Free Outcast (SEAL Team: Disavowed Book 2) by Laura Marie Altom Page B

“This is delicious. Thank you.”
    While Jasper had wasted time contemplating whether or not Dane would try poisoning them both, the woman he was supposed to be protecting could already be in grave need of medical attention.
    “After we eat,” Dane said, “I think we should look over your father’s office. Maybe we’ll find a clue to where he could be.” He carried two plates from the kitchen, setting one next to her, then taking the other for himself. “Eat, Jasper. We’ll need our energy for tearing this entire station apart. If you’d like, take my burger.” He offered his plate.
    Classic psychology. Making him believe he hadn’t poisoned his own food, when in actuality, Dane planned all along for Jasper to eat his serving. Or could Dane be a step ahead of him and already suspect he’d ask to switch plates, so he hadn’t?
    Geez . Jasper clamped the heels of his hands to his forehead. He was starting to sound crazy even to himself. Odds were Dane was the kindly second father Eden believed him to be. If he weren’t, wouldn’t he be with Leo?
    Jasper took the chair next to Eden and across from Dane. When the first bite of his burger didn’t do him in, he took another and another, practically inhaling the whole thing.
    “Hungry?” Eden asked with a sleepy-sexy grin.
    He pressed the napkin Dane had also thoughtfully provided to his lips. “Thanks, man. You cook a mean burger.”
    “My pleasure. Glad you enjoyed it.”
    While Dane and Eden finished their meals, Jasper asked her, “What do you think we stand to find in your dad’s office?”
    “I have no idea. Dane?”
    “First, I guess we need a hint as to where he could possibly be. Maybe we’ll find it there, maybe not. But we have to try. We can’t just leave him out there—tired and cold.”
    “But wait—” Eden set down her burger. “Didn’t you tell me you saw Dad on a sub? If he escaped from there—I’m assuming it was somehow near shore. And did he have a boat to get to shore? Yet in all that time, Leo’s goons weren’t able to catch up with him?”
    “Guess not.” Dane kept eating. “Your dad stays fit.”
    “Yeah, but what did he do for foul weather gear? And what about the whiteout? If he was caught in that, then . . .”
    Jasper had been proud of her for questioning Dane’s explanation regarding her dad, but when he saw tears well in her eyes, he wanted to slip his arm around her shoulders, giving her a reassuring squeeze. But the timing didn’t seem right. “I’m sure he’s fine. Wherever he is, we’ll find him.”
    “That’s the spirit,” Dane said. “My thoughts exactly. You two kids head to Carl’s office. I’ll clean up here.”
    “Are you sure?” Eden asked.
    “Of course. Plus, I wouldn’t mind a trip to the facilities.” He winked.
    “ Oooh .” She nodded in understanding.
    “Go ahead. I’ll catch up.”
    Jasper stood, holding out his hand to Eden.
    She eyed his offer of peace, then stood on her own.
    They’d made it a third of the way down the hall leading to the science lab before Jasper said, “Look, if you’re pissed about the way I’ve been treating Dane—sorry. Some shit—stuff—went down in my past that was beyond ugly. I trusted a friend and he let me down in the worst possible way. I almost didn’t earn my Trident—not because of any lack of smarts or physical endurance, but because I couldn’t allow myself to trust. Once I accepted the fact that those men were my brothers, and that they’d give their very lives for me, as I would for any of them, my whole life changed.”
    “What happened?” She cupped her hand around his forearm. Did it make him less of a man that her simplest touch warmed him from the inside out?
    “This isn’t the time or place. Just know that because I trusted someone I shouldn’t have, my sister-in-law died.”
    She paled. “My God . . .”
    “Since then . . .” He was beyond ashamed. “I-I not only have a tough time trusting others, but my own gut