by Becky McGraw
He hated to do this. Tomorrow night they’d need every man they could get, but Dave also needed to make sure the women at the hospital were safe. “Luke you and Levi need to come with us tonight. Luke, you’ll relieve Slade at the hospital in San Antonio when we drop off the samples. You’ll guard the Russian girl there, and Levi, you’ll relieve Caleb, who is guarding Susan’s sister, Jenna at the hospital in Austin.”
“We’re going to be close to max weight,” Hawk inserted, frowning. “I’ll have to go light on the fuel, so we can’t be making side trips.” A grin spread over his face, and his eyes darted to Susan. “Or a few of you could get on the helo naked. That would help with the weight problem. Maybe do some calisthenics, after you strip.”
Anger shot through Logan when Susan returned Hawk’s smile. Fingers curled tightly into his palms, Logan gritted his teeth to keep from blasting them both. “Cut the shit, Hawk, we’re running out of time. We have to leave here in an hour.” Hawk’s smile faded as he leaned back in his chair, and Dave continued, “I sent Cooper and Brady with Mac to pick up the surrogate and deliver her and the Russian to Carlos Ramos.”
Susan frowned then, and it was Dave’s turn to smile. Too damned bad, sweet cheeks. Yeah, you quit your job or I’d be delivering them to you.
When he’d called Carlos earlier, the man had been very easy to work with. A lot easier than his predecessor had ever been, for sure. The man was a lot more cautious than Susan had been, warned him against going into the clinic, asked Logan to wait for them to sort through the evidence and get authorization, but he hadn’t tried to stop him or get involved. Susan would’ve had her guys on his two-yard line, and would have been up in his grill wanting to be involved, insisting on it. She would never have let him act alone, or told him to do what he had to do, but don’t kill anyone.
Susan put her hand on the table to twist the large diamond ring he’d put on her finger in circles, and Dave’s eyes fell there. He’d all but forgotten about the ring, or the night he gave it to her in the helicopter, before they landed at the clinic. It seemed like a million years ago, even though it was only a few days. I now pronounce us husband and wife, Mrs. David Lawrence.
From the look in Susan’s eyes when she said, “I need a minute of your time after the meeting…please.” Dave knew the honeymoon was about to be over. Permanently. Susan was about to officially dump him. Not that any of this had ever been any more real than the very good fake yellow diamond on her finger.
So why did it feel like he was having a fucking heart attack? Like she was really breaking up with him. He felt the same way he’d felt the night that Sarah had left him. His chest was tight, his heart beat in dull, heavy thuds against his backbone, and he felt like he wanted to vomit.
Because, idiot, you fell in love with a woman you shouldn’t have ever thought about loving, or even sleeping with. You let yourself forget it wasn’t real.
He was the biggest dumbass on earth, Dave thought, as he made himself nod at her before he looked around the table. “Anyone have anything else?”
“No, sir. I think you covered it all,” Hawk said as he shoved his chair back.
The others cleared out, and left Susan and Dave in the room. She got up from her chair and shut the door, then locked it, before sitting back down in the chair beside his. Her hand slapped down on the table in front of him, and when she moved it, as he expected, the ring was sitting there. “I wanted to give this back to you, since it looks like we’re not going back to the clinic using our cover. I didn’t want to lose it,” she said with a nervous laugh. “I did think of pawning it after this for Jenna’s tuition, though.” Another laugh, as she nudged it closer with her fingers. “But it’s yours, and I need my paycheck and your help more than a ring.”
“You wouldn’t have gotten much. It’s fake,” he said dryly.
“You bought your trophy wife a fake ring?” she asked with a real laugh.
He shrugged. “Needed to sell our cover, not bankrupt myself.”
“We did a very good job of selling that cover, and could have done it even without the ring. You’re very good, Logan, the best I’ve ever worked with,” she said, and the waver in her voice told him she must at least be feeling something. “I just want to let you know that I’ve enjoyed being your partner.”
His heart sped up, and his eyes flew to hers, but he couldn’t have spoken if he wanted to, the knot in his throat was that big. Fuck, what was wrong with him? His eyelids felt like they were lined with sandpaper and his heart wanted out of his chest.
“I also haven’t had time to tell you, but I got a job with the Department of Justice. I start next week. Thanks for the recommendation.” She dragged her gaze down to her hands, where her thumb rubbed the indention on her ring finger. “I know that’s why Charity hired me. She has a lot of respect for your opinion, she told me so.”
“She’d have been a fool not to hire you,” Dave replied gruffly. “I told her that.” And wrote the ticket to get you on the express train out of my life. At the time, that had been exactly what he wanted. Now that Susan was on board that train, Logan wanted to jerk her off and tie her to the tracks to keep her with him. Which was just stupid.
“You were the fool to hire me, Logan,” Susan countered, and Dave knew truer words had never been spoken. “But I appreciate that you did. I’ve been a pain in your ass, I know that,” she said, scooting her chair back to stand. Her face lit up, but the light didn’t reach her blue eyes. “But the good news is…I’ll be out of your hair for good after tomorrow night.”
Why the hell couldn’t she be this woman all the time? That would have made this moment so much easier to take. He wouldn’t have given this woman a second glance. She was as boring as watching golf on Sunday afternoon television. Letting her go wouldn’t feel like he was taking shrapnel in his chest.
Dave dragged his eyes to his hands. “About why I didn’t tell you about what Slade found out at Wellington…” he said, his voice as choked up as he felt.
She cleared her throat, and her tone was impersonal. “Water under the bridge, Logan. I understand. You wanted me to go to the clinic with you, and you knew I wouldn’t have done that if you told me how dangerous the situation was with Jenna. You made a business decision. No, I didn’t like it, or appreciate it, but I understand you have a business to run here.”
Cold, impersonal. The truth. He was in the presence of the Barracuda now, a woman who was as cold as a fish, all business without a bone of empathy in her body. He couldn’t say he liked this woman any better than the other one from a few minutes ago.
“I made a mistake, Susan. I should’ve told you immediately. We could have postponed the clinic visit for a few days to make sure your sister was okay. We could’ve rescheduled.”
“Shoulda, woulda, coulda, Logan. We’re wasting time and breath here rehashing. What’s done is done, and we have a job to do tonight and tomorrow. Let’s just get it done. The day after, you’ll be free of me, and I’ll have my life back on track too. It’s all good.”
Suddenly, the doorknob jiggled, then a heavy fist pounded on the door. Susan spun and unlocked the door and opened it. Dex edged inside past her. “You’re not going to believe this,” he said with a grin. “I just got a call from Mac. The receptionist from the clinic called him back and said they had a cancellation and can fit you in after all tomorrow for your genetics selection appointment. This operation would be a whole lot easier if Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence were inside tomorrow night.”
Yes, it definitely would. Too easy. Something wasn’t right with this picture, but it was only a feeling. Turning down the opportunity to have boots on the ground inside that clinic tomorrow night would be stupid.
He and Susan had taken every precaution to preserve their cover when they left the other night. If it had been blown, somehow, it wasn’t because of their exit. He’d told Dr. Warman they were leaving to take Susan to the doctor. The diversions they created had protected them while getting to the stairwell with their
unexpected passengers, as had Dex’s camera zapper.
Yeah, the Russian and girl had disappeared, they’d had two fires, their cameras had been disabled, but there was nothing, nothing that could connect those occurrences to Mr. and Mrs. David Lawrence specifically. There had been at least ten other couples there for the weekend sales pitch. Since it happened before, the missing guard could account for the missing woman. If he was in their position, that would be his first thought.
“Tell Mac to call and confirm it,” Logan said.
“Doesn’t this smack of being a little too easy to you, Logan?” Susan asked, her face thoughtful. She was probably going over the same things as he’d just gone over in his mind.
“Yes, but us being inside will be better for the entry team tomorrow night. I don’t think we did anything to tip our hand while we were there. We were careful,” Logan replied, then smiled to try and ease her fears, but he could see in her eyes that Susan still wasn’t convinced. “Why, Mrs. Lawrence, I think you are turning into a soft southern belle on me. Where’s that woman who kicked the Russian’s ass when he had a gun on us? Is she hiding in her walk-in closet in her fuzzy high-heeled slippers?” he challenged, his smile turning into a grin. When he pictured her in those slippers and that lingerie she had on when he found her sleeping on the sofa, his cheeks hurt from holding the grin.
Logan was surprised when Susan didn’t bite on his challenge. She always had before, but not this time. “I’m not afraid, Logan. I’m willing to go, if you think it’s best. I just think something is wrong. I also think we should just keep with our present plan to storm the compound tomorrow night. Everyone is already scattered, and it’s firm.”
Logan picked up the ring from the table, and stood to walk over to her. He grabbed her left hand, and a feeling of rightness settled in his chest as he slid the ring back onto her finger.
“I do think it’s best,” he said squeezing her hand. “Till death do us part, baby. Just watch my six and make sure that doesn’t happen tomorrow night,” he said, leaning in to kiss her pinched lips, because he couldn’t resist.
“I radioed Fletch, and he’s meeting us at the LZ,” Hawk said over the headsets he’d given Susan and Dave, before they took off. As they’d planned, Luke and Levi were with them. Luke was up front with Hawk in the co-pilot seat, and Levi sat beside her to the left. Logan was on her right, but she wouldn’t know it. He was that damned quiet since they’d taken off. Even when she had grabbed his thigh when they had a bumpy takeoff, he hadn’t touched her, or said a word.
Unlike the times before, he hadn’t unfastened her belt and pulled her across his lap to comfort her. That rude awakening told Susan he was separating himself from her, and she had to be fine with that. It was what she wanted and needed to do too. That kiss in the office surprised her when it happened, and that damned little bud of hope sprouted inside again. She crushed it though, because his actions and lack of words since then told her she was fooling herself.
This was their second to last night together. Day after tomorrow, she would be a free woman, and next week she’d start her new job.
Or maybe she’d delay that for one more week to get her head together again. Her sister was still in the hospital, but even if she was released in the next few days, Susan could still use that as an excuse. When Jenna came home, she’d have to care for her until she was back on her feet.
And she was making excuses, delaying moving on, because she knew starting that job was admitting it was over with Logan, and the men at Deep Six whom she’d come to respect. The best thing she could do was rip off the Band-aid when she left Deep Six and get on with her life like she’d planned. Forget Dave Logan and the men who worked for him. Forget that she almost let herself fall in love with him.
Almost? Hell, who was she trying to kid?
Susan was in love with him, but she wasn’t going to let herself love a man she didn’t trust. She’d rather live alone than do that. Be alone. For the rest of her life. That burning started behind her closed eyelids, and she gripped the handrests tighter. Why couldn’t you be different?
Warmth covered her hand in a tight squeeze. “You okay, sweet cheeks?” Dave asked
Her eyes flew open to meet his, and a mind meld happened for a minute. She thought she could see straight into his soul at that moment, and what she saw was as much pain as she was feeling herself. Her heart melted, she opened her mouth.
“Fuck, bird,” Hawk cursed, as the helicopter veered to the left and Susan heard a dull thud on the outside of the aircraft. It was still light outside, so Susan saw the blackbirds as they whizzed by the window. She whimpered when she was thrown against the back of her seat, as Hawk took the helicopter higher. Slamming her eyes shut she gritted her teeth, and the hand covering hers squeezed tighter.
“Breathe, baby,” Logan said, his hot breath brushing her cheek. His hand loosened on hers as the aircraft leveled. Susan’s breath came out in a rush, her body trembled and her chin dropped to her chest in relief. An arm dropped around her shoulders to squeeze, then stayed there. Susan was very glad that Logan left it there, until Hawk announced they were landing.
After they landed, Logan helped her unfasten her seatbelt, and it was a good thing, because she didn’t think she could manage it her hands were shaking so badly. He opened the side door, and got out, then helped her out. The other two men and Hawk stayed with the aircraft. They decided they’d wait here, so the entry team was less visible. She was told that the more the merrier would not be a good thing for this part of the operation.
Logan put his arm around her back, and led her toward the hummer parked a hundred yards from where they landed. Fletch got out and came to the front of the truck to meet them.
“Well good news,” he said grinning.
“What?” Logan asked, stopping, but keeping his arm around her back.
“I got a keycard so this is going to be a piece of cake.” He pulled a Wellington ID out of his pocket and waved it at them.
“How the hell did you get that?” Logan asked, his brows slamming down over his eyes.
“Well, the counselor over in the science department that I talked to about enrolling my sister kind of loaned it to me when I accidentally spilled my water on her desk. I also managed to unlock her ground floor window, just in case this doesn’t work. The guards make their passes at the science building every two hours. I have the schedule.”
“You’ve been doing your homework,” Logan said with a shake of his head.
“I could’ve done this alone, you know,” Fletch said turning to walk back to the driver’s door. “This ain’t my first rodeo, boss man.”
“I know, but we couldn’t let you have all the fun,” Logan said as he led her to the passenger door, and opened it for her. “Besides, we’re looking for other evidence too. Not just the drug.”
“And thinking is not my area of expertise, right? I can get in and out with a particular object, any pigeon can, but when it comes to thinking, we all know I’m not exactly blessed with the right equipment,” Fletch said sarcastically, as he slammed his door and cranked the Hummer.
Susan looked over at Fletch, and wondered why his face was so red, and why he was so upset at what Logan said. But it wasn’t for her to wonder about. This was her first and last mission with these men. The hidden tension in the group was not her concern or problem. She was going to mind her own business, do her job, get what she needed to help her sister and those women, then get the hell away from them all, she thought, with a sigh.
Susan looked into the rearview mirror and found Logan’s eyes on her. She couldn’t tell what he was thinking, but it must be interesting considering the muscle ticks working in his face. Purposely, she dragged her eyes to stare at the road as they pulled onto the main highway.
When Fletch drove through the clock tower gates at the front of the Wellington campus, it was dark, eight o’clock according to the clock. She scanned the campus and saw there were still students milling about. They pr
obably meant they would have to wait an hour or two before they tried to get into the lab she thought, as Fletch pulled into the parking lot and chose a spot convenient to the building, but occluded from the view of the building by tall hedges.
He looked at his fancy diver’s watch, then said. “Guards make a pass in thirty minutes, so we have to wait.”
“Shouldn’t we wait until more students clear out?’ she asked.
“Nah, that’s the thing. Going in while they’re still out gives us cover. We blend into the landscape. If we’re the only thing moving in the area, we stick out like a turd in a punch bowl,” he replied with a laugh.
That made sense. And it also explained why she’d probably gotten caught that night breaking into the admin building. Susan hadn’t thought like a thief, she’d waited until the campus cleared, the library closed and then she went into the building. “Whoever doubts you have plenty of brains, honey, is a moron himself,” Susan said with a laugh.
Fletch looked over at her and smiled, then looked into the rearview mirror with a smug grin. So, it was Logan who had said that to him.
Susan laid her head against the seatback and didn’t realize she’d dozed off, until Logan said, “Let’s roll,” as he opened the back door.
Fletch countered, “Single file. I’ll go in first, and wait inside for you to get to the door and let you in, then you let Susan inside. Stroll, don’t make yourself obvious,” he instructed as he opened his door. He reached under the seat and took out a little black case, which he put inside his overcoat, reached again and came out with another case and stashed it too. He patted his chest pocket, smiled at her, then closed the door and whistled as he walked around the hedges toward the building.
Susan could definitely see where his knowledge and criminal understanding could come in handy on operations. Logan didn’t get back in the truck, he shut the door and leaned against it, crossing his arms over his chest like he was aggravated at having to wait. Well, Susan didn’t mind, she knew the consequences of rushing into things from her last trip here. She would wait as long as it took to keep from being thrown in jail again. And they needed that damned drug, so getting caught wasn’t an option. Logan shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans and slowly made his way around the hedges. She wished she could see him to time her own trip to the building, but she’d just have to give it about the same amount of time he’d given Fletch.