Page 3 of Reckless Love

“Contracts are six years?”

“That’s one option, yeah. Level of risk?”

“Any level. I don’t care. Danger doesn’t bother me.” As long as I’m sending money home, my parents and my sister will be well taken care of, which is all I care about now.

“You’ll need a will in place—next of kin, all that. It’s a condition of employment if you’re in the highest risk profile. If you don’t mind burning a bridge with the national police force, I can have you off island and in elite training by tomorrow night. Do well enough in training, and we’ve got contract signing bonuses in place too. Tougher the job, bigger the money.”

I nod, and the numbness I’ve felt since I left my apartment only spreads.

“Our international private security company works similar to a witness protection program or high-level military. Secrecy is paramount,” Owen says, clearly gauging how far I’ll go as he leads me into what must be his home office. Neat. Sparsely decorated but modern. Sterile almost. “Your family will be looked after if anything should happen to you, but no one will know where you’ve gone. Top secret. Always. You’re good with that?”

A chill runs through me, and I don’t know if it’s anticipation or regret. But at least I can still feel something. “Sounds perfect.”

Chapter Two

Ava

Raul, my husband of almost six years, stands at the head of the oversized table and lightly tings his fork against the crystal glass he’s holding. He’s got an announcement he wants my whole family to hear, and sometimes, his old-man ways are kind of charming. Group text? Why bother. Throw a catered dinner and force everyone to be in your company for hours instead of merely reading or listening to a series of text messages. Honestly, I’m not sure how many of them even listen to my voice notes anymore. There are so many kids everywhere that no one has the time.

Of course, none of those offspring are here tonight. Not even our son. My four siblings and their spouses all have their children with nannies or babysitters. Raul didn’t want any distractions or little ears overhearing whatever he intends to say. Probably some new business venture. He loves tooting his own horn as loudly and proudly as possible.

The absence of children doesn’t mean this dinner is without drama. My husband invited my parents. My father, sure. But my mother? He’s asking for trouble from my brothers and sisters. None of my siblings have even acknowledged that she’s in the house—awkward to the nth degree.

“Thank you all for coming,” Raul says once the buzz around the table quiets. “I know everyone is busy, and we appreciate you taking the time to be here.” He gestures toward me, and I smile. “As you may have heard, my company, The Nile, is experiencing some growing pains.”

“Growing pains?” Sawyer, one of my older sisters, says with a scoff. “Bellerive’s Nile employees want to unionize and you’re using some shady tactics to stop them.”

“Merely providing some incentives to help them reconsider the wisdom of their demands,” Raul says as though Sawyer’s tone wasn’t caustic. “My point,” he says, directing his next comments to the group again, “is that some of the workers aren’t dealing well with the process. We’ve received death threats, and we’ll be hiring private security until this matter is settled.”

“What?” I say, sitting up at the other end of the long table. “We received a what?”

“Darling, you’ve been busy playing with your company. You’ve got nothing to worry about. I’m going to protect you and Landon, and I have people trying to get to the bottom of this.”

“You can’t stop your employees from forming a union,” Sawyer says, and Logan, her famous hockey player husband, eases a hand behind her seat and across her shoulders. Probably in solidarity. Whenever she’s fighting for or against something, he’s right behind or beside her. They are sickeningly in sync.

Meanwhile, I don’t even know that we’ve had death threats. Plural. “When did these threats happen?” I ask.

“I’m only providing motivation for workers to consider all the options,” Raul says mildly to Sawyer, “letting them know a union isn’t necessary for our partnership.”

“Partnership?” Sawyer snorts. “They’re getting a fair share of your profits then?”

“But since we’re all Tuckers,” Raul says, ignoring Sawyer and focusing on the rest of us, “I wanted to make sure everyone was aware that there are some disgruntled people on the island. Be careful. Keep an eye out. The Santos and Tucker names are being targeted.”

“No,” Sawyer says, “you’re being targeted, and you’ve dragged my sister and my nephew into it.”

“How are you protecting my daughter and my grandson?” my mother asks, her tone icy.

Most of the time, she likes Raul. She was the one who encouraged me to marry him or lock him down or whatever she called it at the time. Secure my future. My son’s future. I was… I’d been… My stomach drops, and I lift my gaze to the ceiling to clear my mind a little. There’s no point in thinking about how low I was back then. I’m fine now. Totally fine. My choices have all worked out.

“I’ve hired Owen’s company. Asked for their best guy to be put in charge of our family’s safety. No expense will be spared. He’s guaranteed me someone who’ll know the island and who’ll protect my family at all costs.”

“I’ve hired Owen’s crew before,” Nathaniel, my oldest brother, says. His hand is linked with his wife, Hollyn’s, on top of the table. “They’re good. It’s a good choice.” He doesn’t address my mother but rather looks at Raul. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he looked after you personally.”

“Exactly,” Raul says with a grateful smile in Nathaniel’s direction. “That’s what family is for. Ava’s not always the best communicator, so I wanted to make sure everyone in the family was aware.” He makes a circling gesture around the table. “Since you’re all so close.”

Nathaniel catches my eye and raises his eyebrows. I know what he’s implying. In terms of communication, I’m the most communicative out of everyone in my family. Everyone knows what I’m thinking and feeling all the time.

“Ava’s excellent at telling us what’s going on,” Maren, my other sister, who’s married to royalty, says from her spot at the table closer to Raul, “if she knows what’s going on.”