“You got something on your mind?” Lee asked.

“Yeah,” Mace replied.

“Now’s the time to talk about it,” Lee told him.

Mace didn’t speak. He wasn’t big on talking through his feelings.

“She’s tough,” Luke threw in, going direct to the heart of the matter.

Mace’s eyes moved to Luke and he went to the heart of the matter too. “Last night, she got shot and a friend of hers got her brains blown out.”

Al the men in the room were silent. Al the men in the room knew that Mace knew better than anyone what it felt like to have someone you cared about murdered. Not just murdered but their brains splattered by a bul et.

The difference between Stel a and Mace was that Mace had actual y been there to see his sister’s head explode.

“You’re gonna have to stick to her,” Tom advised.

Mace nodded.

“You two solid?” Vance asked.

“I’m workin’ on it,” Mace told Vance.

Vance grinned. “By my count, it takes about two weeks to real y wear ‘em down.”

Mace shook his head in amusement. Vance was referring to his and Lee, Eddie, Hank and Luke’s wild, dangerous and intense courtships with Jules, Indy, Jet, Roxie and Ava.

“I been noticin’ that,” Mace replied.

“We’re agreed here Mace.” Hank cut into the lightening atmosphere. Hank knew Mace and Hank didn’t feel like joking.

Mace’s eyes sliced to Hank. “I’m aware of that.”

“You go maverick, seeking retribution for what they did to Stel a and Lindsey –” Hank went on.

“Going maverick means she’s on the line,” Mace interrupted Hank.

“Yeah,” Hank answered.

“That’s not gonna happen,” Mace finished and everyone could tel he meant every word.

Lee’s voice cut through the tension. “We got three unsecure homes and Vance and Monty haven’t finished with the surveil ance equipment and alarm systems yet. You got a Rock Chick, tonight, you stay at The Castle.” After Lee issued his order, Luke lifted his chin. Hank nodded. Eddie sighed. Vance smiled at his feet. Mace looked down at his boots.

“Get good rest. This isn’t over until the sit down with Sid,” Tom added.

Hector, Ike, Bobby, Darius, Monty and Matt took off.

Bobby and Matt had girlfriends, Monty, a wife and five kids.

Al of them, for some reason, hadn’t been targeted the night before but al , now, were sleeping while being watched by Brody in the control room.

Lee approached Mace.

“You got something else you wanna talk about?” Lee asked.

“Nope,” Mace answered.

“After your sister, this is cutting close to the bone,” Eddie put in, coming up on one side.

“That bone’s exposed; has been for a long time, nothing cuts close to it anymore,” Mace responded.

“It’s different when she gets under your skin.” Hank joined the group. “She’s under your skin, isn’t she?”

“Has been awhile,” Mace replied.

“Fuck, you’re screwed.” Vance came around the other side.

“Have been that way awhile too, around about the minute she turned her brown eyes on me,” Mace explained.

“The eyes? I thought you’d go for –” Luke came up to the men from behind.

“Luke,” Lee cut him off in a warning tone.

Luke half-grinned. “I was gonna say the voice. That sexy, throaty voice. Shit.”

“Gotta admit to likin’ the voice,” Eddie muttered in agreement.

“I f**ked it up with her,” Mace told them, indulging an extremely unusual moment of sharing.

Luke’s hand came to Mace, his fingers tightening around Mace’s neck where it met his shoulder. The two men’s eyes locked.

“You’l sort it,” Luke said.

Luke was right, he would.

* * * * *

They al drove company Explorers to The Castle, Hank and Eddie riding with Lee. The Ford Explorers in Nightingale Investigations garage were al kitted with tracking devices,

communication

equipment

and

bul etproof windows.

Lee’s overhead was a bitch.

Marcus was already there when they arrived.

Mace grabbed the workout bag he’d packed with his clothes and a bunch of shit he took from Stel a’s place when he let Vance in to start instal ing the cameras (he’d never given back her key, she’d never asked for its return) and he went straight to Stel a.

She was asleep on her side just like last night, smack in the middle of the bed, her long, dark brown hair al over the pil ows and fal ing in her face. Her head was tilted forward, her face resting on one of her hands, the other arm was thrown out in front of her, palm up.

She was out, didn’t even move when he came in. Likely she’d taken pain kil ers. She wasn’t a particularly light sleeper but when they were together she’d always woken up when he got home.

Juno rushed him when she heard him. Mace dropped the bag, sat on the side of the bed and rubbed the big dog down from ears to rump.

“Lie down,” he murmured when he was done.

Juno licked his hand and trotted back to the other side of the bed and settled with a groan.

Mace pul ed off his boots and clothes and slid in bed behind Stel a. He fitted his body to hers, wrapped his arm around her middle and pul ed her tight against him.

Then he listened to her breathe until he final y fel asleep.

* * * * *

Stella

Mace was there again when I woke up in the morning; his hard body pressed the length of my back. I was mostly on my side and bel y, my top leg cocked deep and even Mace’s leg was cocked the length of mine.

Yep, that was Mace, maximum physical contact.

Effing hel .

I didn’t move. I needed a battle plan to get out of bed that didn’t include me turning around and kneeing him in a place which would make it difficult for him to sire children. I was pissed at him but not enough to forget that the world would be a poorer place without Mini-Maces roaming it one day.

For your information, the day before had been hectic, even though we didn’t leave the house.

First, a lady named Shirleen showed up. She was black, had beautiful skin a shade darker than mocha and the wildest afro I’d ever seen. She kept shouting “oowee” and yel ing at different Rock Chicks, for some reason mad as al hel that no one had cal ed her to be a part of the action.

Then a guy named Tex arrived. He was enormous, had blond hair just turning to gray and a thick russet beard. He was louder than Shirleen and even angrier that no one cal ed when bul ets were flying. He kept booming “Jesus Jones” and, for some bizarre reason, he referred to Jet as