Ultimate Fear (Book 2 Ultimate CORE) (CORE Series) by Kristine Mason Page A

door. Here, though, in the home she and Dante had bought and renovated, the home they’d planned to fill with children, were too many memories of what had been and what would never be.
    Her eyes stung with tears she refused to shed. At least, not now. Later, when she was back in her crappy apartment she could cry herself to sleep. And she knew in her knotted-up gut, she would do just that. Every time she’d visited her former home, she’d catch herself reminiscing, then later, dwelling. Later still, crying, regretting and questioning why. Why them? Why their daughter?
    She drew in a shaky breath and swiped at a tear that managed to escape, then turned away from the door. After dealing with the Palmers’ murder-suicide today, then having to meet with their family, she didn’t think she could face Dante and the memories.
    Maybe your ‘devil’s own sell’ is Sophia. Have you ever thought of that?
    Alex’s words taunted her. She shouldn’t have come here tonight. Her baby girl was always on her mind, so was Dante. Although she didn’t consider herself a fragile person, that about summed up how she was feeling tonight. Fragile, vulnerable.
    Lonely .
    Yeah, this was a mistake and she needed to go to the apartment. She started down the brick path. No good could come from being here. She’d likely end up arguing with Dante over something stupid, like why hadn’t he used the damned cayenne pepper spray.
    “Going somewhere?”
    She stopped a few feet from the driveway and let his soothing voice sweep her away to another time. “It’s late,” she said without turning. Dante was the sexiest man she’d ever met and had a way of making her melt with just the sound of his voice—which was why she tried to stick to texting.
    For the past three weeks, she’d managed to avoid seeing and speaking to him. That last meeting had ended in a heated argument over her obsession with finding their daughter. But even then, when they’d been fighting, she’d wanted to throw herself into his strong arms. She’d wanted to know that there was one steady thing in this world she could depend on—Dante. He’d been her rock, her best friend and lover. Even when he’d been overseas with the SEALs and distance had separated them for months, she’d known in her gut and her heart that he’d come home to her, that he’d loved her.
    “It’s never too late.”
    To drop by and check out the vegetable garden, or for them?
    Since she was already at his house, and she had a busy day scheduled for tomorrow, she might as well do what she came here to do. Besides, she’d missed seeing his face.
    With her belly twisting both with nervous anticipation and apprehension, she turned and caught her breath. The light from the foyer framed Dante from behind. His shoulders looked broader, his hair and eyes darker. She loved the way he wore his hair longer now. Even though they’d argued the last time they’d seen each other, she still itched to run her fingers through his thick natural waves and curls.
    “I brought a flashlight,” she said, holding it in the air and tried to ignore the way his t-shirt hugged his muscular chest and arms. “I’ll just meet you out back.”
    He cocked a challenging brow. “God forbid if you come inside,” he said, and took a step backward into the foyer. “If you want to slink around to the backyard, knock yourself out.”
    Although she knew he was baiting her, she let him hook her and took a few steps toward the door. Her heart ached to be back inside their home, to see her watercolors, the family photos she’d left behind, the walls she’d painstakingly ripped hideous wallpaper from, then subsequently spent hours sanding and painting. Their home was a part of her she couldn’t seem to let go and yet could no longer embrace. Their daughter had only been with them for ten months, but her spirit, her laughter and innocence had become embedded in the house. And until their child was returned to them, being here,