“What are you talking about?” she asked in response to his earlier question.
Leigh glared at her as he sat down. “Commander Yang just forwarded me a copy of the reports from yesterday’s incident, where you and Kayla risked yourself to save Robinson. If you’d left him—”
“I know, we would have gotten out easier and you wouldn’t have been injured.” Mia sighed and put her own datapad aside. “But how were we supposed to know he was the traitor? We thought he was one of us. Would you have left anyone behind?”
His gaze cut away from her as he grumbled under his breath.
“What was that?” She poked him in the non-injured shoulder.
“I said no, I wouldn’t have. But that’s different, I have years of experience…experience that tells me trying to save morons like Steve Robinson will only get you killed, even when they don’t happen to be cowardly double-crossing bastards.”
“Yet you still would have rescued him. Kind of like you came to rescue me. Besides, look on the bright side. You don’t have to worry about having two moles in your squadron any longer.”
He reached out and trailed a finger along her jawline. “And you’re going to keep reminding me of exactly who outed those traitors for the rest of our lives, aren’t you.”
She shrugged, schooling her expression for total innocence. “Only when I really need to.”
He grinned, leaning in to kiss her, but then pulled back almost as quickly.
“Oh, Commander Yang asked me to give you this.” Leigh shoved a hand into his pocket and produced a small drive to plug into her datapad. She connected it up, and chewed her thumbnail while she waited for the contents to appear. It was an information package containing—
“Oh my God!” She shot up straighter and clutched the datapad to stop it from lurching off her lap.
“What is it?” Leigh stiffened, his expression alarmed.
“Commander Yang has organized a trial training period for me in aeronautical engineering.” Excitement thrummed through her and she shoved the datapad aside to throw herself against Leigh.
He caught her with a slight oomph and then returned her hug her tightly.
“It’s the best news, Mia. See? I told you everything would work out.”
She sat back to frown at him. “But how did Commander Yang know…? Wait, did you tell him?”
He shrugged, a half grin lifting his lips as he smoothed a hand over her braid. “I may have mentioned something along those lines. I can’t remember.”
Mia pulled him in for a quick kiss, but then her happiness deflated almost as quickly as it had hit her. Instead, guilt burned hot and bitter. She leaned away from him to catch his gunmetal-blue gaze.
“Leigh, this is great news, but what about you? I heard you’re not the CAFF anymore because of us.”
He shook his head. “It’s not because of us, exactly; it’s because of my conduct. And while I may not be the CAFF any longer, I did retain a spot on the fighter squadron. It was the best-case scenario. We’re lucky I didn’t get busted down to the front lines. And who knows? Maybe in another few years, I can work my way back to the top.”
Despite his assurance, she still felt like she’d cost him too much. “I’m sorry, Leigh—”
“Hey.” He caught her chin, his gaze intent as he stared at her. “Never apologize for what you brought into my world. I wouldn’t change a thing. You’re my life, Mia, not some title or career trophy.”
She sighed. Well, when he put it like that… “I love you. Sorry if you’re sick of hearing that—”
“I’ll never get sick of hearing that.” He caught her up in another kiss. “And now that I’m no longer the CAFF and you’re no longer a FP recruit, things are so much easier since we don’t have to sneak around and have illicit liaisons in cramped fighter jets.”
She sent him a mischievous grin. “I don’t know, I think I’ll always have a soft spot for the fighter-jet liaison.”
He brought his lips closer to her ear. “I hear bay delta-eight will be empty tonight.”
She slid her hands into his hair, pulling herself closer to him. “See you there.”
The End
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Acknowledgments
I need to say a huge thank-you to Robin Haseltine, editor extraordinaire. Without your input, without you challenging, guiding, and inspiring me in equal measure, this book would be only a shadow of its current self. Just when I think I’ve pushed myself and my characters as far as we need to go, you come up with ways to make sure the story is shining to its full potential. Every time we work on a project together, I am continually amazed at how we seem to be on the same wavelength and how our combined vision of what the story needs to be creates something truly incredible.
A special thanks to Jessica Snyder and Lacey Devlin for their work and suggestions in the final drafts, which made the story that much tighter. Also, thanks to the team at Entangled, everyone who had a hand in bringing this book into the world. As always, it was a team effort, and one that runs smoothly thanks to those working behind the scenes.
And to my family—every day I am grateful for every single one of you.
To Mario, for being so tolerant of having an author for a wife, for putting up with the crazy stressed deadline moods, or when I get up in the middle of the night to make story notes, and trying your best to keep the kids entertained when I’m stuck at the computer.
To my three gorgeous girls, because you keep me grounded and I never thought I could feel the kind of love I do when I look at all of you. Because you say the most hilarious things and make life a little more awesome every day.
To my extended family, my parents, sisters, and in-laws for every time you’ve helped me, no matter how small the gesture, it made such a huge difference to me and even if I forget to say it, I appreciate it more than you’ll ever know.
About the Author
Jess has been making up stories ever since she can remember. Though her messy handwriting made it hard for anyone else to read them, she wasn’t deterred and now she gets to make up stories for a living. She loves loud music, a good book on a rainy day, and probably spends too much time watching too many TV shows. Jess lives in regional Victoria, Australia, with her very supportive husband, three daughters, two hyperactive border collie dogs, and one cat who thinks he’s one of the kids. Find out more about Jess and her books at www.jessanastasi.com
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Damage Control (Valiant Knox) Page 32