Page 6 of Idaho

"Welcome home," Static said, echoing his welcome from before. He slapped a hand into mine and pulled me into a hug.

"Thanks."

"You won't be thanking us when you're scrubbing toilets," Riptide said with a laugh.

"I've scrubbed worse."

Riptide's brows shot up. "Really? You were in the army, right? What did you do?"

"Special Forces. Mountain Warfare."

"Shit, Green Beret here."

My brows shot up. I eyed him up and down. He always looked relaxed, was usually smiling, had longer hair. Didn't strike me as the special forces type. "Damn. That's impressive." I'd have to go back through everyone's file. I remembered bits and pieces here and there, but I didn't know that Riptide had been a Beret.

"Same," he said.

"You said it was a lot harder to impress you than that when I told you that's what I did," Static complained.

"Didn't know you then. Didn't need you getting a big head on me."

"He already has one," I joked.

They both laughed at that. "It's weird," Riptide said, raking a hand through his hair. "I feel like I already know you."

"I get that," I told him. "But he and I are pretty different."

"A lot alike, too," Static argued. "You'll figure out how pretty quickly. This one here is trouble."

I laughed, but he wasn't wrong. I'd always been the one who suggested we do things that could get us into deep shit. Liam had gone along to make sure I didn't get killed and Static had just been happy to be included. We'd been an intimidating trio, even as kids.

When we enlisted Liam had gone the pilot route, which never surprised me. He loved that kind of shit. Lived for the dare devil type stunts that involved motorized vehicles. I preferred to be in the thick of the action. Static and I had always clicked, so I hadn't been surprised when he'd gone right along with me into the special forces. We stuck together during training, since we could, and met up with Liam whenever possible.

"Who do I talk to about figuring out my duties as a prospect?" I asked.

"Priest will get you squared away," Riptide told me. "But not tonight. You're free to get unpacked and settled in."

"Appreciate it." My assistant, Andrew, had texted me on the way over. I had an emergency conference call in an hour. Waving to both of them, I went into my apartment and shut the door. It was going to take some time to figure out how to balance my—still busy—work life and the MC, but I'd manage. That was something I did incredibly well.

So far, I knew I was going to like Riptide. Between him and Static they wouldn't let me fuck up too badly. The jury was out on the rest of the guys, but I knew I'd win them over eventually. Static was right, my brother and I were alike in the ways that counted. If his men liked him, they'd like me. I'd make sure of it.

CHAPTER 3

Eva

"Ithink this is it." I squinted down at my phone, then through the windshield at the little house sitting between two bigger homes. "Pull over here please, Thomas."

The car slowed down and pulled up to the curb. I took a deep breath, steeling myself for the new experience, and got out.

"I could have gotten that for you, Lady Desmet." He was standing at the curb, looking at the door I'd opened on my own with a deep frown.

Giving him a disapproving look, I chided, "We talked about this, Thomas. Remember?" When he opened his mouth to say something else, I added, "Please don't call me Lady Desmet, or anything else other than Eva. Nothing, Thomas. I'm just Eva here."

He snapped his mouth closed, but didn't look too happy about it. Thomas was my concession to my father. He'd refused to allow me to come to America to get my doctorate degree unless I agreed to bring Thomas with me. He'd tried to send three more men as well, but I put my foot down. Father was very protective. And while I appreciated it, this was the first time I was getting the chance to spread my wings.

"You can wait here."

"Lady… Eva," he stuttered when I shot him a look. "I should go with you. We have no idea who these people are."