Jason (Blue Halo Book 2)

“Annabel identified the guy. It was Lima. So what are you doing to find the asshole and take him down?” Jason almost growled the words over the phone.

Peters sighed, and dammit, that just spiked Jason’s rage. Like he was trying to placate him. “We’re doing all we can to shut the entire family down, Jason. You need to trust us.”

“Trust you? After my woman almost gets her throat sliced in a freezer?”

“Hey, you said you wanted to take care of her protection. Today was on you.”

His blood heated, breath whooshing from his chest. The guy’s words damn near brought him to his knees, because he was right.

“So, you don’t have a location for him?” Jason asked quietly through gritted teeth.

“I’ll let you know when we have information to share.”

The line went dead.

For a moment, Jason remained still, holding the phone and fighting for calm. Patience.

Did that mean he might already have Lima’s location?

He quickly dialed Aidan.

“Jason.”

“We’ve given Peters a chance to find him. He hasn’t. It’s our turn.”

“Done.”

Some of the suffocating rage eased. That’s why he loved his team. There were no questions. No hesitation.

“I’ll let the team know that we’re stepping everything up,” Aidan said. “Putting more guys on the search. Watching the streets and the stores. The group clearly has a place here in Cradle Mountain. We’ll find out where.”

“I want someone put on Joey, too. I want him watched and tracked.”

“No problem.”

Another sliver of anger eased. “Thank you, brother.”

Jason hung up, stepping out of his home office and into the living room. Courtney was the first person he saw, standing by the kitchen island, Eddie in her arms. They’d picked him up on their way here, as well as a bag of her stuff.

Grace stood beside her, and Logan beside Grace. Logan looked Jason’s way, giving him a small nod, telling him he’d heard the entire conversation. That he understood what was going on.

Jason moved to Courtney’s side, wrapping an arm around her waist and pressing a kiss to the side of her neck. Touching her, having her close, had never felt so good. So necessary.

“You want us to stay?” Logan asked.

Jason shook his head. “This place has good security.” He’d set it up the second he moved into the house. Plus, he himself was security. He’d wake at the first sound of someone attempting to tamper with a door or window.

Grace pulled Courtney close, giving her a hug before leaving with Logan. When it was just them remaining, Jason locked the door before moving around the house and checking all exit points.

When he returned to the kitchen, it was to see Courtney exactly where he’d left her, still holding Eddie, a pensive look on her face.

He stalked toward her slowly. She didn’t even seem to notice when he stood in front of her, she was so deep into her own mind.

He slid his hands around her waist. “I’m so sorry someone attacked you today.”

She blinked, finally looking up. Carefully placing Eddie on the floor, she pressed her hands against his chest. “Why are you sorry? You’re not the criminal who held a knife against my throat in the freezer.”

His muscles tightened at the mention of it. “No. But it was my team protecting you.”

Jesus, but that tore him up inside.

She lifted a shoulder. “They assumed the back door would be locked and alarmed. It wasn’t their fault.”

He was still beyond pissed about that. How could Joey have been so stupid?

“I know what you’re thinking. Please, he feels bad enough. He didn’t know the danger I was in, since we haven’t told anyone.” She drew circles on his chest with her fingers. It was the only thing to loosen his muscles.

“From now on, you can consider me and the guys your personal shadows. There will be no space between us and you.”

“Hm.” A small smile tugged at her lips. “I’ve always wanted a shadow in the form of a tall, dark, and handsome man.”

He nuzzled her hair. “Well, now you have one.” He straightened, shifting a lock of golden hair off her face. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Yeah.” She paused, eyes going to his chest. “I spoke to Grace about doing some sessions with her to get over this whole… claustrophobia thing. I can’t help but think that maybe if I hadn’t freaked out, I might have been able to protect myself. At least thrown the ice pack at him or something. Kicked him.”

Jason’s blood ran cold at the thought of his woman fighting a man from the Mafia. A man used to killing without thought or conscience. A man who was armed. Deadly.

“I’ve never done any self-defense lessons, though.”

“Maybe we should do some sessions. Not because I want to see you fighting any criminals.” Fuck no. “But because I want you to have a way of defending yourself should the need arise.”

“I think that sounds good. Although, I don’t think I’ll have much hope of fighting seasoned criminals.”

He placed his hands on her cheeks, demanding her attention. “Self-defense isn’t just about hand-to-hand combat. It’s about learning how to disarm an opponent. Even if someone has a knife, the right moves can turn the situation to your advantage.”

Humor sparkled in her eyes. “Will you train me to beat you in a fight?”

He leaned closer, his mouth hovering over her own. “Baby, you destroy me in every other way, why not add hand-to-hand combat?”

Courtney walked through the door that Aidan was holding, stepping out of McKenna Counseling and onto the street. First session with Grace was done. A session that had been both challenging and empowering.

Aidan’s gaze darted around the area. He’d waited right outside Grace’s office with the door cracked open. “How did it go?”

She looked up at him, one eyebrow lifting. “You heard.”

With the door left ajar, it would be impossible for a normal person not to hear, so someone with Aidan’s advanced hearing… yeah, he’d heard everything.

It was the reason Jason hadn’t come with her. She hadn’t known what questions Grace would ask or how she’d respond. But she’d wanted to put her everything into it because she wanted to overcome this phobia, and a large part of her had known that if Jason was on the other side of that door, she wouldn’t have been able to be as… vulnerable. Open. Real.

“I tried really hard not to follow the conversation. Just listen out and make sure you were safe.”

She nudged his shoulder with her own. “Thank you. I appreciate that.”

She didn’t know if she believed the guy, but she appreciated his attempt to put her at ease. Although it had been hard to relive the most traumatizing experience of her life, it had also been like reaching into her chest and physically lifting one of the unbearably heavy weights off that she’d been carrying around.

She looked up at Aidan. “Did you guys speak to therapists? After you got out of the Project Arma compound?”

He shook his head. “Nah. We were pretty open with each other while we were in there, talked a lot over the years. That didn’t change when we got out.” He lifted a shoulder. “I mean, we all handled it differently. If anyone had reason to be distrusting or angry after, it was Jason. Working for a company, only to find out that you’re not working for the good guys. Then to be taken… have his sister taken.”

Yeah, it sounded terrible. “He doesn’t seem too angry or distrusting, though, considering.”

Aidan nodded. “The guy’s always been good at regulating his emotions. Making sense of things that shouldn’t make sense and forgiving those who probably don’t deserve it.”

“Do you think he forgave the guys who took him?”

Aidan chuckled. “Hell no. We all agreed they needed to die, and when they did, it was a celebration. But it was a job for him. Get rid of the threats, move on to the next ones.”

Interesting. “What about you?”

For a second, his eyes narrowed. The veins of his neck popped out a bit as he swallowed. “I definitely hold more… resentment than Jason.”

She watched him, wanting to ask, but not wanting to overstep. In the end, she didn’t have to. He spoke before she uttered a word.

“I was dating someone when I left. A woman who I thought I was going to marry.”

Oh, no. Courtney could already tell this wasn’t going to have a happy ending.

“She was married to someone else when we got back.”

Pain laced his words. It tore at her heart. Poor guy. She touched his elbow. “I’m sorry.”

They stopped in front of Blue Halo and Aidan tugged the door open, waiting for her to go in first. “That’s life.”

That was his life. Being torn from the woman he loved—because he had loved her, she could tell—only to have her find happiness with someone else. It was heartbreaking.

She opened her mouth to offer some kind of empathy, but she quickly shut it again. What should someone say to that? You’ll find someone else? That just seemed… inadequate. Disingenuous.

She moved up the stairs, stepping inside Blue Halo. Amy looked up from behind the computer screen, smiling at them. Her foot was propped up on a chair, a bandage around the ankle. “Hey, guys. Jason’s waiting for you in the gym, Courtney. How are you doing after yesterday?”

“I’m okay, thank you.” Everyone knew her sad Mafia story now. Amy. Joey. The rest of her staff. There’d been no way around it. She shifted her gaze to the raised ankle. “How about you?”

“Just a fat ankle. It’ll heal.”

Nodding, she turned to Aidan. “Thanks for this morning.”

“You got it.” He gave her a warm smile before moving down the hall. Courtney headed to the gym. She stepped in just as a shirtless Jason threw a hard punch at a heavy bag. The bag rocked. The muscles in Jason’s arms, his back, rippled.

Her mouth went dry. God, the man was ripped. Like, muscles-on-top-of-muscles ripped.

He turned, his lips tilting up. “Hey, gorgeous. How was your session?”

“Good.” Did her voice just crackle a little?

His eyes twinkled with silent laughter as he tugged the gloves off his hands, tossing them to the side. “Just good?”

“Are you, ah, going to teach me how to punch, without a shirt on?” Because if so, she’d need some help tearing her gaze from his chest.

He stepped forward, his musky, woodsy scent filling the space. Good God, he even smelled good working out. “I was planning on it. Why? Is that a problem?”

Only if he wanted her to learn something. “It’s just a bit… distracting.”

He chuckled, hands going to her hips before leaning down and kissing her. “If I can concentrate while you’re around, I think you’ll be okay.”

She scoffed. That was like comparing a daisy to a rose. She wasn’t saying she thought she was ugly, but he was every woman’s dream.

Releasing her waist, he turned, grabbing another pair of gloves. He put them on her and began strapping them to her wrists. “I thought we’d do a quick warmup first, then get into it. Ready?”

No. “Sure.”

This time when he smiled, his dangerous dimples came out to play. Christ. She was screwed.

Jason spent the next ten minutes taking her through a series of jumps, squats and arm rotations, before facing her toward the bag. He surrounded her, his warm chest touching her back.

“It weighs about a hundred and fifty pounds, so I doubt you’ll move it much.”

A hundred and fifty pounds? Holy heck, he’d just sent it flying.

She cleared her throat, pretending the thing didn’t faze her. “You have so little faith in me?”

His breath whispered in her ear. “Prove me wrong, sweetheart.”

A shiver rocked her spine. She felt him straighten, then he used his foot to shuffle her legs farther apart. “Feet should be shoulder distance and at a forty-five-degree angle from where you’re aiming the punch.”

His fingers closed around her wrists, lifting her hands in front of her face. “When you punch, I want you to use your core, shoulders and hips to control your movement. Put speed and force behind the hit.”

She nodded, focusing entirely too much on his fingers on her skin. On his naked heat pressing against her back.

“When I say go,” he continued, “I want you to take a step toward the bag, transferring your weight forward, then swing hard.”

That was it? Step forward, swing hard. Sounded easy enough.

Jason stepped back. “Go.”

Courtney stepped forward, shifting her weight and swinging at the bag. Just as he’d predicted, the thing didn’t move at all. Like, not even a whisper of movement. It was like hitting a padded brick wall.

“That was good, it just needs more force.”

Ha. The man was a good liar. “I’m pretty sure I felt that impact more than the bag.”

His hands snaked just below her breasts, fingers spanning across her ribs and down to her belly.

Her mouth went dry. His fingers were like tiny shots of electricity.

“You just need to engage your core. I want you to really tense and engage this time.”

She nodded, grateful the man was behind her and couldn’t see her tomato face.

When he stepped back again, she took a breath and tightened her core. Then, stepping forward, she threw everything she had at the bag.

It moved. The teeniest, tiniest bit, but… it moved.

She spun around. “Did you see that?”

“I did.” He cracked a smile. The smile lasted for less than a second. “Now do it again.”

Her own smile dropped. “You’re a bit of a dictator in the gym.”

She heard the soft chuckle behind her seconds before she was throwing her next punch.