The Secret by Elizabeth Hunter Page B

her biological father, that it had become the poignant reminder of how much he’d missed by being absent for so much of her life.
    He’d stayed as close to her as Lena would allow and often crashed at their house in LA when she was growing up. It was to her stepfather’s credit that the man hardly batted an eye. Then again, when it came to running the house, what Lena Matheson said was law. And she never gave Carl any reason to doubt that Jasper and Lena’s romantic relationship was firmly in the past.
    She patted his cheek. “You gotta keep your phone on, Jasper.”
    He winked at her and pulled out the pack of cigarettes he kept in his pocket. “But then everyone would call me. Maybe I need to get a phone only you have the number to.”
    “Might not be a bad idea,” Malachi said behind her.
    She turned to see Malachi watching them with wary eyes. She stood up and held out a hand for his.  
    “Jasper, this is Malachi. He’s not a bodyguard.”
    “He’s not? You brought your guy to meet me, Ava?” Her father looked strangely touched. “Really?”
    “Yeah.” She knit her hands with Malachi’s, but his fingers were tense. Odd. Maybe he was worried. “Malachi’s my—”
    “Fiancé,” he said. “Ava and I are getting married.”
    She turned to him and mouthed, We are?
    He shrugged and turned his eyes back to her father.
    “Damn, Ava.” Jasper blinked, and Ava saw his eyes were wet. “Really? You’re getting married? Your mom didn’t tell me.”
    “We just decided a little while ago.” Ava decided to go with it. It was probably the easiest way for her mom and Jasper to understand what role Malachi would play in her life. She didn’t care about getting married, but her mom would. “Mom doesn’t know yet.”
    Jasper cackled. “You better tell her. She’ll be pissed if you don’t. I’ll wait to call her. Malachi, huh?” He stood and offered a hand. “Nice to meet you, man. Cool name.”
    “Thank you.” Malachi shook his hand. “Nice to meet you too. Ava has spoken of you.”
    “I’d say it’s all lies, but she’s too honest, so I’ll just offer a general apology for all past behavior.” He sat down and looked around the garden. “Where’d they go?”
    Ava thought he looked pretty good for being on a bender. But then, there was a reason she’d chosen to visit in the morning.
    “Jasper, I wanted to ask—”
    “Sit down!” He waved to the chairs across from him and craned his neck toward the house. “Sit. Those girls were just here. Gotta get you guys some coffee. Where’d you two meet? Malachi, you drink coffee?”
    Ava sat. “We met in Istanbul. I was there on a job and Malachi—”
    “You’re Turkish, man?” Jasper drew on the cigarette again and nodded. “I can see it. Cool. Yeah. So what do you do, Malachi-with-the-cool-name?”
    Ava barely caught the edge of suspicion in Jasper’s eyes. It was odd for him to be protective, but then, she’d never brought a boyfriend to meet him. Never really had a boyfriend stick around long enough to matter.
    “I’m in private security,” Malachi said smoothly. It was a practiced lie; he’d implied the same thing to her when they first met. She supposed, in a way, it was true.
    “Fuck,” Jasper said with a snort. “I thought you said he wasn’t a bodyguard, Ava?”
    “Maybe I should have said he wasn’t just a bodyguard.”
    Jasper laughed.  
    “Hey, they’re the only guys who ever stick around,” she said wryly.
    “Carl didn’t hire him, did he?”
    “No.”
    “Good. All the guys Carl ever hired had a stick up their ass. Of course, Carl does too. So that’s not really a surprise.”
    “Jasper…”
    “Kidding. Kinda.” He grinned at Malachi, who still sat silently, his expression a careful blank.
    Malachi said, “I work for a private international firm based in Vienna. But I take my own assignments.”
    “So Ava’s your assignment now?” Jasper’s eyes were keen on Malachi.
    “Yes.”
    “Good. Too many