Then, as if his thoughts had sped across an electric current, his phone rang. He pressed the button on his steering wheel so he could answer it.
“Stark, here.”
“So, when do I get you back?”
Ezio laughed. “Really, that’s how you’re going to start a conversation?” he asked the lieutenant of Omega Sky.
“Hell yes, it is. Hasn’t Zaragoza recovered enough to get back to work? Or is he just milking it?”
“Could be. I’ve seen pics of him with his kid. She’s awfully cute.”
“Fuck me. Are you serious?” Baron Kostya moaned. “Tell me you didn’t just say that.”
“Baron, you still haven’t grown a heart. I thought since I was gone that maybe that stone might have softened up a little.”
“Not in this lifetime. Now seriously, when can I expect you back?”
Ezio frowned. “What’s going on? I thought Gideon was doing a good job.”
“He’s outstanding. Still doesn’t mean I don’t want you.”
The lake appeared as he took another turn down the two-lane highway. Seriously, Kane couldn’t have found a more beautiful spot to build a house. “I’m thinking another month or two at the most,” Ezio said.
He heard Baron’s sigh of relief.
“What’s going on?” Ezio asked. “And don’t say nothing.”
“Gideon’s good. He’s damn good. He’s great with the team, and they like him a whole hell of a lot better than you,” Baron laughed.
“Fuck you,” Ezio said without any real heat. It was hard to believe that, when his lieutenant was salivating to get him back. “So, what’s the deal?”
“He just can’t read my mind the way you can. I can smell trouble brewing. Maybe not this year, but definitely next year. The brass aren’t talking yet, but I have sources with the men in black suits, and I can see it coming down the line. Max isn’t using you to your full potential because he has Kane.”
Ezio rubbed the back of his neck. It was true, Kane McNamara was second-in-command of Night Storm. He respected the hell out of him, but he was used to being the second. Still…
“I hear you, but I got to tell you, Baron. While I’m on this team, they have my complete and utter loyalty.”
Baron snorted. “I wouldn’t expect anything less. Max has sung your praises to me. He’s been really impressed. Especially with that last op in Argentina.”
This time it was Ezio’s turn to snort. “Bullshit. If I were really good, I would have ended up with the girl.”
Baron let out a long laugh. “Jesus God, how many members of Night Storm are paired off now, anyway? It’s like an episode of The Bachelor over there.”
“Three. Kane, Cullen, and Asher.”
“And Zed,” Baron reminded him.
Ezio could practically hear his lieutenant shaking his head in disbelief. “Then there’s the fact that they all met them on missions. Something is not right over there. I’m telling you, if you fall for some woman, I’m going to beat you senseless, Stark.”
Ezio laughed. “Yeah, I can see it now—the next time I’m in Yemen, I’m going to find the love of my life.”
Baron joined in with his laughter. “All I care about right now is that Zed stops playing possum and rejoins Night Storm and I get my second-in-command back. Got it?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Gotta go.”
Ezio was not surprised that Baron hung up before he had a chance to say good-bye, his former lieutenant was not one for drawn-out pleasantries.
Before he knew it, he was at the turn that would take him to Kane’s house. There were at least ten vehicles, mostly Jeeps and trucks. Ezio pulled in behind Nic’s truck, hoping that Nic hadn’t gotten there too much ahead of him. He didn’t want to miss out on anything that Scarlett Hale had baked.
2
“You’re twenty-six, huh? Kind of old to never have been married, don’t you think?”
Samantha smiled at the man who was sitting too close beside her, and said, “I guess so.” She picked up her wine glass, took a huge swallow, and glared at her friend Toni across the table.
“Do you have a drinking problem? Is that why?”
“No, she doesn’t have a drinking problem, Larry,” David chimed in.
Samantha really didn’t care that David was defending her. Larry was his golfing buddy, and she was mad at both of her friends for putting her in this situation.
“So, you think it’s successful of you to have been through a divorce?” Samantha asked sweetly.
“Now I do,” Larry responded. “Means I’ve learned some things, like how to look for red flags before I get into a relationship, so I don’t end up with another woman like Susan. She wanted everything, because I was her first husband. Just like you would, I guess. Tell me, are you one of those girls with a wedding file? Or worse yet, a couple of wedding gowns tucked away in her closet, waiting for a man to ask her to marry her?”
Samantha dropped the piece of bruschetta that she had just picked up from the starter platter.
“Don’t worry about the mess, it’s probably because of all the wine. The waiter will clean up after you,” Larry assured her.
Samantha shot Toni a death glare.
“Larry, besides your divorce, is there anything else I should know about you?” Samantha asked, desperate to turn the spotlight on him.
“Before I was married, I was a great golfer. But Susan nagged me so much that I hardly got out to play. She said it cost too much money, and she always had a goddamn honey-do list for
