Page 48 of Undercover Infidel
“You look like hell,” I said, noting the shadows beneath his eyes.
“Hours without sleep will do that.” He stepped closer and cupped my cheek. “Being terrified for your safety didn’t help.” He lowered his hand and motioned to a window. “Your team identified intruders. One in the back garden, eastern corner. Two more across the street.” He moved to look, careful to stay out of sight. “They’re not alone. I spotted two more on my approach. A five-person team suggests they’re here for extraction rather than elimination.”
“Con, I—” An alert on his mobile stopped me mid thought.
“We should relocate to the safe room,” he said, glancing at the screen.
“Copy that.”
We moved silently through the house to what appeared to be a coat closet in the hallway. I pressed my palm against a hidden scanner, revealing a reinforced door that led to a small, windowless room equipped with independent communications and defensive capabilities.
Once inside, I activated the secure systems while Con observed the external cameras.
“They’re closing in,” he reported as figures moved toward the house from multiple directions. “Professional team, coordinated approach. MI6 is authorized to take them out if necessary.”
I leaned against the wall when adrenaline flooded my system.
“I shouldn’t have let you leave Blackmoor alone,” he said, moving away from the monitors and over to me.
“That wasn’t your decision to make,” I said with arms folded across my chest.
“No, it wasn’t.” His admission surprised me. “I was wrong, Lex.”
I studied him, seeing genuine regret in his expression. “We’re past that now. We need to focus on the present situation.”
“The present situation includes us,” he insisted. “When Kestrel told me you were targeted, I realized something I’ve been fighting against since we met.” He was close enough for me to see the subtle flecks of darker blue in his eyes. “I need you. Not just for this mission. For everything.”
My breath caught at the naked honesty in his voice. “Con?—”
“Let me finish. Please.” His tone had the rough edge of barely contained emotion. “I spent the entire flight to London thinking I might be too late. That I might never get the chance”—he exhaled slowly—“To tell you that I’m falling in love with you.”
The world seemed to still around us. I had imagined many scenarios for our reunion, but this raw confession wasn’t among them.
“You don’t need to say that,” I whispered.
“I do.” His eyes remained steady. “Because it’s true. And because life is too short and too uncertain to leave important things unsaid.”
He reached into his pocket and withdrew something small. In his palm rested the silver brooch set with Scottish river pearls he’d shown me at Blackmoor.
“Elizabeth Carnegie’s brooch,” I breathed, recognizing it immediately.
“She wore this while protecting those she believed in, regardless of the personal risk.” He held it out to me. “I want you to have it. Not as a peace offering, but because when I think of courage and principles, I think of you.”
The gesture overwhelmed me. The brooch wasn’t just a priceless family heirloom—it represented generations of Carnegie history. That he would entrust it to me spoke volumes. “I can’t accept this,” I said, though my fingers itched to touch it.
“You can,” he insisted. “It’s mine to give, and I choose you.”
My hand trembled as I took the brooch, feeling its weight and history in my palm. “Thank you.”
Despite the danger surrounding us, I felt something profound shift between us.
We remained in the small room until the “threat neutralized” message came from the team outside. Whether that meant they’d been taken out or apprehended didn’t matter to me. Con did.
“I want to return to Blackmoor,” I blurted.
He looked at me intently. “When?”
“As soon as possible. Now.” My voice sounded frantic but not for reasons that made sense. Instead, it was about us. I needed to be as close to him as two people could be, and I didn’t want it to be here, in a sterile safe house.
