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“I am not.”

August looked disappointed. “You do know that if anything happens to you, our careers are in the toilet.”

He didn’t say it aloud, but if he didn’t get a handle on this situation, his relationship with his future in-laws would be in the toilet. They had so far dealt with the risks that were a part of his job with as much grace and aplomb as they could. But the additional risk he brought to the table that came with his position at the NSA was proving to be a sticking point, especially with her father.

Slash clapped him on the shoulder. “Then, let’s get to work to make sure that doesn’t happen.”

Chapter Four

Lexi

Grayson crawled over to me. “Lexi, what’s going on outside?”

“I don’t know,” I said in a low voice. “But I’d bet money Slash went outside to find out.”

“What if he’s the target?”

“You think that would stop him?”

“No.” Gray lowered her voice. “Don’t let Slash see you.”

I started to crawl toward the window. “I’m just going to go see if he’s okay.”

“Whoa, young lady.” My dad grabbed my ankle. “Where do you think you’re going?”

“I’m checking things out, Dad.” I shook my ankle, trying to get free. “Let go.”

“Slash said we’re supposed to stay where we were.”

“I’m not going outside. I’m just going to peek at the window to see what’s happening. I’ll be careful. I promise.” I knew what I was doing. I’d been getting shot at on a surprisingly regular basis these days, so Slash had been working with me to prepare for such occasions, just in case. But I could hardly tell my dad that without freaking him out, so I had to hope he’d take my word for it.

After a moment, he released me, so I continued my crawl. When I got to the window, I peeked over the sill and saw three dark figures. I spotted Slash by the shape of his silhouette. He was standing a bit away from the others, holding a flashlight and looking around on the grass. He picked something off the ground and put it in his pocket. I wondered what he’d found.

A few minutes later, everyone came back in. Slash flipped the lights on. “False alarm, folks. It was firecrackers. Kids playing around. Everyone can get up.”

The guests chuckled in relief, but I didn’t. Something wasn’t right. My eyes met Slash’s across the room. Although he smiled, I saw the tension in his jaw. I stretched out a hand and helped my dad pull Mom off the floor. She stood, brushing down her dress. “Lexi, you do know this kind of environment is not conducive to raising children.”

“Mom, this was not my fault! And can we please stop talking about children? Why don’t you ask Beau or Rock why they haven’t produced any yet?”

“Neither of your brothers are engaged yet,” my mother pointed out.

“You just told me that wasn’t a prerequisite for children!”

Before she could answer, Slash came up beside me, slipping an arm around my waist. “How’s everyone doing?”

“Peachy,” I said, glaring at my mom.

“We’re fine.” My dad straightened his tie. “So, it was some kids playing with firecrackers on your lawn?”

“Looks like it,” Slash said. “I apologize for bringing you all down, but safety is always my first concern.”

“Of course,” my dad replied. “Although at this point, we’re almost expecting it every time we get together.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Dad,” I said heatedly. “Noteverytime.”

“I’m glad we didn’t have a real threat to worry about this time,” Slash said smoothly, but his arm around me tightened slightly.

“Well, I’ll wear my kneepads next time...just in case.” Dad gave me a peck on the cheek before he moved away to talk to my other brother, Rock, and his new girlfriend, Paulina. The poor girl looked kind of freaked out about what had happened. I guess hitting the floor because of potential gunfire wasn’t the norm for most parties, not that I’d been at a lot of parties for comparison. Still, I felt sorry for Rock. I wasn’t sure how long she’d stick around after this.