by Dale Mayer
“What? Why?” His tone rose. “You need to be careful.”
“I am. I am,” she said. “We’ll head to England. I believe in the morning.”
“What about the others?”
“They all had flights booked back to the US, so I imagine those flights still stand.”
“Good,” he said. “I’ve been cleared to fly, so I should be able to get back to the airport to meet them.”
“I’ll tell them,” she said. “But, if you need an extra couple days, you stay. Do you hear me?”
“Don’t worry. I won’t do anything foolish,” he said. “I’m heading home to my twins. I may never leave them again.”
She understood. She hung up from the call with a big smile on her face. “He’s been cleared to fly home. The bullet missed anything major, and he’s feeling fine. Although it’s probably pushing it, he’s still planning on meeting up at the airport tomorrow and flying home with the rest of you.”
“You’re not coming with us?” Steve asked Angelica. He glanced at the man next to her. “Is that because of them?”
“I’m going to England to see whatever the hell’s going on in Carlo’s world.” She shoved her hands in her pockets and groaned. “Then I’ll head home and work on the data we collected.”
“So you’ll be staying a couple days? Or will you be longer?” Steve was persistent.
She wasn’t sure what it was, but she wondered, from the look on his face, if he was nervous about leaving her alone. “I’ll be fine. I just need a couple days. That’ll be all.”
He nodded, looking slightly reassured.
“Besides,” Hannah said, “Anders won’t let her go anywhere without him.”
“Not like he gets a choice in this,” she said coolly. “It’s just a job for him. Right, Anders?”
He stared at her, crossed his arms over his chest and widened his stance.
Recognizing the combat stance, she glared at him. “Hey, you didn’t come back because you cared. You came back because of a paycheck.”
He narrowed his gaze ever-so-slightly, and she wasn’t sure why she was poking at his temper. Except maybe that she might get some answers from him. But he wasn’t going for it.
Harrison walked up, slapped him on the shoulder and said, “He does his job, and he does it with heart.”
And that, unfortunately, said an awful lot about him.
They were quickly led to two vehicles and driven up to a cabin.
When she got out, she felt less antagonistic and much more interested in a hot shower and a real meal.
Anders glanced at his watch. “You’ve got about twenty minutes, if you want a shower.”
“What’s in twenty minutes?”
“Hot food,” he said succinctly.
Harrison walked out of the kitchen with a large tray of steaks. “I put these on to marinade earlier,” he said. “They’ll be on the barbecue in a few minutes.”
She grinned. “I’m off to shower then.” With the others racing up behind her, she found the first empty room and dumped her bag on the bed.
Hannah came in with her and asked, “Do you mind?”
She motioned to the second bed. “Come on in. Let’s get a shower and get moving.”
“You go first,” Hannah said. “You’re always faster than me anyway.”
With the door shut, Angelica stripped down and stepped under the hot water. Her body almost cried in joy. Her muscles were sore, tense from the stress of the last few days. But now that she knew Nate was okay, everything was well with her. With a smile on her face, she scrubbed her hair, then her body and afterward her hair again. When she finally stepped out of the shower, wrapped up in two towels, she made her way back into the bedroom. “It’s all yours.”
Hannah looked up and smiled. “Thanks. What are you going to do with Anders?”
She shrugged. “Not much I can do. At the moment he’s supposed to take me back to England. What happens then, I don’t know.”
“He won’t let you go again.”
“Well, he certainly didn’t come back for me last time.”
“You were engaged,” Hannah said quietly. She stood and pulled off her sweater, her movements slow and more defined than Angelica’s were. But then she was also that much older and looked quite sore.
“If you’d rather have a hot bath later, when you have more time, you can do that too.”
Hannah smiled. “No, a hot shower will be good for now, then some food and a good night’s sleep.”
“I know. I never sleep all that well when we’re up on the mountains. I sleep heavy, but I always wake up feeling like I didn’t sleep at all.”
“I think it’s the cold. It takes so much out of us up there.”
Angelica pulled out the last clean clothing from her pack. “It’s not quite how I expected to end this trip.”
“Doesn’t matter though, does it?” Hannah asked. “What will be interesting is if you come back to the US after your business in England is wrapped up.”
Angelica froze. “Of course I will.”
“Maybe, but maybe Anders won’t let you.”
Angelica chuckled. “That’s not going to happen. But more than that, he’s from the States.”
“Really? I recognized the accent, but, in this day and age, he could be living and working anywhere.”
Angelica nodded. “He said he worked for Legendary Security. It’s out of Texas.”
“Interesting,” Hannah said. “In that case, we’ll see how you guys get along then. Because I highly doubt he’ll let you out of his life again.”
“He’s barely in it to begin with.”
But Hannah just laughed and closed the bathroom door.
Angelica finished drying off and dressed, then plaited her hair into a single braid. It ended just below her shoulder blades and was still damp. After hanging up her wet towel, she headed downstairs. The heavenly aroma of barbecue led her outside on the deck. She sniffed the air appreciatively. She walked into the kitchen to see the men prepping food. “Anything I can do?”
They looked up and smiled appreciatively.
“You look better,” Anders said.
“Meaning, I didn’t look very good to begin with?”
Dezi cracked a smile; Reyes laughed out loud.
Anders shook his head. “You always look beautiful to me. You know that.”
“And how would I know that?” she asked in exasperation. “I met you a long time ago for a couple days. It’s not like I know you very well at all.”
“You know all that counts.”
She stared at him, realizing he was not joking. “Seriously?”
He looked at her in surprise. “Absolutely serious.”
She studied the other men and focused on him again, but the men had nothing to offer. Whistling, they headed out to the deck, where Harrison started barbecuing.
She stepped a little closer to Anders and lowered her tone. “What is it you think I know?”
“You tell me what you know.”
She frowned, realizing it was a not just a question but an important one. “You’re a protector. You’re loyal. You have values you live your life by—honor, integrity, loyalty, and truth,” she said slowly. Then she added, “You’re physically fit. You care about others when you do a job. You intend to do it right. And, if you say you’ll do something, you’ll do it.”
He placed both hands on the counter, leaned over it so he was closer to her and said, “And?”
She frowned. “And you think we belong together.”
The corners of his mouth kicked up. He slid a hand around her back and pulled her slightly forward. “And,” he said with emphasis, “I love you.” Then he kissed her.
It was a deep drugging kiss that zoomed to her toes, reefed on her belly and then popped back up to turn her brain to mush. When he released her, he flicked her braid to her back and said, “So you really do know everything that’s important to know.” He grabbed the big bowl of salad on the counter and
walked past her.
She grasped the counter for stability, wondering what the hell had just happened. She’d heard people talk about a kiss that rocked their world, and it had happened to her once before—when he’d kissed her a year ago. She’d spent the last year wondering if she’d imagined it. But now … her whole foundation had been shaken … again. She turned and yelled at his retreating back, “You can’t do that.”
“Do what?” he asked in confusion.
“Kiss me like that and just leave me standing here like an idiot.”
He looked at her with interest. “The only way you’d be standing there like an idiot is if you were an idiot beforehand. Were you?”
She raised both hands in frustration. “Of course not.”
He handed the salad off to somebody and walked back to her. “So you’re saying that kiss did something?”
She glared at him, poked her finger into his chest and said, “Of course it did. And you know that.”
He grinned. “Of course I do. That’s what I mean by we belong together. So what is the problem?”
She stared at him. “It’s not that simple.”
He frowned. “Sure it is. I’m attracted to you. You’re attracted to me. So what’s the problem? We’re both free. We’re both single. We’re both interested. There’s nothing holding us apart. Except you.”
Feeling defensive now, she backed up a step. “You don’t have to be so pushy.”
“Waiting a year is pushy?”
She thought about his words. “You were planning on coming back to see me, weren’t you?”
He gave a decisive nod. “I figured a year would do it.”
She thought about that weekend and said, “That’s in something like ten days?”
He nodded again.
She was stunned. “So, if this weekend hadn’t happened, you were planning on finding me anyway?”
“I was, yep,” he said cheerfully. He stepped forward, slung an arm around her shoulders and tucked her up close. “So can we go outside and talk to the guys now, or do you need to do more of this detailed personal stuff?”
“I hate relationship talk,” she muttered.
He leaned over and kissed her temple. “That’s okay. We don’t have to do too much of it. I’m just waiting for you to acknowledge where you belong.” He led her toward the big deck, where the guys sat around the barbecue, a cold beer in their hands.
“What do you mean, where I belong?”
The guys close enough to hear looked up, big grins flashing across their faces.
She stared at them suspiciously, stepped out of Anders’s arms and turned to look at him. With her hands on her hips, she asked, “What do you mean, you’re just waiting for me to realize where I belong?”
He started to laugh.
“And where the hell is that?” She threw up her hands in exasperation.
Fast as lightning she was snatched back into his arms, and his lips came slanting down hard over hers. When he lifted his head, he whispered, “Right here against my heart.”
*
The look on her face was priceless. He chuckled, released her from his grasp, leaned over, kissed her gently on the temple and whispered, “Get used to it.” He walked out onto the deck, leaving her standing there, fulminating. The others chuckled. Anders shrugged and said, “Maybe Levi’s luck is holding.”
“You guys knew each other a year ago—is that what I’m hearing?” Dezi asked.
“I don’t know about knew. I knew what I wanted, but she was engaged at the time.”
“Oh, shit man, that’s got to be rough,” Harrison said.
“The worst feeling I’ve ever had in my life,” Anders said. “The most perfect feeling was knowing this was forever, only to find out she was marrying somebody else.”
“What did you do?” Dezi said. “Get drunk to forget about it?”
Anders chuckled. “Yeah, that was my way of initially handling it, though totally out of character for me too. After that, I stuffed it all down inside and kept on going. What else are you going to do? She was another man’s woman. That would never wash in my world.”
They all nodded. Of all things, these men were honorable.
“And because she was another man’s woman, I appreciate the fact she didn’t go with you,” Reyes said.
“Right, even though I didn’t like her decision, I had to respect it. But guess what? She’s not engaged anymore.”
“How long ago did she break it off?”
“A couple of months after we met, I believe. But then there’s all that lovely recovery time,” he said. “So, in a way, this is perfect timing.”
“Says you,” she said caustically behind him. “You never gave me two seconds to get used to your presence in my life back then. You’re not giving me a whole lot longer this time.”
“We’ve got a whole lifetime, sweetie. No problem,” he said cheerfully. He sniffed the air. “Aren’t those steaks done yet? I’m starving.”
Steve arrived just then. “Man, that smells good.”
“There is a steak for everyone,” Harrison said, hopping to his feet and checking the grill. “How do you like yours?”
“I like mine medium rare, if you don’t mind,” Steve said. “I really prefer not to have my steaks bleeding on my plate.”
“It’s the best way to have them,” Anders said. “And that’ll be the way Angel wants hers too.”
Harrison lifted an eye and looked at Angel. “You are entitled to have it the way you want it.”
She glared at all of them. “Unfortunately I happen to like it medium rare.”
Anders chuckled. “Told you.”
“And how did you know?” she snapped, peering at him. “It’s not like we had steak when we were together.”
“No, we had beef Wellington,” he said, “and you and I both ordered it medium rare.”
She remembered and frowned. And then she shrugged. “So what? One thing in common in a relationship does not make it a good one.”
“Sweetie, we’ve got lots in common,” he said, whistling happily.
She shook her head and looked at the rest of the men. “Do you need any help with dinner?”
“It’s very simple fare,” Reyes said. “Potatoes are in the oven, which will be out in a few minutes. Then the steaks and a salad, which Dezi here prepared.”
“In that case I’ll sit and enjoy the opportunity to do nothing.”
Chapter 7
Angelica deliberately chose a chair at the far side of the deck, protected on all sides from anyone watching – like sharpshooters – and as far away from Anders as she could get. And he knew it. He just grinned at her and let her alone. For that she was grateful. She hadn’t forgotten what it was like to have him in her life. He was that hard-to-ignore personality that she wasn’t sure she was ready for.
“Personally I think the two of them are perfect together,” Hannah announced to the others nearby as she stepped out on the deck, two cold beers in her hand, one which she handed to Steve. “Angelica, do you want a beer?”
Angelica shook her head. “No, I’m fine. Thanks. And why would you even say that?” She shook her head and muttered, “It’s nobody’s business.”
“No, generally this would all happen away from prying eyes, but, because it’s occurring here and now, all of us have a vested interest in seeing you two make this work.”
“There is no this,” Angelica said. “That’s what you’re all forgetting. He blew in and blew out of my life a year ago. Now he’s blown in again, and he’ll blow out just as fast.”
Hannah studied Angelica and said, “Or is that what you are afraid he’ll do? I’m pretty sure your fiancé didn’t approve of all your field trips either, did he?”
Angelica didn’t say anything, considering Hannah knew damn well Mark hadn’t liked it. He’d told her quite clearly that she was supposed to stay home and to not go off on all these dangerous trips. She’d ignored him. And honestly, if Anders said it now, she’d i
gnore him too. Relationships were supposed to be about two people coming together, not Mark—or anyone else—squashing Angel’s dreams and goals and career to become what her fiancé wanted her to be.
“He was a fool,” Anders said quietly. “No point in being attracted to somebody with spirit, determination, and a love of her work, then trying to crush it. It takes away all the things you liked in the first place.”
Inside she smiled. Though she agreed with him, no way would she let him know.
She settled back in her chair, kicked her feet up to rest on top of the deck railing and closed her eyes. She really was looking forward to a good night’s sleep in a real bed tonight.
But there had been something very special about sharing the hut with him. She often saw a different side to her coworkers when they were out on these trips. Not everybody could handle small confines, bad weather, lack of communication, no technology. And, when it came down to it, not much in the way of food either. And yet, Anders had come more than prepared for a few extra days if needed. He thrived in that environment. A lot could be said about somebody who flourishes under the most difficult of circumstances.
Luckily the steaks were done, and everybody regrouped inside to eat. She wondered about taking her plate outside, but it would have to be on her lap, and cutting her steak would be complicated. Instead, they all squeezed in around the large table and, with much laughing and joking, tucked into their meal.
“Any plans for tonight?” Steve asked. “It’s our only night in town.”
“Is there anything to do here?” Anders asked. “We would all have to go together, to best protect you all.”
“There’s a small pub, if you want to try the local beers,” Steve said. “I’m sure there’s other stuff to do around here, but we never get farther than the pub.”
It was said with a big grin. Angelica remembered the number of times they had sat in the pub in the far corner and had just enjoyed the atmosphere of this small town in Switzerland.
“I’m happy to stay here,” Hannah said. “I am quite tired.”
“We won’t be going far or for long. That’s for sure,” Harrison said. “We’re all flying out in the morning. In our case, it’s pretty early.”