Page 1 of Threatened

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Instant fatherhood was not all it was cracked up to be. Or at least it was not at all what they showed in the media. It was damn hard.

Gage Winters fumbled down the dim hallway, exhausted and frazzled, one fussy eight-month-old tucked against his shoulder while he went to the nursery to fetch the baby’s now-crying twin. Lord help him, he couldn’t remember being this tired ever. Even during his most-strenuous training as a Navy SEAL. Honestly, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d gotten more than two consecutive hours of sleep.

According to everything he’d read online about kids this age, they should be sleeping through the night and napping during the day. But all that helpful advice didn’t apply to two traumatized babies—traumatized by their parents’ deaths and a sudden change in caregiver. Gage still couldn’t stand to think about that moment two weeks ago when he’d gotten the awful news that his best friend and his wife had been killed in a car accident. Then had come the realization that he’d been given custody of their children—twin babies. Both those events hadchanged Gage’s life forever. And ifhewas struggling to process it, he could only imagine how frightening and confusing it was for the babies whose lives had been so abruptly upended.

He made his way into the spare bedroom that had now become a makeshift nursery. With one hand securely on the back of little Brennan’s head to support him, Gage reached into the crib to scoop up the boy’s sister, Maya, with his other arm. “There, there, baby girl. What’s wrong, huh? Did you wake up and find yourself alone? You’re not, and you never will be. I promise.”

His soothing tone did little to appease the angry baby, her little face scrunched and red. Gage sighed and carried both kids back to the living room, where he’d been watching a documentary on the Sahara while doing his best to entertain Brennan in his bouncer seat, hoping that the baby would go back to sleep. No luck on that front. Now that both were up, he might as well feed them.

Once he’d checked and changed each baby’s diaper, he settled the twins in their carriers in the kitchen and then began fixing two bottles of formula. It felt like he’d made hundreds of these in the days since he’d received custody of the twins. Figuring out bottles and baby food was a challenge he hadn’t expected to face. He was determined, though, not to screw it up.

God knew he’d made enough mistakes in his life already.

Now, with two little lives dependent on him for survival, he’d sworn never to screw up again. He owed that to Tucker and Christine, the twins’ deceased parents. He owed that to the men who’d died because of his negligence in Afghanistan, too. It didn’t matter that he’d been cleared during the investigation, and everyone said there was no way Gage could’ve known about or prevented the attack.Heknew the truth. Deep down, he knewit was all his fault. Nothing he did would ever bring those men back or wipe away his guilt. All he could do was move forward now and do better.Bebetter.

It was a vow Gage lived by.

The microwave beeped and he removed the two bottles of formula, inserting the digital thermometer to make sure they were both at identical optimal temperatures before screwing on the lids and carrying them over to the table.

“Right, kiddos,” Gage said, holding a rubber nipple to each little mouth before tipping the bottles up slightly once the twins latched on and began to suckle. Their hands reached up and grabbed hold of the bottles as they looked at him with wide eyes. “Dinner is served. Or maybe it’s breakfast. I don’t know at this point.”

His slight chuckle filled the kitchen as he smiled down at the babies. He’d always imagined having a family of his own one day. He’d just never expected it to happen so suddenly. To say he’d been shocked the day the attorneys had shown up at his door would be the understatement of the century. Gage had just been settling into his life post-discharge from the SEALs. At twenty-eight, he was young to retire, but once the debacle on the Afghanistan mission had happened, his heart just hadn’t been in it anymore. He'd tried transferring to a desk job at headquarters in Virginia Beach for a while, but pushing papers wasn’t for him.

So, after ten years in the Navy he’d taken an early discharge and come home to Topanga, California, moving into the house he inherited when his uncle, Derek, passed away. If not for the inheritance, there was no way Gage could’ve afforded the cost of living here, especially now with the twins to take care of. Plus, he’d yet to find steady work in security—though the job hunt wason hold for now, until he could get the kids settled enough to consider putting them in daycare. Change was his new constant.

Brennan jerked his head away from his bottle and stretched, giving Gage a gurgling squeak and sending formula dribbling down the front of the blue sleeper Gage had just changed him into not long ago. Oh, well. Such was life with babies. Gage laughed as he set one bottle aside to grab a towel, careful to keep an eye on Maya as he did so. Of the two, Maya tended to be fussier, especially when she was hungry, while Brennan was more laid back. At least until he needed a diaper change. Or wanted attention. Or…

Who was Gage kidding? Both babies were a handful, but he loved them just the same.

He’d just managed to mop up Brennan’s clothes and toss the towel aside when a knock sounded on the front door. Gage’s gut immediately tightened, and his instincts went on high alert. A quick glance at the clock above the stove showed it was nearly four in the morning. Hardly the time for a social call. Cursing under his breath, he picked up Maya and tucked her into his arm. He made sure Brennan was secured in his carrier before heading into the living room to see who the hell would show up unannounced at this hour.

Through the peephole, he saw a woman standing there beneath the overhead porch light. About his age, he’d guess, blond hair, tall, pale. Something about her seemed vaguely familiar, but he couldn’t place from where. Near her feet were two suitcases. Odd. She raised her hand to knock again, but he cracked open the door before she could, fearing the babies would start fussing again.

“Can I help you?” he asked, his tone abrupt. It was barely morning, dammit. No time for chit-chat.

“Gage?” the woman said, her blue eyes locking with his. Now he knew where he recognized her from. He’d know that pale blue gaze anywhere. Her eyes were the same color as Christine’s, the twins’ dead mother.

“Kylie? What the hell are you doing here?” He stepped back slightly to let her in. He hadn’t seen her since Tucker and Christine’s wedding a year and a half ago, yet she looked the same. Same wavy hair, same hippie clothes. The sleeve of her frou-frou tie-dyed shirt brushed his arm as she stepped inside. The scent of patchouli and soap teased his senses. He was just about to repeat his question when Brennan began wailing in the kitchen. “Crap. Here, hold this one.”

He passed Maya to her aunt, ignoring the somewhat shocked look on Kylie’s face as he took off for the kitchen. “And close the door, please.”

By the time he had Brennan out of his carrier and quieted down again, he found Kylie sitting on the sofa in the living room, cooing softly to Maya. Gage didn’t miss the fact she’d brought those two suitcases inside the house, too. His stomach sank. Whatever had caused this woman to show up here in the middle of the night, it couldn’t be good. And he had the distinct feeling it was about to be his problem.

“So,” Gage said, moving to stand in front of her while Brennan snoozed in his arms. “What are you doing here?”

Kylie looked up at him. “I came to make sure my niece and nephew are okay, of course.” She didn’t miss the way he bristled at her words, nor the scowl darkening his face. “What?” she said. “They’re my family too, more than yours.”

His gaze narrowed on her. “Really? You want to get into this now?”

She kind of did—kind of wanted the chance to unload some of her grief over the loss of her sister, not to mention the hurt over not being named guardian of the children. But she was tired, nearly as tired as Gage looked, if the dark circles beneath his eyes were any indication.

And she had to remember that none of this was his fault, and unloading on him wouldn’t make anything better. She took a deep breath, releasing the pent-up energy inside her and focusing on peace. Babies could easily pick up on emotions and the last thing she wanted was to disturb the sweet baby sleeping in her arms. For a woman who’d never imagined having children of her own, it was a bittersweet surprise. Then there was the guilt too, of course. Always the guilt.

“I don’t want to get into anything with you, Gage.” She forced a small smile. “And I apologize for showing up here at this hour. I caught the last flight out of Tokyo, and I didn’t plan ahead. I went to my apartment in Burbank, but I can’t stay there because it’s sublet for three months, and I’ve reached my daily limit on my debit card so no hotel and…” Kylie stopped for a breath. She was rambling again. Bad habit when she was stressed. She inhaled deeply again, counted to three, then exhaled beforecontinuing. “Sorry. I really wanted to see the twins and I didn’t stop to consider or plan anything. I just raced here. I hope it’s not too much of an inconvenience.”

Considering the fact he was still scowling at her, it appeared that’s exactly what it was. Honestly, she shouldn’t care. She had every right to be here. The twins were her family by blood, her last connection to the sister she’d loved more than life itself. The fact Christine had chosen to give custody of her children to a virtual stranger didn’t change that.

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