Page 71

“Where’d you learn to do”—he gestures toward the dinghy—“this?”

“You missed Borrowing Boats 101 at Quantico?” I tease over the low rumble of the engine. “Informative class. Great instructor. You’ll have to go back for training to brush up on your skills.”

For the first time all day, Nathan’s shoulders drop an inch. “The Coopers taught you, didn’t they?”

I startle at the mention of them. I haven’t talked about the Coopers in years. I’d almost forgotten that I’d told him about them. “I—Yes, they did.”

“Well, good job,” he says. “I’m sure they’re proud that you’ve retained what they taught you.”

I clear my throat. “I think they would’ve been.”

For a second, Nathan’s eyes go dark. He doesn’t miss the past tense of my response, and he dips his head and nods in understanding. We go quiet for a moment, me in my head thinking about the Coopers, and him, I imagine, thinking about his brother. The thought fuels me and serves as a reminder for why I do any of this.

“We’re not going to let them get away, okay?” I say, grabbing Nathan’s knee. “Not tonight.”

Nathan whips out his phone and shoots an encrypted update to Hall. “Hold Plan B. Tell the captain to stop for a photo op,” he dictates as he types.

Seconds later, the Silver Belle slows to a stop. We have Mother Nature on our side—the sky’s putting on a show and luckily for us, that’s where people are looking, but we need to keep enough distance. From here, I can make out stairs in the rear—it is a catamaran made for loading and unloading tourists for various excursions, after all. If I can just get close enough and pull up next to—

A bodyguard type appears from the shadows and takes his position at the top of the stairs, a tropical drink in hand.

I swerve away, nearly knocking Nathan off.

“Sorry,” I whisper. “We’ve got company.”

“Turn back. That’s Brody. He already doesn’t like me.”

I pull back the throttle, our speed decelerating. “Who are you and what have you done with my Nathan?”

A smirk plays on his lips. “Your Nathan?”

“Yeah, my Nathan,” I say boldly. “The one who climbed up an elevator shaft and made me do it, too.”

“I could never make you do anything.”

“Or the one who stared down the barrel of a gun and didn’t even flinch.”

“Don’t believe everything you see,” he mumbles.

“Or the one who wore, a little too confidently, if I can be honest, stick-on facial hair.”

“Now that, I agree with.”

I grab his shoulder. “Where’s that Nathan?”

I expect him to have a sassy comeback or a valid reason. I’d even take a weak excuse like he’s just trying to protect me. Instead, he goes with honesty. “I’ve been trying to figure that out, too.”

His words hang between us as the colors of the sunset deepen, streaks of fuchsia dancing across his face.

“It’s okay to not be okay,” I say. “Our jobs, pretending to be other people, it requires us to do things that are not normal. That messes with a person.”

“Yeah,” Nathan says so softly that the word disappears on the breeze.

“If you want me to turn around, I will,” I promise, “but I’m also telling you that I believe in you, and you’re still my Nathan—as you were then and as you are now.” He looks up at me with a longing I’ve never seen from him before. “All those years, everything it cost you, it doesn’t have to be for nothing. We can end this now.”

When he doesn’t say anything, I grab the throttle and make a move to turn around.

He grabs my hand to stop me. “We’re here. Let’s get on that boat, make the exchange, and take down the bad guys.”