Hudson: SEALs of Honor Book 27 Read online

  Table of Contents

  Cover

  Title Page

  About This Book

  Complimentary Download

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Epilogue

  About Lachlan

  Author’s Note

  Complimentary Download

  About the Author

  Copyright Page

  About This Book

  Due a few days of R&R, Hudson heads to visit his best friend in Vail, Colorado. The first day, an explosion in his hotel sends the city into chaos. He’s doing what he can to keep Avery safe, as this was no accident. He’s not allowed to join the investigation, but being on the spot and having the training he has are huge benefits. No way will he sit by and do nothing. Especially if Avery is in trouble.

  Avery has been looking forward to Hudson’s visit. They are best friends, and she’d love to spend more time with him. Hell, she’d loved him since forever but didn’t want to risk their special friendship by taking the relationship further. Now she regrets it, as the explosion in town is only the tip of the problem—for the terrorist realizes that Hudson caught a glimpse of him.

  Now the game of cat and mouse is on, with Avery caught in the middle …

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  Prologue

  Hudson Cameron sat beside Mason in the back of the military carrier, watching Baylor and Gizella. Hudson nodded at his boss and said, “Looks like you were right.”

  Mason turned to view the other two, then smiled and said, “Yeah, that one was pretty easy.”

  “Are you taking an active hand in these connections?”

  “No, not at all,” he said, “but sometimes you just get a feeling that things would work out. They’ve got a long road ahead of them and lots to learn, but any relationship does. And they’ve come a long way.”

  “Otherwise it’s a sad trip home,” he said, as he motioned to the two coffins strapped in the back.

  Mason’s smile fell away, as he nodded. “And it’s a good time for Baylor to be there for her.”

  “It is,” Hudson said.

  “But any day is better with someone you really connect with.”

  “Maybe.” Hudson shrugged. “I had one long relationship eons ago,” he said. “I’ve had multiple short ones since, but nothing like that one.”

  “What happened?” Mason asked curiously.

  “She died in a car accident. Not long after our prom.” He stared at the long road of his past. “We were planning on going to college together,” he said, with a lopsided smile. “We’d been sweethearts since forever, and, when she died, it felt like something inside me died too.”

  “I’m sorry,” Mason said. “That’s a tough one.”

  “It is, though it’s been long enough that I should have gotten over it by now. I just haven’t found anybody else.”

  “Are you close to anybody in her family?”

  “Her sister, Avery,” he said immediately. “But Delilah’s death keeps us together.”

  “Are you sure about that?” Mason asked.

  Hudson looked at him in surprise. “Well, we have coffee every once in a while, but nothing more than that.”

  “Is there nothing more to it than that because you don’t want there to be anything between you two?”

  He frowned. “I hadn’t thought anything was there to develop.”

  “Well, maybe you should take another look,” Mason said. “Too often in cases like that, people get together because of the person they lost. Sometimes it doesn’t work because they’re hoping the other person will be a clone of the person who is gone. The opposite is also true. They stay away from that person because they think that they’ll make them a substitute.”

  “Well, Avery’s not a substitute for anybody,” he said. “She’s got a lot of piss and vinegar, where her sister was much more sugar and spice.”

  “But that doesn’t mean she’s not interested.”

  “I don’t even know what she’s doing these days. I haven’t talked to her in quite a while.”

  “Maybe it’s time you did. Maybe it’ll help you put the past to bed.”

  “Well, I wasn’t thinking along those lines. I was just hoping that, I don’t know,” he said, with a shake of his head. “She’s fun to be around, and I really like her, but I still see her sister’s face. So I’m probably in the second category.”

  “Are you still seeing her sister’s face, or is that a habit too?” Mason asked quietly.

  Stunned, he looked at Mason. “Very interesting,” he said. “I see the psychoanalyst coming out in you.”

  “I’ve just seen many guys on my teams go through a lot of relationship strife and struggles,” he said. “More than a few have lost their spouses too. Some before, some after marriage,” he said, “and some who have lost whole families.”

  At that, Hudson winced because he knew a few himself. “That’s what I mean. It happened a long time ago, and I just haven’t found anybody new.”

  “Are you open to finding somebody new?”

  “Maybe. I guess,” he said, with a shrug and open hands. “I don’t want to be alone for the rest of my life.”

  “So, the next time you get back, or maybe when we return this time, give her a call. Go for coffee or whatever, and just take a look at it but with a new perspective.”

  “And what perspective should that be?”

  “One that says that she’s your friend, that she’s somebody you know, but also is that somebody you’ve been interested in seeing off and on again? And just see if something’s there.”

  He thought about it, smiled, and said, “Why not? Like I said, she’s a good friend.”

  “The thing about good friends is,” Mason said, “often we friend-zone somebody, even though that’s not what they wanted.”

  “I don’t think she’s interested in me,” he said.

  “Why is that?”

  He stopped, thought about it, and said, “I don’t know, but she’s pretty special.”

  “Well, maybe you should check out just how special she is then.”

  Hudson laughed. “You’re just so set on being a matchmaker,” he said. “You can’t stand to see anybody not hooked up.”

  “I have to admit that I pretty much like the status myself,” he said. “So who knows? Let me know how it goes.”

  “I can do that,” Hudson said. “But don’t count on it.”

  “It’s not a case of counting on it. Just give it an honest try and see what comes up. You might be surprised.”

  “I doubt it,” he said, “but, hey, just for you, I’ll give her a call.”

  “No,” he said, “not for me, do it for you.”

  At that, he nodded and said, “Good enough, but not until I get home.”

  “Done.”

  Chapter 1

  Vail in the fall, huh? It would have been better if Hudson had come during winter, so he could get up on the mountain. There could be glacier skiing possibilities, and that would be interesting, maybe the easiest way to test his leg out. Hudson had incurred a serious leg injury a while back and hadn’t snowboarded or skied since. He knew that he could, since he’d been cleared for duty. He just hadn’t tried it yet. It was a sport he truly loved, but then so was golf. One would be a whole lot easier on his body than the othe
r. Maybe.

  He certainly hadn’t gotten his handicap back, and that had to do with his balance and his hip as much as his back and his leg, as he considered some of his other injuries. Maybe his golf game was even further behind than snowboarding; at least with that he just had to throw himself down a mountain. He smiled and almost cracked up out loud at that. Because it was funny, yet at the same time not funny at all—because, of course, if you threw yourself down the mountain without any kind of control, all kinds of bad things could happen.

  He had seen plenty in his day and had helped rescue plenty of idiots doing the same thing. He didn’t plan on joining them. At the same time, life was different for him now, and some things would be different, whether he liked it or not. He’d adapted where his work was concerned but hadn’t yet done much in the area of free time or picking up old hobbies.

  It had been weeks since his conversation with Mason, but that last conversation had stuck in the back of Hudson’s head. Hudson had no need to come here until, all of a sudden, he had a week off and could think of nothing else. It had been an impulsive call, but he had quickly hopped on a flight and even now was renting a truck, so he could drive into town. At least the main part of town. Several others on the team had time off too, and they were heading off to do extra training at some gym competition. But Hudson couldn’t get the idea of Avery—Delilah’s sister—out of his mind.

  And damn Mason for starting this; here Hudson was in Vail. He’d sent Avery an email, letting her know he was coming in, and had been gratified to see her reply. A simple Awesome response was exactly what he would expect from her. As soon as he got settled in a hotel up on the mountain, he would contact her. He loved this city. He could retire here. He had the money. It was sitting in his bank, burning a hole, because he was looking at finding a home for himself. But not likely until he was done as a Navy SEAL. That was a huge part of his life, and that dedication kept him on the move all the time.

  California was not where he would choose to relocate on a permanent basis. It’s not where he wanted to raise a family, although watching Mason and the rest of his team settling in with their new partners and families, Hudson had to wonder if he was wrong about that. It would be nice to consider that they could all retire close to each other and still be friends and have families who grew up together. In fact, nothing would make him happier. It was a hard consideration, but he just couldn’t get behind city living. He wanted a life in the country. At least more country than where he lived now. There had to be someplace that was a happy medium, surely. And, as long as he held that thought in his mind, he was prepared to leave that as an option. He was a huge skier, snowboarder, winter backpacker, and had often done stints with search and rescue when he was younger.

  After he pulled into the hotel and parked, he hopped out and walked into the front lobby, his bag in hand. His body was free and loose, feeling pretty-damn decent after the last several sessions he’d had in the gym. He was fit again and feeling wonderful.

  He knew that one day he would have to step away from the heavy physical work because he couldn’t keep up, and the last thing he wanted to do was to put any of his team members in jeopardy by not being quite as fit or as strong as the rest of them. It was a hard thing to understand, but he got a pretty immediate insight into this when he saw it happening to other team members. He knew that even Mason himself had been talking about moving up the channel. Into management, not that it was called management.

  But, with Tesla pregnant and the whole family thing emerging, Hudson knew that Mason was rethinking about how much he wanted to be away from the family. There was also a promotion coming, according to the rumors, but it hadn’t happened yet. So it was hard to say just how that would impact Mason’s future.

  Everybody Hudson knew absolutely adored Tesla. She was engaging, intelligent, and kept even Mason hopping. They were a perfect couple, and Hudson had to admit that, if he found someone like that, well, he probably wouldn’t mind where he lived. And that was always an underlying thought. It wasn’t only what he wanted. Should he have a partner, it was also what she wanted.

  He walked up to the hotel’s front desk, checked in, and then headed toward his room. A baggage clerk asked if he wanted a hand with his bag, but he smiled and shook his head. Hudson had only the one bag; the last thing he needed was to have somebody else carry it for him. He understood it was all about the tips for these guys, but still there was more to life than tipping a bellboy. Particularly in Vail, where the money flowed heavily.

  He sighted two men getting on one of the elevators beside him, as he stepped into an empty one, and moved up to the fourth floor, where his hotel room was located. He pondered the two men dressed all in black military-style clothing but not in actual US-grade uniforms. It was casual gear, but they carried themselves differently—like on the job. Not the bulky gym-buff type but more of a heavily trained military look, including the short-cut hair. One had a faint tattoo on the back of his hand, and Hudson could barely see a ring on the same hand.

  With his mind consumed with what was going on with those two, Hudson stepped out of the elevator and noted they were just ahead of him, heading down the same hallway in the opposite direction. He checked his room number, walked to it, and, with one last look at the two men, Hudson stepped inside. He had no sooner dropped his bag on the bed, when his phone rang. He smiled when he saw it was Avery. “I’m here,” he said. “I just got to my room.”

  “I’m downstairs, just waiting for you to get some coffee,” she said, her bright laughter shining through the phone.

  He grinned and said, “I’ll be there in two.”

  He quickly used the facilities, then washed up, gave his face a good scrub, and, after looking at the mirror for a long moment, dried off and headed out. He saw no sign of the two men, but he’d noted which direction they’d gone, and only a few hotel rooms were down there. So, as choices went, not too many rooms to consider. Still, depending on what they were up to, Hudson had a hell of a lot of options.

  Trying to put them out of his mind, Hudson headed to the reception area. The moment he stepped into the main lobby, he was almost tackled by a five-foot-two redhead. He laughed out loud in joy, as he picked her up and swung her around. She squealed in delight. “Good Lord,” he said, “it’s like you’ve shrunk.”

  “I have not.” She glared at him in delight.

  “Are you sure?” He pressed his hand on the top of her head and said, “I am absolutely certain you are way shorter now.”

  “I am not,” she said and lightly punched him in the belly.

  “Ooph,” he said in mock distress.

  “Ha!” she said. “Damn, Hudson, it’s good to see you.”

  “It’s good to see you too,” he said, studying her intently. It was even better to see her than he had expected. Reaching out an arm, he pulled her against him and just held her close. “It’s been a long time.”

  She smiled. “Too long.” She looked around and asked, “Do you want to stay here? We can go into the hotel’s coffee shop, or we can head out to the strip.”

  “Is Enzo’s open?”

  “Sure,” she said. “Are you ready for some of the best pizza in Colorado?”

  “And he has those divine coffees,” he said.

  “Still one of my favorite places,” she said, with a nod. “Come on. Let’s go.”

  As they turned and walked through the lobby toward the front door, they heard a shout. Hudson turned to look, and one of the hotel staff was trying to stop somebody in the hallway, yelling at him. Then a huge explosion rocked the building.

  Hudson grabbed Avery in his arms and slammed up tight against one of the great big columns just feet away from the front door. He turned, looked around, and, with her still in his arms, dashed out the front door and across the street. She cried out as he made his move. When he put her down on the far side of the street, sections of the hotel exterior crashed down. Not where his room was, but still, the whole place would be off-limi
ts by the time the building settled. He swore. “I knew I shouldn’t have left my bag in there.”

  “Oh my God,” she said. “What just happened?”

  “I’m not sure.” He frowned. “But my bag is in there.”

  “I don’t think you’ll be allowed to go in and get it,” she said.

  “Unless I don’t tell anybody, and I just go. Besides, people up there could need help.”

  She looked up at him in surprise, then shrugged and said, “I don’t think you can go up the stairs.”

  He studied the building. “Yeah, I think I can on the opposite side,” he said. “You stay put here. I’ll be right back.”

  “Hudson, don’t,” she cried out. “It’s not safe.”

  But he could barely hear her because he was already inside the hotel, just as everybody came screaming out. He would also check for any casualties and not just for his bag while he was there. Easier to do it all. By the time he raced up the stairs on the far side of the building, a message came over the PA, asking everybody to exit the building in an orderly fashion.

  He raced into his room, grabbed his bag, then turned around, checked all the rooms on that floor. Done with these rooms, he turned to go downstairs, checking each floor as he went. He hadn’t gone very far on the second floor when he caught sight of an older woman, struggling to make her way. He stepped around and gave her a hand. She looked up at him gratefully.

  “Thank you,” she said. “My heart is pounding. I’m afraid I’ll have a heart attack. I’m so frightened over all this.”

  “The building’s in rough shape, after that explosion,” he said.

  “Oh dear,” she said. “What about all those people?”

  He nodded grimly. “Well, let’s just hope the hotel wasn’t fully booked.”

  “I know they had a convention planned, maybe a lot of people coming in this afternoon,” she said. “I was trying to get out beforehand, so I didn’t have to deal with all the people.”