A More Perfect Union

by Carsen Taite

  “Exactly my point.” Julia started talking faster. “When you’re done here you can go back to fixing things for regular people, but in the meantime, your team can handle your current clients. Turn the firm over to them and come work with us. You’ll be in charge of crafting the official White House message for everything from climate change to the economy to civil rights. When we’re done, you can start another firm or whatever else you want. You’ll be able to write your own ticket.”

  “Stop.” Rook played back Julia’s pitch in her head and examined every crazy word of her proposal. But was it really that crazy? She had been grooming her team to take the lead on her cases and she was growing weary of pulling people out of the holes they’d dug with their own stupidity. Granted, the White House had its share of those, but this second-term, well-liked president had an aggressive, progressive agenda, and the job Julia was offering meant she’d have the opportunity to be a part of some major change-making. “You don’t need to sell it anymore, but you do need to give me time to think about it.”

  “Fair enough,” Julia said, raising her hands in surrender. “I promise not to call you until tomorrow.”

  Rook stood. “Then I’m getting out of here now so I can have some peace between now and then.”

  “Wait, there’s something else.” Julia reached into her desk and pulled out a folder. She slid it across the desk, but kept a hand on it. “The president declassified this report this morning. The official declassification won’t go into effect for a few weeks, but counsel said we could provide you, as a family member, with an advance copy.”

  Rook’s hand shook as she reached for the file. “Is this what I think it is?”

  “It’s the full report regarding your brother’s death. I’m warning you that shit may hit the fan when the news comes out because a certain pro athlete who left a lucrative NBA contract to enlist was involved. Of course, there’s also a chance no one else will think to request it.” She placed her hand over Rook’s. “I’m truly sorry that the circumstances were kept from you.”

  “Why now?” Rook paused, trying to figure out what was bugging her. “And how did you know?”

  “You can thank Colonel Granger. She contacted me specifically to ask.”

  “I would thank her, but I don’t know where she is.” Rook had considered several times using Eric’s skills to find out, but a stubborn part of her said that if Zoey had wanted her to know she would’ve told her, and at this point a text or phone call seemed so hollow and possibly pointless if Zoey was already overseas.

  She’d even gone so far as to have George drive her to Zoey’s house in Vienna. When Zoey didn’t answer, she’d peered through the front window only to see stacks of boxes sitting in a room with no furniture. Clearly, Zoey had already deployed or she was getting ready to, and either way, she’d moved on.

  “She’s at McNair,” Julia said.

  “What?” Rook was certain she’d misunderstood.

  “She took a teaching position at the college. She started this week.”

  Rook reeled at the news. Zoey was working in DC, not at a base overseas. A permanent job only miles away. “Okay then.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “A minute ago when I said she was at McNair, your whole face lit up, but now you look like someone stole a client from you,” Julia said. “I thought you liked this one.”

  “Like doesn’t begin to cover it.”

  “Then what’s the problem?”

  What was the problem? Rook circled through all the possible responses. Zoey hated the work she did. Zoey was still in the military. There was more, but most rang hollow. “She told me she loved me, but then she took it back.” Not entirely true, but close.

  Julia sighed. “You sound like a twelve-year-old. What did you do when she told you? Did you say it back?”

  Rook started to explain that when Zoey said it, she’d been in the middle of a high stress situation, that by the time she received the text she was no longer sure Zoey still meant the words.

  But if she loved Zoey, why hadn’t she taken the time to tell her how she felt? She’d had plenty of opportunities during the days after Sharp had been arrested. She could’ve said the words at the reception when she’d asked Zoey to stay.

  Julia was right. She was acting like a child—insecure about admitting her feelings until she knew they’d be returned. When Zoey had made it clear she was leaving, Rook had crawled back into her comfortable world of no personal commitments. But it wasn’t comfortable anymore, and it never would be again now that she’d had a glimpse of what could be. If she’d had the courage to tell Zoey the depth of her feelings, would Zoey have given them a chance?

  There was only one way to find out. Rook grabbed the file from Julia’s desk and headed for the door. “I’ll let you know what I decide,” she called out as she left, but she already knew exactly what she had planned, and for the first time in her life, it had nothing to do with work.

  * * *

  Zoey reminded the class about the reading assignment and dismissed them exactly on the hour. When the last student left the room, she sat behind her desk and drank in the quiet, finding she liked it much more than she could have ever imagined.

  The professorship had been General Bloomfield’s suggestion after he politely denied her request for a deployment. “You’ve done your part,” he’d said, echoing the words Rook had spoken at the reception after her promotion ceremony. “Now share what you’ve learned with other officers.”

  He’d insisted, and she’d agreed. The fact was, the idea of going back to a base—even one overseas—after her face had been in every paper and cable news channel was distasteful. And there was no way she was working in the Pentagon again. Her early career dreams of moving up the ranks were the product of naiveté, and she’d been clueless about the collateral consequences advancement would have on her psyche.

  So now she taught the logistics she’d learned in the field, along with ethics, to officers at a war college. They’d go on to apply the lessons she’d learned and she would have the space and time to explore having a personal life. Once she got over Rook Daniels—not an easy feat since Rook’s face showed up in the news almost daily. She’d considered calling several times, but nothing had really changed. Classroom or not, she was still a soldier and Rook still thrived on the kind of public controversy Zoey struggled to avoid.

  “You look good behind that desk.”

  Zoey stared at the doorway, unable to believe her eyes. “I was just thinking about you.” The honest words tumbled out.

  Rook stepped into the room. “Word is you’ve abandoned the front lines for the classroom.”

  “It’s true. I might have been strong-armed a little, but I’m kind of liking it.”

  “I’m glad.”

  Rook’s voice was soft and low, and Zoey wanted to wrap up in its warmth. The distance she’d placed between them dissolved. Seeing Rook standing here, close enough to touch, made the wall she’d erected between them seem like a stepping stone. She stood and walked toward her. “I’m glad you’re here.”

  Rook smiled. “There’s a lot of glad between us.” She shifted in place. “Julia gave me a copy of Rory’s file this morning. She tells me I have you to thank.”

  “I knew it was important to you.”

  “It is, but I’m learning that I don’t always know what’s most important to me until I’ve let it slip away.”

  Zoey reached for Rook’s hand and laced their fingers. “I walked away, not you.”

  “You didn’t walk very far.”

  “I know.” Zoey willed Rook to hear the subtle acknowledgement of hope in her voice.

  “But I let you and maybe that’s what you wanted,” Rook said. “Maybe it’s what you still want, but I had to come here and tell you that I love you. I love you and I want to see if we can make a life together. And if it means I need to change what I do for a living, then—”

&nb
sp; Zoey leaned in and kissed Rook, brushing her lips softly at first, but then claiming her with hard strokes of her tongue to send a sure signal she no longer second-guessed the depth of her feelings. When they broke for air, the words came rushing out. “I love you too.” Zoey jabbed a finger at Rook’s heart. “You. And whatever you decide to do with your life won’t change that as long as I can be by your side.” She pulled Rook’s hand and pointed to the door. “Now, let’s go make a life together.”

  THE END

  About the Author

  Carsen Taite’s goal as an author is to spin tales with plot lines as interesting as the cases she encountered in her career as a criminal defense lawyer. She is the award-winning author of numerous novels of romance and romantic intrigue, including the Luca Bennett Bounty Hunter series and the Lone Star Law series.

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