“Oh my God.” He shook his head.
“What did he do?” Erin peered over his shoulder.
“Who is she? Mom, Riley’s got a girl.” Matt pointed at the phone.
“What?” Mom turned the phone back around while Erin muffled her snickering against Riley’s shoulder.
“Hi.” Erin wiggled her fingers.
“Mom, this is Erin. Be nice.” Riley knew it was pointless asking her to be on her best behavior. That was what they all loved about Mom.
“Hello, Erin.” Mom waved at the phone. “He never lets me talk to any of his friends. You must be special.”
Erin reached over and took Riley’s phone from him. The grin on her face was everything. He might dread what his Mom was about to say, but at least Erin was happy and distracted. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but she wasn’t as happy today as she’d been yesterday or the day before. There was an unease about her that he didn’t know how to fix.
“Where are you from, Erin?” Mom asked.
“I was born and raised in Miami, but until this week I’ve been living in Erbil.”
“Urbill? Where is that?” Mom tilted her head.
“It’s in the Middle East.”
“Isn’t that dangerous?”
“Erbil is one of the safest areas. I’d still suggest being careful if you visit, but typically tourists are fine.”
“Where are you headed now? Is my son being a gentleman?”
“Yes, he is.” Erin glanced at him, one side of her mouth hitching higher than the other. “Riley and his team are taking me back to Dallas.”
“My youngest son lives outside of Dallas!” Mom clapped her hands together and dropped the phone.
Erin stared, eyes wide with one hand over her mouth. Riley shrugged. That was Mom.
“Sorry, sorry!” Mom brought the phone back up. “Is Riley going to get to see Casey while he’s there?”
“I was going to text him.” Riley leaned into the shot. “Then you called.”
“You and Casey need to come home for a while. I can’t get a lot done with Matt laid up like this.” Mom sighed and shook her head.
“I’ll see what I can make happen.” Riley would have to get it cleared with Zain and Grant, but if Matt was down, Riley did need to pitch in and help.
As though Riley’s thoughts summoned him, Grant sank into the chair across from him.
“We’ve got to go, Mom.” Riley took the phone from Erin.
“You didn’t even tell me where you are.” Mom sighed.
“Germany. It’s really early here, and we’re about to get on a plane. Get some sleep and smother Matt with a pillow for me, will you?”
“You boys. You’re going to be the death of me.” Mom shook her head.
“Love you, Mom.”
“Love you, too!”
Riley ended the call before she got off any other parting remarks. As chats with her went, that wasn’t so bad. No horrible stories from growing up. No painfully awkward suggestions to bring Erin home. This was good. He’d have a billion texts when they landed asking if Erin was single, had they hit it off, and maybe even a list of potential baby names if she was in a real mood.
“Your brother lives near Dallas?” Erin asked.
“Yeah, I keep meaning to text him. Let me do that real quick...”
Hey loser. Touching down at DFW in 24 hours from Germany. You free?
Riley figured Casey was busy. He always had something going on, it seemed. If Riley could snag him for a beer that would be nice. They probably needed to talk about how to help out, and if it was possible with Casey’s schedule.
“What does your brother do?” Erin asked.
“Casey is the cop. He’s in a small town north west of Ft Worth called Ransom.”
“That sounds familiar...”
“It’s one of those major historical landmarks in the area. In the eighties, some Texas historical group voted it the most untouched town in the state and they’ve been flogging that since then.”
“Sounds like a nice place.”
“If you like small towns.” Riley shrugged. He wasn’t that interested in living where everyone knew his history, but Casey was different.
“So you’re going home after this?”
“If Matt’s really laid up, then yeah.” Riley grimaced and stretched out his legs. He caught Grant’s gaze. “One of my dumbass younger brothers hurt himself baling. I’m probably going to have to head up there when we’re done.”
Grant merely nodded but didn’t speak. They were slated for some time off. Time away from the team might be best for them all.
He wished Grant wasn’t right there. He and Erin had a few things to discuss and Riley didn’t want an audience.
“I’m going to take a last walk before we board.” He checked the time. “You want to come?”
“I’ll take a walk.” Erin pushed to her feet.
“Don’t go far,” Grant said.
“Sure thing, dad.” Riley smacked Grant on the shoulder then ambled off with Erin at his side.
“I guess Miami is on hold then?” Erin asked.
“Yeah. I’m disappointed about that.” Because he wanted to spend time with her.
“Maybe we shouldn’t. Maybe we should chalk this up to a crazy week?”
“No.” Riley stopped and grasped her by the hand, turning her to face him.
“Riley...I like you.” Erin stared up at him, her brown eyes a touch sad. “Maybe more than I should, which means I need more than a fun weekend. I can’t take you going hot and cold, there and gone.”
“I told you, I overreacted yesterday.” He squeezed her hand.
“Yeah, but when this is over, and you go to see your family, what then? What if you change your mind? I don’t want to think there’s more to this than there is.”
“What can I do?”
“I don’t know. Maybe we don’t know each other well enough to do this?”
Riley’s mind raced, trying to fit all the different scenarios together.
“Were you going to Miami after Dallas? Immediately?” he asked.
“I don’t know. It could be a few days, maybe a week. I don’t know.” She lifted her shoulders.
“Look, baling shouldn’t take more than a few days, and they don’t know if Matt’s out of commission for sure. With him, he’ll be out there doing something. Dad’s there, he can run the tractor. I’d be surprised if they weren’t mostly done by the time I’d fly there, anyway. Let’s not make concrete plans just yet, okay? Let’s get you to Texas, sort out what’s really going on, and take it from there, okay?” Riley couldn’t say for sure what his schedule was going to be or where he was going. It was the downside to living like he did. He couldn’t offer more than a vague idea of what the future could hold to her.
“I don’t know...”
“Please, just give me one chance? One that’s all I’m asking for. If I blow it, fine. Whatever. I screwed up. But give me one opportunity?” He’d never begged a woman for anything in his life like he wanted this. It was new and scary territory.
Erin stared up at him for several long moments.
“One chance,” she said.
“I’ll take it.” He cupped her cheeks and kissed her brow. “What did I do to deserve you?”
“Nothing that I’m aware of.”
“Ouch.” He covered his heart with his hands and winced, earning a chuckle and a half smile from Erin. Her smile was what drew him to her picture in the very beginning, and now it was what he lived for.
He was going to show her he was worth taking a chance on. How, he didn’t know, but he’d figure it out.
15.
MONDAY. TRANS-ATLANTIC Flight.
Erin took her laptop from Riley and set it up on the tiny tray table in front of her. Her ears kept trying to pop without success as the massive air bus reached cruising altitude.
“Anything I can do?” he asked.
“No. Everything we salvaged was digital.”
> “You want me to go through it? You could watch a movie.”
“Thanks, but I should do this. I mean, what if there’s confidential information or details about a new site? We don’t know what we’re looking for.”
“If Mark was involved...”
Erin swallowed. The possible connection to Mark had her nervous. There wasn’t anyone else who operated in Erbil with the kind of equipment or manpower that had issue with her. Before, when she’d thought this was a personal attack against her, she’d understood what was going on, even if the how didn’t make sense. With Mark factored in it was obvious he’d put her kidnappers up to the job.
But why?
She had no idea.
But she had eleven hours to figure it out.
“If you don’t need my assistance, I guess I’ll watch a movie.” Riley lowered his tray table and set the bag of rescued discs on it in easy reach for her.
“One of us should be having some fun.” She blew out a breath and plugged the first drive into her laptop.
If Mark had organized her kidnapping, it wasn’t a huge leap to assume he’d also killed her coworker, Osman Elahi, which landed this information in her lap. That made a lot more sense. If Osman had something on Mark that resulted in her death, she was an even easier target for Allied Security. If he was willing to kill for the information, then whatever she had was something worth dying for.
She worked her way through the first thumb drive, clicking through folders, opening reports. It was all mundane things for projects she’d already begun working on. Some of it she saved to file away later for whoever took this job after her. There was no reason to recreate work now that she’d found it, but there was nothing damning on the drive.
Erin switched it out for another, pausing for a moment to stare at Riley’s screen. Whatever he was watching had a lot of explosions. It was a hell of a lot more interesting than geology reports. She focused her attention on her laptop and continued clicking away.
After a certain point her fingers and mind started working independently of one another. She didn’t have to be dialed in to know that Mark didn’t give two fucks about maintenance reports, the vehicle roster or any number of the other mundane things she was looking at.
Her mind drifted to the man sitting next to her.
Riley.
She’d gone and gotten involved with someone she shouldn’t, and now she wanted him. He couldn’t promise her things, and she was grateful he didn’t try. That was actually a point in his favor, though she wasn’t going to admit that. She could tell herself that if they didn’t set expectations, she couldn’t get her hopes up and the hurt would be less if he disappointed her. That was a lie she’d tell herself to feel better, because the truth was the moment they were apart, she’d begin to miss him. The pain would begin, and she’d slowly break into a million pieces. She’d avoided heartbreak like this for years, but there would be no escaping it now. The decision she had to make was, did live the fantasy while she could? Or cut it off?
There was no denying that the smartest thing to do would be walking away from him. She needed to get her head and life sorted out before she brought anyone else into it. Yet she couldn’t convince her heart to stick with that plan. Which left her in flux. And that was never a good idea.
Flux meant binge watching movies that reminded her she had feelings. It meant eating whole pints of ice cream and finding the exact soap he used so she could go to sleep with his scent on her skin.
This was why she never allowed herself to truly date while living in Erbil.
The available men were either only there temporarily, or wanted a woman who adhered to strict religious ideals. Erin considered herself spiritual, but she would never be the kind of women they wanted. Which left her only options short term relationships.
And then there was Riley.
She’d seen him as here today, gone tomorrow. He still might be. She couldn’t trust her head or heart where he was concerned. She’d allowed herself to fall into bed with him, trust him, and let him in. That spelled danger for her. She was the kind of person who fell hard and quick. Dad liked to say it was her Cuban side coming out.
What if she let herself believe that Riley was coming back for her and he didn’t? It would break her heart, she’d cry, she’d probably gain five pounds in ice cream and pulled pork, but she’d get over it. She was starting a new chapter in life, doing what she still didn’t know, but maybe this was the right way to begin things.
Erin was coming home because she wanted to be near family. People she cared about. Didn’t it make sense that she should take a chance on love, too? Riley might not be the man of her future, but he was here now, and that was what mattered. She’d see what happened between them in the weeks to come, and if he broke her heart, at least she knew she could still feel. It wouldn’t be the end of the world.
“Hey.” Riley nudged her.
“Hm?” She blinked at him and the attendant standing at the end of their row.
“You’re really in the zone, aren’t you?” He grinned and nodded at the woman. “What do you want to drink?”
“Water, please?” Yesterday had taught her a lesson. Stay hydrated at any cost.
“You want a break?” Riley asked
“No. I just started going through the email archive. I want to be done with as much of this as I can by the time we touch down.”
“Okay. Need anything, just say the word.” He fitted an ear bud back in his right ear.
Headphones. She should have thought about that.
“You wouldn’t happen to have an extra set of ear buds, would you?” Maybe some music would perk her up, get her thinking about something other than Riley.
“Bought some earlier and slid them in your bag.” He reached down and pulled out a brand new set of blue ear buds.
“They’re even my color.”
Riley smiled, clearly proud of himself. He closed his eyes and stretched his legs under the seat in front of him.
Her heart did a summersault. One thoughtful act and she wanted to throw herself at him.
Erin resisted the urge and turned her attention back to her laptop. Music. That’s what she needed to stay focused. Her selection was small, but it was better than the general nothing of the plane.
Focus.
She had work to do.
Osman’s email archive was exactly what she’d suspected it to be. Boring. Full of random, unnecessary work correspondence, a few newsletters, some personal mail, but nothing too out of the ordinary.
It was too normal.
Erin sat back in her chair and stared at the file structure.
The oil business was a tricky world. It wasn’t as simple as just buying the rights to some land, pumping the crude and shipping out for refining. The governments and military were involved. So were the locals and the people who’d lived off that land for generations. Nothing was as simple and clean as this email archive.
What was she missing?
Erin expanded the files. With thousands of messages, she couldn’t go through them all. So where did she start?
Everyone started their email account with a basic file structure in English. Inbox, Corporate Communications, General Announcements, Department Memos and Personal.
She eliminated both Corporate and General Announcements. She knew all of those emails because she’d received the same ones.
Department Memos she scrolled through slower, looking for anything she hadn’t received searching for the breadcrumbs.
Maybe she was expecting too much. The projects she’d inherited were more along the lines of improving existing facilities and managing equipment. Osman worked with maintaining projects, not establishing new ones.
Erin expanded the Personal file structure and groaned.
Though the inbox had few personal messages that was because the rest were filed and sorted. There was everything from a file about a fifth birthday to someone’s MRI.
This was going to suck.
Erin turned up her music and started clicking into the sub-files, scrolling through messages.
God, this was going to take forever.
The top couple of folders contained mostly correspondences with direct family. She skimmed the first few lines and moved on, and on, and on. It wasn’t until she reached a file called Apron Mitt that she found reason to pause. The first email had nothing to do with aprons or cooking.
Erin sat up.
Osman was not a native English speaker. She’d taken the goofy file names to be an error in translation. What if they weren’t incorrect translations at all?
“Riley?” Erin tabbed to a new message and then another.
“What?”
“I need your phone.”
“What’s going on?”
She plugged Apron Mitt into an internet search.
Nothing.
Okay, she’d thought it might be a more obvious code.
What if she was looking at it all mixed up?
She plugged in anagram behind the words.
The fourth search result down was Anagrams of IMPORTANT.
She clicked on the link and scrolled, matching up five folders of strange words that could be rearranged to say the same thing.
Important.
What was so important it had to be hidden even on a work computer?
“What’s going on?” Riley leaned on the arm rest.
She pulled on ear bud out and didn’t take her eyes off the screen.
“I think I found something.” She clicked into another file called Patton MRI.
There was only one email.
Erin opened it, but all the body contained was a link.
She clicked it.
A browser popped up. The loading bar crawled.
“What’d you find?” Riley asked.
“Anagrams. Five folders all titled with an anagram for important. I looked at an email I thought was about cooking. He was reporting someone cooking meth at one of the facilities.”
A black square filled the screen with an arrow. She clicked the play button and held her breath.
The video showed a dirt floor. She could barely make out voices in the ear bud.
Dangerously Taken (Aegis Group Lepta Team, #1) Page 18