Page 94 of Valor on the Move
He quickly typed out a response.
It was actually eleven ways to Tuesday. We spent practically the whole day and night in bed. My ass is sore, and I’ve never been this happy in my entire life. He’s coming with me to Australia. It’s happening, Ash. Have fun with Penelope, and I’ll tell you all the details later. Love you. Breaking it to Mom and Dad now. Light a candle for me.
Taking a deep breath, he hit their number in his contacts. While it rang, he listened to the sleepy gulls cawing over the rolling surf.
“Rafa? Hello, darling. We got your text yesterday that you’re safe and sound. Is the hotel all right? You’re sure it’s not in a bad area?” His mother’s voice went distant. “Ramon! It’s Rafa.” She spoke into the phone again. “He’s just coming in from shoveling the driveway.”
Rafa smiled. “You’re really back to the real world, huh?”
“Indeed. Well, we still have a detail outside, of course. One of them helps shovel. Lovely young man.”
“How’s the new house?”
“We’re still settling in. It’s…well, it’ll be just fine. A good amount of property, so we can’t see the road or the neighbors. It’s nice to have privacy again. Well, it’s mostly private. Oh, here’s your father. Let me put you on speaker.”
“There’s no one else there? No agents inside?”
“No, they don’t come in the house. They’re set up in a granny cottage out back, and they patrol the property. There are cameras on the perimeter as well, of course. But most of the time I forget the agents are there.” Her voice went tinny. “Can you hear us? You’re on the speaker.”
“Yep. Hi, Dad.”
“Hello, Rafa.” His father’s rich baritone echoed down the line. “How was the flight? I see it’s eighty-five in Sydney today. I hope you’re appreciating it, because New Jersey is cold as a…cold thing.”
Rafa laughed, imagining his mother’s glare. Then his smile faded, and he swallowed down a swell of nerves as butterflies went to town in his belly. “Actually, I’m not in Australia.”
Silence. Then his mother spoke. “What do you mean? Where are you?”
“In Laguna Beach. I changed my flight so I had a stopover in LA. Not just a connection.”
“All right,” she said. He could imagine his parents exchanging glances and having a silent conversation. “Are you visiting your sister? Neither of you mentioned this.”
“I did crash with her on Friday night.” Digging his toes into the cold sand, he inhaled and exhaled deeply, his shoulders almost brushing his ears before dropping back down. “Now I’m with Shane Kendrick.”
More silence. This time it continued.
Rafa went on. “Uh, he was the Secret Service agent who—”
“We know who he is,” Ramon said tightly. “What are you doing there with him?”
With his free hand, Rafa tugged on the strings of his hoodie. “We’re…well, I came to see him. He transferred out here after the kidnapping. I…I have feelings for him, and I wanted to see if he felt the same.” It was true enough. Minus the fact that anything had happened in DC.
“Feelings,” Camila echoed.
“Um, yeah. I know this must be surprising to you. It surprised us too.”
“Us. There’s an ‘us’?” Ramon asked. “He returns your…feelings?”
Rafa gripped the strings, pulling them tight. “He does. And I know he’s older than me—”
“Yes, he certainly is!” Camila’s voice raised. “Exactly how old is this man?”
“Forty, but it doesn’t matter. We really care about each other.”
Camila sputtered. “It most certainly matters!”
“Rafael, I want an honest answer,” Ramon commanded. “Did this man do anything to take advantage of you while he was on your detail?”
“No! I swear, he didn’t.” It was the truth—Shane had never taken advantage. “Look, I understand why you’d think that, but it’s not like that. I’m not a child. I’m twenty-two now. You guys were practically married at my age. I know what I want. And I want to be with him.”
His mother exhaled sharply. “So you’re abandoning your plans for Australia? The Cordon Bleu? Throwing away your dreams?”
“No! Of course not. Shane’s coming with me. He quit the service. He’s going to do security work down there.”
After another silence, his father asked, “How long has this been going on? How long did you plan this without saying a word to us?”
“We didn’t plan anything. Honestly. I showed up yesterday, and we talked, and we realized we both want the same thing. To make a go of this. To make a go of being together. Maybe it won’t work, but if we don’t try, we’ll never know. And I know I’d always regret it.”
“So you realized these feelings for each other while he was protecting you,” Ramon said.
“Well…yeah. And after the kidnapping, he transferred because he knew it was a conflict of interest. He knew we couldn’t see each other anymore. He’s not…I understand why you’d think he’s taking advantage or whatever, but he’s a good man. And he really cares about me. He…he loves me. And I love him.”
