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it in the morning.”  
    Wolf lifted a hand as he went out the door, not stopping, but acknowledging Tex’s words.  
    “Need to go out once more, Baby?” Tex asked the dog at his feet. When Baby didn’t move, but instead lay down with a sigh, Tex took that as a negative on the trip outside. “Then let’s go catch some sleep. It’s gonna be insane around here in the morning. Those women are crazy.” His words were mocking, but the tone was affectionate.  
    Tex painfully pushed up from the chair at the table and made his way to the basement door. As he started down the stairs, Baby was right by his side. Tex stumbled once, but because Baby was there, pushing all her weight into his good leg, she righted his balance and he didn’t fall. “Thanks, girl.”  
    After Wolf brought his bag down the stairs, and Tex had visited the bathroom, he removed his prosthetic and massaged his stump with the lotion he always carried. It hurt more than usual because of the time spent immobile on the trip cross country.  
    Baby jumped up into the bed next to him. She turned in what seemed like ten circles before she finally deemed her “nest” complete. She sighed once and put her head on Tex’s leg. He leaned down and patted her on the head. “Good girl.”  
    Hoping against hope, Tex leaned over and grabbed his laptop off the bedside table where he’d placed it before taking off his prosthetic. He flipped it open and turned it on, waiting for Wolf’s Wi-Fi to connect.  
    Tex logged into the chat room he and Melody had been using and waited, hoping she’d logged back on. He’d been checking every night, just in case. After a few minutes he sighed, disappointed. She hadn’t . . . at least she hadn’t joined back up with the same username she’d used in the past. If she was on with a different name, Tex had no idea what it was and no one sent him a private message either. Tex turned off the laptop and put it back on the table. He lay back on the bed and stared at the ceiling.  
    He had no idea where Melody was or what she was going through, but he hoped wherever it was, she was safe. She needed to stay that way until Tex could get to her. There was no doubt in his mind that he would get to her. He had to. There was no other option.  
     

Chapter Three
     
     
     
    Tex smiled as he drove away from Wolf’s house. The last three hours had been crazy, but he wouldn’t have missed it for the world. He hadn’t forgotten Melody or why he was in California, but meeting the women had been better than he could have imagined.  
    As soon as he stepped foot in the kitchen he had to get through the women crying all over him. Fiona had grabbed onto him first and simply sobbed. Tex felt as if he had the most connection with her. He’d talked to her for three days in a row, every four hours, while Cookie and the team had done their best to get back into the country from a mission. Even though Fiona had been hallucinating, she remembered every word of every conversation they’d had.  
    She whispered in his ear as Tex held her, “Thank you for holding on to me when Hunter wasn’t here to do it.”  
    Tex had given her a big squeeze and whispered back, “Anytime you need me, I’m here.”  
    The other women had all taken their turn and hugged him tightly. Tex had a hand in their men being able to find them all and rescue them from horrible situations. Jessyka had even whispered to him before letting him pull away, “Thank you for convincing the guys they needed those tracker thingies too.”  
    After Jess had been lured away by an ex who’d kidnapped Benny, she’d railed at the SEALs for not protecting themselves, and she’d been right. The only reason she’d been taken by her ex was because she’d been protecting Benny. While the SEALs had Tex make tracking devices for their women, they hadn’t bothered with the same for themselves.  
    The men had just shook their heads at the women’s emotional reactions to