Page 22 of Javier

I ripped open a bag of beef jerky and passed out some protein drink pouches for sharing. I’d only brought supplies for two people and two days, and yet my companions were delighted. They acted as if I’d served a twelve-course meal straight out of Astor House’s Versailles-inspired dining room. Under the tenuous light of a cloudy sky, I stole glances at Missy as the crickets sang, the frogs croaked, and the breeze whispered softly between the trees.

Shit. This sounded like an overture to romance inside my head. The only thing missing was a red crab singingThe Little Mermaid’sKiss the Girl. Thankfully, the nuns were around and I had crap to do.

“Where would ye be going, ye big fella?” Sister Janet asked when I got up.

“To work.” I chewed on a jerky strip and shouldered my ruck. “You ladies finish eating and take a nap. Be back in a while.”

Missy’s gaze followed me as I stalked out of the camp. I felt the weight of her chocolate eyes burning on my back even after I was outside her visual reach. Sebastian the crab kept singing thatKiss the Girlsong in my ear in an annoying loop I couldn’t shake.

Sha la la la la la.

I blamed one of my teammates, K-man, for the stupid melodies stuck in my head. I blamed Goddess, too. Lately, during our down times, King, Thena, and I had watched way too many Disney movies.

I secured the camp, setting up a few motion detectors connected to my Tak. If intruders approached, it would alert me. I scouted the area for additional threats, then went down my checklist, replacing my batteries, checking my weapons, and taking inventory of my ammo.

When I was done with business, I took off my tactical vest and clipped it to my ruck. I slipped out of my jacket and put it away as well. Hygiene was key to operational readiness. No soldier in their right mind wanted lice, sores, or infections jeopardizing one’s mission. I stripped off my holster, boots, and socks, and working around my basic layer of clothing, did my standard on-the-go sanitation routine, a wipe down, brief, but field-efficient.

Wearing only my T-shirt and my cargos, I felt lighter and much cooler. I rolled my neck and shoulders to work out the day’s tension, then put my socks and boots back on. I checked my mag and returned it to my Glock right before I slid it back in its holster and strapped it to the back of my pants. Then I went for a thorough tooth brushing. Every Marine who was worth a fart knew that a toothbrush was an essential mission tool.

A glance at my watch told me it was time to check in. I couldn’t wait to share my good news with the team. I dialed up, but all I got was static. What was up with Control? I was on time, but there was no one on the airwaves waiting for me. I fiddled with the settings. Dagger was always a stickler for the schedule. Why wasn’t he or Mina on the line?

I went down my backup channels. White noise all the way. Something was up, but what?

It figured. I had the best update and no one to share it with. For once, my mission had panned out better than expected. Not only had I confirmed my target’s whereabouts as required, but I’d actually located Missy Astor.I’d found her.

I’d turned an intel gathering trip into a retrieval op. Now all I had to do was drop off the nuns and get back to home base with the prize in hand. After all these years of failure and anguish, what could be better than that?

Meeting Missy Astor, my mind volunteered out of nowhere. Holding her. Kissing her. Having her as my traveling companion. Being the beneficiary of her shy glances and kind smiles. Whistling some stupid showtune for her amusement. Sitting next to her under the outdoors’s big fucking umbrella, listening to the frogs croaking and the crickets chirping all around us.

Fuck me. It almost sounded as if I really liked the girl.

Nah. You’re just riding a high. It’d been a while since I’d felt proud of anything I’d done.Keep the streak going, Guzman.

I tried to make contact for fifteen mikes straight, but I got nothing. Frustrated, I glanced at my watch. By now, the satellite had moved on. Maybe the CIA had gotten wiser about hackers piggy-backing on their satellites. Yeah, that was probably it. I’d have to try direct contact later.

After checking the perimeter one more time, I returned to the campsite and propped up my gear under the jacaranda tree by the dirt road. My carbine remained as always with me, as did my handgun and my knife. Across the clearing, the nuns were asleep in their makeshift beds, snoring like Marines at the barracks. But Missy?

She wasn’t around.

And neither was her little backpack.

Chapter Seven

Javier

Fuck this. I trapped a roar in my throat. Where the hell was she?

A shot of adrenaline quickened my pulse and went straight to heat my head. Had the little hellion decided to part ways with me? Had I offended her again? I had sort of apologized for the wholesome thing, even though it was meant as a true compliment.

Did I do something even more crass and stupid that spooked her? Something I didn’t even register?The gods knew my mouth was my worst enemy. What if she’d noticed the lust radiating from me like nuclear blasts?That would be enough to send her running.

My guts clenched. Losing her now would be a total disaster. Worse, she was vulnerable out there on her own. She could get hurt or caught. Hell, she wasn’t even armed. I’d hate myself forever if she came to harm.

I crouched down and traced her footprints on the ground. They were fresh.You’d better be real close, Angel. Otherwise, we were gonna havethetalk.

Moving quiet as the dead, I followed her tracks back to the lake. It didn’t take me long to find her, standing at my ten o’clock, surrounded by a wild cluster of flowering hibiscus. The bushes provided some privacy from most prying eyes, but not from me. On the other hand, crouching behind the boat, hidden among the grasses, and blending with the background in my cammies, I was invisible to her.

Maybe I should’ve announced myself, but my brain quit and my mouth went bone dry the moment she took off her T-shirt and gave me a glimpse of her long, smooth back. She slid her leggings down her shapely legs. She stood there, wearingonly a pair of panties and a matching sports bra.

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