Page 102 of No Regrets

Sam wandered over and pulled out the note inside. “I believe Dexter asked you to leave it alone.”

She didn’t respond. Clearly Dex and Sam had spoken.

“Lieutenant. I need to take this envelope, and you need to stop whatever it is you think you’re doing. This”—he held up the note— “is nothing to do with you, and Dexter would rather it stayed that way.”

“No offense, Captain Harrison. But you don’t get to tell me what I can and cannot do. I don’t work for you.”

Sam folded his arms over his chest and leaned against the table.

“No, you don’t. But I understand you know exactly who I am. And as a captain in the Navy, I am your superior. I also know that you should not be digging around, accessing systems, without orders to do so.”

Christ, was he threatening to out her if she didn’t back off? Son of a bitch.

“If it means I find out who is behind this, then I’ll take my chances,” she said defiantly, calling his bluff. “Sir,” she added as an afterthought.

“Don’t test me, lieutenant. Dexter Dawson can be a pain in my ass, but that doesn’t mean I won't do whatever is needed to protect him, the team, and the work we do. You already know too much about us, that is way beyond your security clearance. So, I’m asking you nicely to back off and leave it alone for your own and Dexter’s safety.”

“And if I don’t?” she challenged, not backing down.

JESUS, THEY WERE AS bad as each other. He’d done his research on Lieutenant Kimber. He knew more about her than she would like him to know. When he’d found out what Alpha had done, and that she was more to Dawson than just a colleague, he’d made it his business to find out everything he could prior to offering Dex a team. The woman was strong to have survived what she had. He knew men that would have caved in the same position. That alone earned his respect. But if whoever was threatening Dex realized he cared about her, she could be in a whole lot of danger, so there was no way he could stand by and do nothing. That’s why he’d come personally.

He changed tactics. “Do you love Dexter?”

“What?”

“I said, do you love him?”

“That’s none of your business, I....”

“Because if you do, then do this for him. He doesn't want any harm coming to you. If he thinks you’re in danger, he’ll lose focus.”

“Dex is a professional. He’ll be focused no matter what.”

Sam let out a frustrated sigh. A ping from the laptop caught his attention and he glanced at Kelly before turning to see the image that had popped up on screen.

“Where did you get this?” he asked calmly.

“Digging around in systems I’m not meant to be accessing.” She shot back sarcastically.

Sam locked eyes with her, holding back a grin.

“Is this the sharpest you can get it?”

“Yes, I don’t exactly have access to all the best systems from this laptop.”

“Send me it. I’ll have my people work on it.”

“So, you are trying to find out who is behind this threat or threats?”

“Yes.”

“And yet, it would seem you haven’t found this image yet.” Her tart tone wasn’t lost on him. He held her gaze, contemplating his next move. Dex was right, she wasn’t going to leave this alone.

“Commander Johnson was right about you.”

“You spoke to my CO about me?”

“We go back a long way. Your name may have come up.”

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