My life isn’t destined for what Caro has.It’s to be alone and looking over my shoulder for the rest of my life.
Still, she knew how the game was played, and when they stopped at a street vendor for hot dogs, she didn’t argue who paid, or the second kiss he took.They ate quickly and disposed of the trash before he held out his hand for her.Ignoring her voice of self-preservation that yelled this was going to hurt in the end, she took it.
Back at his place, they did another sweep before he turned on the radio, some oldies station, and tugged her into the small kitchen.
“Want to tell me what that was all about?”
“Nope.”
“Tough shit.”He gripped her chin and brought her face around to meet his.“I need to know.”
Cutting off her arm may be less painful than revisiting these old memories.He was right, she owed it to him.Okay, that wasn’t true, she didn’t owe this man anything, she was doing this to help him, not because he was helping her.
Orgasms not withstanding.
“I’m going to need a drink.”
He got her a beer and popped the top on it prior to handing it over.Her body trembled from the ever-so brief contact with his.Eyes locked to Lance’s, she took a long slow drink, buying herself a bit more seconds before it came time to rip off that scab.
“I used to wear a badge.Had my training at the Farm but was immediately tapped for undercover work.”
Yeah, this was going to fucking suck.
Chapter Five
Without memory, there is not healing.
Without forgiveness, there is no future.
~Desmond Tutu
The Farm.Two words he’d never expected to hear out of Jasmine’s mouth.Hell, when they’d first met and she’d looked like a junkie, that’s what he’d assumed and he’d rolled with it.Even at their last meeting at the courthouse, he still wouldn’t have pegged her to be someone who’d had the training he’d gotten later.
He didn’t push her, gave her the extra time it was obvious she needed.And not just her.Lance swigged some back as well, needing a few additional moments to wrap his head around this.
Even when the silence dragged on, he waited, the pain in her eyes too real for him to ignore.
“I was good.”Her voice low but shaky.“Damn good.”
He could see the truth in her simple words.This woman held herself to a standard he never would have expected when he first met her.Still, he hated the pain that lingered even though he had no doubt she worked hard to erase it.And that knowledge she was still hurting after all this time, whatever the reason made him want to fix it for her.There existed something deep inside Lance that made him want to pull her into his chest and hold her.Give her his strength.Protect her.Possessher.Locking down his limbs, he didn’t move.While the comfort would be offered, this woman was a firecracker in his arms and it would change to something sexual and he needed to hear this from her.Had to know what was going on.
Even so, he didn’t rush her.This revelation wasn’t something he would ever force her to divulge at the speed he wanted.He had to let her pick her own.
“We had an op in,” a shrug, “guess it doesn’t matter where it was.Multi-agency, blah blah, you know how it goes.Typically, the more letters involved, the stickier the situation becomes.”A deep breath.“And the more likely it is for a leak.”
Hereallydidn’t like where this was going.
“Therewasa leak, and the entire op went sideways.Not just a little oops, we have a bit more paperwork to do and make it go away.More like a zombie apocalypse would have been welcome instead of what we went through.Agents died, covers were exposed, and some of us were left out to dry on our own.”
What the fuck?
“Who left you out to dry?”Anger vibrated through him.
“Doesn’t matter.”
“Was it Robert?”
“No.”
