CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Watching Luna at work, witnessing her skill level in real time, was incredible.
She wasn’t just a whiz with computers who had a knack for creating technology specifically tailored to covert operations.
She also understood the inherent risks and larger ramifications of the type of dangerous work OSI and Dark Ops performed.
Perhaps that was the reason for her sudden quiet fretfulness as she gathered up her laptop and cables. Her mood had shifted when Calliope mentioned heading to Pakistan.
“You don’t have to wait for me.” She avoided looking at him. “I can manage all of this.”
“I know I don’t have to wait for you—I want to.”
She gave him a quick sideways glance with a tight, forced smile.
“Hey.” Boone tilted his head to see her face. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong. I’m just—”
He reached over and placed his hands over hers to stop her from fidgeting with the cable.
“Talk to me, Luna.” He curled his fingers around her wrist, leaned his ass against the edge of the table, and drew her over to stand between his legs. “Come on.” He skimmed his fingertip across her forehead and softly tapped her temple. “Tell me what’s going through this brilliant mind of yours.”
“I’m almost afraid to say it out loud.” She chewed her bottom lip, then threw up her hands. “I’m worried. Okay? There, I said it.”
“What are you worried about?” He’d been on at least five missions with the team since starting at Dark Ops and had never seen her like this before.
“Your past with Udall makes this mission personal—for both of you.” She looked away, back at him, then squeezed his hands. “You put him in prison—he’s not going to let that slide. Which makes this mission even more dangerous for you.”
Boone reached over, grabbed the arm of a chair to roll it closer, and sat down.
“Come here.” He tugged her down onto his lap sideways, wrapped his arms around her, and set his chin atop her head.
She wiggled around trying to get comfortable, and he had to force his dick not to respond to the movement. Now was not the time for that.
“I know you guys are going to end up going after that jerk, and … well, I can’t explain it, but I just have this weird feeling that something bad is going to happen.” Her voice was soft, her words hesitant. “Something just feels … different this time.”
She was right. His history with Udall could heighten the level of danger for this op. But Boone knew the man better than most, knew how his mind worked, and he knew that Udall would come for him eventually.
Why not take the fight to him first?
Her worry might also be exacerbated by the change in their relationship. Knowing someone you care about is walking toward danger instead of away from it is not something most people deal with.
Whatever the cause, he wasn’t going to dismiss her feelings as if they weren’t legitimate or significant.
“I can’t tell you that nothing bad will happen.
You know all too well that’s not true.” She’d learned that difficult lesson firsthand while being held at The Farm.
“But this is what we do—we go after the bad guys—and we’re very good at it.
” He drew his chin back and looked down at her.
“And doing what we do, out there in the field, is a hell of a lot easier knowing you’re here, backing us up. ”
“You guys do all the heavy lifting, and you’re the ones out there risking your lives.
” She stroked the front of his T-shirt, and he wasn’t even sure she realized she was doing it.
“I’m sitting in a highly secured, climate-controlled room staring at monitors and providing you with GPS coordinates.
Which, by the way, is redundant, since you all have portable satellite phones that provide that information in real time. ”
“You’re a hell of a lot more than that.” He gently tightened his hold on her to emphasize his words.
She needed to understand the enormity of her impact on their overall success.
“You have our backs in a way that gives us the confidence and ability to push forward, to keep going until the bad guys are caught. We are able to do what we do because you’re back here, watching over us and providing us with critical, real-time intel.
Make no mistake, Luna—you are our lifeline, and I don’t ever want to hear you minimizing your importance again.
” He kissed the top of her head. “Got it?”
“Yeah, I got it.” There was a hint of a smile to her words when she said, “I never knew you were so bossy.”
“You think I’m bossy now, just wait until I have you in my bed.”
She lifted wide eyes to him, and her mouth opened and closed.
Before she could react further, he placed a quick kiss on her forehead, slid one arm beneath her thighs, the other behind her back, and stood with her in his arms.
“Grab your stuff so we can secure it in your office,” he said. “I’ve missed you, and I want to take you to lunch.”
He started to lean down to allow her to pick up her laptop.
“Boone!” She looked toward the door and whispered harshly, “Put me down!” She wriggled and pushed against him until he set her on her feet. “I’m perfectly capable of walking to my office.” She straightened her shirt and gathered up her laptop and cables.
“You’re right. Sorry.” You couldn’t blame him for wanting to be close to her, to feel her body against him. “Can I at least hold your hand? A week is a long time,” he teased.
Luna rolled her eyes.
“I’ve missed you, too.” She grabbed his hand and practically pulled him from the conference room.
He’d never dated anyone he worked with before, and fortunately, there was no rule against it at OSI.
Hell, Andi and Calliope deployed side by side with their significant others during multiple ops.
Though, since having kids, Jonathan and Andi rarely deployed at the same time anymore.
Jonathan said they didn’t want to risk turning their children into orphans.
One of the harsh realities that had to be considered when committing to a career like theirs.
Fortunately, Luna’s position with Dark Ops kept her out of harm’s way.
He wasn’t sure how he would deal with her intentionally plunging headlong into dangerous situations.
She’d faced enough struggles in her life, and he wanted to wrap her in a protective cocoon and keep her from ever being hurt again.
If that made him a male chauvinist, then so be it.
Because even though they’d only just begun to explore their relationship, the thought of losing her gutted him.
Boone’s dad had been the one to foster his protective instincts when it came to women. His mom was incredibly strong and independent, but he’d grown up watching his dad treat her like the most special creature on planet Earth.
He would pull her close with a big smile and say things like, “Isn’t she just the prettiest girl you’ve ever seen, son?” and “I’m the luckiest fella in the world.” Then he’d plant a big old kiss on her.
“Oh, hush.” His mom would blush and give him a playful swat on the chest.
His father showed his love for her in unconventional ways.
She wasn’t into jewelry, fancy clothes, shoes, or purses.
Not even close—she disdained those things—said they were a waste of money.
The way to his mom’s heart had four legs—horses.
She loved them—all of them. She loved breeding them, training them, and she especially loved riding them through the hills on their land.
Knowing this, his dad built her one of the best indoor breeding and training facilities in Wyoming.
And every year, on her birthday, he would trade in her horse trailer for a shiny new one.
Some of the finest quality quarter horses came out of his mom’s facility, and people paid a hell of a lot of money for them, too.
Sometimes his dad’s overprotectiveness rankled her, but she never complained because she realized it came from a place of love and appreciation for her special role within the family.
Their relationship set the bar for what Boone hoped to have someday.
“You’re smiling,” Luna said. “What are you thinking about?”
“My folks,” he said.
“You must miss them.” She stopped at the door to the ops center. “Especially after that stunt Udall pulled.”
“I do, but I feel better knowing he’s out of the country. I’ll be seeing them in a few months when I go back for my mom’s birthday.” He was definitely going to take Luna with him but would wait until the right time presented itself to invite her. “I try to see them at least a couple times a year.”
When he first joined Dark Ops, he’d told his parents about the people he worked with. Since then, he’d talked to his mom about his feelings for Luna, and she was looking forward to meeting the woman her son had fallen for.
“It’s nice that you do that. Not everyone does.
” She typed her access code into the touchpad and leaned over the retinal scanner mounted on the wall.
The red light flashed, and there was a loud thunk when the magnetic lock disengaged.
The door slid open with an audible hiss, releasing a rush of cool air.
They stepped into the ops center, and the door whispered shut behind them.
Luna had grown up with emotionally absent parents. He hated to think what would’ve become of her had Dawn not filled the hole left by them.
She flipped the switch, and the overhead lights flickered on.
“Let me just plug my laptop into the system, then we can head out.” She hurried over to the master control panel, set her laptop down, and connected it. “If you’re not in a super big rush, I’d like to do a quick check of the satellite feeds for anything new.”
“Actually, I’d like to know that, too.” He moved closer.
Boone glanced around the room that was the nerve center for their entire operation.
Powerful air conditioners ran twenty-four seven to help combat the heat put off by all of the high-tech electronic equipment.
In the event of a power outage, generators would kick on to keep all of the critical systems functioning.
“It’ll only take a minute to pull it up.” She rolled out her chair, sat, and immediately began clicking keys. “I’ll put it on that screen, up there.” She pointed to the top, center screen on the wall, as it flashed on.
Boone stood next to her.
Luna moved her mouse around, clicked some more keys, then looked up at the monitor.
Nothing appeared, so she tapped a few more keys and checked the screen again.
“Nope, nothing new.” She sat back with a sigh and looked up at him. “I was really hoping we’d have something.”
“Yeah, me, too.” He took her hand, and she stood. “Come on, let’s go get some lunch.”
“Let me just set up an alert.” She tapped a few keys, lifted her hip to tug her phone from her back pocket, and swiped her finger across the screen.
“Okay, good.” She gave a satisfied nod and tucked her phone back in her pocket.
“I’ll get an alert on my phone when that satellite is over the target area. ”
“You can do that with just a few keystrokes?” Boone was continually amazed by the cutting-edge technology OSI had available, literally, at their fingertips.
“It’s a proprietary program I created, but it’s still in the beta testing phase.” She lifted one narrow shoulder. “It’s no big deal.”
No big deal?
“Uh, agree to disagree.” No way should she be downplaying her genius. “You do understand how brilliant you are, right?”
“About some things, sure.” Luna gave a self-deprecating laugh. “Others, not so much.” She tapped a few keys on her keyboard to turn off the monitor and did a quick scan of the room. “Let’s eat.”
They headed toward the door, and she repeated the process with her badge and the retinal scanner. They exited the room and waited until the door closed behind them.
“What are you hungry for?” she asked.
You was his initial reaction to her innocent question, but he kept that to himself. “How about the Turnbuckle?”
“Works for me,” she said. “Oh, do you mind if we stop by the post office when we’re done eating? I need to check our PO box.”
“Sure.” The compound’s physical address was closely guarded, so all of their mail went to a post office box.
“Thanks.” She popped up to her tippy-toes and gave him a quick kiss.
That simple act of affection went straight to his dick. Damn, but he’d never craved a woman in the way he craved Luna. It actually kind of scared the piss out of him, how much he wanted her. But what they were building between them was special, and he wasn’t willing to risk it by rushing her.
Instead, he would put his carnal urges on hold until the right time. Boone just hoped the right time presented itself soon, or he was going to burst.