Page 15 of Booker's Mission

She twisted enough to face him. “Honestly, I can’t believe you agreed to come here without demanding to know everything, first.”

He shrugged. “You needed a partner you could trust. If that’s all you can tell me, then, that’s enough.”

“Damn, Booker…” She stared at him, eyes wide, mouth slightly open before she blew out a rough breath. “Before I start, I just want you to know… Ireallywanted to call you back. Pick up where we left off.”

Booker wasn’t sure if the warmth spreading through his chest was relief or arousal. Maybe an odd mixture of both, but it eased the prickling along his neck. Vanquished any lingering doubts because those few words told him everything he needed to know. “My delicate ego appreciates that because I was starting to wonder if I was the only one who was disappointed you passed out. That you regretted we even started anything.”

She snorted. “I have a laundry list of regrets, baby, but you’re not one of them. I just wanted you to know before…” She waved her hand in front of her.

“Baby?”

She paused, then laughed. “I can call you jackass or jerk like Wyatt if you prefer.”

“Baby works for me. Now, back to… Shit!”

That’s all the warning Booker could manage as headlights punched through the fog off to his right, barreling toward them from some two-bit side road barely wide enough to fit one car. He hit the gas, getting Callie’s door clear before the SUV caught their rear bumper, spinning them clockwise as the other vehicle careened across the road, sliding sideways into the oncoming lanes.

Horns blared, one rusty old truck narrowing missing Booker’s Jeep as the driver veered into their lane, shooting past them when Booker managed to maneuver them out of the spin — catch enough traction they shot forward. Water sprayed in every direction, the rear wheels fishtailing on the wet pavement before the Jeep straightened out. Started picking up speed.

He looked in the mirror, cursing when those lights reappeared, quickly gaining on them. “Friends of yours?”

Callie glanced over her shoulder, shaking her head. “No way anyone got close enough to ID me.”

“Too late to worry, now. I’ll… Damn it.”

“What?” Callie peered behind them, again. “Where the hell did they go?”

“I don’t know, but I’m guessing they didn’t disappear because this is over.”

He scanned his mirrors, rolling down his window in the hopes of hearing an engine if they tried to parallel them, when the damn muscle car from the airport swung in from the left, spitting mud out behind it as it jumped the other lanes, then swerved in front of them.

Booker grabbed Callie’s head, shoving it below the dash, then shifted gears, spinning the Jeep to the right when one of the gang bangers leaned out the window, shotgun pressed to his shoulder. The blast echoed around them as it shattered the rear driver’s window, spraying glass across the interior.

Another spin, and Booker had the Jeep going in the opposite direction, wind and rain storming in through the broken window, those shards reflecting the lights cutting through the darkness. Tires squealed behind him, twin beams appearing in his rearview.

Callie popped up beside him, glancing at the road. “Why are we going back? We’ll get trapped in all the traffic if we head into the city.”

“Just a short detour. I caught a glimpse of the road up by the bridge before I turned, and it looked as if the river flooded a bit. Everything’s covered in water.”

“Pretty sure the Jeep can handle it.”

“I’m counting on that. Which means, we need to go faster.”

“Faster? But…”

She inhaled as he increased his speed, forcing the bastards to follow before he reefed up on the parking brake. Took them into a full one-eighty spin.

The car whizzed past them, nearly colliding with a truck when they copied Booker’s move. Sliding off onto the shoulder before finally finding their way back onto the road. They surged ahead, closing in on the Jeep, one of the assholes shooting at them, again.

The guy missed the rear window, sending a truck in the opposite lanes into the ditch when the buckshot took out a tire. Not that Booker had time to worry — stop and check if the driver was okay — with the muscle car gaining on them. He sped up just enough he rounded the corner first, blocked the flooded road from view before he slammed on the brakes — sent the car zooming past him.

It hit the pooling water going some insane speed, tires spinning uselessly on the slick pavement as it hydroplaned across the asphalt, slipping sideways from the force. A few more seconds, and it was heading for the guardrail, sending up sparks as the side panel scraped across the metal slats. Booker swerved in behind them, giving them an added push when it looked as if the driver might pull the vehicle back from the brink — regain control. Instead, the impact shot the car forward, catching one of the posts and jackknifing it up and over the edge. There was a harried moment of hang time — of the assholes all staring out the windows, mouths gaped open, eyes wide — before it hit the river below, all that dark churning water pulling it down.

Booker kept the Jeep moving, not even glancing at the water as he crossed the bridge, continuing along the highway. Callie checked their six, muttering to herself before easing against the seat, those gorgeous eyes focused on him.

He scanned the mirrors, half-expecting more cars to materialize out of the fog, only to sigh at the empty lane. He nodded at her. “Guess I was right.”

She looked out the back, still cursing under her breath. “About what?”

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