Page 24 of Troubled Water
“That’s no reason not to demand an answer.”
I explain how much Parker has pulled back from intimacy—both physically and emotionally. “And you know how good he is at avoidance.”
Libby stares at me intently for a long while. “I think you’re going to be very surprised at how much he does think about you.”
I twist my fingers together anxiously. “I love him, Libs.”
“I know you do.”
20
Iinternally groan. I’ve already shared so much about my past with Bethany. So much more than I have in any other poly. I try to obfuscate with, “I asked. She answered. We’ve been married for ten years.”
Fox’s eyes bore into mine. “You are not a romantic, sir.”
Yes, I am. For one woman and one woman only.
I glare at her and try again. “How are these details in any way pertinent to my clearance?”
A cat-like smile crosses her face. “Sir, you know as well as I do it all comes down to the details when we investigate personnel at your level.”
Fuck. Why did I have to train so many agents so well? I mentally curse myself for being a fool to think she wouldn’t godown this avenue. My head moves slightly to the right, where I look through the two-way glass. Notwithstanding everything that happened yesterday, I can feel her presence somewhere nearby.
Loving me the way no one else can or ever will.
21
TEN YEARS AGO—AGE 34
For the last two months, I’ve been planning to propose to Bethany with a trip back to Texas first so I could do so with the people she loves the most as well as give me the opportunity to tell her father I plan on marrying his daughter.
I don’t plan on asking anyone but my B for anything.
I enlisted Libby’s help because despite Bethany being his daughter, Libby may know Linc McCallister’s state of mind better than any other person on the planet. After all, they were the reason the other survived a kidnap and rescue aboard a cruise they had each taken over a decade ago. A cruise Bethany’s mother never came home from.
I know Bethany wears her mother’s wedding band around her neck like a talisman, so I wasn’t sure if her father wasplanning on giving the man she loved the corresponding ring. Should I pick out an engagement ring to compliment it or find an entirely new set? I decided on a set she could wear all the time with her work in construction. If she wants her mother’s ring reset, we could make it into a pendant.
Libby has been happy to act as the go-between and is thrilled for both Bethany and me. Now, she’s calling me to let me know someone has been taking incriminating photos of the two of us. Sniffling, she tells me, “I’ve let Cal know, Thorn. He’s already analyzed them.”
My jaw clenches, and I growl into the phone, “Why didn’t you come to me first?”
“Because I went to Cal.”
Then why didn’t Bethany come to me?I wonder as I storm out of the jeweler with Bethany’s rings the same afternoon I’ve touched down from my trip to MIT, where I’ve recruited a savant hacker into doing contract work for the Agency.
“You haven’t been here. Remember?”
“Remember? How can I forget? This trip was three times as long as I expected.” God, I’m going to have my hands full with this new recruit to the Agency. A mild admiration fills me. Leanne Miles is no pushover. She’ll be a great addition—after I teach her who the fucking boss of this team is. Focusing back on Libby and the photos, I demand coldly, “What does he have to say?”
“He said to call him.”
After a quick goodbye, I dial Cal. His first words are, “Go buy a burner and call me back.”
Fuck. This isn’t going to be good. I stop at the closest store that sells them, pay with cash, and immediately ring him back. As soon as he picks up and verifies it’s me, he asks, “Why does your current boss have a hard-on for you?”
I’ve barely taken two steps down M Street and almost run into a tourist. She started reaming me out. My weak “Excuse me?” was both to her and Cal.
She flings her hand up at me, but he keeps going. “Yeah. He’s monitoring your every movement outside the office, Thorn. I sicced Sam”—Sam Akin is Cal’s cousin-in-law and one of the world’s foremost hackers—“on it. He’s got you tagged with some kind of tech that would be undetectable. Fortunately, Sam’s better or more diabolical, depending on how you look at it, than the people you have working in your labs.”
