Page 27 of ELITE Protection
He knew the truth, yet was still willing to comfort her, protect her.
In that moment, safe in his arms, she knew what love really was…acceptance of her, flaws and all.
Isaac kissed her forehead and then tucked her head under his chin.
In that instant, Hannah fell a little in love with Isaac.
CHAPTER11
“Snowman checking in. Any news?”
Karl was back on the operations center desk that morning. It had been four days since Isaac had passed Hannah’s information up the chain of command. They’d had four days of honeymoon-like bliss.
Their days were filled with checking the perimeter, finding only fox, moose, and elk tracks in the freshly fallen snow within one mile of the cabin. Mealtimes had become extremely domestic. He always cooked breakfast since discovering Hannah was not a morning person, but that could’ve been his fault. His insatiable morning hard-on meant at least an hour of lovemaking and multiple orgasms for Hannah before he’d take his own release. He’d then sneak out of bed to allow her to sleep again.
Several times, day and night, Hannah had reached for him, or he for her. They had christened nearly every flat surface in the cabin, but the soft rug in front of the burning fireplace had become their favorite. He loved that she was such an adventurous lover, willing to try new things. She’d even suggested several.
“Good news, my friend, you’re headed back to Atlanta.” Karl’s statement shocked Isaac out of his fantasy world.
“What do you mean?” Isaac looked down the hallway to where the woman he realized he’d been falling in love with lay amidst rumpled sheets. He didn’t want to leave the insulated world they had created. He didn’t want to lose her.
“Al-Baghdadi is dead. USSOCOM sent in a SpecOps team six hours ago. We have DNA confirmation. With his brother gone, thanks to your little sweetie, the entire organization is in upheaval.” Karl then added in a casual tone, “I found the greatest bar in the Buckhorn District. These women are off the charts beautiful and looking for nothing more than a good time.”
Isaac couldn’t imagine sleeping with any other woman now that he’d had Hannah. Even the thought felt like infidelity.
“How soon do you think you can get her down the mountain into Bozeman?”
They were supposed to leave now? No. He needed more time with Hannah. He didn’t want this to end. Sometime in the last week, he had fallen in love with the most interesting, gorgeous, wonderful woman with the biggest heart he’d ever known.
Maybe he could delay at least another day. Neither had dared think about the future with ISIS so hot on their tails. But, now, their possibilities were wide open. They would return to Atlanta together. She could move in with him, just to be sure this thing they had worked in the real world.
“Hey, Snowman, you still with me?” Karl’s voice broke into his thoughts.
“Yeah, I’m here.” With this mindset, Isaac told his best friend, “It’ll take us at least forty-eight hours to work our way to Bozeman.”
“Work faster,” Karl insisted. “Alex already has a jet headed your way. It seems Homeland Security wants to talk with Ms. Kader.”
Well, damn. He had no choice but to go wake up Hannah. It would take at least an hour to close down the cabin and another few hours to ski down to the main road. The wet snow and warmer temperatures they’d gotten over the past two days would make the going slow.
“Give me four hours and send a vehicle toward Ennis on State Route 287.” Isaac hated the fact they had to leave immediately, but now he and Hannah could have a future together. “I’ll ping our location when we reach the highway.”
“Let me know when you switch to field communications. In the meantime, call if anything changes. Atlanta Center out.” The line went dead.
Phone still in his hand, Isaac walked to his bedroom. Standing in the doorway, he stared at Hannah. In sleep, she looked so peaceful. Now she could wear that expression all the time. The threat to her life was gone.
Unfortunately, they were now on a timetable.
He sat on the edge of the big bed and ran his fingers through her silky brown hair. “Hannah, sweetheart, you need to wake up. I have good news.” He bent over and kissed her, wanting to crawl back into the bed and take her one more time…but he couldn’t.
He smiled at the thought that the next time they made love, it would be in his bed in Atlanta. Hurrying toward that mental picture, he brushed the hair from her face and watched her awaken.
An hour later, clean sheets folded back in the linen closet, every dish scrubbed and placed in cabinets, Isaac walked through the cabin that would forever hold so many special memories. Once he was back home, he would have to call his uncle Samuel and thank him for the use of the secluded home. Given that he was still in work mode, he couldn’t take the time to thank the man in person.
All power off, Isaac reset the battery-operated house alarm system and closed the keys inside the secret log panel. He turned to find Hannah strapping on her skis.
“As soon as you have your gear on, switch on your earpiece.” Isaac tapped the button and then screwed his small communication unit into his ear.
Before he had a chance to confirm his connection with Atlanta Center, three men in winter camouflage stepped from behind large pine trees with mini submachine guns pointed at him. His pistol was at the small of his back, but he’d be dead before he could even reach it.
