Page 77 of Operation Heartbeat

“Is one of them close to Fort Leonard Woods?” She leaned over the paper, questioning all the work she’d done.

“Best port option is Virginia.”

“Do we know when Deniz sent the last shipment there?”

He had all the information locked in his head and plucked it out without hesitation. “Ten days ago. But it was diverted by that tropical storm and arrived in New Orleans instead.”

Her brows pinched. “It would need to go by land to Missouri, whether it went to Virginia or Louisiana. Ryan…what was in that shipment?”

He shook his head. “Deniz didn’t know—he just took the order. The authorities know the shipment was diverted, but as of two days ago when I received intel, they didn’t have eyes on it.” He snatched his phone off the table. “I have to call this in.”

“Fort Leonard Woods wasn’t a base that Bayar visited or took pictures of. Maybe I’m wrong about the cryptogram.”

“Why do you say that?”

“The person who created this isn’t stupid. Only a stupid person would target a military base with all that security.”

“You’re not wrong, Professor.”

His gruff way of saying the word left her with tingles. Whenever Con said that, she got an entirely different meaning from the word professor—like he was speaking in his own code.

“I’ll be right back.” He stood and walked into the hotel room, leaving her outside to puzzle over the implications.

She slipped her fingers through her hair. She wasn’t an investigator. She was a puzzle-solver. And none of this made any sense. Targeting specific buildings or even streets in Chinatown was stupid. Targeting bases was a fast track to prison.

Could the group with the geometric tattoo be behind it? With Bayar dead, they had few answers.

She moved toward her seat, but her nerves were firing too much to sit still. She could strip off her clothes and do a few laps in the pool, but that wasn’t the wisest decision either—she had to be ready to work when Con needed her.

She paced in front of the pool, gaze fixed on the skyline and her mind rioting.

So much happened since their arrival in Turkey. So much time working to solve the cryptogram. They’d gone to stake out that building where they believed Deniz’s wife was held, the concert…thesex.

Followed by Con’s job offer.

She whirled to walk the length of the pool again.

Working for Blackout Charlie doing things that she loved sounded like a no-brainer, but nothing was that easy.

She began a short list of pros and cons in her head.Cons.She huffed out a chuckle.

Con number one—she enjoyed teaching. Filling eager minds was one of her passions.

One pro of leaving the universitywasgetting away from her ex. And surely she’d get a better parking spot at the Blackout base. That mansion was huge. Heck, she’d probably get her own spot in the enormous garage.

There was no denying that she’d be closer to Con—at least in proximity. But he wouldn’t always be in New Jersey at the Blackout base. He’d be gone a lot, and it was unlikely that she’d be traveling with the Blackout team.

Was that a pro or con? Right this minute, she couldn’t tell if being close to him was a good idea or a bad one.

It would be a catastrophe for her heart. Hot sex was nice, but she was already getting far too attached to the SEAL.

Maybe they weren’t that far apart. He’d taken the time to learn how she ticked. Few people did, and she’d never encountered a man who got her the way Con did.

But she wasn’t a woman who dipped her toes in the water—she jumped in headfirst. Hell, she’d already done that with Con.

Fallen in love. Could he say the same?

Decision made. She was going to turn down the offer. She’d rather go to bed early with a book than not know where she stood with Con.

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