Running Wilde (18 page)

Cam sat in a leather chair with his broken ankle propped on an ottoman. Judging by the doodles all over the plaster cast, he’d let Jude get too close with some markers. He should have known better, especially since Vaughn had just recently spent eight weeks in a cast that had sported a pink unicorn courtesy of Jude.

Eva perched beside Cam on the arm of the chair, a box of tissues balanced on her lap. When he sneezed, she gave him a pitying look and passed him one.

Oh shit.

The cat.

Vaughn searched for the orange beast and found him curled up on Libby’s lap, purring like a motorboat. Just the sight of him made his nose itch.

Aaaand there was the sneeze.

Eva gave him the same pitying look she’d given her husband and held out the box of tissues. He grabbed a couple and stuffed them into his pocket. He was going to need them.

Lark was smirking as she sat down on the couch beside him. “What was that?”

“The twins are allergic to cats,” Libby explained helpfully, and Lark’s smile spread.

Vaughn scowled. He just knew what she was thinking: The big, bad SEAL had been bested by a cat. And he bet she wasn’t going to let him live it down anytime soon.

Reece returned from the kitchen carrying a tray of mugs, sugar, and cream. He set it down on the coffee table. Shelby followed with a carafe and a bottle of water, which she gave to Libby.

The mood shifted, grew darker, heavier, as everyone poured and doctored their coffees. It was time to get down to family business, and they all knew it. Eva was the last to return to her seat with her and Cam’s mugs, and by the time she sat, the room was pin-drop quiet.

Reece drew a breath and finally broke the silence. “I want to start by saying Greer’s not dead—at least, as far as I know, he’s not. I know that’s what you all thought when I called this meeting, and I’m sorry. But we do need to discuss his disappearing act, because I went back over to his place yesterday and talked to his neighbor, Natalie. She’s been keeping an eye out for me since he disappeared, and she still hasn’t seen him, but…” He trailed off and glanced over at Shelby, who nodded encouragingly. Sighing, he took off his glasses and rubbed at his eyes. “But she did say she saw a pair of men enter his apartment two days ago, and when I checked it out, the place had been trashed. They had ripped through it, shredded everything he owned. Almost like—” His voice caught and he cleared his throat. “Almost like they were trying to obliterate him.”

Vaughn’s stomach lurched, the coffee he’d just taken a gulp of settling like toxic waste. He set it aside and stood up. “He’s in trouble.”

Reece nodded. “It’s looking that way. At first I thought this was just some kind of soul-searching trip for him. Some kind of early mid-life crisis thing or—I don’t know.”

Jude also stood. “But if people are ransacking his home, it’s more than that.”

“I agree. So we have some decisions to make. Do we call the cops? Report him missing? Report the break-in?”

“Yes,” Cam, Eva, and Libby said in unison. Figured the former and current detectives and the district attorney would be all for it.

“I agree,” Reece said.

“I don’t,” Shelby added. “In my experience, cops are bad news. No offense, sis,” she added to Eva. “But you know where I’m coming from. I haven’t had the best luck with law enforcement.”

Vaughn winced because his gut reaction mirrored Shelby’s. He glanced down at Lark and saw the same doubt on her face. “Yeah, we’re with Shelby.” He shook his head. “Besides, Greer wouldn’t want us to call the cops.”

Jude hissed out a breath. “Sorry, baby,” he said to his wife, “but I have to agree with Vaughn, Lark, and Shelby on this one. Something tells me getting the cops involved is a bad idea.”

“Well, voting’s out then,” Reece said. “That’s four and four. So what are our options? What do we do?”

Silence.

“He’s always taken care of us, guys,” Reece added when the silence stretched too long. “From the time he was fifteen, he’s taken care of us. He’s given up his whole life to make sure we’d be okay. It’s time we return the favor.”

Vaughn felt a light brush against his hand and glanced down. Lark entwined their fingers and stared back. There was worry in her eyes for her new brother-in-law even though she barely knew Greer, and Christ, he loved her for that.

“You found me,” she said softly. “You can find him.”

He leaned over and kissed her. “I love you,” he whispered for her ears alone. Then he straightened and gazed around the room at his brothers and sisters-in-law. The size of their once ragtag little family had doubled in recent months and was continuing to grow along with the baby in Libby’s belly. And he sure as fuck wasn’t ready to lose any of them. “She’s right. We’ll find Greer. And whatever trouble he’s in, we’ll deal with it. Together. As a family.”

A chorus of agreements rang out.

“All right,” Reece said. “It’s settled. Let’s find our big brother.”

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Acknowledgments

As always, I want to thank the amazing team at Entangled for taking each of my rough manuscripts and helping me polish them until they shine. I’m glad beyond words that Entangled was the start of my writing journey and no matter what other publishers I write for down the road, Entangled will always be home.

I also want to give a shout out to a reader, Paula Moore. She probably doesn’t remember this, but two years ago she won the chance to name a character in one of my books and she gave me the name Sage Evans. Thanks so much for the awesome name, Paula! It was perfect for the heroine of this story.

About the Author

Tonya Burrows
wrote her first romance in eighth grade and hasn’t put down her pen since. Originally from a small town in Western New York, she’s currently soaking up the sun as a Florida girl. She suffers from a bad case of wanderlust and usually ends up moving someplace new every few years. Luckily, her two dogs and ginormous cat are excellent travel buddies.

When she’s not writing about hunky military heroes, Tonya can usually be found at a bookstore or the dog park. She also enjoys painting, watching movies, and her daily barre workouts. A geek at heart, she pledges her TV fandom to Supernatural and Dr. Who.

If you would like to know more about Tonya, visit her website at
www.tonyaburrows.com
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Discover the
Wilde Security
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Wilde Nights in Paradise

Wilde for Her

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