CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Lucia looked out across the group of people gathered in Blanca’s backyard.
Mark sat with Eddie and the rest of the team at a couple of picnic tables.
They all had plates piled high with Blanca and Olive’s amazing food.
Elena was taking candid photos of the kids playing on the combination swing set and jungle gym shaped like a pirate ship.
Her twin, Teresa, was pushing one of her nephews on the swing while Reina was inside making another batch of margaritas.
Lucia had noticed Eddie and his teammates never drank alcohol, not even a beer by the pool.
He told her alcohol dulled the senses and slowed down physical responses.
In their line of work, that could be deadly.
He mentioned that they rarely ever had more than one or two beers and usually only at their own home or that of a teammate—people they trusted.
Eddie’s brothers-in-law were hovering around the team, picking their brains about missions and stuff. Unfortunately for the guys and their voracious curiosity, they couldn’t really tell them much, since most of what they did was way beyond top secret.
What would life be like with someone in that profession? Never knowing when they might be called away or for how long, or where they were going, and with no guarantee if they would even make it back.
Lucia’s life was routine, predictable, comfortable. Was she strong enough to handle a future filled with so many unknowns? A future filled with the possibility of losing her one true love all over again?
Her gaze locked on Eddie, relaxed, smiling, and cutting up with his teammates and family. He was born to do this type of work and to be a part of this special group of people—his teammates. She couldn’t expect him to walk away from it—from them.
So where did that leave the two of them?
Slow down, Lucia.
Other than a few stolen, deeply intense kisses and a lot of lingering, hunger-filled eye contact, they hadn’t even had the chance to talk about their future yet.
The fact they’d been highly compatible sexually when they were younger didn’t mean that would still be the case.
They were different people, having experienced different lives.
But if the level of want she felt for him—and the look in his eyes whenever she caught him watching her—were any indication, that spark between them was still there and as powerful as ever.
“He’s in his element, isn’t he?” Reina walked up next to her. “He’s always been Mr. Social.”
“Yeah, he has.” Lucia debated whether to share her concerns with Reina or not, but her friend spoke first.
“I’m sorry,” she said.
“Sorry?” Lucia’s brows drew together, and she turned to her. “What for?”
“For telling him about those damn pictures. I never should’ve done that.
” Reina scrunched her eyes shut and rubbed her fingers across her forehead.
“I was so mad when I saw them, and once my stupid overprotective instincts kicked in, my brain never stood a chance. Because of that, I ended up hurting two of the people who mean the most to me.”
“You don’t owe him or me an apology.” She nodded toward Eddie.
“I should’ve never gone to that party, and he never should’ve left without talking to me.
” She pulled her friend into a hug. “He and I have made peace with what happened.” She released Reina but kept hold of her hands.
“Now I just have to find a way to make peace with his career choice.”
She chuckled to soften the seriousness of her statement, but Reina never missed a thing.
“Listen to me, Lucia. You need to tell him how you feel.” She kept her voice low, and her direct eye contact was intense.
“I’m serious.” She gave her hands a little squeeze.
“If you guys have learned anything after all that’s happened, it’s that you have to communicate with each other if you want a life together. ”
“I don’t even know if he wants a future together.” She’d been too afraid to let herself believe that was possible. “With everything that’s been going on, we’ve not had any real time alone.”
“Well, I can fix that.” Reina released her hands and started toward the yard with purposeful strides.
“Wait,” Lucia whispered loudly and hurried after her. “What are you doing?”
Reina stood in the middle of the yard. “Listen up, everyone.”
All conversations stopped, and they turned to her.
“Lucia and Eddie have things to discuss and need some alone time. So how can we make that happen?” She started with Cole and looked from him to each of Eddie’s teammates for the answer. “I would offer to babysit, but I don’t think you guys will agree to it. So what are the other options?”
Cole’s phone vibrated on the table, and he picked it up. He tapped the screen and looked at it for a long minute.
“I’m sorry, but we need to go.” He gave his team a serious look, and they all stood and began gathering up their paper plates, napkins, cups, and plastic utensils.
“Um, oh, okay.” Reina sounded as confused as Lucia felt.
“Come here, you.” Eddie walked over to the jungle gym. He swung Isabella up into his arms, setting off a round of giggles. “It’s time to go.”
“Aw, man.” Her giggles were replaced by whining. “But we didn’t have ice cream yet.”
“There’s been a development,” he murmured to Lucia as he passed by her.
“We’ll have ice cream later.” She grabbed her daughter’s toy bunny.
“Thank you so much for having us here and for the incredible meal.” Cole extended his hand as he walked over to Eddie’s mother.
“Psshh.” She playfully pushed aside his hand, stepped up to him, and hugged him around his waist. “We’re huggers around here.”
He chuckled and wrapped his long arms around her.
“I’m sorry we have to leave so abruptly.” Cole towered over Blanca, and her head barely reached the middle of his chest.
“I understand.” She stepped back. “You’re all welcome anytime.”
Each of them stepped up for a hug.
Olive came from inside the house holding a stack of loaded to-go containers.
“I thought you might like to have some leftovers ready in your fridge,” she said.
“Heck, yeah.” Calliope licked her lips and rubbed her hands together.
Olive handed food to each of them, they said their goodbyes, and they all headed out through the side gate and circled up on the sidewalk.
“Lucia, please take Isabella and wait in the white Tahoe.” Cole tugged the fob from his pocket, pointed it at the car, and pressed it to unlock the doors. He kept his voice low so as not to worry Isabella. “Once you’re inside, I’ll lock the doors with the fob.”
She gave Eddie a quick kiss, lifted her daughter from his arms, and walked quickly to the car.
Cole waited until they were settled inside, then he locked the doors with the fob and turned to his team.
“Luna got a facial recognition alert from one of Border Patrol’s new surveillance cameras.
Munoz crossed the border at four fifty-seven,” he said.
“He’s driving an older model car that doesn’t have GPS, so she can’t track him that way.
Fortunately, Mark had a deputy in an unmarked car close by, and he’s tailing him. ”
“I knew that asshole would have to make an appearance sooner or later.” Eddie shook his head.
“He would never leave a task this important up to people he deemed to be inadequate.” And Rodrigo believed that everyone was inadequate compared to him.
“It’s like a compulsion with the guy—he has to be in control of every detail. ”
That’s what happens when a man spends his entire life trying to prove himself to one person—his father. A father who likely never told his children that he loved them and certainly never told either of them he was proud of them.
“We could’ve had him picked up for crossing the border illegally, but that’s not good enough for me.
” Intense anger flashed in Cole’s eyes as he looked from one team member to the next.
“I want to destroy everything that family has built. I won’t be satisfied until their entire organization is in ruin and turned to ash.
And I want the Munoz name to end with Rodrigo. ”
This was deeply personal for his friend. Because Cole’s wife and child would also never truly be safe as long as Rodrigo Munoz walked free.
“Eddie, you mentioned your family has a cabin somewhere in the valley, right?” Cole asked.
“Yeah, it’s about ninety minutes out.” His father built it years ago, when Eddie was a little boy. “Munoz should have no way of knowing about it.”
“Good. I want you to go by the house, grab some stuff for Lucia and Isabella, get some provisions, then head to your cabin.” He tossed him the key fob and tapped out a message on his phone.
“Lucas, I’m forwarding you the last known coordinates for the minivan with the other girls in it.
” Lucas’s phone pinged a second later. “Get the helo up. Calliope, I need your eagle eyes up there with him.”
“You bet.” She nodded.
Calliope grew up in the swamps of southwest Florida and had learned how to track from her dad and granddad.
“Hawk and Boone, follow Eddie and the girls back to the house and make sure nobody’s following them when they leave,” Cole said.
“Viking, you’re with me.” Viking nodded and rested his hands on his hips.
“We’re going to meet with Mark. I need his assurance that his people will stand down and let us handle this.
“Keep me informed.” He surveyed his team. “And be safe.”
Eddie’s teammates jogged to their respective vehicles, climbed in, and headed off to their destinations.
Eddie got to the Tahoe, unlocked the door, and climbed in.
Lucia turned questioning eyes his way.
He reached over and placed his hand over hers where it rested on her thigh. She turned her hand over and laced her fingers with his.
“Hey, kiddo.” He smiled at Isabella in the rearview mirror, and she looked up. “How would you feel about staying in a cabin by the river?”
Lucia started to say something, but he gave her hand a gentle squeeze to stop her.