Page 21 of Logan

“They took out a lease on this house about two months ago.” Flipping to the next page of photographs, he continued, “And these people seem to be the most frequent visitors. MalikJones, Rashad Smith, and Nafisa Fariq. All university students majoring in biology or chemistry. There have been other visitors since they’ve been under suspicion, but these are the most frequent.”

“How on earth do you already know all that?”

Logan looked up, his brows lowering. “I may have just been handed this mission a couple of days ago, but DHS has been gathering intel for a while.”

Eyes widening, she asked, “But if they know all that, then why are we needed?”

“Not all intel can be gathered by computers or satellites or?—”

“Satellites?” She leaned back in her chair, shaking her head. “But…but…that sounds like something out of a movie.”

“Movies are shit. I work in the real world.”

Vivian sucked in her lips, her mind swirling with questions.

He held her gaze. “What are you thinking?”

Her gaze jumped to his. “How did you know I was pondering something?”

“Viv, you’d better not play poker. Your face hides nothing. In fact…” His mouth pinched as he rubbed his jaw. Leaning back in his seat, he pinned her with a hard stare and sighed. “This whole thing may be a big mistake.”

She bristled. “Are you saying I’m a mistake?”

His gaze was piercing as he nodded slowly, but his voice was softer. “That’s exactly what I’m saying.”

“I’ll have you know?—”

Throwing his hand up, he said, “Don’t get riled up. This isn’t personal. But why the hell did the DHS security think it was a good idea to put a woman with no investigative, security, or military experience out here? Viv, your face is an open book, easy for anyone to read.”

“I was sent to analyze the materials and compounds they’re using and creating. I can test what you find and let you know what it is.”

“And our cover? Jesus, it’s more than just us living in the same house. We’ll see them out in the yard…maybe at the store. Sure, you can act the part of my wife from a distance, but how will you ever shutter your face so they can’t see your suspicion when we’re close?”

Shoving her chair back, she stood quickly and entered the living room. Embarrassment and frustration moved through her. He might be a man of few words, but he sure knew how to make her feel inadequate with those words.

Logan sighed heavily, then she heard the sound of his chair scraping along the wooden floor. As she stood motionless in the middle of the room, his boot steps came closer until he placed his hands on her shoulders and gently turned her around.

“Viv, I’m sorry,” he said. “I swear, I’m not trying to be a hard-ass. I’m just used to working either alone or with a trained team.”

Vivian’s eyes stayed on his chest, not trusting herself to look higher although his muscles right in front of her face were distracting. Nodding jerkily, she continued to stare straight ahead. She blinked while refusing to let him see the moisture in her eyes.

He lifted her chin with his finger, and for a long moment, the silence hung between them. Finally, he said, “Let’s get back to planning, okay?”

Shrugging, she lifted her gaze. “What’s the point? As far as you’re concerned, I’m not right for this job.”

Logan simply tugged on her arm, leading her to the sofa. Once seated, he twisted to face her. “I was a SEAL.”

A SEAL?At that pronouncement, Vivian’s gaze jumped to his as her mouth opened in stunned silence.

“Guess you know something about SEALs.”

Not wanting to admit she read SEAL romances, she snorted. “Not officially, but yeah, I know a little. Mostly from TV, movies, and…uh...books.” She thought about what she knew—they were some of the best of the best, could take on any mission, and were highly trained. Understanding dawned, and defeat filled her voice. “I’m so not what you’re used to. You’re right… this is a mistake.”

They sat quietly for a few minutes, and she tried to think how her superiors would react if she went home in disgrace. While she’d never had aspirations of espionage, she still hated to fail at anything.

Finally, Logan said, “Look, maybe we’re both thinking of this all wrong.” Her brows lifted in surprise, and he continued, “In a SEAL team, we each had our own strengths, our own particular jobs that we were to accomplish, but we worked as one—seamless. We spent so much time together that we could read each other’s faces and body language.”

A faraway expression filled his eyes for a few seconds, then he seemed to snap back to the present. “We knew the mission, planned it out, but could change on a dime and reassess what needed to be done. And this only came with intense, twenty-four-seven training over a long period. When I started taking on assignments by myself, I had no one else to consider in my decisions.”

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