“Youdidhelp Hadley. Does it really matter if you’re officially one of them?”
“It matters. To me.”
I felt a rush of tenderness for her. Keira was so sweet and compassionate, but she matched those qualities with a fierce sense of justice. Kinda pissed me off that Trace hadn’t brought her into the fold already.
Yes, she was young, and she didn’t have military experience. Wasn’t former CIA or FBI or special forces. But Keira had more guts than some of the Marines I’d served with. She’d changed so much in the last couple of years.
I remembered something Brynn had said about Keira, weeks ago.Sometimes we’re forged through fire.
“I’ll talk to Trace. See what I can do.”
Her chin angled toward me. “No, I’m going to do this myself. But thank you for saying that. And for listening.”
I couldn’t even see her that well, but her beauty hit me square in the chest. Her strength. I’d been spending every day with her, yet she could still do that to me.
This woman waseverything.
I probably wasn’t ever going to get over her, and maybe I didn’t want to.
“It’s quiet,” she said. “I’ll go now.”
After what she’d just told me, I wasn’t going to tell her no. Reaching into the backseat for our gear bag, I handed her a tiny black square. “Attach the transmitter to the underside of his vehicle and press this button.”
She nodded. “Got it.”
Her door clicked open, and she slipped out. The secondspassed. I tried not to fidget. I figured it should take less than ten seconds for her to make her way to Woodson’s truck. Another five to get the transmitter in place.
I watched the app on my phone, waiting for the device to connect.
There. A blinking red dot appeared. The GPS transmitter was active.
Headlights turned into the lot. At the same time, a drunk couple stumbled out of the club and lit up cigarettes. I held my breath, watching the activity. Keira should’ve been on her way back, but maybe she was keeping out of sight until the lot was clear again.
Then the door to the bar flew open, and Nox Woodson stepped out.Fuck.
There was someone with him. A guy with a beard. He was more slender than Woodson but taller. Had a more cunning look in his eyes as he glanced around. He and Woodson stood there, talking.
And now a full minute had passed. I didn’t like this. Where the hell was she?
I had to find Keira.Now. No way was I just going to sit here.
Reaching for the glove compartment, I unlocked it and took the gun I’d stowed inside. It was my unregistered SIG Sauer, and I’d brought it only in case of emergency. But this certainly had the makings of an emergency.
Clipping the gun holster onto my waistband, I quietly got out of the vehicle. Woodson and his friend were in my peripheral vision. Weaving between cars and keeping my shoulders hunched, I scanned the shadows for Keira.
Woodson and his buddy were moving now. Heading this way.
Shit, shit, shit.
“Dean?” Keira whispered. She’d just stepped out of the shadows between two cars.
Heavy footsteps crunched in the gravel not far behind us. It was dark, but if those men got a good look at Keira, they could recognize her.
I had to do something fast.
So I wrapped my arm around her waist and slanted my mouth down on hers.
Her body was stiff against me. But she kissed me back, moaning around my tongue. My hands groped at her hips, squeezing her curves. Backing her up against another random vehicle, I put every bit of longing into that kiss. We had to make this look real.
