by Anna Hackett
“Probably not. Maybe a part of me even thinks that would be better. But there’s another part of me that still hopes.”
Lia had tried to protect herself, to limit her friendships and attachments since the invasion. But loving, wanting to belong, it was a soul-deep human trait. And she was learning that it was impossible to ignore, especially with a man like Finn around.
“I admire the hell out of you, Finn Erickson.”
He grinned at her now. “Even if I’m an arrogant flyboy?”
“The brave and courageous bit sort of makes up for the arrogant part.”
He reached out and grabbed her hand. They flew on in a comfortable silence, but Lia still felt the tension chewing at her. She stared out the cockpit window, watching, waiting, fully expecting to see a ptero or a heat-seeking missile racing toward them at any minute.
When they reached the Enclave without incident, she couldn’t quite believe it.
When they touched down in the hangar, and she saw the crowd of people waiting for them—Niko, the general, Hell Squad—she still didn’t quite believe it.
“We made it,” she said.
“We sure did.”
Finn sat back in his seat, then he reached over and yanked her in close for a kiss.
For once, she didn’t worry about the people staring at them with interest, or worry about getting too attached.
***
Finn sat at a table in the dining room, eating a loaded plate of food. They’d only been back for half an hour, and most of the Enclave was still asleep. The kitchen staff was up, though, busy preparing breakfast.
Keeping Finn company were Holmes, Niko, Noah, and most of Hell Squad and Squad Nine. Cruz was missing, no doubt still in bed with his pregnant partner. Across from Finn, Gabe and Theron were both mowing through plates of food twice the size of Finn’s.
“It was sort of big ass alien ship,” Finn said, telling the group about the ship he and Lia had glimpsed. “Bigger than a ptero but smaller than that mothership.”
Holmes let out a breath. “We’ll add it to the database and keep an eye out for it.” The general’s blue gaze sharpened. “So there’s a viable jet at Aeron?”
“Yep. Lia thinks it will fly.” Where was she? She’d gone to shower and change, and he had to admit that after their wild mission, he was a bit antsy without her in his sight. He focused back on Noah. “Is the amplifier ready?”
The tech guy scowled. “Ready as it will ever be. I’d like more time…”
“Not going to happen,” Niko said. “We need the connection with the rest of the human survivors up and running.”
Holmes nodded, sipping his coffee.
Footsteps entered the dining room and Finn looked up, hoping to see Lia. But it wasn’t her. Instead, it was beautiful, blonde Liberty Lawler.
“Good morning.” With generous curves, a definite swing to her hips, and a cloud of blonde hair, she was a whole lot of male fantasies come to life.
But she only had eyes for one man in the room. Adam Holmes.
Finn watched the usually stoic general’s face light up. The man actually smiled, and it was the deep smile of a satisfied man. “You should have gotten some more sleep.”
Liberty perched on the arm of the general’s chair, and stole some of his toast. She touched the back of Holmes’ neck, sure of her welcome. “The bed was too lonely without you.” Then her blue gaze landed on Finn. “Honey, you look like you’ve had a wild night?”
“A little hide-and-seek with the raptors.”
Liberty raised a brow. “Is that all?” Her voice was droll.
Most people looked at Liberty and only saw the beauty, but Finn knew she was very good at seeing people’s true colors. She was one of the people who’d helped keep the Blue Mountain survivors calm and in high spirits on their race out of the mountains.
The general tapped his fingers on the table. “So, once the amplifier is ready, we’ll send a team in to get this jet, fly it out, and drop the amplifier in the ocean.”
“It’s not quite that easy.” It was Lia’s voice. She strode in, and Finn drank in the sight of her.
Her hair was damp, and she was wearing fresh clothes. She shot him a smile and sat in the chair beside him.
Looking at her, Finn felt something similar to getting slammed in the gut by a punch. He liked her. The look of her, the smell of her, her smart mouth, and her skills.
Actually, he more than liked her.
Forget attached. Finn realized he was well on his way to something else.
“The jet is an old model,” Lia said. “It’s a two-seater.”
“Shit,” Roth Masters said. “Must be really old.”
“It’s the first model that Aeron ever made.”
Finn chewed on his eggs and swallowed. Best they share all the good news, to get it over with. “It’s also hanging from the ceiling in the lobby.”
There were groans all around the table.
“But you’re sure it will fly?” Holmes asked.
Lia nodded. “I’ll have to tap into its controls and provide power, but yes, it’ll fly. Once it goes supersonic, it won’t have any communications with the Enclave. The distance will be too far for anything reliable.” She lifted her chin. “But before we can get it in the air, we first have to get it down and out onto the runway.”
Holmes nodded. “So we need a team to go in, cut the jet down, get it onto the runway—”
“And keep the raptors off us while we do it,” Marcus added.
Shaw leaned forward, a knife and fork clenched in his hands. “Piece of cake.” He shoved some bacon and eggs into his mouth.
“I know the jet,” Lia said. “I need to be the one to fly it.”
“And I’m going with her,” Finn said.
Her head spun his way. “I should go alone.”
She was hiding something. “Why?”
She swallowed. “The jet won’t have an illusion system. I’ll be fast enough to outrun any company that tries to follow on the way out—”
Finn stood, his chair scraping on the floor. “And on the way back?”
She took a deep breath. “It’ll be tougher. I probably won’t make it.”
Finn locked his jaw. “I’m coming.”
Lia got to her feet as well. “No. We don’t need to risk two lives.”
“I don’t care. I’m not letting you go alone.” He dropped back down into his chair and crossed his arms over his chest.
Lia spun to face the general. “Gen—”
“I think you could do with the backup, Lia,” Holmes said, interrupting her.
Now Lia spun back to look at Finn. “I told you not to get attached.”
“Me falling in love with you makes me better, Lia. It’s not something I’m afraid of.”
Silence fell around the table.
Then Finn heard a quiet “Woo-hoo.”
“Shut it, Shaw,” Claudia said.
“That was two weeks,” Taylor Cates said. “Hot damn! That means I win the bet.” The Squad Nine soldier leaned toward her squad, her palm out, her dark hair falling around her beautiful face. “I want credits for the bar and the clothing store, a bottle of Chardonnay, and Cam, you’re taking my next training session.”
There were good-natured grumbles from Squad Nine.
Lia’s face had gone pale. “No. You are not in love with me.”
“Yes,” Finn countered. “It’s good, Lia. It feels good, it feels right.” He waved a hand around the table at the people seated there. “Look at these guys. All of them found someone in the darkness, the pain, the chaos.”
Finn looked and saw Shaw tugging on Claudia’s braid. Roth’s partner, Avery, leaned into the man’s side with a smile. Mac and Niko shared a private smile.
“Caring, loving…it hurts,” Lia said in a stricken voice. “When you lose the people you love—”
“You fight for it, Lia,” Finn said. “The hurting is living, and it makes the good emotions so much better. And if you lose it
, you’d never change the chance to have it in the first place. To have had that person in your life. I miss my family every day and it hurts like hell. But I’d never choose to have lived without them. I’d never choose not to have touched you, held you, and made you mine.”
Lia stared at him for a long moment, then she swiveled and walked out, her stride jerky.
Finn felt like he had been stabbed in the chest. He let out a shaky sigh. He’d thought after their time together on Cockatoo Island she was ready to risk her heart.
Claudia leaned over and slapped him on the back. “Nice speech, flyboy. Give her some time.”
Holmes sat back, stroking Liberty’s back. “You’re on the mission, Finn. She needs you, whether she wants to admit it or not.”
“Thank you, sir.”
“As soon as Noah has the amplifier ready, you and Lia will go in with Hell Squad to get the jet.”
“Well, I need at least a few weeks,” Noah said, “but since you won’t give me that, then I’ll have it finished today.”
Holmes nodded. “Good.”
Suddenly, the food in Finn’s mouth tasted like dust. He had one day to talk Lia around. One day to be with her before a mission from which they might never return.
One day to get her to admit that she loved him.
Chapter Eleven
Lia sliced through the water. She loved the Enclave’s pool, and she hadn’t realized how much she’d missed swimming since the invasion.
She kicked her legs, pushing herself for more speed to reach the end of the pool. She wanted to feel the burn in her muscles and the tightness of breath in her chest. She didn’t want to think of Finn or the mission.
They were going to be flying into certain danger. They would likely die. A few weeks ago, she could’ve lived with that decision. She would have risked her life, knowing that others would live because of it.
Now…well, now everything was different.
She reached the end of the pool and stopped, holding the edge. A second later, someone else dove in from above, cutting cleanly into the water.
Camryn McNab from Squad Nine appeared, treading water. “Hey, Lia.”
“Cam.”
The soldier’s dark hair was slick against her head, highlighting the amazing bone structure she’d inherited from her African mother.
“Heard you spent the night on an island.” Cam winked.
Lia snorted a laugh. “Yes. In a five-star hotel, even.”
Cam smiled. “Nice.”
Lia pushed herself out of the pool to sit on the edge. Cam joined her, her long legs dangling in the water. Lia wore a simple, black, one-piece swimsuit she’d snagged from the clothing store. Cam had on a lipstick-red bikini. It showed off her toned abs and arms.
“So you and our handsome Hawk pilot are heading off on a tropical vacation.”
“Yes, we’re heading out.” Lia stood and snagged a nearby towel. She started to dry off. “There will probably be lots of fireworks, too.” Her voice caught.
“You’ll do a great job,” Cam said, her voice turning serious.
Lia nodded. “I don’t want him to come. I don’t want to lose him.”
Cam waved her feet through the water. “One thing about this whole fucked-up alien invasion, it pares us back to who we really are. No one worries about what you wear, what car you drive, who you’re sleeping with…hell, they don’t even care how often you have sex. All the bullshit is gone now. What we show the world, what people see, it’s the best and worst of us. What I see are people going out to fight for others. I see people taking care of others, whether it’s by fighting, cooking, cleaning, healing, loving other people’s children.” Cam looked across the pool. “I think we lost sight of some of that before the invasion. We were so busy being busy, striving for more, bigger, faster…we forgot who we really were. What was really important.”
What she saw when she looked at Finn was a brave man, who didn’t let the bad things get him down. Who kept going, kept fighting, kept doing what was right. A hero.
Lia sat back down. “I’m afraid.”
Cam slid her arm along Lia’s shoulders. “You wouldn’t be human if you weren’t. It’s what you do in spite of it that matters. It’s acting, in spite of the fear, that makes you brave.”
Lia managed a nod.
“I’m not just talking about your mission.” Cam’s gaze was direct.
Lia nodded again. “I’m going to fall in love with him.” Hell, if she was being honest, she was already on the way. “And it terrifies me.”
Cam slapped Lia on the leg now. “The real thing apparently does that.” Cam bumped her shoulder companionably against Lia’s. “I also hear it makes the sex out-of-this-world amazing.”
“Two beautiful ladies talking about sex. My day is looking pretty darn good.”
The deep voice behind them made Cam straighten like she’d been slapped. She rolled her eyes. “What did I do to deserve this?”
Lia looked up and saw Hemi Rahia from Squad Three. Wow. The man was certainly a sight to behold. The berserker looked like he’d just come from the gym, and was only wearing cargo pants, and a towel around his neck. He was a big bear of a man. His thick, barrel chest was bare, and all his muscles and tattoos were on display. A lot of muscles and tattoos.
The way the man looked at Cam’s bare legs…well, the raw, hungry look almost made Lia blush and want to look away.
“I’ve got to go.” Lia leaned in close to Cam. “I hope you listen to your own advice, Cam.”
Lia pulled her shirt over her head and walked out of the pool room to the sounds of Cam and Hemi arguing behind her.
She needed to find Finn. Even if she couldn’t find the right words to say to him, she wanted to be with him before this mission.
She hurried down the hall, and when she turned a corner, she collided with a hard chest.
Finn. She looked up at him, her heart thumping. “I was coming to look for you.”
“I’ve been looking for you, too.”
***
Finn thought Lia looked cute, with her wet hair out and the hint of her swimsuit beneath her shirt. But he only had to look at her tight face to know the weight of the situation was dragging on her.
“Come with me.” He grabbed her hand and towed her down the corridor.
“Finn. I wanted to—”
“Shh. Not yet.”
The Enclave was starting to wake. A few people were heading out to the dining room for breakfast, others on their way to the gym and the pool. Finn made sure he dodged around them all and didn’t stop to chat. As soon as he found the exit he wanted, he urged Lia up the ladder.
“We’re going outside?” She started climbing, but looked back down at him. “We aren’t allowed outside. What if—”
“I’ve cleared it with the squad on patrol.” At the top of the ladder, he reached past her and pressed the correct code to open the hatch.
Together, they climbed out into the cool morning air. It was still dark, but the eastern horizon was starting to lighten.
He pulled her over to a spot he’d already selected. It was a soft patch of grass on a small rise, under a single tree.
He sat down and pulled her down between his legs. He tugged her back until she rested against his chest.
She turned to face him. “I’m sorry about my reaction earlier.” She cupped his cheek in her hand. “I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
He couldn’t lie to himself or her. He had been hurt. But her apology and the look in her eyes went a long way to soothing it.
Turning her palm over, he pressed his hand over hers. “I’m yours, Lia. Whatever happens when we leave on the mission.”
He heard her shaky intake of breath. “Finn.”
“Shh. Look.” He turned her.
The sun was rising. It wasn’t a gentle sunrise, but instead, a violent blast of colors: pinks, oranges, golds and reds. Together they watched as the light of the waking day stretched out across the sky. It made her skin glow
, and soon he was watching the beauty of her, not the sunrise.
She was with him. That was enough for now. She had to work through her own emotions, but Finn knew she was his.
“It’s beautiful.” She spun and pressed her mouth to his.
The kiss started soft, but it didn’t stay that way. Desire trickled in, hot and hard.
“I want you.” Lia pressed harder against him, biting down on his bottom lip. “Now. Inside me.”
“Not here, sweetheart.” It wasn’t safe. He pulled her up and they hurried back inside. But they’d only made it a few steps down the empty corridor, when they were tearing at each other’s clothes again. They slammed together, mouths and hands all over each other.
Finn spun her around and pressed her against the wall. “My room is the closest.”
Her hands were tearing at his belt. “Too far. Now. Now.” Her voice was a chant.
Damn, he couldn’t wait, either. His mind fuzzed over with desire. The hall was empty, and it was a little-used side corridor. With a growl, he made short work of flicking open his fly. He boosted her up, and reached under the towel wrapped around her waist. He found the damp, stretchy fabric of her swimsuit, and shoved it aside. A second later, he slid inside her.
She moaned. He grabbed her wrists and pressed them to the wall above her head. Holding them with one hand, he cupped her butt with the other. Slowly, he moved inside her. In, drag out, push back in. Their gazes locked, and he saw so much simmering in her eyes.
Yes, for now, this was enough. This was worth everything.
He moved his hips faster, slamming into her. He felt her body go tight and clamp down on him. They both found their release, and he swallowed her cry with his lips.
Throughout the day, they were never far from each other. They slept together, ate together, planned their mission together, and spent several hours making love—in Finn’s bed, in the shower, on the floor.
But all too soon, Finn was pulling on his combat flight suit and watching Lia do the same.
Her face was grim now. The sweetness and happiness of the day had leached away. Soon, they were going to head to the hangar and board the Hawk. Neither of them mentioned it, but the pressure surrounding today’s mission was intense.