A Wilde Christmas (Wilde Security Worldwide #0.5)

Chapter 2

two

The tree stayed upright.

Barely.

Davey wandered into the living room and found his dad seated between his uncles Vaughn and Cam, identical twins who looked so much alike it was sometimes impossible to tell them apart. Davey never could as a kid, so he’d taken to calling them both “Uncle Vam,” and the name had stuck. They hated it almost as much as they hated when their oldest brother called them “Twins” instead of using their names.

He grinned at them. “Uncle Vam.”

“Here we go.” Cam groaned good-naturedly. He was always good-natured—the stable peacemaker in a family of stubborn hotheads.

“Hey, kid.” Vaughn pushed to his feet and came around the couch. Even in his late sixties, he was as fit as a man half his age, and Davey swore his vertebrae rearranged themselves in the powerful hug. Vaughn was an intense man who intimidated most people, but under that gruff outer shell was a tender heart that loved deeply. He doted on his wife, Lark, and kids, Fiona and Griffin. He protected everyone in his family with a sometimes zealous single-mindedness—brothers, sisters-in-law, nieces, and nephews included.

Of his four uncles, Davey was closest to Vaughn. They were both SEALs and shared all the experiences and brotherhood that came with it.

Vaughn set him back at arm’s length and scanned him from head to toe. “You good?”

“I’m good.”

Vaughn nodded and slung an arm around his shoulders. “Vixen,” he called across the room to his wife. “Look. It’s my favorite nephew.”

All the male cousins in the room groaned. Someone threw a handful of popcorn that Luka promptly vacuumed up.

Lark and Fiona both glanced over.

“You’re not supposed to pick favorites,” Lark said.

“That’s only with our kids. Nephews are fair game.” He smirked at everyone else in the room. “Look at my other options. Slim pickings.”

Weston threw the football. Vaughn caught it and lobbed it back. The ball bounced off Weston’s thumb and hit the tree.

“Dammit, Jude!” Mom shouted from the kitchen.

Dad, still seated on the couch, held up his hands. “It wasn’t me! Why does she always assume it’s me?”

“Because it usually is,” Cam said and smacked his youngest brother on the back of the head. Then he pinned his youngest son with a glare. “Weston, knock it off.”

“What?” West retrieved the ball from the tree and brushed stray pine needles off his shirt. “Uncle V started it.”

Lark laughed. Her smile was as warm as her hug. “Welcome home to the madhouse, Davey. Did you miss us?”

“Always.” He hugged her back. She wore a cloud-like white top and smelled like her favorite perfume’s soft, faintly vanilla scent. She’d stopped dyeing her hair since the last time he’d seen her, but she possessed the kind of timeless beauty that made silver hair look chic. Her daughter was a copy/paste version of her, but that was where the similarities ended. Lark was open and inviting, with a wicked sense of humor and a no-nonsense attitude. Fiona was as cold and prickly as an icicle.

Something flashed in Fiona’s eyes at the sight of him before she hid it with a sip from her wine glass. “Hi, Davey.”

Whatever was going down tonight, she had to know. She had replaced Mom as WSW’s head counsel, and they didn’t do anything without her legal stamp of approval. But when he tried to talk to her, she slipped away, and he got dragged into a conversation with Dad, Vaughn, Lark, Cam, and his wife, Eva.

By the time he cornered Fiona again, she was at the bar pouring herself another glass of wine.

“Fi, wait.” He caught her arm and dragged her over to the shimmering tree, out of earshot of the others. “What’s going on? Dad’s acting weird.”

“Your dad’s always weird.”

“Weirder than normal. Uncle Vam, too.”

“Don’t call them that. They hate it.” Graceful as a cat, she slipped out of his grip. “And no. I’m not telling you anything. Attorney-client privilege.”

“Don’t give me that?—”

“Then don’t ask questions I can’t answer,” she said. “Have you seen Cade’s daughter yet?” She lifted her wine glass toward their cousin and the newest member of the Wilde family, deftly changing topics. “She’s cute, as far as crotch gremlins go.”

Davey looked at the pair. He and Cade had once been as tight as brothers, but a long and rocky history had driven a wedge between them, so he’d been trying to avoid the guy all evening. But the baby was cute with a crown of dark ringlets and big blue eyes that probably got her whatever her little heart desired. Nova was a month shy of her first birthday and just learning how to walk. Cade held her pudgy hands and walked with her, an adoring grin on his rugged face as she toddled around in her sparkly red dress and matching slippers.

Davey shook his head. “Still can’t believe he’s a dad now.”

“A single one at that.” Fi slid him a calculating glance. “You should go talk to him. Bury the hatchet.”

Davey didn’t quite manage to hide his wince. Father or not, Cade was still a hard-ass who didn’t forgive easily. Maybe even more so now that he had Nova. “I’m trying to avoid bloodshed this Christmas.”

Fiona sighed. “Whatever happened between you two, you’ll need to deal with it sooner or later.”

“Later,” he decided. “Later’s good.”

She rolled her eyes and muttered something that sounded like, “We’ll see about that,” before taking a long drink from her glass.

He opened his mouth to ask what she meant, but Mom appeared in the kitchen doorway and called, “Dinner’s ready.”

And that, Davey knew, was the end of the conversation. He wasn’t going to get answers from anyone until after dinner. He studied his dad and uncles throughout the meal. Greer, stone-faced as ever. Reece, cool and collected. The twins and Dad, all quieter than usual.

Jesus, this was torture.

Finally, after dessert, Dad nodded to his brothers, and they all stood up. “Davey, come chat with us in the office.”

All gazes turned to him.

Mom smiled encouragingly.

Fiona took another long drink from her third glass of wine.

Cade’s eyes narrowed, and a scowl pulled down the corners of his lips.

Everyone else looked just as confused as Davey felt.

As he pushed back his chair and followed them to his dad’s office upstairs, he couldn’t help but feel like a kid again—like he’d done something naughty and was marching toward his punishment.

In the office, Greer took a seat behind Dad’s desk. His gray hair was still cut military short even though he’d been retired from the Army Rangers since before Davey was born. As the oldest, he’d always been the de facto leader of the Wilde brothers and carried that responsibility with admirable ease.

Reece, as second oldest and Greer’s righthand man, took up position behind him. He was a tech guy and built multiple empires in the industry. Before his fortieth birthday, his video game “hobby” had made him a multi-millionaire. His breakthrough AI technology had bumped him up into the billionaire tax bracket a few years later, but despite having more money than God, he’d never left his brothers or Wilde Security. He was probably the main reason WSW was so successful.

Dad perched on the edge of the desk and looked anxious.

Cam sat in the chair next to the bay window, still quieter than usual.

Vaughn leaned against the closed door.

In case he tried to make a run for it?

If they thought he’d run from whatever this was, they didn’t know him very well. He stopped in the middle of the room, folded his arms, and waited. He’d be damned if he’d break the silence first.

Several seconds ticked by. Enough that Dad, who forever had to be on the move, started to get antsy. Jude picked up a paperweight and tossed it hand to hand.

Finally, Greer reached into the desk’s top drawer and pulled out a tablet. He slid it over.

Davey strode forward to pick it up, and his stomach lurched at the paperwork on the screen. He looked at his dad. “What’s this?”

“We’re retiring,” Jude said.

He glanced between the men. “All of you?”

“It’s time,” Reece said.

“Past time,” Vaughn and Cam said simultaneously.

“And Wilde Security’s yours,” Greer added.

Davey’s mind raced. The five of them had built the company from a tiny office in a strip mall to one of the world’s most respected private security firms.

And they were giving it to him ?

He looked up at Greer. “Why me?”

“Because you’re the right man for the job.” Greer rose from his seat and held out a stylus pen. “If you want it.”

Davey accepted the pen, surprised to see his hand shook as he signed each page where Reece indicated.

“All right.” Reece picked up the tablet and tapped the screen a few times. “And… it’s done. Congratulations.” He held out a hand, which Davey numbly shook. “You’re now CEO of Wilde Security Worldwide.”

Vaughn opened the door. “Go get a drink to celebrate, kid. We’ll join you in a minute and tell everyone the good news.”

Holy fucking hell , Davey thought as he left the room.

What had he just done?