The Midnight Hour (12 page)

She frowned. Knowing Drake like she did, she knew that he probably was doing no such thing and couldn't help but worry about him. She would always worry about him.

When she made it to her bedroom, she changed out of her sundress and put on a pair of shorts and a tank top to go walking along the beach. Later, she would drive into San Francisco for dinner.

There was a Denzel movie that was coming on television later and she intended to watch it. Life was good and she could definitely get used to this.

Trevor Grant glanced over at the man sitting on the sofa holding his son, Rio, and wondered why he'd been surprised when he had opened his door last night to find Sir Drake standing there, like dropping in at three in the morning was a normal thing. Doing the unexpected was synonymous with Sir Drake.

Sir Drake.

He couldn't help but grin as he remembered when he and Ashton had given their friend that nickname. According to English definition, a knight was generally a man of noble birth who served well before ceremoniously being inducted into knighthood by his superior. A knight swore to be brave, loyal, and courteous and to protect the defenseless. Drake had been all of those things, although to say he was always courteous would be stretching it a bit. But after saving both his and Ashton's lives a number of times, they had decided that even with that shortcoming Drake had deserved the title of Sir Drake.

Trevor knew the extent of pain his friend had carried around inside of him for five years and how he had suffered and grieved over a loss that could never be replaced. For a quick moment his mind dwelled on how he would handle it tf something were to happen to his wife, Corinthians, and stark fear almost snatched his next breath. Even from their less than amiable beginning, the woman he had married meant everything to him and he didn't like to remember the time when a crazed kidnapper had almost snatched her away. It was a time he'd had to call on his friends, Sir Drake, Ashton, and the Madaris brothers, to help him get through and to do what was needed to get Corinthians back.

Now as he sat looking at Drake, a large part of him understood the bitterness that had pushed him the past five years. Sandy had been Drake's weakness. She had also been his strength.

From the first time he had met Drake at marine boot camp, Trevor had known he was a man who kept his carefully tended armor in check. Yet, Trevor and Ashton had been able to find that one chink that had forged a friendship for life. There wasn't anything he wouldn't do for Drake and Ashton, and he knew there wasn't anything they wouldn't do for him.

As Trevor took a sip of coffee, he studied Drake. He wondered what had driven Sir Drake to show up on his doorstep in Houston before daybreak. The way Trevor saw it, Sir Drake might as well spill his guts to him before Corinthians got back from shopping with his sister, Gina. A party was being planned for tomorrow to celebrate Rio's first birthday and Drake had shown up just in time for the festivities.

But still, knowing Corinthians and her overprotective nature when it came to Drake, she would demand answers of her own regardless of the perfect timing of Drake's arrival. The only reason she hadn't drilled Drake already was because by the time she realized he was there, he had already fallen asleep, or had pretended to if for no other reason than to give himself time before facing the likes of Corinthians Avery Grant. When it came to people she cared about, she could be relentless in her pursuit of their happiness.

Trevor grinned when he thought about how Corinthians and Ashton's wife, Nettie, had managed to wiggle their way under Drake's tough shell-more than either Trevor or Ashton had seen Drake allow since Sandy's death.

"So who do you think Rio looks like?" Trevor decided to ask. The last time he'd asked Drake that question Rio had been a couple of months old and the answer Drake had given him had almost gotten him slaughtered.

Drake chuckled as he studied the face of the sleeping baby he held in his arms. His godson. The little future marine looked so much like Trevor it was ridiculous, although he would never admit that to his friend. He liked ruffling Trev's feathers by claiming that his son looked like his wife's brother. Joshua Avery was a brother-in-law that Trevor could very well do without. He doubted that either Trevor, Ashton or he would forget what a pain in the ass Joshua had been during that time a few years back when they had been frantically trying to rescue Corinthians from the clutches of a madman.

He glanced up at Trevor. "Do you want to know the truth?"

"Not if your truth will want to make me knock the hell out of you."

Drake smiled. "Then I have nothing to say." He then looked down at the baby again, fascinated with how peaceful he looked.

Moments later, Drake looked up and caught Trevor's inquiring gaze. He knew his friend had questions and intended to get answers. The concern in his eyes was genuine. Ashton was a man of few words. Trevor, on the other hand, always had a lot to say and had used his big mouth to badger Drake into doing what he needed to do.

There was an intense alertness in Trevor's eyes and Drake knew he didn't miss seeing much. It was what had made him such a damn good marine. "I think Rio will be more comfortable in his bed now," Drake said, cutting through the silence that had filled the room.

Nodding, Trevor stood and crossed the room, gently easing the child from Drake's arms. "When I get back, we're going to talk, Sir Drake."

Drake nodded. He'd known that they would.

When Trevor came back into the room a few moments later, he noticed the tension now lining Drake's features. Something had changed. There was a vulnerability there mat he had never seen in Drake. What the hell had gone down to bring about such a reaction in Sir Drake of all people?

At the sound of the doorbell, he watched Drake glance up. "That's probably Ashton," Trevor said, making his way to the door after picking up his unfinished cup of coffee off the table. "It wouldn't surprise me if Corinthians contacted Nettie to let them know you're here."

Drake nodded and gave Trevor a half smile. "Just as well," he said, his voice low. "There's something I need to talk to you both about. I have a problem."

"A problem? What kind of problem?" Trevor asked, over his shoulder when he reached the door. He knew it couldn't be money problems since Drake owned that huge track of land in the Tennessee Mountains, not to mention a number of smart investment moves, thanks to Jake Madaris, who, besides being a wealthy rancher, was also an expert in investments and finance.

"Well," Drake hedged, "It's a woman problem."

A woman problem? Shocked, Trevor whirled around, almost dropping the half-empty cup of coffee from his hand.

He strengthened his hold on the cup at the last moment. He stared at Drake. "A woman?" he asked in disbelief. At Drake's slow nod, Trevor shook his head and studied Drake anew, ignoring the sound of the doorbell ringing again.

Had he finally found someone to love? And for him to feel the need to travel all the way to Texas to talk about it with him and Ashton meant it was pretty damn serious. Trevor blinked relief from his eyes and hoped fervently that this was a sign that Drake had finally put the past to rest and was embarking on a future.

Trevor smiled tentatively, not wanting to jump to any conclusions where Drake was concerned. He and Ashton would let him do the talking and they would definitely be listening.

"Time heals all pain," Corinthians Grant whispered to her husband as they stood watching Sir Drake. Their backyard was swarming with both kids and parents who had come out to help celebrate Rio's first birthday. Sir Drake was on the sidelines, reclining in one of their lawn chairs sipping a glass of lemonade while watching a clown paint the faces of the kids who stood still long enough for him to complete the task.

Trevor had told his wife about the conversation he and Ashton had had with Drake yesterday. He and Ashton had listened attentively while Drake told him about CIA agent, Tori Green. The crux of Drake's problem was that since returning to the States, he'd found out the woman had resigned and he had no way of getting in contact with her. He had questioned the two agents that he'd heard she had gone out with in the past. Both men claimed they hadn't known her whereabouts, and if they did, they hadn't talked. Drake had even called in contacts and so far no one had anything to report. The thought that he even wanted to find the woman was surprising to anyone who knew Drake. For the longest time it was obvious that Drake had pretty much accepted a future without a serious involvement with a woman, and now it seemed that this Tori Green had, for the short while they had spent together, more than piqued Drake's interest and had possibly given him a reason to hope again. Although Drake had insisted he merely wanted to see the woman again and that his interest didn't particularly mean anything, Trevor and Ashton knew better.

Trevor had noticed the gleam of hope in Sir Drake's eyes when he mentioned that a friend of the family, Alex Maxwell, who owned an investigating firm, was good at locating people and felt pretty sure the woman could be found. Alex would be attending the party later and Drake had plans to talk to him.

"Time may heal all pain, but I wouldn't go overboard and start planning the wedding yet," Trevor said, after hearing the hope and excitement in his wife's voice.

A soft smile tugged at Corinthians's mouth. "Yes, but it's a start."

"Yes, it is." Trevor smiled as he glanced across the yard at all the babies that had been born to his close friends over the past year. First, there were Ashton and Nettie's triplets; Clayton and Syneda Madaris's daughter; Jake and Diamond Madaris's son; Kyle and Kimara's son; Trent and Brenna Jordache's son; and Dex and Caitlin Madaris's son. No one was surprised when Trask and Felicia Maxwell had shown up with their six-year-old son Austin and announced they were having a baby in seven months. Now Felicia joined Trevor's sister Gina among the new list of pregnant women.

Trevor frowned when he noticed that his wife's brother, Joshua Avery, had arrived. A part of him had wished that Joshua wouldn't show up today. Trevor inhaled deeply and wished there was some way that he could overlook Joshua's faults and decided the man had too many to dismiss. Besides, Joshua wouldn't know how to handle it if he were to suddenly start being nice to him so it was best to leave well enough alone.

He glanced around and smiled when he noticed that the Madaris brothers' youngest sister, twenty-one-year-old Christy, was busy organizing a game of kickball for the older kids, many of whom were her nieces and nephews. He smiled, thinking how Christy had grown up over the past few years. He could vividly recall when she'd been born. At the time Justin, Dex, and Clayton had been in their late teens and had long since become the most overprotective big brothers he had ever seen. Now that Christy was officially a young woman, he wondered how the brothers would continue to keep a tight rein on their sister when she appeared to have definitely developed a mind of her own.

Even with all the noise surrounding him, Drake managed to drop off to sleep. Once or twice he was awakened when one of the kids' balls landed near him, but otherwise he was able to tune everything out. With his arms covering his face, he stretched his body out in the lawn chair and dropped right off to sleep, secure in the knowledge that he would soon be one step closer to finding Tori.

She was in his thoughts now. He couldn't help but remember the first time he had seen her while sitting in the coffee shop, then how they had sparred off later in Casey's office. Then there was the mission and how well they had worked together. But nothing could top the memories of them making love. That moment in time would always be branded into his mind.

He opened his eyes and his gazed drifted to all the babies he saw. Why couldn't he let go the memory of him and Tori having unprotected sex? She had promised that she would contact him if their night together had resulted in a pregnancy and she hadn't so he could only assume she wasn't having his child. But for some reason he needed to hear her say it. He needed the confirmation to come from her lips.

"Warren, I'm glad to see you're still doing better."

Drake glanced to the side and saw Joshua Avery was standing next to his lawn chair. Months ago while in Trevor and Corinthians's home when he'd been recuperating, he had thanked the man for using his clout to get him out of Iraq. Having to thank Joshua Avery for anything had left a bad taste in his mouth but he'd felt compelled to do it. "Thanks," he said and closed his eyes, hoping Joshua would take the hint that he wanted to be left alone and move on.

He did.

When Drake reopened his eyes moments later, he noticed that Joshua was now talking to Jake Madaris. He hadn't wanted to stare before but Joshua, it seemed, had a little bit more hair on his head than before. Drake grinned. If he didn't know better he'd swear the man was trying to grow an Afro. He chuckled. Was Joshua Avery, the former staunch Republican senator, making an attempt to reconnect to his roots? Drake shook his head. If so, he still had a long way to go to do so.

Drake was about to close his eyes again when he saw that Alexander Maxwell had arrived. Alex at thirty was a former FBI agent who owned and operated Maxwell Security and Investigators. Drake had seen firsthand how competent Alex was when one of Nettie's employees at the restaurant had been kidnapped by her ex-husband last year. Filled with jealous rage, the man had broken out of prison, intent on teaching his wife a lesson. It had taken a team effort of Drake, Alex, Trevor, and Ashton to find the woman after Dex Madaris, a geologist, had pinpointed her location from a dirt sample. Also, Alex had successfully destroyed the plans of a demented person who'd been intent on killing wealthy rancher Jake Madaris a couple of years ago.

When Alex caught Drake's gaze he began walking toward him with a glass of lemonade in his hand. He was six-feet-four inches tall and was impeccably dressed in a pair of jeans, a chambray shirt, and western boots on his feet, giving the appearance of a Texan, through and through. Drake also knew that Alex was as sharp as he looked. He had obtained a bachelor's degree from Howard University and a master's degree from MIT.