cupped her chin and tilted back her head to study her guarded expression. What the hell?
“Myst.”
She shivered beneath his light grip. “Yes?”
“What’s going on?”
“I don’t know what you—”
“Don’t,” he interrupted in stern tones. Enough was enough. He was getting to the bottom of her strange behavior. “If this isn’t your dream house, we’ll find another one. Hell, we can find a dozen and you can choose your favorite.”
“No,” she breathed. “The house is truly perfect.”
He leaned down, savoring the sweet scent of honeysuckle. “Then why do I sense you aren’t fully committed to making this our home?”
She hesitated, almost as if considering a lie. Then, clearly realizing Bas would recognize any attempt to deceive him, she heaved a faint sigh.
“Because I’m afraid.”
He sucked in a shocked breath. “Of me?”
“No, of course not,” she denied, her expression horrified.
Okay. She wasn’t afraid of him. Then what?
“Talk to me, Myst,” he insisted.
Without warning she stepped forward, laying her head on his chest as her arms wrapped around his waist.
“I’ve never allowed myself to dream that I could have a real home with a real family,” she confessed in a low voice that was raw with emotion. “Now I fear this might be an illusion that will be snatched away.”
Oh . . . hell.
Relief and a fierce need to protect this fragile female thundered through him. He lashed his arms around her, holding her so tight he knew it would be difficult for her to breathe.
“Trust me, I’m very, very real,” he assured her. “And there’s nothing on this earth that’s going to separate us again.” He pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “Nothing.”
“You swear?”
“I swear.” He pulled back far enough so she could see the sincerity etched on his face. “You can believe in me, Myst.”
She gave a slow nod, her wariness fading as she accepted he was never letting her go.
“Okay.”
“Will you leap for joy now?” he demanded.
A small, mysterious smile curved her lips. “Actually, women in my condition shouldn’t leap.”
“Your condition?” His heart squeezed in instant alarm before he noticed the shimmer of absolute contentment in her dark eyes. She wasn’t worried. She was . . . delighted. “Are you pregnant?” he asked, barely daring to breathe as he waited for her slow nod.
“I warned you the spell was faulty,” she murmured.
Pure joy raced through him. Another baby. He felt dizzy with happiness.
“Or more likely fate is just determined to make sure we have a dozen beautiful babies,” he said, firmly believing there was nothing wrong with the spell.
Destiny had created Molly. Just as it had created the new child growing within his mate.
“A dozen?” She gave a low chuckle, the last of her unease melting away. “Isn’t that a little ambitious?”
His lips skimmed over her forehead. “I’m a mercenary.”
She quivered, her hand lifting to cup the side of his neck in a gesture of intimate affection.
“And?”
“And I’m greedy,” he murmured, his blood heating as he allowed his gaze to slowly sweep over her face. “The more I have, the more I want.”
She blushed, no doubt recalling the long nights when he’d kissed her from head to toe, unable to sate his unquenchable desire for her.
“So I’ve noticed,” she teased.
He smiled with wicked anticipation, happiness swelling through him like the most potent aphrodisiac.
“In fact . . . I’m feeling a little greedy right now,” he assured her, bending down to scoop her off her feet. “Shall we discover if our new home possesses a bed?”
Her laughter filled the house with a warmth that truly turned it into a home.
“I remember when you would have been satisfied with a couch,” she taunted.
He headed out of the kitchen and toward the large master bedroom at the end of the hallway.
“And I remember how you disappeared the second my back was turned,” he growled, gazing down at the face that had haunted his dreams for years. “I want you in a room where I can lock the door.” Bending his head, he kissed her with a promise of pleasure to come, speaking against her lips. “You’re never going to slip away from me again, cara.”
Five brave military heroes have survived the hell of
a Taliban prison to return home—and take on
civilian missions no one else can. They’re the men of
ARES Security. Highly skilled, intimidating,
invincible, and one by one, tested again and again . . .
Lucas St. Clair’s prestigious family had a political future
neatly planned out for him—one that didn’t include his
high school sweetheart, Mia Ramon. Under their
pressure, Lucas gave her up. But