Page 59 of Hazard

Breakneck shrugged. “It’s obvious and so real that anyone can see it.”

“You make a good argument, Kelly. Do I see JAG in your future?”

He gave her one of his mischievous smiles. “Maybe. You never know.” He took a few steps away and then turned back. “With real love, nothing else matters, without it, nothing else is enough.”

She just stood there and absorbed his words. How he saw so clearly for one so young was phenomenal, but she was completely shaken down to her foundations. He was right, and her frustration escalated. If she could just have five minutes with Archer “Hazard” Booth.

But it wasn’t going to happen. She tried several times to talk to Hazard, but either one or the other of them had been pulled away, and so when it was time to ride to the airport and go home, she hadn’t had a moment to speak to him. She and Iceman carried on a glaring contest.

Apparently, Anna had detected a threat, and the DEA plane had been re-routed to a different area of the airport. The SEAL team would take a convoy to the airport as a decoy, concealing the fact that Alzate wasn’t inside one of the vehicles. She, the DEA agents, and Alzate would ride in more discrete vehicles on a totally different route.

She made one last ditch effort to talk to him when she saw him in the lobby as they all assembled for the trip. But Anna pulled her away one last time, and when she turned back, they were gone.

Resigning, she would have to wait to talk to him, maybe even after she returned to the US. She could always call him, but it wouldn’t be the same. It sucked that she knew that hidden shadow inside her, and now that it had been chased away by the light of revelation, she was free.

She had hidden any hope of happiness, the bitterness of Jamie’s death killing anything that had surfaced when they had made plans together, plans that had never come to fruition, just as her mother had said, and she had been brutal in pointing that all out to Leigh.

As she settled into the nondescript sedan and buckled in, more enlightenment broke her open, releasing what had been festering for so long.

Leigh had done what she had to do to keep herself whole, to face the bleakness of the world she thought she was trapped in. To keep herself from whimsy and spontaneity, to keep her weighted down with a sense of duty, with feelings of accountability, with a hard hidden truth. No one will ever be there for you. You have to be tough enough to handle it yourself and take whatever you need for yourself.

No. Those were not her words. Those were her mother’s words, a philosophy that she had followed after she’d lost Jamie, never realizing that she had incorporated the harsh reality her mother had painted for her over so many years. Calling off her engagement, quitting her golden opportunity job, applying to the DA’s office, and becoming a US attorney had all been to hurt her mother, to get back at her for being such a money-grubbing, mean, belittling bitch.

Leigh wanted to hit back at something for the loss of her dreams instead of going after what she really wanted—a deep abiding love, children that she could nurture, and…to teach. God, all she ever wanted to do was teach.

That deep abiding love was Archer, and she knew it wasn’t going to be easy to love him. That he was going to take her out of her comfort zone and tell her to follow her heart, and her heart would drop her where she needed to be. Change was scary, but it was also life-altering.

She just wanted to get the opportunity to tell him what he meant to her. She hoped that she would get that chance.

They attacked the convoy as soon as they got in through the gates of the airport. Gunfire came from in front of them and to the back. The SEALs were ready, along with the CNP, and it was a short-lived rescue attempt for their despicable boss.

Hazard’s heart was heavy that he hadn’t gotten a chance to talk to Leigh, but he still grinned every so often at how she had stood up to Iceman. He had been livid and chewed him out for fifteen full minutes, assigning him the shit task of cleaning all the weapons in the arsenal. He took the punishment because he had been wrong not to clear the whole stupid situation with Ice before he put his life and Leigh’s and Jose’s hands. He was only glad that Jose, regardless of his methods, didn’t want to hurt either of them. But he could throttle the man for involving Leigh in his dangerous scheme to save his girlfriend. He wanted to kick Jose’s ass. He couldn’t, and he wouldn’t duck the blame.

Iceman came up to him. “If you run, you might get there before her plane takes off,” he said. “It’s a straight shot from here. Try not to scare the civilians.”

Hazard turned and sprinted away from the team, running full out. By the time he made it to the plane, his breathing was ragged but had nothing to do with his out-of-control dash. He spotted her heading toward the steps.

“Leelee!” he shouted. She turned, her face suffused with joy, and in her damn high heels, she rushed toward him. She threw herself into his arms, wrapping them so tightly around his neck, he could barely breathe. But he didn’t care; he held her like she was precious gold.

“I thought I would miss you,” he said, his voice raw, his insides a tangle of uncertainty. She wrapped her hand around his vest as if she wasn’t going to let him go.

“I’m so glad you got here in time.”

“Maybe you’ll call me or text me how you’re doing every so often?”

She stared at him, her expression unsmiling, then she looked away, her hand still wrapped around his vest in a tight grip.

“Maybe I will,” she said, her voice very soft.

He watched her for a moment, wondering why she was avoiding looking at him, suddenly feeling shaky inside, his chest filling up with all kinds of emotions he couldn’t define. God, but he loved her. His expression compressed, he straightened, the DEA guy behind him swirling his finger in the air to tell them to speed it up. They were lifting off.

He’d like to give the guy a finger of his own.

He cupped her chin and lifted her face. Ravaged was the only word he could latch onto.

She stared at him for an instant. “I heard what you said to me.”

He frowned. “When was that?”

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