Page 13 of Justice for the SEAL
Logan got in prone position and lined up his sight, mentally calculating the effect of the wind on his projectile. He imagined the black outline was an actual tango, knowing it would feel different to fire at a realperson.
His role with HERO Force was changing into something more tactical. The more he learned about combat and marital arts, the more was expected of him from the team. But his medical degree had taught him how to repair the damage from a bullet wound, not to inflict one, and he was quickly learning that supporting a righteous cause from a distance was very different than defending ithimself.
He emptied his magazine and hopped back up, reeling it in. “You remember the first time you fired with the the intenttokill?”
“Of course I do.Everybodydoes.”
“Tell meaboutit.”
“It’s a lot like losing your virginity. My story won’t be anything like yours. When you’re in the moment, you’ll know what you need to do. The trick is actuallydoingit.”
8
Gemma had barely slept.She was awake with the first light of dawn streaming through Logan’s huge loft windows, her head throbbing as images of the night before ran throughhermind.
Logan had given her everything she’d wanted in spades. Physical gratification and the most basic connection with another humanbeing.
Now she needed to go back toreallife.
Her worry for Royce was waiting at the edges of her memory since she’d refused to stew on it lastnight.
It had been years since she and Royce were together, but she’d cared for him deeply before she learned of his duplicity. She’d done the right thing and ended their relationship when she found out he was married, but her heart was already broken. Hatred had quickly filled in thosecracks.
Now he was in danger and she was filled with anxious worry, not only for Royce but for hisfamily.
They must be goingthroughhell.
Again.
She’d been responsible for putting them through it once before. Now the girls’ mother was dead and their father abducted. They must be grown up by now, but surely that didn’t make it anyeasier.
Logan stirred behind her and she held her breath. Now that sobriety had taken hold, she couldn’t believe she’d spent the night with a guy half her age, and all she wanted to do wasescape.
She managed to slip from his bed without waking him, then stopped home for a quick shower before headingtowork.
Two hours later, she was staring into space, barely paying attention as she filled her mug with hot water and picked up a tea bag before settling behind her desk. She had a full schedule today, and she struggled to focus her attention on the mattersathand.
She flipped through correspondence and motions, upcoming cases and influential verdicts. She was just about to put her paperwork aside when her eyes locked onto afamiliarname.
HEROForce.
Her head jerked back, not understanding why her one-night-stand’s employer was staring her in the face. She skimmed the paperwork on the latest case she’d beenassigned.
Stewart Cole versus Jax Andersson and Leo Wilson. An amount of money that made her whistle and an allegation of wrongfuldeath.
She cursedcolorfully.
I have a real knack for sleeping with thewrongguy.
She’d have to recuse herself. Her eyes squeezed shut. It happened. It was a small world with only six degrees of separation that sometimes felt like two orthree.
She wouldhandleit.
You’re just feeling like a slut for sleeping with that guy last night. That’s theproblem.
An image of him on top of her appeared unbidden in her mind. She shook her head. Sorry wasn’t the word. Her thighs were sore from straddling his large frame and there was a tenderness deep inside her from the repeated thrusts of his body into hers. The sex had been amazing, but she wasn’t the type for one-night stands, and she liked him more than she probably should, especially since he was clearly much youngerthanshe.
The clock chimed. It was time for voir dire in her first case, and she took a deep, cleansing breath before donning her robe and making her way into thecourtroom.
