Though I want to ask her exactlywhatshe wondered, I don’t. Instead, I say, “I wasn’t sure at first. When Cole—he’s the founder of B and A—asked me to join this new team, I was worried my hand would hold me back.”
“And now?”
“It hasn’t yet. So I’m glad about that. And Yara, she’s another Green Beret, and brilliant with robotics—she added some mods to my prosthetic. It’s stronger now. Sturdier. More resistant to water. And I can fire a gun. So I can’t really complain.”
Bea looks at me, an indecipherable expression in her eyes. Then she smiles. “You know what my dad told me when I was feeling insecure about my implants? He said I had superpowers. That I had something special most other people didn’t.”
There’s a rough tug in my chest.
“You do, Bea.”
But I’m not talking about her implants. I’m talking abouther. About the special gift she has to bring joy wherever she goes. About the strength she shares with her patients. About how damn strong she is for herself.
Unsettled by the tumult of emotion hitting me, I get up and start rummaging through the kitchen drawers, pulling out knives and pots and cutting boards. And I keep my gaze fixed on what I’m doing, afraid if Bea looks into my eyes, she’ll somehow read how I’m feeling.
“Indy.” Bea slides off her stool and comes around to my side. She takes the pot I’m holding and sets it down. Then she puts her hand on my arm and waits for me to meet her gaze.
“What?” I ask. It’s rougher than I intended. Softening my tone, I repeat, “What, Bea?”
“You’re special, too.” Before I can deny it, she shakes her head. “You are. I always knew it. And…”
“And?”
A tiny smile quirks her lips. “I’m not mad at you anymore.”
The last of the bands wrenched around my chest falls away. “Good.”
Her smile broadens. “Okay, then.” A beat passes. Then she reaches past me to grab the rest of the tomatoes. Silky-soft hair brushes my chin. “Now. We want to start chopping the tomatoes for the sauce.”
My heart fuller than I remember it being in years, I smile back at her. “No.Wearen’t. I am. Now go sit back down. Thenyou can boss me around.”
She grins. “Bossing you around? I like the sound of that.”
And though I won’t say it, deep down, I know the truth.
So do I.
CHAPTER 8
BEA
“Areyou sure you’re not too cold?”
Indy looks down at me, concern darkening his eyes to a stormy blue. “We can turn back,” he adds. “It’s mainly just trees out this way. So you won’t be missing anything special.”
It’s the ninth time he’s asked me the same question, not that I’m counting.
I’m not annoyed by it. Amused? Yes. But not annoyed.
After all, he means well. And it’s kind of cute how he keeps checking on me, asking if I’m too cold. Too tired. If my legs are getting sore. If the weak beams of sunlight filtering though the canopy of branches overhead are hurting my eyes.
I’m not too cold, for the record, thanks to the layers of clothing Indy insisted I wear before agreeing to take me on a walk around the property. Not the clothes Eden picked out for me, but ones I ordered using the credit card Indy gave me to use.
“It’s not that much,” he argued when I complained about him paying for my clothes. “And you can’t exactly buy them yourself. I don’t mind paying. But,” he added with a disappointeddownturn to his lips, “if you’d rather call it a loan, that’s okay, too.”
I haven’t decided yet, honestly.
Part of me wants to insist on paying my own way. At least for the things I can afford, like food and new clothes. I know I can’t afford the services Blade and Arrow is giving me, that’s for sure. Indy wouldn’t tell me how much they usually charge their clients, but I cornered Tyler the other day and pressured him into telling me.
