Page 50 of Callahan's Haven

Then there he was, filling the space while his beautiful blue eyes went passed Solace and zeroed in on her, his smile taking her breath—even through all the black greasepaint. Within seconds she was caught up against his chest with hard Kevlar digging into her breasts and her legs dangling off the floor.

“God, Haven.” His big body trembled as he held her close.

“They killed you.” She’d thought her eyes would be permanently dry after the last few hours, but she found tears tracking down her cheeks as she hugged him the best she could. “You were shot.” She ran her hands up and down his back before leaning back and carefully touching the bandages covering the side of his head by his temple. “Your head…”

She gently kissed his lips while carefully wrapping her legs around his muscular thighs and holding him as tight as she dared. He was alive and she wasn’t letting him go. Then he was kissing her back with an abandon she couldn’t help but match, and she relished in it—savoring the taste she’d thought lost to her forever.

God, how would she gave gone on without this man—this man who was holding her and kissing her as if she was everything to him too. She stroked his stubbled cheeks and pulled her lips enough from his to whisper, “I love you.” She searched his red-rimmed gaze holding hers and breathed him in. “I love you so much.”

Cal’s massive arms tightened around her as he buried his face in her hair. “I love you too,” he whispered, his voice choked with emotion. “And I don’t ever want to be without you again.”

“I don’t either. When I thought you were…were…” Haven shivered and wrapped her arms around his neck. “Promise you won’t do that to me again. Okay?”

“I promise,” he said, running his mouth over her cheek to her lips before whispering again, “I promise.” His kiss ate at her mouth, taking her to thoughts of how soon she would be able to get him alone andtendto his wounds.

From the doorway a loud cough interrupted them. Cal slowly released her mouth and turned with her still attached to him. Garrett stood there grinning with a young man standing beside him she vaguely recognized but couldn’t quite place. And then the young man smiled.

She took in a quick breath. It was the lost student from the previous week who’d been looking for Lawrence Hall. What was he doing here?

“It’s done,” Garrett said while Declan came up behind him.

Haven looked at each of them, fairly certain her confusion was evident on her face. She leaned back to get a good look at Cal’s pleased expression.

“What don’t I know?”

16

The twelve-inchtactical Bowie knife weighed heavily on Duncan’s back in its leather holster. Two strikes—maybe three. But with the right placement between the other man’s ribs into his lung and then another into his liver, it would more than do the job.

At first he’d been concerned about making it through security with the thing, but the few knowing looks he’d received as he’d been passed through had quickly squelched any worry on his part.

He glanced over at a laughing Mazhar Sadik. The rebel leader had to have known he had a price on his head, but he’d arrived in good faith anyhow with his younger sister, Aylin, and a few of his generals. Duncan doubted he would be expecting the strike to come from him. That was probably why he’d beenchosen.

Regret filled Duncan as he let his gaze rest on Aylin’s smiling right profile. The young woman was quite impressive. She’d not only accompanied her brother, but had acted as his second and voice during most of the five-hour negotiations. He held back a chuckle. The officials in attendance hadn’t been ready for her, only seeing a lovely young woman with piercing sea green eyes and a pleasing figure.

It had been fascinating to watch as their initial indulgence of having her at the table had morphed into smug complacency when they’d realized Aylin andnotMazhar would be handling the negotiations. That hadn’t lasted long, with their confidence in controlling the talks gradually turning into outright hostility when the intense, no nonsense young woman had managed to pry concessions the rebels sought from most of the Turkish leaders.

Duncan hadn’t been able to keep from grinning when he’d caught the mischievous twinkle in her eyes each time they’d groused at something they’d had to concede. She hadn’t cared, and it was clear she was thoroughly enjoying their discomfort, especially from the most obnoxious of the officials who had taken every opportunity to disparage her. Aylin had ended up outright laughing in his face at one point, the scar marring the skin under her left eye pulling tight, before turning to someone else and effectively dismissing him.

It had been the only time during the negotiations tension had gotten to the point Duncan thought he might have to intervene. As it was, the governor over the province had managed to keep the man in check.

Now that it was over, Duncan had to admit, much of the success of the summit was due to Aylin, with Mazhar stepping in only when necessary. The two of them made a good team.

He held in a groan. What was he doing? It did him no good to dwell on the young rebels and how much he genuinely liked and admired them. So he brought his focus back to the talkative official who had yet to notice Duncan wasn’t paying attention to much of what he was saying.

Politicians.

The man was also one of the last holdouts in agreeing toanyof the negotiated terms, but he had finally relented to some of them at the Minister’s prompting—not as many as Duncan or Sadik would have liked, but enough the rebel leader could go back to his people and let them know relief was on its way.

But, of course, that wasn’t going to happen. Mazhar was going to be dead in less than fifteen minutes. Aylin was a strong woman, but he couldn’t see her being accepted in her brother’s stead by his people. Perhaps if she were older—

“Colonel Sheppard,” the governor of the province said, interrupting the lesser official who quickly made himself scarce. “I want to thank you for making this a priority.” Duncan shook his proffered hand. “It’s good to work with a man who is sothoroughin all his dealings and can be counted on to do what needs to be done.”

Duncan raised his brow at the other man who glanced at Sadik and then back.

“I had a lot of incentive,” Duncan said, slightly squeezing the other man’s hand. The governor clenched his jaw and pulled his hand away. “But then, a man in your position would know all about what an incentive it is to protect your people and do what’s right for them… To keep them safe.” He gave the other man a hard stare, when what he really wanted to do was knock his smiling teeth down his throat.

“I certainly do.” The governor inclined his head. “It was good meeting you.Iyi ol,” he said, walking away.

---