the ball will be in your court. Don’t fuck it up. I’ll tell you, her being here was a surprise to all of us—even Crew—and she contracts for him.”
That shit is about to change. Crew Vega had better get used to it and find someone new to be his eyes and ears in the Middle East. He and I only speak when it’s absolutely necessary. If I see Vega’s face again while Bella is lying unconscious in the ICU, I’ll rip him to shreds. Hollingsworth, however, knows this and is my go-between. He’ll do anything for Vega. He’ll also do most things for me.
I turn my attention back to Asa. “I didn’t fuck it up last time, asshole. Until she wakes up, I’m counting on you.”
“Right. And I need to go so I can hit it hard. Worming my way into these systems takes time. You’re lucky to have me.”
I shake my head and don’t answer, never taking my eyes off her chest.
Rising … falling … rising … falling …
I need her to live and I need my employer to not know she’s here. And since she’s lying in ICU and I work for the Central-fucking-Intelligence Agency, that might be asking for a miracle. “Don’t call me until you have answers.”
I hang up and stare at the woman who’s been circling the revolving door of my life for years. She was twenty-three when she rocked my world. I thought she was too young and too reckless to maneuver the underworld we swam in on a daily basis. It didn’t matter what her last name was or how much weight that name carried, I didn’t trust her. That was my first mistake when it came to Isabella Donnelly. She’s a force and anyone in her line of sight would be foolish to underestimate her. She’s proven it and continues to do so by contracting on her own while staying hidden all this time. And still, I’m the idiot who can’t tie down my wild Brit.
I don’t take my eyes off her. The fire inside her is gone—the fire I loved so much that burned under my skin for years. I’ve tried to quench it and smother it. Hell, I’ve even tried to ignore it. I had to make the hard choice and walk away from it when shit got real at home. Little did I know, quitting her would be harder than dealing with the shit circling me in the States.
Now, she’s pale and lifeless despite the damn beeps filling our space and I’d do anything to have her fierce flame back. That’s what happens when you take a bullet to the gut from point-blank range. She inserted herself into a situation that wasn’t her problem or her business. She saved lives but that doesn’t change the fact she is where she is.
My phone vibrates.
Asa – No one at our camp knows why she’s here. Crew is digging and I will too.
Shit.
I’m surprised Vega doesn’t know. He and I might not see eye-to-eye at times, but he’s no liar. At least when it comes to the good guys.
Somehow she snuck back into the States without even him knowing. Given her status, her stepping foot onto U.S. soil is riskier than dancing into a bullfight dressed in crimson. But I’d bet my security clearance she didn’t give a shit.
“What are you chasing, sweetness?”
I get nothing but those damn beeps. How can I despise them while my gut hangs on every single one at the same time?
I stand and move to her side.
“Sir, visiting hours for ICU don’t start for another two hours.”
I look up and find a new nurse. They must’ve had a shift change because I went through this with the last one but I’ll do it as many times as I have to.
I pull out my credentials. “I’m not leaving.”
“Oh.” She chews on her lip and looks from my ID to me. “I might need to talk to my head nurse—”
“You can talk to the Attorney General for all I care. I’m here until she wakes and I’m not leaving until she does. You’re stuck with me.”
She looks down at her tablet and scrolls across the screen. “Isabella Carson. You’re her husband?”
Good. The records have been changed.
I glance down and for the first time am grateful the woman who haunts me is heavily sedated. If she knew I was spinning this, she’d try to wrestle me to the ground.