A Wilde Christmas (Wilde Security Worldwide #0.5)

Chapter 6

six

With the house silent, Davey took his first full breath since he walked in. He looked at his phone and managed to get into his company email after several failed attempts and resetting his password—it had been a long time since he last accessed it. But, once again, he was distracted by Dad coming downstairs.

“How’s Mom?”

“She’s okay. Sleeping now.” Jude scrubbed both hands over his face. “She cried herself out. I’ve been waiting for that breakdown for months. You know how she keeps everything in, and she’s been wound so tight since—” He stopped short.

“Since I was injured? You can say it.”

“Mm. Except I can’t.” He made a fist and tapped it to his Adam’s apple. “The words get stuck right there every time.”

“Dad, I’m okay. Really. You don’t have to worry about me.”

“I know.” He cleared his throat. “Where’d your brothers go?”

“Where do you think?”

Jude smirked. “Well, they are my sons.”

“Jesus, Dad.”

“Hey, before your mother?—”

“I really don’t want to know.”

Luka scratched at the door to be let out, and Jude chuckled as he grabbed the dog’s leash. “Come on. Let’s walk your dog. I promise I won’t scar you with stories of my wayward youth.”

The evening air was bracing and smelled of snow even though there was very little of the white stuff on the ground. A breeze rustled through the bare branches of the trees lining the street, light but sharp with cold. Christmas lights twinkled around the windows and under the eaves of neighboring houses. It was peaceful, and they strolled in a comfortable silence until Luka stopped to do his business.

“What if I can’t do it?” The question burst out of Davey almost without his permission.

When Jude looked at him in stunned surprise, he bit the inside of his cheek to keep from spilling more of his insecurities. He’d always been the responsible son. The steady one. The reasonable one. The reliable one. Admitting that he didn’t feel like any of those things right now contradicted all his claims that he was okay. He couldn’t admit, even to his dad, that he felt like both a personal and professional failure.

Jude said nothing for a beat. “See, this is why I worry. The Davey I know doesn’t understand the word can’t . From the moment you opened your eyes, you’ve been a warrior. Stubborn, determined… completely undaunted by any challenge thrown at you. You were fearless. You’re the reason your mother has to dye her hair.”

He released his breath in a huff of laughter. “No, c’mon, you can’t lay that on me. We both know that was Dominic’s doing.”

“Yeah, that kid gave us both plenty of gray hairs.” Chuckling, Jude paused to clean up after the dog. “Greer says Dominic is karma finally biting me in the ass for that wayward youth I said I wouldn’t talk about.”

“You were annoying as hell, weren’t you?”

“Oh, yeah. Still am. Ask my brothers.” He dumped the poop bag in a nearby trashcan, and they turned together to go back to the house. “But I’ve toned it down. Guess everyone grows up eventually. Dom will, too.”

“You know, I hope not,” Davey decided. “I hope he keeps that annoying cheerfulness and doesn’t become jaded like the rest of us.”

“Yeah, me too.”

They walked in silence until they reached the driveway, and Jude let Luka off the leash to run in the yard. He watched the dog for a moment with a smile. “You have a good dog.”

“The best.”

“I’m glad you’re not alone.”

Davey didn’t know what to say to that, so he dug his car keys out of his pocket. “I’ll come back in the morning for gifts. Elliot and Dom said they would, too. Give my love to mom.”

“Hey.” Jude grabbed him and pulled him in for a tight hug. “Something’s happened to our family over the last few years. We’re splintering, and that’s a problem because we Wildes work better as a team. Greer has faith in you, but I know you. You’re worried you’re not good enough and will let everyone down. You’re terrified of failing, which is how I know you won’t fail. I know you’re the only man for this job, and you will not rest until you’ve solved all of the family’s problems. But remember to take care of yourself, too. Lean on your brothers and cousins when you need to. Talk to me or your uncles when you need to. You don’t have to shoulder the world alone.”

Davey returned the hug. “Thanks, Dad.”

Jude pulled back and cupped his face. “Somehow, you got all the best parts of your mother and me—and none of my many flaws. I’m unbelievably proud of the man you’ve become, and I’m so happy you’re home with us.”

“I’m glad to be home,” he said around the sudden hard knot in his throat and realized he actually meant it. He’d fought against it, but he’d needed to come home. He’d needed to be with his family, despite how loud and crazy and fragmented they were.

And now, he needed to piece them back together.

He could do this.

He waited until his dad was safely inside the house, then called Luka. Happy and covered in snow, the dog bolted into the passenger seat.

Davey shut the door and circled the hood, climbing behind the wheel. He smirked at Luka’s snow-crusted muzzle and grabbed a towel from the backseat to knock some of the snowballs out of his fur. “Found a snowbank to jump in, did ya? You look like you had fun.”

Luka wagged.

“At least one of us did.” He tossed the towel back into the backseat and cranked on the car’s engine, blasting the heat on high.

Only then did he remember the email.

As the car heated, he pulled out his phone and accessed his company account again. Since he never used this address, the inbox was empty, save for a bunch of company-wide announcements and one with a subject line that instantly snagged his attention.

New Personal Protection Client: Bristow, Gabe.

What?

Why would Gabe Bristow need protection? He was one of Uncle Vaughn’s old SEAL teammates and ran an elite mercenary team specializing in hostage recovery. He was the king of badasses and one of the most intimidating people Davey had ever met.

He opened the email, and his stomach dropped. Gabe didn’t need protection. He was just the client hiring Wilde Security to protect?—

His daughter.

Rowan fucking Bristow.

The spoiled princess who was obnoxiously stubborn and always thought she was right. She was also drop-dead gorgeous—which she knew and flaunted.

That was why Greer’s eyes had twinkled when he mentioned the email. He knew Davey and Rowan were oil and water.

Or more like nitro and dynamite.

Whenever they got together, there were explosions.

And, somehow, they always ended up naked together when the dust cleared.

Fuck.

Did Greer know?

Or, worse, did Gabe Bristow know?

No. Rowan’s scary-ass father couldn’t know about their on-and-off hate-fuck relationship. It had started several years ago as a way to scratch an itch without risking messy emotions. If Gabe Bristow knew about it, Davey would be the last person he’d want protecting his precious little girl.

Davey growled and tossed the phone into the cupholder.

Luka cocked his head, his hazel eyes sharp and assessing.

“I’m not going to lose my shit,” he assured the dog.

Luka looked unconvinced and laid his head on the center console.

Davey shut his eyes and rubbed at his neck. His lip throbbed, and a tension headache lodged at the base of his skull. First, the thing with Cade, and now this? How was he supposed to protect Miss Warrior Princess and keep his family from falling apart? He was a SEAL, not a superhero.

Okay, one thing at a time.

The only easy day was yesterday, and he could handle this.

But, right now, Rowan owed him some fucking answers.