Bane. Brenda Jackson

      Sitting in the SUV he had rented at the airport, Bane tilted his Stetson off his eyes and shifted his long legs into a more comfortable position. He checked his watch again. The private investigator’s report indicated Crystal was employed with Seton Industries as a biochemist while working on her PhD, and that she usually got off work around four. It was close to seven and she hadn’t gotten home yet. So where was she?

      It was the holiday season and she could have gone shopping. And she must have girlfriends, so she could very well be spending time with one of them. He just had to wait.

      None of his family members had been surprised when he’d announced he was going after Crystal. However, except for Bailey, who knew the whole story, all of them were shocked to learn he’d married Crystal when they had eloped. His brother Riley had claimed he’d suspected as much, but all the others hadn’t had a clue.

      Bailey had given Bane a huge hug and whispered that it was about time he claimed his wife. Of course others, like Dillon, had warned Bane that things might be different and not to expect Crystal to be the eighteen-year-old he’d last seen. Just like he had changed over the years, so had she.

      His cousin Zane, who was reputed to be an expert on women, had gone so far as to advise Bane not to expect Crystal to readily embrace her role as loving wife or his role as long-lost husband. Zane had cautioned him not to do anything stupid like sweeping her off her feet and carrying her straight to the bedroom. They would have to get to know each other all over again, and he shouldn’t be surprised if she tried putting up walls between them for a while.

      Zane had reiterated that regardless of the reason, Bane hadn’t made contact with his wife in almost five years and doubts would have crossed Crystal’s mind regarding Bane’s love and faithfulness.

      He had appreciated everyone’s advice. And while he wished like hell he could sweep Crystal off her feet and head straight for the nearest bedroom when he saw her, he had enough sense to know they would have to take things slow. After all, they had been apart all this time and there would be a lot for them to talk about and sort out. But he felt certain she knew he would come back for her as he’d promised; no matter how long it had taken him to do so.

      He was back in her life and didn’t intend to go anywhere. Even if it meant he lived with her in Dallas for a while. As a SEAL he could live anywhere as long as he was ready to leave for periodic training sessions or covert operations whenever his commanding officer called. And as long as there was still instability in Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria, his team might be needed.

      Thinking of his team made him think about Coop. It was hard to believe his friend was gone. All the team members had taken Coop’s death hard and agreed that if it was the last thing they did, they would return to Syria, find Coop’s body and bring him home. His parents deserved that and Coop did, too.

      For the longest time, Bane had thought he could keep his marriage a secret from his team. But he found it hard to do when the guys thought it was essential that he got laid every once in a while. Things started getting crazy when they tried fixing him up with some woman or another every chance they got.

      He’d finally told them about his marriage to Crystal. Then he wished he hadn’t when they’d teased him about all the women they were getting while he wasn’t getting any. He took it all in stride because he only wanted one woman. His team members accepted that he intended to adhere to his wedding vows and in the end they all respected and admired him for it.

      Now the SEAL in him studied his surroundings, taking notice. The one thing he appreciated was that Crystal’s home appeared to be in a safe neighborhood. The streets were well lit and the houses spaced with enough distance for privacy yet with her neighbors in reach if needed.

      The brick house where she lived suited her. It looked to be in good condition and the yard was well manicured. One thing he did notice was that unlike all the other houses, she didn’t have any Christmas decorations. There weren’t any colorful lights around her windows or animated objects adorning her lawn. Did she not celebrate the holidays anymore? He recalled a time when she had. In fact the two most important days to her had been her birthday and Christmas.

      He’d made her birthday even more special by marrying her on it. A smile touched his lips when he recalled how, over the years, he had bought her birthday cards and anniversary cards, although he hadn’t been able to send them to her. He’d even bought her Valentine’s Day cards and Christmas cards every year. He had stored them in a trunk, knowing one day he would give them to her. Well, that day had finally arrived and he had all of them packed in his luggage. He had signed each one and taken the time to write a special message inside. Then there were all those letters he’d written. Letters he’d never mailed because he hadn’t a clue where to send them.

      He’d made Bailey promise not to tell him because if he’d known how to get to Crystal he would have gone to her and messed up all the effort he’d made in becoming the type of man who could give her what she deserved in life.

      Five years was a long time and there had been times he’d thought he would lose his mind from missing her so much. It had taken all he had, every bit of resolve he could muster, to make it through. In the end, he knew the sacrifice would be worth it.

      He figured he would give Crystal time to get into the house before he got out of the car and knocked on the door, so as not to spook her. No need to give her neighbors anything to talk about, either, especially if no one knew she was married. And from the private investigator’s report, her marital status was a guarded secret. He understood and figured it wouldn’t be easy to explain a husband who’d gone AWOL.

      His phone rang and a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth when he recognized the ringtone. It was Thurston McRoy, better known to the team as Mac. All Bane’s team members’ names had been shortened for easy identification during deployment. Cooper was Coop. McRoy was Mac. And because his name was Brisbane, the nickname his family had given him was already a shortened version, so his team members called him Bane like everyone else.

      “What’s up, Mac?”

      “Have you seen her yet?”

      He had spoken to Mac on his way to the airport to let him know his whereabouts, just in case the team was needed somewhere. “No, not yet. I’m parked outside her place. She’s late getting off work.”

      “When she gets there, don’t ask a lot of questions and please don’t go off on her as if you’ve been there for the past five years. You may think she’s late but it might be her usual MO to get delayed every once in a while. Women do have days they like to get prettied up. Get their hair and nails done and stuff.”

      Bane chuckled. He figured Mac would know since he was one of the married team members. And Mac would tell them that after every extended mission, he would go home to an adjustment period, where he would have to get to know