Chapter 9
Savvy tapped her toe on the wooden floor, waiting for the water to boil.
Instant coffee tasted like tar and smelled of wet paper mixed with soy sauce.
But she didn’t give a rat’s ass. She needed caffeine after a night on a horrible, tiny bed, shared with Riven.
While the company was decent, and the conversation was excellent, Savvy’s back revolted. She was getting too old for this shit.
Not that being in her mid-thirties was old, but it was old enough.
The door rattled, and her brother strolled through, stretching. “You ladies sleep okay?”
“No,” both women retorted.
Riven sat on the sofa, her feet tucked under her butt, while she read a book she’d found on one of the shelves by the fireplace. Patch had always loved a good mystery.
“Can’t say we did either.” McGuire chuckled, leaning over Savvy’s shoulder. “That water for some coffee?”
“Yup,” she said.
“Why don’t you take some out to Patch?”
She glanced at her brother. “Are you kicking me out so you can suck face with your girlfriend?”
“Something like that.” He dared to wink.
She chuckled as she poured the steaming water over the grounds, giving them both a good stir. Then she repeated the motion for good measure before hip checking the door.
The morning mist had yet to lift off the bayou. The sun hadn’t punched out over the horizon, but its light illuminated the swamp, making the dark moss turn a fluorescent shade of green. It really was a beautiful sight, until eyes popped out from the depths of the murky water.
She scanned the clearing until she found Patch, leaning against a tree, a knife in one hand, a stick in the other, as he carefully carved… something. He always had to be doing something with his hands. She’d often teased him about that. He’d push back about how she couldn’t sit still.
He jerked, glancing over his shoulder. “Good morning.” He smiled, pointing. “One of those for me?”
“Nah. I thought I’d bring it down to Rodney.”
“Ha. Ha. Aren’t you the funny girl?” He set aside his masterpiece, took the mug, and shifted, making room for her against the massive tree trunk.
“That’s what you get for asking dumb questions.”
He wrapped his free arm around her, leaned in, and kissed her… with intent. His tongue traced her lips before pushing into her mouth, grabbing hers, swirling around the taste of bitter coffee.
Somehow, everything tasted better on him.
“Hmmmm, that was nice,” he mused.
“About all you’re going to get.” She jerked her head. “But I think my brother might be getting a treat.”
“I never needed to know that.” He chuckled. “I take it you approve of Riven?”
“Hell yeah.” Savvy leaned into Patch’s strong frame, sipped her hot beverage, and soaked in the morning. It wouldn’t last. She knew that. But she’d take the small wins. Enjoy the precious moments. “She’s good for my brother.”
“They're good for each other.” Patch took another sip of his brew before setting the tin mug on the dirt, making sure it would balance without tipping over on the uneven ground.
“What do you think happened to those two men who went up the river last night?”
“Any number of things, except they didn’t come back down.” He leaned to the side, taking out his cell. He tapped the screen, opening a map app. “See these forks in the river here?”
She nodded.
“If they went up any of those, they could have gotten all sorts of muck or debris in their engine, causing them problems. If they ended up over here.” He pointed. “Well, that’s a maze that even I’ve gotten lost in, and they could have circled for hours trying to find their way out.”
“But if they had a cell with any map on it, they could’ve found their way out.”
“No service back there, but yeah, sure.” Patch pinched and swiped at the screen some more.
“They could’ve set up camp over here. There are platforms on a ridge right about there for tents.
Hunters, gator and python wranglers, all use them.
Since we didn’t see them come back down, my guess is that’s where they went, unless they are too stupid to live, and if that’s the case, we might not see them again and probably don’t have to worry too much about them. ”
“You believe they were acting dumb as a doorknob for Rodney.”
“I don’t know about that.” Patch set his phone on the ground, took her mug, placed it next to his, and tucked her between his legs.
“Hired thugs don’t know everything, and if they don’t understand the inner workings of the swamp, they’d look like idiots.
But if they were military, or trained in covert operations in any way, well, you know how that goes. ”
“Yeah, they’d figure it out.” She pointed to an alligator lazily floating in the murky water. “How big do you think that one is? All I see is snout and eyes.”
“Based on that, I’d say about eight feet.”
“Didn’t you worry about them climbing up on land and eating you last night in your sleep?”
“No.” His chest vibrated as he chuckled. “But for the record, you leave them alone, they won’t bother you.”
“I don’t know that I believe that.”
He pressed his lips on her neck. “You should know that your brother and I did rock, paper, scissors as to who went in to check on you girls. I lost.”
She glanced over her shoulder, catching his gaze. “Is check on code for getting a little action? Or is that you being polite?”
“Does it matter? Because I flipping lost, and I’d rather be inside getting a treat.”
“You’re a pig.”
“I’m a man sitting with a beautiful woman between my legs who smells like sunshine and watermelon. I can’t think straight.” He cupped her chin, brushing his mouth over hers in a hot, wet, sloppy kiss.
“Is that all I am… a treat?”
“No.” He traced her jawline. “I’m sorry if my male humor—”
She pressed her finger over his lips. “I wasn’t looking for an apology.
But I am curious as to what this is. A trip down memory lane?
A short fling? Closure?” She honestly hadn’t come out here to ask such a deep question.
Her brother and Riven deserved a little privacy.
Some space to just be. And she’d wanted to stretch her legs, watch the sun spread over the lush scenery, and spend a moment with Patch.
Her life wasn’t hers right now, and she had no idea what would happen next.
But both Patch and McGuire were right. She had to do something.
She couldn’t let a shadow rogue organization like Black Ledger muscle its way into the 73—into the CIA and all facets of the government and military. That meant seeing this through.
After that, she wasn’t sure she wanted to continue with her role. She was burnt out and ready for… she had no idea. But it wasn’t the 73. It wasn’t the CIA. It wasn’t running missions for whatever branch needed her to do the dirty work.
Deep down, she knew she was done with that.
“What do you want it to be?” he asked softly.
“Do not avoid the tough questions by deflecting them back on me.” She cocked a brow and glared. This had been a dance they’d done before, and she wasn’t about to do it again. If this meant nothing but a good time, she could handle that. She could handle anything as long as it was the truth.
She was tired of all the lies, regardless of where they came from.
“I hate it when you do that,” she mumbled.
“Yeah, I know.” He reached for his tin cup and took a few big gulps. How he handled scalding hot liquids, she couldn’t fathom. “The only thing I can tell you for sure, it’s none of the things you listed. At least not for me,” he said, his gaze boring into her like a rocket reaching for the sky.
Her heart dropped to her toes. The air in her lungs stopped at her throat as she tried to exhale.
When she tried to breathe in, nothing happened.
Not even a gasp. Of all the things he could have said, she hadn’t expected that.
Though, it wasn’t really an answer either and she’d be damned if she wasn’t getting more clarification.
She pounded her chest. “What does that mean, exactly?”
“You know how crazy I make you when I start asking a bunch of weird random questions to get to a point, but it doesn’t make much sense while I’m trying to get there?”
She groaned. “We’re gonna play that game?”
“Kind of.” He nodded. “Have you ever been in love?”
“Seriously? I ask you what’s going on with us, and you ask me that?”
“Just answer the question.” He sighed.
“Okay. Yeah, I’ve been in love.” She twisted her body, turning, sitting cross-legged, facing him. She lifted a blade of grass, fiddling with it.
“What happened?”
“Does it matter?”
“It does to me.” He tapped his finger on her knee before tracing a soft circle on her skin. “Humor me with the answer.”
“It just didn’t work out.” She shrugged.
“Did he love you back?”
Jesus. This was a shitty game. Answering honestly was going to cause a fight. One of epic proportions. “I don’t know. I believe so, but we never said the words.”
“If you could go back in time and say them, would you?” He took her hand and laced his fingers through hers.
“Hindsight is perfect vision.” She pursed her lips. This was a dangerous game, and he had to know he was playing with fire. But so was she, because she wasn’t going to lie. Not now. Not this time. “But I’m not sure I would.”
He scowled. “Why not?”
“I don’t believe he was ever ready to hear them.
It always felt like he had one foot out the door.
As if he were waiting for something to happen.
Something that would give him the excuse he needed to walk away.
” She reached out, cupping his scruffy face.
“When that something did happen and he left, he cut me to the core.”
“I never meant to do that.” He curled his fingers around her wrist and kissed her palm.
“Interesting that you think I’m talking about us.”
“I know you are.” His mouth turned upward into a half smile. “And I did love you back then. Hell, I still love you. I want to tell you what happened that changed me.”