Page 24 of Wild Card (The Trident Trilogy 3)

Millie, Virginia Beach, Virginia, 2020

We’re leaving for Rome tomorrow—me, Mason, Raine, Butch, and Hawk. We’re scheduled to be there forty-eight hours, but timelines change. I’m panicked to leave Dad for a day, much less a week.

Mason was at the base all morning, so after I finished packing, I texted Dad to see if he wanted to go surfing. We spent a good three hours on the ocean—most of it just floating on our boards and talking. It was heavenly, but it’s left me so worn out for some reason. All I want to do is crash with Mason on the couch for the night.

When I walk into his house, I see a note on the kitchen island.

Check your texts. Oh yeah and one more thing, please answer your texts when I send them so I don’t worry. Love you.

I haven’t looked at my phone since I left to meet Dad. Mason’s texted me five times. He’s at the bar with the guys and wants me to join them. I don’t want to go, but there’s a text from Raine, too, begging me to save her from the ‘testosterone explosion.’

I jump in the shower, throw on a sundress, and head out. The bar’s only a half mile from the house, and it’s a beautiful night, so I decide to walk to try to wake myself up. It doesn’t work.

When I get into the bar, I see the team over at the pool tables. Mason smiles and blows me a kiss. The bartender, Pete, waves me over to him. I smile at Mason and nod toward the bar.

“Hey,” Pete says. “Raine said to tell you she couldn’t take it anymore. Something about testosterone. She left. You want a dirty martini?”

“No,” I say, sliding onto a barstool. “I don’t feel great tonight. Can I get a glass of water?”

“Yes, ma’am.” He pours it quickly and walks to the other side of the bar. I take a long drink and spin around just in time to see JJ sauntering over to me.

“Oh and here she is, the princess. You can’t even let Mason have one night off, can you?” I can tell he’s drunk immediately. He rarely drinks. I don’t think I’ve ever seen his eyes this unfocused.

“Hey JJ,” I say with a forced laugh. “Is ‘princess’ my new nickname?”

“Oh, I imagine that nickname’s been around since the day you were born,” he says, way too loudly, “whether or not people called you that to your face.”

I smile and take another drink of water. “You know, if you’ve got a problem with me, why don’t you just come right out and say it? We’ve been doing this little dance from the first day we met. It’s getting old.”

“You want to know what my problem is with you?” He takes a gigantic step and almost falls into me. I push my back up against the bar as he glowers down at me. “Okay, here it is. You’re ruining my best friend’s life. How’s that? That enough of a problem for you?”

“Oh wow. Okay,” I say, crossing my legs to force him to take a step back. “And just how am I ruining Mason’s life?”

“Well, I don’t know. Let’s see,” he says, slamming his empty beer bottle on the bar as he takes a step to the side. “How about we start with the fact that he’s the best operator in the world, and you forced him to quit?”

“Forced him? Damn and here I thought you and Mase were best friends, but his best friend would know that no one makes decisions for Mason except Mason.”

“That’s the way it used to be.” His creepy once-over of my body makes me shudder. “Then some decent pussy comes his way and all of a sudden he’s whipped.”

I jump off the stool and square up with him as much as I can. “You went from getting close to the line to going about a million miles beyond it. We’re done.”

“Yeah, go tell Mason that big, bad JJ was mean to you. Make him choose between us.”

“I’m not going to tell Mason shit, because this,” I say, gesturing between us, “isn’t worth his time. But just so we’re clear, if he ever did have to choose between us, it wouldn’t end well for you because believe me, it is way better than decent.”

I whip around and head to the bathroom. I hurry into a stall and lean against the wall. My head’s spinning. For some reason, I’ve been dizzy a lot the last couple of weeks, but this is as intense as it’s been. I feel like I’m going to pass out. I lean down with my hands on my knees and breathe in and out slowly. My head starts to clear a bit. I call Dad. He picks it up on the first ring like he always does.

“Hey, sweetie. I thought you were with Mason and the guys at the bar.”

“Hey, Dad. I am, but I kind of have a headache.” I take a breath to try to keep my voice from cracking. “I think I stayed up too late last night. Will you come and get me?”

“I’m out the door right now.” I hear his keys jingling in the background. “Sweetie, are you okay? You have the pre-cry voice you get when you’re frustrated. Are you and Mason fighting? Why isn’t he bringing you home?”

“We’re not fighting. I don’t want to ruin his night with the guys. I’m fine. Really. Just a headache.”

“Okay, I’ll be there in a few minutes. Wait inside for me, okay?”

After I hang up, I splash a little cold water on my face and head out to tell Mason I’m leaving. I see him scanning the bar anxiously. His eyes land on me as I walk from behind the bar. He hustles over to me.

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