Royally Chosen Christmas (Royal Sons MC #7) - Elle Boon Page 0,7

a couple years to completely grow to what it was today, but it was nothing less than magical.

Scott stood back, unseen for a moment and watched as Talena lifted her arms above her head at the top of the fake mountain. Her form was much more graceful than the other girls, and then she let out a yell, making him grin as she dove gracefully into the deep waters. Scott hated to upset their mother and ruin her time with Talena with his questions, but fuck, he loathed the fact she’d lied to him. No matter what, Talena was his family.

Laughter filled the air, girls cheering one another on, completely oblivious to the demons plaguing him or the shit he was about to wreak on his mother. Talena climbed out of the pool, her long blonde hair was almost white, the sun making it look like a halo. His chest ached at the thought of losing her as a sister.

“There’s my baby boy.” His mother moved in front of him, blocking his view of Talena.

“Hi, mom. You look gorgeous as always.” It wasn’t a lie. At forty-three, she could easily pass for a woman ten years younger. She too was in a bathing suit, her two-piece showing off the fact she was still in excellent shape.

She slapped his arm, then pulled him down to kiss his cheeks. “Come over into the shade and have a seat.”

Following her over to the area where huge fans were set up, blowing mist all around, he toed off his shoes so they wouldn’t get wet. Damn, he was definitely going to need to get his head back into warfare before going into whatever shithole they sent him.

One of their staff placed a glass in front of him, filling it with his favorite drink. A Shirley Temple with extra grenadine. “Thank you, Louisa.”

“You’re welcome, young man. I must say, you’re looking well.” Louisa nodded, walking away with her tray.

Scott laughed, sipping his drink before looking at his mom who was watching him with knowing eyes. She’d always been able to tell when he had something on his mind.

“Alright, tell me what’s got you coming over here looking so pensive.” She held up her hand. “While I’m very happy to see you, you and I both know you were just here, and you said you’d call when you landed. I assumed that meant we wouldn’t see you until, well until the next time.” Her voice hitched.

He reached out, putting his hand over hers. “Don’t, mom.”

With a deep inhale, he opened his mouth preparing to ask her the question that was eating at him. The familiar trill of her phone ringing had him snapping his mouth shut.

She held her finger up, her smile sunny like always. “Just a second, honey. Hello? Yes, this is her stepmother.”

He sat up straighter, watching his mother as she listened to whatever the person on the other end had to say. Her tan complexion paled; the hand holding the phone began to shake so much he worried she was going to drop the little device.

“What’s wrong?” he asked when she didn’t speak.

His mother opened her mouth and closed it a couple times while still holding the phone to her ear. Scott gently took the phone from her. “Hello, this is Angela’s brother. What’s going on?” He didn’t mention they weren’t biologically related.

“This is Officer Bradshaw. We tried calling Angela Dupont’s father as he was listed first on her contacts but were unable to reach him. This number was the second on her list. She’s being airlifted to the hospital for emergency surgery.” There was a pause while he could hear the sound of a helicopter in the background.

Scott listened as the officer explained about the accident. “She’s pregnant,” he told the officer, unsure if Angela would’ve been able to tell them herself. His mother’s sharp intake of air almost distracted him from what the other man was saying.

“I’ll let the hospital know, but you need to understand—the accident wasn’t. It appears to have been intentional.”

The words dropped like an anvil on his head. Moving away from his mother, he asked more questions, getting frustrated at the lack of response. Finally, he hung up after he had all the officer could give him.

“Where’s Gary?” It was Saturday, the bastard should’ve been home.

“I don’t know. He left a couple of hours ago for a meeting. Oh god, I need to go to the hospital.” His mother’s grief-stricken face took him back to a time