Page 7 of Xavier

He beams. “It’s great. Better than I ever imagined.”

The bartender laughs. “Careful, Haley will be begging for babies soon.”

Hudson laughs with the bartender. “She already is. She wants two. Maybe I’ll get lucky and get twins. That way, we’re done on the first try.”

I chime in. “With the amount of trouble you caused, you’re likely to get triplets on the first try.”

The bartender roars as Hudson’s face pales.

“Don’t you wish that torture on me, X.”

When more customers come in, the bartender gives us a friendly nod and heads over to them to take their order.

Hudson’s expression changes to a more serious one. “Xavier, you may outrank me, but you’re my best friend, and I have to be honest with you. You look like shit.”

I roll my eyes. “Thanks.”

“No, I’m serious. I’m glad you are retired, but your eyes look haunted.”

I narrow my eyes at him. “I’ve seen some shit. You know that.” No one goes to war and comes back unchanged.

“Of course, I know that, but you need to find a new passion. A new purpose for life. The Corps was your other life, and I know you can’t just let it go, but if you dwell on the things that went wrong, you’ll be lost forever.”

His tone is more of a warning than a concern.

I’ve heard stories about veterans that can’t adapt to civilian life, and I don’t want to be another statistic.

“I’ll try to find something productive to occupy my time.”

“Great. Now, what happened last night at the bonfire? You just disappeared.”

Does he have to remind me of her? I’ve never been more turned on by a woman swearing, and I’ve been around military women for the past twenty years.

The way she crossed her arms and glared at me was both humorous and sexy. I had to get away from her before I did something I’d regret.

Besides the fact that I’m twelve years older than her, she literally just broke up with her douchey boyfriend.

Hudson clears his throat. “That bad, or that good? Who is she?”

“The town’s princess wandered off. I was making sure she stayed safe.”

His eyes widen. “What? Why didn’t you message me? I could have been there.”

“She didn’t wander far, just down the beach a little way. Besides, I think she can handle herself. It’s not like the town is massive or in the middle of a gang war.”

He sighs. “Scarlett Island was also your dad’s home.”

That may be true, but I was never close to my father. Which is why I was surprised he left me his house in his will.

Changing the subject, I ask, “Why do we need to keep an eye on her? Clearly, she’s great at her job. She pretty much nailed my profile last night.”

Except I’m not looking to settle down.

“A few months ago, the mayor hired me to look into suspicious notes he received. A week later, the death threats to the family started pouring in. They got more and more personal, especially to Brianna.”

I immediately get into work mode. “Who’s sending the death threats? What do they want?”

He leans in closer to me. “That’s the thing. They aren’t asking for anything. No ransom. No demands. We’re not sure who’s behind the threats, but we suspect it’s the same cartel we had all those problems with six years ago.”

---