Page 138 of One Last Stand

The look on his face could almost make a woman reconsider. But she just hadn’t . . . it didn’t feel . . .

“I suppose that makes sense. To be honest, I was surprised, during the weekly meeting with your mother, to hear that you were still here.”

Of course he had a weekly meeting with her mother.

“I had heard that your friends left—and I thought you’d left with them.”

“No. It seems as though my life in Alaska is . . . well, maybe I’m headed in a different direction.”

“Hmm.” He stirred his tea, then fished out the bag. “Indeed, I can almost see the Alaskan landscape in your expression.”

No, he could see Shep in her expression, the longing for him, his devastating smile, his strong hands in hers, the sense that he was always there, behind her, beside her, in front of her. Her best friend.

Everything inside her simply ached.

Luka took a sip of tea, set it back in the saucer. “It’s wild and untamed, correct?”

Oh, still talking about Alaska,because she’d hardly call Shep untamed.

Although, he’d kissed her a little like that . . . twice.

Two perfect, unleashed moments when she thought she’d tasted his heart. Her eyes burned, but she blinked and turned to Luka. “Yes, but no. It’s . . . beautiful and big and rugged, and yes, it can be dangerous, but also . . . it’s a place to restart your life . . . maybe find yourself.”

He considered her. “You were flying search and rescue, correct? On some team?”

“Did my mother tell you that?”

“I believe it was your friend Shep.”

She frowned. “I don’t—when?—”

“He made quite a ruckus at the castle during our gala. I think your mother is still trying to sort it all out with my mother.”

Her mouth opened. “You . . . what? What do you know about that?”

He frowned. “My father may be the sovereign, but he’s delegated management of Cryptex to me. So yes, I am aware of his attempted breach of our complex.”

His attempted breach. “Shep?”

“Oh.” He grimaced. “I’ve let the cat out of the bag, haven’t I?”

“What cat? What bag?”

“So the fact is, I saw your friend Shep that night, after you disappeared.”

Correction—after I waskidnapped. But she didn’t say that. Who knew how much?—

“He told me you were abducted by some bad players. The Russian Bratva? You had me quite worried, but he said he and his team would find you. That’s when I realized that your friend . . . well, I don’t know how to tell you this, Delaney, but I believe your friend Shep is a spy.”

Oh. She managed to keep her face unmarked by the revelation.

“Let’s just say that he told me he had a plan to upload a virus into your Cryptex account. I think he feared that he’d gotten you somehow caught up in his clandestine game.”

Right.He probably had to saysomethingabout the blackout and the sirens, so . . . And the best way to lie was to tell the truth, right? “I see.”

“I spoke to him briefly during the panic, after the lights were restored. It was then that he mentioned that you might have been abducted. Later, he found me—he said you’d been taken into the mountains and they were going to find you. And then he told me the entire story, about how the Bratva wanted to steal your money and was coercing you to give it to them.”

“He told you that?”

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