Page 30 of Cooper's Command

“You’re already in pain.”

“You won’t… hurt…” She pursed her lips together, the thought of lying there, alone, even if he was in the chair, sending a ripple of fear through her veins. It was new and unnerving and she didn’t know how to tell him she needed him without confessing far more. “Coop…”

He shook his head, talking to someone over his shoulder before he smiled, again. She closed her eyes, waking with him snuggled against her, her injured side propped up on some pillows. Had he shuffled her around? Changed positions while she’d been hanging in some sort of limbo? What she could only describe as a time slip. She didn’t know — didn’t care. Not with his heartbeat thrumming beneath her cheek. His arm resting against her back.

Cooper gave her a light squeeze, dropping a kiss on the top of her head. “Sleep. I’ll be here when you wake up. So, no more ninja moves or trying to escape, or Kian’s going to tear me a new one.”

She must have agreed or nodded because he smiled against her forehead as he gave her another kiss. She burrowed against him, trusting that, at least for this moment, she was safe.

CHAPTER 9

Seven days.

That’s how long she’d been stuck on the sidelines, recovering. Time Nova didn’t have when every law enforcement officer on the island was searching for her. Which was bad enough. But if her hunch was right, the warrant had likely gone federal, which meant Cooper and his team had been hiding her from the U.S. Marshal Service, too. A freaking complication that was likely to be what eventually bit them all in the ass because…

It was insane.

But what made matters worse was the fact she still didn’t remember everything. Namely, why she’d gone to the DEA office to begin with. Simmons barging in and firing on her was crystal clear. As was the fact Paulin had already been on the floor when she’d reached his office. But everything before and after was murky. Like shadows looming underwater. Shapes that never quite materialized.

She understood why the gauntlet ride was hazy. She’d been shot in the arm and side — had a graze across her ribs. The blood loss mixed with all the adrenaline had played havoc with her memory. But why her time at the initial crime scene was still blacked out was a mystery even Kian couldn’t answer.

Sure, he’d muttered stuff about her state of mind. That she’d been reeling from Cartwright reassigning her and Tate’s death. But she remembered the meeting in Hawk’s office like it was yesterday. So, why those thirty minutes on scene were blank…

She mulled it over, grabbing one of Cooper’s shirts. Either Blake or Emery had given her some clothes, but she preferred Cooper’s if possible. Something about the faint hint of citrus and pine soothed her nerves. And with her world on the verge of collapse, any kind of distraction was welcomed.

Having the stitches that hadn’t dissolved pull as she dragged the shirt over her head didn’t improve her mood any. Clawed away that initial surge of endorphins from wearing Cooper’s clothes. And she couldn’t help but wonder if she was destined to spend what little time they had left before the law finally caught up to them stuck chasing ghosts.

That image of a shadow played inside her head. What had been happening fairly regularly over the past week. The link she couldn’t quite make. She’d hoped the mandatory rest would make a difference but it had only served as a reminder that she’d manifested the very outcome her boss had warned her about.

That maybe she was the problem, after all.

Nova groaned inwardly. Tate would have busted her ass for all the negative thinking, quoting that the only way to win the fight was to live it. Breathe it in as if it were oxygen. That the only person who could undermine her was the one staring back in the mirror.

Which started with her busting out of the room and stepping into the fray. Cooper wouldn’t approve, but she’d convince him. Bribe him if needed. Because she knew his team had been digging for answers since she’d called Cooper’s cell and asked for help. And it was time she rejoined the fight.

Voices sounded in the distance as she eased open the door and stepped into the hallway. Not that it extended all that far.Some obscure shack on a cliff on a remote section of the island. Nova wasn’t sure how they’d secured it, especially when it was the third place they’d ventured since Hawk’s office, but at least it had given her the chance to recover. Get her strength back enough to return to duty.

Cooper was at the small propane stove making tea when she stopped just shy of the entrance. Watching him pour water shouldn’t affect her the way it did. Make the room feel warmer. And was she breathing harder from the short walk down the hall, or was it simply staring at Cooper? Wishing he’d finally hold true to his promise that they’d pick up where they’d left off.

Injuries aside, she knew he was still questioning her reaction to being pulled from Columbia. That misunderstanding she’d intended to clear up before her life had gone off the rails. The kind of conversation that was bound to crop up at the least convenient time.

Whiskey rose into a sitting position, tongue hanging out one side, ears twitching. The dog looked at Cooper then back to her, those soulful brown eyes watching NovawatchCooper. Cooper must have felt her staring because he froze, then turned, shaking his head as he crossed his arms over his massive chest. The one she’d used as a pillow the past week. That she wanted to use for the foreseeable future. “You said you’d wait for me to bring you the tea.”

She smiled, glancing at Bellamy and Rusty when they looked over at her. “I can’t stay in that room forever.”

“You can if it means you’ll heal.”

“I’ve already healed.”

Cooper snorted. “You’re better. Probably won’t drop dead on us at any given moment. But you’re not healed.”

“We don’t have time for me to be a hundred percent. Besides, I’ve carried out entire missions with cartel assholes in worse condition than I am now, so…”

“Highlighting that you’ve made questionable decisions in the past isn’t exactly a convincing argument, sweetheart.”

Sweetheart.

One word shouldn’t make her feel giddy. But even with the obvious distance between them, he still used the endearment as if he wasn’t quite conscious he was saying it until it hung between them like a promise hoping to take root.

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