She focused on rereading her notes from the night before. Excitement built again, energizing her more than coffee ever had. She scrambled off the bed and rushed out of the bedroom with her computer.
“Sosimo, you’ve got to—” June’s words stalled in her throat as Sosimo gave her a halting motion with his hand from the kitchen island stools.
Lena pushed something around in the skillet on the stove. Cooper popped bread into the toaster. The smell should have had her stomach protesting for a bite, but the tension in Sosimo’s shoulders turned her stomach in somersaults. Looked like breakfast was out of the question.
“Miss MacArthur, I’m glad you’ve joined us.” Zeke’s voice came over the phone’s speaker.
“I thought we agreed to call me Reagan?” She crossed to the kitchen and leaned against the counter.
“Sorry.” Zeke didn’t sound sorry. He sounded … guarded. “This plan isn’t working.”
June’s heart dropped into her stomach as her gaze shot to Sosimo just in time to see his jaw clench. “I beg your pardon, sir, but Sosimo and Cooper have been doing an amazing job.”
“I thought we agreed to call me Zeke?” His tone had lightened.
“Touché.”
June pointed at Cooper’s coffee mug and pointed to herself. She would need that coffee after all. Cooper gave her a thumbs up, opened the cabinet, and pulled out a clean mug.
“I’m not questioning my men’s abilities to keep you safe. Far from. But when a plan isn’t working, you adjust and recalculate.” Zeke’s tone reminded her of her father’s at the moment, all fall-in-line soldier. She hated that tone.
“But—”
“It’s necessary, Reagan.” Sosimo grabbed the mug of coffee from Cooper and handed it to her. “These guys seem to know our every move.”
June wrapped her hands around the lifeline the mug provided. She didn’t know what upset her most, that she felt out of control or the fact that both Zeke and Sosimo reminded her so much of her father. She pushed the disappointment to the depth of her stomach like she had her entire life.
“So, what’s the plan?” June took a fortifying drink of the hot coffee.
“We were just getting ready to discuss that.” Sosimo scooped his spoon in his bowl of cereal and took a big bite, making her stomach growl.
“We hoped that we could get some information off of the men that ambushed us in Aspen.” Zeke sighed. “Rafe ran their prints and facial recognition through all the databases and came up empty everywhere.”
Cooper whistled low. June’s heart dropped to her feet. She understood how hard it was to hide identities so thoroughly. Hadn’t she done that for herself? She peeked at Sosimo before looking into the bracing liquid steaming from her mug. She needed to tell him about herself, the guilt of not yet doing so weighed heavily on her, but his reaction to her secret about the invention kept the truth bottled up inside. Would he understand her need for privacy, or would he only see the lie she told? The coffee soured in her belly, and she swallowed down the acid that rose up her throat.
“Everywhere Rafe digs we keep coming up against a wall. Whoever these guys are, they’re extremely well-funded.” A tapping noise came through the phone. “The only thing we can think of is that somehow it’s connected to your contact at the SEP.”
“No way.” June stood up straight, shaking her head at the audacity. She slammed her mug on the counter. “Adam would never be behind something like this.”
“It might not be your friend, but it could be someone linked to him through the program.” Sosimo touched her elbow. “We just need to be cautious in how we proceed.”
She narrowed her eyes at him as implications swirled in her brain. “So what are you suggesting?”
“You can’t go to the Soldier Enhancement Program just yet. Not until we have more time to investigate.” Zeke’s command came through the phone with ultimate authority.
June attempted to think rationally about the situation, but frustration hampered her thoughts. The reason she’d set up the business the way she had and left her old identity behind was so she could make her own decisions. Now, here she sat, stuck in a tangle of lies and trouble with no control of what happened next.
“So, what? We just hang out here?” June flinched at the attitude in her voice. Her sass would horrify her father.
“No, we’ll keep heading east, lying as low as we can. We want you as close to the SEP as possible, so when we figure this mess out, you can get your invention to the right people.” Sosimo scooped another bite from his cereal, and she had the infantile urge to smack the spoon from his hand.
She crossed her arms with a nod. “Ok. I need to contact my father.”
“Is that necessary?” The spoon stopped halfway to Sosimo’s mouth.
“Do you want the cavalry sent out after me when I don’t?”
His eyelids closed to slits as he surveyed her. Cooper cocked his eyebrow at her from across the kitchen, and Lena paused in scooping the food to a plate. Shoot. June had probably said too much. She needed to beat a fast retreat before she blew everything.
“That’s fine. Just make it quick and give out no information.” Zeke’s agreement came gruff and low through the phone.
She stifled a salute as she turned on her heel and marched to her room. Pride surged through her when she closed the door with a soft click. Plopping on the side of the bed, she rested her head in her hands.
She’d created Reagan so she could make her own decisions and get out from under her father’s command. What a web of deception she found herself tangled in. The image of Sosimo’s shirt stained red with blood hit her just as sharply as it had in her dream. All indignation drained from her into the plush carpet.
Sosimo and his friends were only trying to keep her safe. The men behind the attacks were the ones stripping her of her freedoms and jeopardizing the lives of good people. She needed to keep her sense of injustice firmly focused on the right source.
She sighed. She owed Sosimo and the others an apology, but first, she had a call to make. She reached for the phone. She just hoped she would be the one to tell the general she had blown up her house. Otherwise, more than just binary rifle targets and propane would be exploding.
Sosimo finished his cereal, washed his bowl, and grabbed another cup of coffee and an apple for Reagan, all without showing his raging guilt for running ramrod over her. He’d pissed her off if the stiff shoulders and icy glare told him anything. He had enough sisters to know it did. What surprised him was the lack of a slamming door. Growing up, that sound had always followed his sisters’ tantrums.
Not that Reagan had thrown one. He understood her anger over the invasion of her life. He just hoped she’d realize the need to lie low for a bit longer.
He tried to push aside the unease the rest of the phone call had caused after Reagan had stomped off. Rafe still hadn’t been able to find information on her either. He complained that her past was too squeaky clean, too perfect. That she had to be hiding something, because no one could be that good.
Sosimo shook his head. If anyone could come through life without a lot of mars, it would be the homeschooled science geek that jumped from base to base. He shook off the tightness in his chest Rafe’s suggestions created and raised his hand to knock, only to pause at the sound of her voice.
“No, Dad, you aren’t listening, again.” Her huff traveled through the door. “I blew up my house. Me.”
Sosimo’s mouth dropped open. Why in the world had she told her father that?
“It was the only way to get us an opening to escape.” She paused, and Sosimo held his breath. “I’m fine. Sosimo got us out of there without a problem.”
He wondered why she’d tell her dad about blowing up the house but leave out the part about her invention working. Guess she didn’t want her father worrying too much.
“Yes, I know. You told me they were the best, and you weren’t lying. Sosimo is amazing.” While her declaration set heat racing through hi
s veins, he wondered how her father knew them.
“Ugh, Dad, there’s no tone in my voice. I’m agreeing with you.” Her footsteps went one way, then paced the other. “I know, I know. The Army produces men and women of extreme caliber, able to adapt and conquer any situation.” She spoke with the tone of someone rolling their eyes at an oft repeated phrase.
The phrase wiggled something in his memory. He couldn’t place it, but he had heard those exact words before. He shook off the memory and knocked.
“Listen, Dad. I have to go.” Her voice grew closer, and he took a step back. “Yes, I’ll call. I love you.”
She opened the door, her smile briefly spreading across her face when she glanced in his hand. She grabbed the mug and averted her gaze. Her bag sat on her bed with her stuff spread out around it.
“Thanks.” She sat on the edge of the bed. “Listen, I owe you guys an apology. I shouldn’t have gotten snarky with you. You’re just trying to keep me safe.”
“Trust me, you weren’t.” Sosimo tossed the apple in the air and plopped down next to her. “It can’t be easy having life in chaos like it is. I’m sorry we can’t just take your invention there without worrying that it’s going to still end up in the wrong hands.”
She took a drink of the coffee, licked her lips, shrugged. Leaning over, she gently kissed him. “Thanks for being so sweet.”
A soft knock sounded on the door followed by Cooper’s voice. “Guys, we should probably get on the move.”
Sosimo rolled his eyes and smiled at Reagan. “Yes, Mom, we’ll be right there.”
“Whatever, dude.” Cooper huffed through the door. “We’re leaving in five, so finish up your make-out session so we can get a move on.”
Reagan hid her laugh behind her hands, her face turning bright red. He leaned forward and kissed her on the cheek before heading toward the door. He looked back to find her watching him, so he winked. She might be hiding something, but he knew the heart of her. Whatever the truth was, it couldn’t be that bad.
Twelve
June typed in the backseat of the SUV they had bought in Kentucky, poring over her data and compiling it into an updated report for the SEP. She shifted in her seat, her stuff strewn across the back seat. She missed their RV. Maybe she and Sosimo could get another one and go on a different road trip. One that didn’t involve a death race and assassins.
The sun had faded into night, and the lights of whatever city they were in now twinkled like stars on her computer screen. The city street was lined with restaurants and businesses, making her hope they stopped somewhere they could eat. She rubbed her eyes and closed the computer. She wanted to crash. How could driving be so exhausting? All she’d done was sit all day.
Reaching into her backpack, she pulled out the box of Lemonheads Sosimo had bought her at the last stop. He’d been doing that all day, finding little ways to do something special for her. A slow grin built, and she fiddled with her collar as she remembered the kiss he’d given her a few hours back. They’d stopped at a park to stretch their legs. She could still feel the rough bark of the tree he’d pressed her against as he’d kissed the living daylights out of her. He’d had all this pent-up energy, like he’d been waiting for a moment all day to do that.
She glanced up and caught his gaze in the rearview mirror. His tempting lips cocked in a knowing one-sided smile, and his eyes teased her. She rolled her eyes and gazed out the window, hoping the interior of the car hid her blush. If the heat of the thing had any correlation to the color, her face rivaled Ronald McDonald’s hair.
“Let’s see if they have a room here.” Sosimo pulled up to a hotel’s door, and jumped out.
“So, Cooper, something I’ve been wondering about. If you were a part of the Marines, how do you know Sosimo and the rest of Zeke’s gang?” June had loved listening to their stories all day as they volleyed back and forth, but all the stories had been more a competition between Army and Marines which had left her confused.
He turned in the seat and smiled back at her. He had a quiet nature that resembled her own, but when he talked, she felt as if she were visiting with an old friend. She wished she’d learned that kind of social fluidity.
“I was a raider with the Special Operations Command. Before that I was a sniper. We worked jointly on several missions and were camped at the same bases the last few years.” Cooper shrugged, a casual gesture, but June knew the caliber of men accepted into the MARSOC.
Her father tried to pull them in on as many missions as he could. When the division had been created, her father had said it was about time the Marines got with the program. Then again, her father was more than a little biased.
“Of course, all that was before South America.” He shook his head, his voice emerging raspy. “It was a shame when Zeke’s crew had that mission go south. We lost Ethan Stryker, then their captain disappeared in the Colorado mountains. After that, one-by-one, they all got out when it was time to reenlist. I don’t blame them. None of them came back from that mission whole.”
She wrapped her arms around her even though the vehicle’s heater ran. “Is that where Jake lost his leg?”
“Yeah. Sosimo blames himself, but Zeke says that’s not how it went down.” Cooper rubbed the back of his neck. “It’s funny the lies we allow ourselves to believe. Every single one of us have ghosts of past missions that haunt us.” His southern accent, that he’d hidden, thickened as his emotion increased.
“That’s what drives me. Those ghosts.” June looked at her bag like she could see through the fabric to the computer within. “I saw so many of them hovering above the soldiers at the base and haunting the injured in the military hospital I volunteered at in Germany. I want to do whatever I can to make it safer.” She huffed, swallowing the emotion that clogged her throat, and looked up at him. “I know that sounds ridiculous. Men and women join the military knowing they could be put in danger. Yet, if something I invent lessens that, even a little, and gives our soldiers protection, I’ll give anything to make that happen.”
He held her gaze for a span of several seconds, then nodded. “I know why Sosimo loves you. You’re quite the force to be reckoned with.”
“Sosimo doesn’t lov—”
“Please, the man has fallen hard.” Cooper turned forward and collected his gear. “You don’t talk about taking a girl home to your parents, especially not Madre Rivas, and not mean business.”
Life slowed as her brain computed what he said. A tingling started at the top of her head and rushed through her body. Sosimo climbed into the vehicle. She stared at him, her mouth gaping open unattractively. Could this amazing man love her? She knew he liked her, but love? It was too good to hope for.
He glanced between her and Cooper, tilting his head to one side. “What?”
“Nothing, man. Just telling embarrassing stories of you, that’s all.” Cooper turned around and winked.
Sosimo groaned as he put the vehicle in drive and pulled into a parking spot. “I knew I couldn’t trust you to behave.”
Cooper chuckled, pushing the door open. “Nope. Where’s the fun in behaving?”
June flinched as the door slammed shut, jarring her out of her stupor. Sosimo loved her? He opened her door and reached his hand in to help her out. Skin slid upon skin, shooting buzzing jolts straight up her arm. He might not love her; she wouldn’t know until he confirmed the allegation. She most certainly loved him. So now what?
As she climbed out of the vehicle, one thing became evident. She didn’t want to hide from this. She had done enough of that over the last ten years to make her sick. As dangerous as confessing it might be, she couldn’t veil her feelings anymore.
She stepped up to him, fisting his shirt in her hands and pushing him against the car door. His eyebrows rose the second before she pressed her lips against his. Everything faded to nothing except him and his arms circling around her. Traffic disappeared until she only heard the dancing of their breath as he pulled her tighter to him. How could the
world stop yet spin wildly at the same time? This man defied physics.
She pulled back just a hair, a tightness in her gut. “I love you.” Her whispered confession broke the bubble of silence and rushed the sound of traffic to her ears.
He stared into her eyes and swallowed. The silence that now stretched between them sucked her confidence like a black hole. She stepped back, only to have him tighten his grip.
“No, I need to be right here in this amazing moment a little longer.” He buried his face into her neck, his inhale skating across the skin and diving into her heart. He pressed his lips below her ear, and her knees turned to jelly. “I love you too, cariña.”
If the joy that filled her heart could burst out in light, she’d shine as bright as the sun. Bubbly laughter bounced out of her as she threw her arms around his neck and kissed him again. His lips smiled against hers. The feel of the upturned shape settled her nerves.
“Could we please go up to the room now?” Cooper’s voice sounded from the bumper of the SUV. “I promise I won’t gag in my mouth too much if you want to make moon-eyes at each other.”
Sosimo chuckled as he ran his hand down her cheek. “We should go inside where it’s safe.”
She nodded and grabbed her backpack. When they got to the room door, Sosimo let go of her hand and motioned for her to stay while he searched the room. She stared blankly into space, a giddy smile stretched across her lips.
Cooper bumped her in the back. “Told you.”
“Shh.” She threw a glare behind her as Sosimo’s, “Clear,” sounded from the room.
“Did you see the Cracker Barrel next door?” June threw herself across the far bed, her arm draped over her eyes. “We are definitely stopping there before we head wherever it is we’re going tomorrow. Their country fried steak breakfast is amazing.”
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