Page 124 of Better Late Than Never

I had no idea how much he’d actually seen. I’d been careful to make sure he didn’t follow me, since that had always been a possibility. Had I let my guard down? Been so caught up in seeing Connor that I got complacent? Hell. Maybe. I’d never noticed him behind me, but maybe hehadtailed me.

Did that mean he’d personally witnessed me coming or going from Connor’s house? Had he just seen me in the area? Had he caught a glimpse of us sharing a flirty look as we passed in the halls and decided to fish for a reaction? That was the worst part—without knowing how much he knew, I couldn’t shut him down without potentially confirming something he only suspected.

Fuck my life.

I rubbed my eyes and exhaled into the silence of the waiting area. Connor and I were going to have to have a conversation. If it spooked him into ending things with me, then I really couldn’t blame him. I’d known from the start he was only going to risk so much just to sleep with me and deal with my nightmares. Even after he’d said this felt like more, even after he’d floated the idea of continuing after I retired—he was going to drop me like the hot mess I was once he knew someone had caught our scent. Especially when he knewwhohad caught our scent.

Some part of me wanted to wait until after we’d fooled around tonight. Just enjoy one last roll in the hay with him before he knew how close we were to being outed.

I couldn’t do that to him, though. I couldn’t ask him to take a bigger risk than he already knew he was.

My heart sank deeper into the pit of my stomach.

I had to tell him. Tonight.

And just knowing that conversation was coming…

I already missed him.

CHAPTER35

CONNOR

It didn’t matter how long I’d been in the Navy or how far I moved up in the ranks—getting summoned into the boss’s office always gave me a panicked butthole clench.

Especially when I wasn’t just getting called into my direct supervisor’s office. No, today it was the CO who’d summoned me twenty minutes before I was due to leave for the day. I hadn’t even had a chance to text Alex and let him know I was on my way home.

“You wanted to see me, ma’am?” I asked.

“Yes, Lieutenant Commander.” Captain Tucker gestured at one of her guest chairs. “Have a seat.”

I hoped she didn’t notice my nervous swallow as I sat down. From her intense frown, my initial instinct had been correct—this wasn’t good. She wasn’t about to let me know I’d made commander or I was being moved to a supervisory position in the hospital. From the hardness in her eyes, I almost had to wonder if I was getting demoted for some reason.

At least she didn’t keep me waiting long.

“To cut right to the chase, Lieutenant Commander,” she said, looking at me over her glasses, “someone has expressed concern about you engaging in fraternization.”

My stomach dropped. “Frat-fraternization? With who?” Playing stupid was better than outright denial; if she knew something I couldn’t explain away, lying would be a hole I couldn’t dig myself out of.

Captain Tucker folded her hands on her desk. “HM1 Barlow has been observed entering and exiting your home in Sanlúcar. On multiple occasions.” She inclined her head. “Would you care to explain what he’s doing there?”

“Oh.” I cleared my throat. “He’s, um…” I scratched the back of my neck as some warmth rose in my face. With a nervous laugh, I said, “He’s been helping me with my Spanish.”

Her eyebrows shot up. “With… your Spanish.”

“Yes, ma’am.” I sheepishly held her gaze. “I was, um… I was one of those idiots who came here thinking most people would speak at least some English.”

She gave a quiet, sympathetic laugh. “Yes, it was eye-opening, wasn’t it?”

“It really was. HM1 Barlow heard me complaining about it to someone, and he offered to help.” I shook my head. “I can see how it looks inappropriate, but that’s all it was.”

“I see.” She studied me, scrutinizing me as if looking for some kind of tell that I was lying. It was hard not to squirm because, yeah, I was fucking lying. Keeping these cards close to the vest was no easy task; the slightest twitch could tip her off that I was bullshitting her, and then my career would be toast.

By some miracle, though, I must’ve convinced her.

“All right. Well.” She pinned me with a stare. “Given your respective ranks, I would suggest finding someone else to help you with your Spanish, Lieutenant Commander.”

I nodded, struggling to keep my relief hidden. “Yes, ma’am. Will do.”

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