SEAL Strong

by Cat Johnson

  He couldn’t because he knew one day there’d be evidence she’d moved on. That she’d started dating again.

  Just because he wasn’t ready for that yet, and wasn’t sure he ever would be, didn’t mean she wasn’t.

  But the reality remained they both worked for DHS. In different offices. In different agencies. But the same organization nonetheless. He just thought her working in Virginia for the OPA and him in D.C. for OPS would keep them apart.

  He’d obviously been wrong because there she sat.

  Silas glanced at Chavez.

  The question must have been clear in his eyes because the man leaned closer and said low, “Is this going to be okay?”

  Silas and Chavez had developed a friendship that went beyond that of the typical superior and subordinate relationship.

  They’d shared stories and laughs over bourbon at the local bar more times than Silas could count since he’d been hired.

  Chavez didn’t know details, but he knew Silas and Maggie could work together, be in the same room together, without there being a screaming match between them.

  What Chavez didn’t realize is that putting them in a room together just ripped the carefully tended scab right off Silas’s heart.

  “Yeah. It’s fine.” Silas nodded once to his boss, then turned his attention to Maggie, who watched him with the same beautiful soul-filled eyes he’d stared into so many times while they’d done so many things.

  Silas nodded a hello to her as well and glanced at the seating choices. There were two seats left, both of them to the right of Maggie.

  To sit next to her would send a message. But not sitting directly next to her would also say something.

  The choice wasn’t one he wanted to make, so he stepped back so his boss could make the decision.

  His time working for the third largest cabinet department in the government had enforced in him the important skill of how to pass the tough things up the chain of command.

  Chavez moved forward and pulled out the chair farthest from Maggie. That was it then. Decision made. Silas had no choice but to sit next to her.

  Accepting his fate, Silas noticed the uptick in his pulse rate as he slid into the narrow space between Maggie and Chavez to sit in the last empty seat in the room.

  Judging by the packed office, everyone who was coming was here. Time to get this damn meeting going.

  “Hi.” Maggie’s whispered word close to his ear sent a chill down his spine.

  “Hi,” he said, shooting her a quick sideways glance before focusing on his hands folded on top of the table.

  He wished he had something to hold. Coffee. A folder. Anything.

  He remembered he had a pen in his pocket, but with no paper that would look stupid to take it out. He would have pulled out his cell phone, but he was used to being in the teams and cell phones weren’t allowed in classified meetings.

  Was this meeting classified? Hell if he knew. He hadn’t even been aware of it until a few minutes ago.

  The Deputy Secretary of DHS was seated at the head of the table. She glanced around at the attendees, sitting shoulder-to-shoulder.

  “It looks like we’re all here so let’s get down to business. We’re at the final stages of planning the logistics for our multiagency attendance at the World Summit next month in Africa.”

  At that information, Silas’s gaze whipped up to focus on the woman speaking. He sat straighter in his chair, on alert now as he listened for the exact location of this meeting he’d heard nothing about until now.

  Why had he heard nothing about it? And why was he here now?

  He could only hope the answer to the first question was that this summit hadn’t been on his radar because there was no information regarding a threat. But he knew better than that.

  Travel to Africa did not come without threats. Not for non-governmental agencies—which had been proven time and again—nor for governmental ones.

  The proof was in how many times Tier One operators had been called in to that region. And now a bunch of agency heads were going to be there for a well-publicized summit and they’d need to be well protected, because the bad guys had plenty of time to coordinate an attack.

  “Because of the current political climate around the world and the peace mission of this summit, we’ve decided to add a representative from the Office of Public Affairs.”

  Maggie’s office.

  Silas’s heart sped as he tried to reason with himself. It didn’t mean that she personally would be going. Although why would they have brought her all the way from Virginia Beach for this meeting if she weren’t going?

  Shit.

  “Yes, Madam Deputy Secretary. Maggie Branson, our liaison to the Navy, is here. She’s slated to represent our office at the summit.”

  The deputy secretary nodded and turned her attention to Silas’s side of the table. “Director Chavez. You’ll be representing the Office of Operations Coordination.”

  “Yes, Madam Deputy Secretary. Along with my second in command, Lieutenant Commander Branson.”

  Silas cut his gaze to Chavez.

  The deputy secretary nodded before turning her attention to the person seated closest to her. “And Science and Technology?”

  “Yes, ma’am. Our agency will be represented by the acting under secretary . . .”

  Silas ignored what was being discussed at the other end of the table in favor of leaning closer to Chavez. He raised one brow and said just loud enough his boss would be able to hear, “Second in command?”

  Chavez smiled. “Something we need to discuss. The position of Deputy Director.”

  What the hell? Just shy of one year with DHS and he was getting promoted? The enormity and weight of that was as exhilarating as it was unnerving.

  “Talk later,” Chavez whispered.

  “Yes, sir.”

  Silas tried to pay attention through the rest of the meeting, but after all the bombshells that had hit him since Chavez had pulled him out of his office, what was being discussed paled in comparison.

  He was going to this summit, in Africa, as deputy director, along with Maggie. It was a lot to process.

  The general logistics—who would be representing each agency—wasn’t what he needed to know and apparently that was mainly what this meeting was about.

  Silas wanted specifics. How were they traveling? Through which countries? What security was being provided and by whom during each stage of the trip?

  As his thoughts raced, the meeting broke. His mind was still spinning when Maggie’s hand on his forearm caught his full attention.

  “So, how have you been?” she asked. “We haven’t talked in forever.”

  True. And that had been by his design.

  “I’m good. Busy. Working hard.” He was babbling and wishing she wouldn’t touch him.

  It was too tempting to lace his fingers with hers and hold her hand the way he had countless times in the past.

  “I know you’ve been busy.” She smiled.

  He raised a brow. “How do you know?”

  “My boss is friendly with your boss. They talk about you.”

  Wasn’t that interesting. “Do they? And what do they say?”

  “That you’ve really distinguished yourself in the agency and there was a good chance you’d be moving up in the ranks shortly. I see they were right.” She smiled.

  She’d obviously picked up on Chavez calling him his second in command.

  “Silas, walk with me to my office,” Chavez said as he pushed his chair back and then stood.

  “Yes, sir.” Silas glanced at Maggie. As their eyes met, he said, “Um, catch up later?”

  She nodded. “Definitely, since we’ll be traveling together shortly.”

  Yes, they would. And shit, he’d taken that trip to Africa, quite a few times, during his years in the SEALs. It wasn’t short.

  There went his plan to try to avoid her.

  “Right. Okay. See you then.” He couldn’t make his escape soon
enough.

  Once outside in the hallway, Chavez apparently had something to discuss with him.

  “Are you sure you’re going to be okay with having your ex-wife on this trip?” Chavez asked.

  Silas frowned. “Yeah, I’ll be fine.”

  Chavez nodded, apparently accepting his answer. “Good.”

  His boss might be satisfied, but Silas wasn’t. He still had questions about this whole thing.

  “Um, which African nation is hosting this meeting?” Silas asked.

  Of all the boring details he’d sat through in that meeting, this was the one that hadn’t been mentioned.

  “Chad,” Chavez said.

  Chad? Shit. Of all the countries on the continent of Africa, Chad was on his top ten list of places he’d rather not be traveling to with a group of civilians—one of which was Maggie.

  Silas sighed. He raised his gaze to Chavez. “What? Somalia wasn’t available? Or Borno? Or how about Benghazi?”

  Then an attack would be certain instead of just probable and he could prepare accordingly.

  Chavez let out a laugh. “I understand your concern, but there’s a strong environmental component to this summit, in addition to the peace keeping and humanitarian missions.” When he saw what must have been a look of confusion on Silas’s face, Chavez continued, “For the past hundred years Lake Chad has been shrinking considerably.”

  “Ah.” Climate change wasn’t Silas’s department, but keeping people safe was and there weren’t many other places they could have chosen that would have made him more worried than this particular region.

  At least it wasn’t Syria. That thought was small comfort.

  Silas knew what he’d be doing between now and the time they left. That was learning everything he could about the logistics of the area and the venue and this damn summit.

  “So, about your new position . . .” Chavez began, interrupting Silas’s list of things he needed to do to keep the delegation, and his ex-wife, safe in one of the most dangerous regions in the world.

  Silas let out a short laugh. “Yes, about that.”

  Good thing he was used to rolling with the punches because for a governmental organization where he’d assumed things moved notoriously slow, things were sure moving fast for him.

  CHAPTER 11

  The moment the plane touched down, Silas was back in warrior mode—if he’d ever really left it to begin with.

  He kept his eyes peeled for anything out of the ordinary. Anything that looked at all suspicious or threatening.

  And what the hell was he going to do if he saw something? Hell if he knew because thanks to rules and regulations he was traveling basically unarmed.

  He had a few things with him but not what he really wanted—a gun, preferably two.

  There was that governmental red tape he’d loved to hate when he was active duty. But now, it was not just annoying, it was dangerous.

  Okay, perhaps he wasn’t completely unarmed. He had his hands and his brain and almost fifteen years worth of training to draw upon if the shit hit the fan—even so, he’d feel better if he had a weapon.

  From what he could see online the Hotel N’Djamena was lovely, with its river front location, multiple outdoor pools and even a whisky bar he might have really enjoyed had it been anywhere else besides Chad.

  But Silas was more interested in the other amenities besides the self-proclaimed luxurious spa and outstanding cuisine, such as the hotel’s close proximity to the international airport—the less time they spent on the road and vulnerable the better in his opinion.

  It was the secure gated entrance he liked best. Though the fact that hotel management felt a gate was not only necessary but also touted prominently on the website told him he was right to be extra cautious. This city and its dangers were no joke.

  He hated everything about this trip.

  Fuck DHS and their need to attend this thing live and with his wife—ex-wife—in tow. Couldn’t they all video conference from the office?

  That’s what modern technology was for—to prevent the need to fly halfway around the world. But instead, when the summit began tomorrow morning they’d all be sitting in a ballroom with five hundred other people waiting for the keynote speaker like a bunch of sitting ducks.

  One day at a time. He’d deal with that tomorrow. Right now, he had to get everybody safely from the airport to that gated entrance the hotel was so proud of.

  The hotel had a dedicated airport shuttle and though he didn’t love the idea, they were going to take it.

  That shuttle, which was easily identifiable and stuck out amid the other traffic like a sore thumb, made them a well-marked target for attack.

  That was on top of the fact Silas didn’t know the driver, nor did he know how well, or even if he’d been vetted by the hotel.

  They could be getting into a vehicle with a suicide bomber for all he knew. But short of frisking the man, there wasn’t anything Silas could do.

  The one thing Silas could do was check the vehicle itself for explosives, which he did even if it did earn him an angry look from the driver.

  No doubt Silas’s inspection delayed them. Too bad. He didn’t give a shit. Let the man scowl all he wanted, they weren’t boarding that van until he’d seen inside the engine and beneath the chassis and checked for explosives.

  The man spoke enough English that Silas could get across that he wanted to look under the hood. There was a bit of a battle but finally the man complied and popped it open.

  After Silas finished with the engine, he moved on to checking beneath the vehicle. Given the expression on the driver’s face he was probably lucky the man didn’t drive away while he was under there.

  When he shimmied out from beneath the van and stood, brushing the dirt off his clothes, he saw Chavez watching him with an expression of amused satisfaction while Maggie was beginning to look worried.

  The rest of their little party just looked mainly surprised and confused.

  They’d better get used to him doing things like laying on his back beneath a vehicle with a flashlight because on this trip he intended to be more SEAL and less government square ass than they’d come to know him to be at the office.

  “We can board,” he said.

  When the dozen people in their party stared at him unmoving, Chavez took control. “All right, everyone. You heard the man. Get on.”

  Maggie moved closer. “Is everything all right?”

  “Everything’s fine,” he said. Though silently he added the words so far.

  “What did you hear? Or did you see something? Why are you worried?” she asked, seeming agitated.

  He lifted a brow. “I’m always worried. And no I didn’t see or hear anything. Just being cautious.”

  “Would you tell me the truth if you had?” Maggie asked.

  It was a valid question.

  Silas considered it for a moment. Would he tell her? The answer was clear. “Yes. I would. I swear.”

  Keeping her in the dark wouldn’t keep her safe. In fact, he liked the group being a little afraid. They’d be more careful. Sometimes fear was a good thing. It could keep you alive.

  Maggie watched him for a second and then nodded. “Okay.”

  She believed him. That was a good sign—not that he was looking for one.

  Crap. One day of being with her and he was already looking for signs.

  This was why he’d avoided her. Now he felt like all that time apart hadn’t even happened. He was right back to feeling the combined heartache and hope he’d been riddled with right after the divorce.

  He knew he’d never get over the loss of Jonas, but he really had hoped he’d get over Maggie eventually.

  How the hell long did it take a man to get over a woman after being with her for so long? He had a feeling he wouldn’t like the answer.

  Silas boarded the shuttle last and surveyed those inside as he ducked beneath the doorframe. It was tightly packed in there but he’d rather have them all on one v
ehicle than divided into two.

  He searched for a spot he could squeeze in and of course, it was next to Maggie. Fate was definitely conspiring against him.

  Bracing himself for the emotional and physical impact sitting next to her would bring, he planted his ass on the edge of the seat, hanging half off so he wouldn’t be pressed from shoulder to thigh against the woman he still dreamed about at night.

  The driver took off, too fast as far as Silas was concerned, and he had to reach for the seat in front of him.

  Finally giving in, he scooted closer to Maggie. He was going to end up on his ass on the floor if he didn’t.

  He glanced sideways and collided with her blue gaze.

  Lips pressed together tight, he averted his eyes and looked out the windows instead. First one side, then the other, searching for threats, as well as getting his bearings.

  It wouldn’t hurt to be familiar with the route to the airport. He hoped chances were nil things would go so south that he’d have to get them all to the airport on his own and in a hurry—though it could happen. He’d seen too much in the teams to think otherwise.

  Maggie softly chuckled next to him. He glanced at her in question.

  “Once a team guy, always a team guy.” She smiled.

  “That obvious?” he asked.

  “Only to me,” she said, sounding almost sad.

  Only to me—because she knew him so well. Because they’d shared so much. Three little words but they hurt like hell. They twisted his heart and reminded him what he’d had. What he’d lost.

  He drew in a breath and moved his gaze back to the passing scenery, but as he did he reached out and squeezed her hand. “It’s going to be fine.”

  She squeezed back. “I know.”

  Such confidence in him. He only hoped he could live up to it—and do what he had to, to get his head out of his ass and off his ex-wife.

  They were nearing the hotel. He could see the gates opening up ahead.

  As the shuttle navigated slowly between them, he was happy to see it was manned and not automated. Although men were human. They could be bought off, corrupted, killed, replaced . . .

  Feeling less good about the manned gatehouse than he had before, he leaned forward and stared at the uniformed employee as the shuttle driver pulled slowly through.