is the only constant here.” He reached for the phone. Minutes later a jeep showed up. “I’ll get someone to retrieve your vehicle. Colonel Jacobs is expecting you.”
“Thank you,” she said around her chattering, handing him the keys.
The jeep took her to a tan-and-red-roofed building and, after thanking her driver, she rushed inside. The man behind the desk rose. “Special Agent Dalton?”
“Yes.” It was clear from his uniform that he was a corporal. His last name was Morgan.
“Please follow me.”
He led her to an office, as she soaked up the warmth of the building.
Colonel Jacobs rose as his aide ushered her into his office. “Special Agent Dalton,” he said, looking surprised. Guess they hadn’t expected a woman. “Please have a seat. You must be frozen to the bone. We had expected you sooner, sorry about your mishap, but we’ll sort it out for you.”
“Thank you, sir.”
“Morgan, alert Master Sergeant Michaels that Special Agent Dalton has arrived.”
“Yes, sir.”
“I had no idea that there was going to be a blizzard. I was sent here at the last minute.”
“We do our best to keep on top of it, but this high up it’s a crapshoot. It can be sunny one minute and a blizzard the next. Even we sometimes get caught off guard. You can visit the base exchange after our meeting to pick up a few things.” He gave her an appreciative glance. It went a long way to assuaging her pride at her recent dumping.
“Colonel Jacobs, Master Sergeant Michaels reporting for duty, sir.” The deep, raspy voice sounded from the doorway, sending ripples through her.
“Ah, Michaels, come in.”
Amber turned and caught her breath.
He stood at attention, his eyes on Colonel Jacobs until she rose. Then they flicked her way but were soon back to the colonel. He was tall, taller than her and she was five foot eleven, but he had at least six inches on her.
The guy was built. He had a powerful chest that tapered down to a lean waist, and his muscles were so pronounced his fatigues molded over the thickness, tightening the shirt across his broad shoulders. Beneath the thick shirt was a brown T-shirt that covered the hollow of his throat. The sleeves of his white-and-gray camo were rolled up and stretched over his bulging biceps with a glorious curve of muscle that literally made her mouth water. Shocked at her reaction, she could only stare.
Then there was his face. Her eyes traveled up the strong column of his throat with a day’s worth of dark stubble. Thick, midnight-black hair was spiked up into a flattop, the sides shaved. His broad forehead spanned above deep-set, startling blue eyes with an intense gaze, a firm chin and a hard jawline, a prominent but narrow nose, and sharply defined cheekbones. He was drop-dead gorgeous.
His eyes kept drifting back to her as she moved forward.
“At ease,” Colonel Jacobs said. His posture relaxed as he set his hands behind his back at waist level, in a resting stance Amber couldn’t help thinking was way too sexy.
Colonel Jacobs turned to her and said, “This is Master Sergeant Tristan Michaels. Sarge, this is Special Agent Amber Dalton.”
He nodded curtly as Amber tried to catch her breath and rein in her reaction to the impressive Marine.
“Master Sergeant Michaels was Lance Corporal Connelly’s instructor. He was the one who found the body, along with his class. We’ve already cleared him to work with you on this case.”
“You found no negligence on his part?”
Master Sergeant Michaels stiffened and scowled at her. “With all due respect, Agent Dalton, I can assure you that I take every precaution in making sure that none of my men are in the line of fire.”
“Then how did Lance Corporal Connelly die?”
He clamped his lips closed and looked at Colonel Jacobs. The colonel nodded and said, “Full cooperation.”
“Truthfully, I don’t know.”
He’s upset, she thought immediately. She could hear it in his voice and the fact that he didn’t know was gnawing at him.
“I thought he’d gone AWOL.”
“When?”
“He didn’t show up for class yesterday. I went to the barracks and checked for him in case he was ill. He wasn’t there, but his bunk was made, and all his belongings were in his locker.”
“Yesterday? You didn’t report him?”
He glanced at the colonel again. “No,” he said softly, looking her straight in the eyes. He was a bold man, obviously a warrior who took responsibility for his actions. She couldn’t help but admire that.
“Why?”
He sighed. “He had an exemplary record and was the