Page 113 of Always Been Mine

Beatrice looked at her hands. When she lifted her eyes, her brows furrowed as she stared past him. “Uh, we probably shouldn’t be having this conversation in a room full of nosy people.”

Gabe paused, realizing that for a few seconds there the chatter around them had died. He turned his head to the side.Sure enough, everyone from Porter, Viktor, Maia, Nate, Travis and a host of other people were listening in on their conversation. When had badass security guys become such gossips?

“Seriously, baby, put the man out of his misery,” the admiral said dryly.

“You got all the images, Tim?”Caitlin transmitted all the photos from the scene outside. She didn’t particularly care to see pictures of mangled, dead bodies, but someone had to get it done.

“Yup. The team who guarded the meet at Culpeper was mostly South African mercenaries. These are checking out to be Russian,” Tim replied. “Different security companies.”

“Well, I guess that’s it for tonight—or morning,” Caitlin yawned. It was close to 2:00 a.m.

“You did very well tonight, Caitlin,” the data analyst said. “I had the satellite images up on your location; it was quite a fire fight, but you remained cool as ice.”

“I trusted the people around me,” she replied. “And I knew Travis was on his way.”

“I’m sorry you didn’t find what you were looking for,” Tim said softly.

“I’ve accepted it for a while,” Caitlin replied truthfully. “Catching a break with Redrook and knowing he held the key to my past did raise my hopes, but I can’t regret not remembering my past, because I welcome my life with Travis so much more. I feel it deep in my gut, you know, that I’ve never been this happy and fulfilled before.” She put a hand on her baby bump.

Tim simply smiled at her and Caitlin got self-conscious.

“Oh, Lord, I don’t even know why I’m telling you this. I’m so sorry. I just met you,” Caitlin stuttered in mortification.

“Are you sure?”

Caitlin stared at Tim, confused. “What do you mean?”

“I’ll see you around, Star Pixie.” Tim smiled wider, winked, and cut the feed.

Caitlin was left staring at the screen, her mouth open in an O. Star Pixie was her alias on the Black Plane.

“Saber Boy?” she whispered.

EPILOGUE

Two weekslater

Gabe glanced impatientlyat his watch, the third time he had done so in the past half hour. She was probably stuck in DC traffic again. The past two weeks had been a difficult time for him, letting her go about her day without him. It felt similar to coming back from a series of missions where one had become hyper-vigilant. He was slowly decompressing and his senses were coming to terms that Beatrice was going to be okay without his hovering.

He resisted the urge to track her on his phone. That would make him no better than a stalker; although, he didn’t give a fuck if he becameherstalker. Gabe needed to get his act together. He had invested his money wisely. The house was paid for, and even if he could keep Beatrice living in the style she was used to, he needed to keep his mind and body occupied. Otherwise, he would go insane with boredom. Gabe stared at his emails on his laptop. He escorted Beatrice to a high-profile gala the night before and met with several politicians and officials from alphabet agencies and security companiesall eager to engage his services. This morning, he switched on his laptop to a barrage of emails including one from the Director of CIA black ops who Gabe had worked with on several SEAL missions. The director had approached him years ago, right before he left the Navy SEALs, about training new recruits. Gabe was tempted to call him back. But was being an instructor what he really wanted to do?

Rhino walked toward the door and snuffled at the corner. As if on cue, the doorknob turned and Beatrice walked in. After petting Rhino on the head, his woman headed straight for him.

“Hmm . . . missed you,” Beatrice breathed into his lips. He kissed her, engulfing her in his arms, lifting her slightly, one hand digging into the meat of her ass, while pressing her tightly against him.

“Hey,” he whispered after he had kissed her thoroughly. “Why so late, babe?”

“Nate,” Beatrice groused. “He had reversed roles with Travis in the slave driver department. But don’t worry, I’ve informed him I have a man now waiting for me at home. I’m not as cutthroat as I used to be.”

Gabe chuckled. “Not sure I like playing the ‘man waiting at home’ bit.”

“Oh, knock it off. You know your sabbatical isn’t lasting long. I can tell you’re getting bored out of your mind despite the house projects. I received calls from a couple of security firms today, asking if you’re looking for a job. You made quite an impression last night. I told them if you’re interested, you’d call.”

“You can be my agent,” Gabe teased, helping her remove her coat and hanging it in the closet.

Beatrice rolled her eyes. “I’m a consultant, not a head hunter.”

“I’m considering the CIA post as an instructor,” Gabe said, walking into the kitchen to check on the roast. “I mayhave to be onsite for several days, but I’m sure I can work out a schedule that would work for both of us.”

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