Page 23 of Critical Mass
And the only person who could possibly explain any of this was a man who’d been lying to her for three months.
“Fine.” Her tone had a touch of defeat. “But when we get there—wherever there is—you’re going to tell me everything. The truth. All of it.”
Hudson nodded slowly. “I will. I promise.”
Another promise from a man who’d built their entire relationship on lies. But what choice did she have?
Natalie let Maverick guide her toward the helicopter, each step feeling like she was walking away from her old life and into something she couldn’t begin to imagine.
Hudson watched from the dock as Maverick helped Natalie into the helicopter, securing her in one of the rear seats.
She looked so small, wrapped in that blanket, her wet hair plastered to her face. Nothing like the confident woman who’d sat across from him at dinner just hours ago.
Jake Laudner, his team leader, appeared at his elbow, his expression grim in the low light. “Hudson. Quick debrief—what are we dealing with here?”
Hudson kept his eyes on Natalie as he spoke. “Sigma operatives most likely. At least four, possibly more. They followed me to the Back Bay marina, armed with tactical rifles.”
“How’d they know you’d be there?”
That was the question of the day, wasn’t it?
Hudson’s mind raced through the possibilities, each one worse than the last. “Ravenscroft must have been tracking Natalie. When she followed me, they followed her.”
“She followed you?” Jake’s voice dropped lower.
This was it. The moment where Hudson could come clean, admit that he’d compromised himself, that his relationship with Natalie Ravenscroft had crossed every professional line imaginable. That he’d fallen in love with the target’s daughter and let his emotions cloud his judgment.
If he told Jake the truth, he’d be pulled from the assignment immediately. Possibly suspended. Definitely subjected to a full review of every decision he’d made for the past three months.
And Natalie would be handed over to someone else for protection and interrogation—someone who didn’t care about her, who’d see her only as an intelligence asset to be grilled for information.
Hudson only had a split second to make his decision.
CHAPTER
TWELVE
As the helicopterhummed in the distance and the darkness pressed close, Hudson contemplated his choices. He only had a moment to decide.
The guys chasing them probably had backup—backup that could arrive at any moment.
“Natalie began to doubt my cover,” Hudson finally said. “She followed me from Virginia Beach. Wrong place, wrong time. Operatives showed up at the marina.”
It wasn’t technically a lie. Just not the complete truth.
Jake studied him a moment. “That’s all?”
Hudson offered a curt nod. “That’s all.”
He knew lying was wrong, and he didn’t like himself for not telling the full truth.
It was bad enough he’d had to lie to Natalie for three months. But to also lie to his teammate filled him with regret.
But he couldn’t tell the whole truth. Not yet.
Not when Natalie’s life was on the line.
Jake nodded slowly, but something in his expression suggested he didn’t quite believe Hudson’s answer. “Colton is going to want a full debrief when we get to base. And Hudson?He’s not going to be happy about you bringing Natalie into headquarters.”
