“I don’t think it’s a stupid or silly reason at all,” she told him softly. “And even though she’s not the only reason to step out of the role, the fact that she’s a factor at all says she must be very special.”
“She is not you, but she might be the next best thing.” He squeezed her hand gently. “Anyway, come on.” He let her go and began gathering their garbage. “We should go see those tiger cubs.”
When they left the zoo a few hours later, Evie felt lighter than she had in a long time. She was laughing and teasing Thorn as they walked back to his truck, and when he opened the door and helped her climb in, he pulled her into a tight hug.
“I can’t tell you how good it is to hear you laugh again,Mališa,” he murmured next to her ear. “It hasn’t been happening enough lately.”
“Thank you for all your patience with me, Thorn. I know I haven’t been very much fun lately.” She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek.
“It’s fine, Evie. We were all concerned, not mad or upset with you.” He squeezed her. “I’m just happy to have you happy again.”
“Baby animals are a surefire cure. Those tiger cubs were so cute. I wanted to cuddle one so badly. But I would have cuddled the big one, too.” She sighed as he pulled back and kissed her forehead.
“I don’t understand Western women and their obsession with cuddling dangerous animals. It’s like you lost all sense of self-preservation.”
Chapter Thirty-Nine: Chosen Family
Nissa approved Evie’s vacation time without hesitation, only making a slight face when Evie told her what she planned to do on her time off.
“It’s nice that you want to help them out, but next year, maybe book a trip somewhere.” She passed her a copy of the signed time-off request. “Or take three short vacations instead of one big one if you’re struggling with finding things to fill your time.”
Evie grinned. “After feeling disconnected from everyone for the last five months, I’m actually looking forward to spending time with Cole and Lana and getting to know the baby.”
“Isn’t he gorgeous?” Nissa’s face softened as she gushed about the baby. “He’s gonna be spoiled rotten. Aaron has already bought him a bunch of sports jerseys that he’ll grow out of in two weeks, and when I told him that, he shrugged and said he’d buy him more.”
“He is gorgeous.” Evie agreed. “And I’m not surprised Aaron is excited; he told me he wanted to have an entire baseball team of kids.”
Nissa frowned and glanced at the door to her office. “Does Paula know that? Because she practically recoiled when Cole stopped by to pick up some stuff Lana left at her desk and showed us pictures. Like, she actually looked a little ill when she walked away.”
“I think so?” Evie furrowed her brow as she tried to remember the conversation she’d had with Aaron the previoussummer. “I’m pretty sure he said they agreed to four, and they already have names picked out. And I want to say she said she wanted to wait until their fifth wedding anniversary before they started trying, but that’s a weird reaction for someone who’s agreed to have four kids.”
Nissa hesitated, then got up and shut the door to her office. “This doesn’t leave this room,” she said quietly. “Aaron and I had a mission together a few months ago, and I got some insight into their relationship. It seems to work for them, and I don’t want to betray his confidence by going into detail, but from my perspective, it’s a really unhealthy dynamic.”
Evie took a deep breath and nodded reluctantly. She didn’t like to gossip and didn’t want to get involved in a coworker’s relationship dynamics when they had no idea what was really going on behind the scenes, but she could see how concerned Nissa was for Aaron. “Yeah, he’s said a few things to me that made me do a mental double-take and wonder what he gets from the relationship.”
“So, it’s not just me.” Nissa looked relieved that she wasn’t blowing things out of proportion and that someone else had noticed the same things. “It’s weirdly manipulative and controlling, right?”
“Yes, and you’re right about it being weird.” Evie acknowledged, shifting on her feet as an uncomfortable feeling twisted in her stomach. “The first day of my self-defence training, when Thorn and I walked in on them arguing in the gym. It seemed like she had deliberately arranged a dinner with her mother the night before Aaron’s best friend was shipping out to Iraq. He said she’d known he had plans with him, that it was in their shared calendar for three weeks. She told him he would have to tell his mother why he was skipping it and stormed off in a huff. Thorn commented on how he usually gave in to her.”
“Exactly.” Nissa sat on the edge of her desk and folded her arms. “And as much as he wants everyone to like him, have you noticed he never joins in when we make plans to get together after work or comes to birthday parties? I mean, she doesn’t either, but that’s more fitting for her personality. He tries so hard to be friends and then doesn’t socialize with us.”
Evie had noticed that, but she’d always shrugged it off as them wanting to keep their social life and work life separate. “There could be lots of reasons for that, though,” she pointed out, not wanting to blow this up into something it wasn’t without actual proof.
“Yeah, absolutely, but he never talks about doing things with the guys or his friends and family; it’s always just them, or her friends and family.” She leaned in, her voice dropping. “He joined the CIA because she wanted him to, and when he began advancing faster than her, she pushed him to apply here. He didn’t want to.”
Evie bit her bottom lip, not liking what Nissa was implying. “Did he actually say that? Or did you piece it together? Because don’t get me wrong, you have a sixth sense for these things, and I believe it, but he doesn’t seem unhappy to me.”
“I know!” Nissa threw her hands up in frustration. “That’s why I said it was weird. It’s like he has Stockholm Syndrome.”
“Or maybe he likes being domineered and controlled.” She shrugged, remembering how Aaron hadn’t denied being a masochist. “Lots of men in high-stress, high-profile careers are submissive behind closed doors. They spend all day making decisions and being in control, it’s a relief to have someone else do it when they get home.”
“Evie, honey, if you knew the number of ops women are sent on where they play dominatrixes to get close to a high-profile target…” She chuckled dryly. “I’ve seen that type of man many times; this isn’t the same.”
Evie sighed and glanced at the clock. She had to get to her office and finish a few designs before she went on vacation. “What do you want to do about it?”
“That’s just it, I don’t know.” She shrugged helplessly. “Kidnap him and take him to a deprogrammer?”
“I really don’t think he’s brainwashed.” Evie snorted. Aaron’s personality was too strong for that. “Look, unless he comes to us and asks for help, there’s nothing we can do. Even if there are issues in their marriage, when he talks about her, he’s either defending her prickly personality and making excuses for her or gushing about her. I’ve never heard him complain about her, have you?”
