Page 47 of Phoenix Rising

“What do you think he will do when he sees us?” Talia wondered.

“I think he’ll be ecstatic,” Hunter guessed. “Unless he found out who we are, and I don’t see that happening. Our names were kept out of all the reports.”

“He thinks we were his confidants,” Talia agreed. “Maybe we can reestablish that connection and get him to tell us what he did to Paige before we take him down like the rabid dog he is.”

“Have I told you lately how much I love it when you get all excited to nab the bad guys?”

“No, you have not,” she pouted. She, the former Mossad agent who was always serious, focused, and deadly, had become a woman who lived for her husband’s many compliments.

“Well, I do. Love you, that is. So much.”

“I love you too, my love.”

Chapter Fourteen

Reese’s arm throbbed, but it was nothing a couple of ibuprofen wouldn’t fix. He didn’t need to go to the emergency room. Hospitals were to be avoided at all costs, in his opinion.

He couldn’t believe someone had shot at them. If they had hit Audria, he wasn’t sure what he would’ve done. Usually, he was the one who remained calm in any situation, but the thought of her being injured and bleeding made his gut clench so painfully that he almost doubled over. He was thankful it was him and not her.

Reese should’ve felt guilty for making Audria keep her shirt on earlier, but he didn’t. He knew it was a line crossed, one that let her know how much she meant to him. Again, he didn’t care. The thought of those men looking at her had all his caveman tendencies roaring to life. She was his now.

Funny, he’d never been territorial about his ex-wife. Gennie was a gorgeous woman with a womanly figure that turned heads everywhere she went. She was amply endowed and soft, whereas Audria was muscular and toned. When Gennie wore a bikini at the beach, men’s eyes goggled as she sashayed by. He’d never once told her to cover up.

As realization set in, Reese felt as if a team of Iditarod racing dogs had loaded his heart onto a sled and taken off in a full gallop. Audria meant more to him than Genevieve ever had. He enjoyed spending time with her and talking to her, and after last night, he could add making love to the mix. The thought of something happening to her caused him acute physical pain. He loved her. He loved Audria.

“You can shower first,” Audria offered, snapping him from his thoughts. “I need to call the office and fill them in on what happened.”

Reese was tempted to ask if she wanted to join him, but he needed time to process his epiphany. Love wasn’t something he took lightly. Though he knew they cared for him, his parents hadn’t been demonstrative when he’d been growing up. He had thought he loved Gennie, and indeed, he cared for her.

No, it was better that he bathed alone. He would need more time to do what he wanted to Audria, and they had to be at the police station before Detective Beaumont sent a squad car and had them arrested. He grabbed some clothes and disappeared into the bathroom.

Reese was able to shower the dirt and debris off his body without getting the wound wet, using a washrag to remove the dried blood. His arm protested when he put on a clean shirt, reminding him to dig up some painkillers.

Audria was off the phone when he stepped out. “How’s your arm?”

“Fine.”

She pursed her lips but said nothing as she continued to the bathroom. Soon, he heard the water kick on.

Reese thought about how much to tell Detective Beaumont. There was no keeping Paige’s name out of the reports now. The one piece of information he would withhold was their suspicion that Guru Phoenix might be Richard Caraway, a.k.a. Elijah The Lightkeeper. If their hunch was correct and Paige had discovered his identity, he might’ve already killed her. Reese hoped Talia and Hunter could drag the details from him. He trusted Audria’s coworkers more than the local authorities and his own FBI team.

Wow, another bombshell to process at a later time.

When Audria reappeared, they headed to the parking garage and climbed into the SUV. Thinking again about the close call earlier today had Reese reaching for her hand. Maybe it was to reassure himself that she was alive and unharmed. Or it was possible that he just wanted to touch her. It’d become his obsession.

Once they were buckled in and he was driving out of the parking lot, Audria said, “I’ve been thinking.”

“Uh oh,” he teased.

She wrinkled her nose at him before continuing. “I don’t think we should tell Detective Beaumont about Richard Caraway. Before you . . . what did you say?”

“That I agreed with you.”

When she remained mute, he glanced over to see her eyes wide and mouth gaping open. “What?”

“I thought I’d have to convince you to withhold potential evidence from authorities. You’ve always been a stickler about following the rules. You drilled it into our heads.”

He had, and it didn’t even bother him a little that he was breaking them now. “I’m not working for the Bureau on this.”

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