TWENTY-FOUR
At the warmth she’d seen in Bran’s eyes, a lump formed in Jessie’s throat. She returned his kiss, clinging to him tighter than she should have. She’d been so worried. The relief she felt now made her eyes sting.
She forced herself to step away. It was dangerous to allow her feelings for Bran to grow, and yet she couldn’t seem to stop them. She managed to smile and tried to make light of the situation.
“You realize you smell like the inside of a sleazy bar, right?”
He laughed. “Yeah, I do. Not much I can do about it at the moment. Let’s get out of here so I can get cleaned up, and you can fill me in on what’s been going on.” He stopped at the top of the front steps, his dark brows pulling together. “How’d you get here?”
“Ty drove me to the airport and I picked up my car. I almost passed out at the long-term parking fee.”
“Dammit, Jess, what if the damned thing’s bugged?”
She just shrugged. “Ty and I took a look but didn’t find anything. Besides, I had to get down here. There were things I needed to do.”
“Where’d you park?”
She pointed. “The white Honda Accord just down the block.”
He grabbed her hand and started tugging her in that direction, careful to keep an eye out for any sign of trouble. Now that Petrov was dead, Graves most likely on the run, and Tank under military arrest, he had no idea what situation they might be facing.
His Glock had been returned unloaded, along with two full magazines. When he reached the car, he pulled the gun out of the plastic bag that held his personal items, shoved one of the mags into the grip, then clipped the holster onto his belt beneath his Henley and dark green down vest.
Feeling a little more secure, he glanced around, checking for a possible sniper or anyone who might have managed to figure out where Jessie was. He made his own brief check of the car, looking for anyplace a tracker could be easily hidden, but didn’t find anything.
He stuck out a hand. “I need the keys.”
One of her rusty-gold eyebrows went up. “It’s my car. I should be the one to drive.”
“No way I’m letting you drive,” he said.
Jessie huffed out a breath. “Fine. If it’s that much of a threat to your masculinity, you can drive.” She tossed him the keys and flounced around to the passenger side, jerked open the door, and climbed in. She looked so cute he couldn’t stop a grin.
Still smiling, he slid in behind the wheel, having to move the seat all the way back to fit. “Where are we going?”
“If you’d let me drive, you wouldn’t have to ask. We’ve got an appointment with General Holloway. He wants to ask you some questions.”
He slanted her a look. “Long as you promise he’s not going to throw me in the brig.”
“If he does, he’ll probably arrest me, too.”
He smiled. “At least this time I’d have company.”
She stopped just short of a return smile and pointedly wrinkled her nose. “We’ve got some time. Our suitcases are in the trunk. I washed everything so at least it’s all clean. I figured since you’ve been busy playing bodyguard I owed you that much.”
“Great,” he said. “Thanks.”
“Don’t get used to it.”
He laughed. “Wouldn’t think of it.” He pulled onto the road. “Why don’t you find us a room so I can shower and change. No way I’m talking to a general smelling like I spent the night in a gutter.”
She laughed.
He changed lanes, then turned the corner. “The weather is getting colder. We need some warmer clothes. You know a place we can buy some?”
“I remember passing an REI on Woodman Road.” A smug smile curved her lips. “If I were driving—”
“Okay, I get it. Just tell me where to go.”
