Page 152 of Chemistry: The Chemist

“No. All women. Everyone. And, they’re his sisters.”

“Oh, wow.”

“Exactly. We have absolutely nothing on them. How they were able to get a number and location on Chem, I’ll never know. We’ve been blind for two years. I lucked up, Art. I just wish he’d never taken me out of that club and let me go into that meeting.”

“Why didn’t he?” she wondered out loud.

She was cringing inside. I could see the change in her facial expression. It matched the contortion of my stomach.

“He hated the idea of anyone else… any other man having access to me.”

“Sounds like any man I know with a love interest, girlfriend, or wife.”

“He’s not like any other man, Art.”

“I can tell.”

“He was obsessed.”

“As a man should be, Egypt.”

“His obsession ran deep. Really deep.”

“Unfortunately, it cost him his freedom.”

“I cost him his freedom.”

“Don’t blame yourself. You had a job to do and you did the best you could with the feelings that were already circulating before your discovery. You’ve made that clear. Don’t beat yourself up about it. You did what you had to. If the team had been better at their jobs, they wouldn’t have sent you in blind.”

“I was a part of the team, Art.”

“And willing to risk more than any of them. Big risk, big reward, babe. You deserved the love Chemistry bestowed upon you, despite everything else. And I will still hold hope it isn’t the end of such a beautiful beginning.”

“Please don’t. Use that hope for something else. Something worthy. I’ve made my bed.”

“You’re worthy. Your heart is worthy. Your love is worthy. Your happiness is worthy.”

A knock at the door startled me. I sprung from the bed in pursuit of my service weapon. I wasn’t expecting anyone. If there was someone at the door, they weren’t here for laughs and giggles. The thought of my best friend becoming a casualty of a war she wasn’t directly involved in had my palms sweaty and my nerves rattled. I flushed with heat.

“Stay up here. Whatever you do, don’t make a sound, and do not come downstairs. No matter what happens, no matter what you hear. Do not come downstairs. Tonight is not the night to be my hero, Art. Save yourself. Make it back home to your husband,” I explained with my hands on both sides of her face. “Understand.”

The knocking began again, this time louder and harder. I dashed from the bed, ready to put distance between Art and me.

“Egypt.”

I hadn’t gotten far from the bed when she called out to me. I whipped my body around, wondering if she was trying to make this her last night on earth.

“Art,” I whispered, chastising her with my eyes. I placed my index finger on my lips, reminding her of the need for silence I’d explained seconds earlier.

“It’s your mother.”

She lifted her vibrating phone, showing me the face on her screen. My mother’s smile quickly eased my thunderous heartbeat. She was the eye of the storm tearing through my body and making a mess of me.

“She shouldn’t be here,” I admitted.

As much comfort as she brought me, her safety was my top priority. Protecting one asset in my world was much easier than protecting two of them.

“You need her, Egypt.”

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