he was renting.There was severe weather at the time, and a landslide took out the entire cabin Jude was staying in.”Ivy turned her gaze to Thalia.“Thankfully, you and Red had already picked up my brother, Ash, to bring him to Jess’s condo, because our place was broken into.”
The women walking beside her murmured their appreciation that both she and Jude got out of the situation unharmed.
Thalia sighed.“I loved meeting your brother and Jess.What a sweetheart.She invited us right in and was baking cupcakes.We agreed to meet up sometime for drinks.Now we can include you, too.”
“Are you still in danger, Ivy?”Jane said, hitting the elevator button with her elbow.
“Looks that way.Part of the reason Jude’s teammate was shot was because they found one of the men who was at the estate.It sounds like he was doing too much talking, and somebody wanted to silence him.”
“Where are you staying now?”Vivienne maneuvered her coffees to hit the button that would take them back to the waiting room floor.
“With Jude.”
“He’s…intense,” Thalia said.
“He is, but he also has a sweet side, too,” Ivy said.The elevator bounced slightly and came to a stop, and the women filtered out.
Jane and Thalia glanced at each other with their eyebrows raised.
“I don’t doubt that he’s a good man,” Jane said.“But I get the feeling the only way he knows how to show how much he cares is through protection.”
“If Jude is showing you anything but his intense side, that must mean you’re very special to him,” Thalia said.
“We bonded through a wild situation.”Ivy shook her head, letting the doubts creep in with this group of women who had been through so much.“I thought we were going to see where things went between us, but I can already feel him pulling away.”
“Don’t let him,” Vivienne exclaimed.“Iron tried to do the same thing with me.I had to be the aggressor.Otherwise, I don’t think he ever would have touched me.All the reasons he thought we couldn’t be together simply didn’t matter to me.It took me a long time to break down his walls, but it was so worth it.I know it will be worth it for you, too.”
“Red was going to let me go out of some misplaced chivalry.He said I deserved a chance to be free and out on my own.Said he wouldn’t be the person who held me back.I had to show him that my freedom meant nothing if I couldn’t choose to stay with him,” Thalia said as they walked past the nurse’s station.
“It’s about time Jude found himself something good,” Jane added.
“We’ve been so worried about him.”Thalia lowered her voice as they got closer to the waiting area.“He’s been spiraling into a dark place, and he already seems lighter having you by his side.”
“Just don’t let him pull away from you.”Vivienne’s voice was just a whisper as they stood outside the door to the room where they’d left the men.“He’s going to try, but you’ve already caught his eye.Fight for him, Ivy.I promise these men are worth it.”
Ivy smiled at the other women, feeling incredibly lucky that they were bolstering her confidence when she needed it most.“I already know he is.”
Chapter Sixteen
“How can wehelp?”Iron asked when the women left the room.Jude raked his fingers through his hair.The sinking feeling in his gut that had begun with the phone call from Jon had only intensified when Ivy chose to stay with him in the waiting room.His mind had already determined to let her go, but his heart was heavy in his chest.How had she come to mean so much to him in such a short time?
“Are you still in danger?”Sully crossed his arms over his chest and stared at Jude intently.
