Suddenly, three police trucks roar on the field, a dozen uniformed men hop out, and a thick accent speaks over a loudspeaker. “Lady, come out or we kill your men. You have five minutes to decide.”
“Lanita, run.” When Dash’s face, bloodied and bruised, shines under the vehicle’s headlights, I limp back toward the makeshift runway.
“Wait. I’m here. Don’t shoot.”
Chapter 11
Dash
“No, stop.” My fucking heart nosedives when she walks out of the jungle with her hands in the air.Damn her lack of patience.
Contemplating my next move, I struggle to break my arms free of a man’s bearhug. Should I grab his gun and shoot out his kneecap, the other idiots might injure my woman. Despite Homeland Security’s cock-up, she survived, and now, I’m going to see her safely over the border.
While I coil for action, two of the locals grab her bicep and drag her close enough for me to mutter, “Why the hell didn’t you run?”
“And leave you to die? No way.” She swivels to stare at a pock-faced man holding her at gunpoint,then glances at the sky where the wop-wop of helicopter rotors increase in volume.
Bollocks. I spring forward and cover her body when we hit the ground. At the same time, an overhead spotlight searches the open space. The beam highlights our captors, and a firefight ensues. Outsmarted and outgunned, those who wanted us dead, flee the way they came.
The bullets stop, the chopper lands, and Slate leans out the door, pointing his AK at the jungle. “Get in.”
Lifting Landy in the bird, I climb aboard, and place her sideways over my lap. Her head to my chest, I hold on tight, my heart racing more than at any time during the mission.
“Next time I say run, you run.” I pinch her chin, my voice cracks, and as we cross the Rio Grande, her body untenses.
“You needn’t’ve worried. I was fine.” Wet brown eyes meet mine, a solo tear falls, and with a shaking hand she cups my cheek.
“Never do that again.” Thinking of all the things that could’ve gone wrong, my forehead touches hers.
“Do what?” Lashes lift and at her innocent smile, blood rushes to my groin.
“Never mind.” The list of answers is too bloody long, anyhow.
“Is it broken?” My finger gently touches the side of her swollen nose, and she scrunches her face.
“I’ve always wanted a new one.”
“You’re not changing it, understand?” Sliding my digits through her hair, my cock swells, and I’m overwhelmed by a primal urge to fuck away this gut-wrenching fear.
“Blimey, I almost lost you.” My chin on her head, I tuck her to my body and watch the dark desert below. I don’t know how Slate managed it, but we’re well over the border.
Landy shifts in my lap and sighs. “I’ve crashed two planes and one helicopter in three months. It’s got to be a world’s record.”
Grinning, Suds taps her shoulder. “I’m an expert at filling out the Guinness Book application forms.”
“I’ll take a hard pass, thanks.” While she shakes her head, we fly over barracks, buildings, and two lit runways.
Brows creased, my woman points at the lights on the landing strip and pokes Slate. “Wasn’t Moore deactivated in two-thousand-six?”
The Patten man turns and nods. “Top secret airspace. We were never here.”
After we set down, a young private dressed in tan camouflage leads us to a rectangular table in a large room. Caleb Trencher and Oliver Smith grin and stand.
“I see you managed without us, Monty ol’ man.” The MI6 agent slaps me on the back then reaches his hand to my fiancé. “Nice to see you again, luv.”
My friend tries to bedazzle her with his sparkling smile, but she’s more interested in the white carafe marked coffee.
“Can I have a mug, please?” While she caffeinates, a gray-haired man sporting a short buzz cut, jeans, and a t-shirt strides in the conference room.
