Chapter 21
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
“Luke made you come, didn’t he?” Jessica glared at Eva and rolled her eyes.
“It’s Valentine’s Day, and we’re going to have a girls’ night out. Samantha’s in New York while she waits for Owen to get home, and she brought her friend Emily with her.” Eva waved a finger in the air with a quick smirk. “Friends don’t let friends spend Valentine’s Day alone.”
“I’m not going clubbing. I’ve only been home for a few weeks.” She shook her head. “Going out for a night on the town after what happened would be crazy.”
“What you need is to take your mind off everything.” Eva stepped inside Jessica’s walk-in closet and disappeared from sight. “We don’t know when the guys will be back, so you get to be my plus one tonight.”
“I don’t want to be a plus anything.” Jessica dropped onto her bed at the sight of Eva carrying an armful of dresses out of the closet.
She set them on the bed and began sifting through them. “Well, I need to celebrate the fact I can fit into my old clothes,” she said with a laugh.
“Yeah, your boobs don’t, though.”
“Perks of breastfeeding, and Luke certainly isn’t complaining.”
Jessica held up her hand. “Woman . . . this is my brother we’re talking about.”
“Right.” She smiled. “Okay, which will it be? Classic black? Or red?” She narrowed one eye and held the two choices in the air, and then diverted her eyes to Jessica’s legs, clad in pajama pants. “You’ve been shaving?”
“I haven’t let myself go.” Okay, maybe the first week after Berlin she had, but she was slowly finding her rhythm again. “You know, two weeks isn’t that much of a recovery for most people.” She shot her friend a pointed look.
Eva tsked. “Since when are you ‘most people’?” She tossed her the black dress, which would have Jessica’s breasts spilling out of the top.
“I cannot go clubbing. I have work to do, and—”
“And punching bags to hit?”
Jessica processed Eva’s words. “Luke told you, huh?”
Eva’s lips pursed, and her lashes lowered briefly. A light shade of red inched up her throat and to her ears. “Yeah, uh, Luke told me everything,” she softly admitted. “He mentioned you’ve been training with Asher. Until they left for Mexico three days ago, anyway.”
Asher was the last person she wanted to talk about, especially with Eva. “He’s the best fighter, so . . .”
“I know.” She cleared her throat. “And he’s probably good at a bunch of other things, too.”
“Yeah, so, can we go back to talking about your boobs?”
Eva pointed a finger at her. “There you are. I missed you.”
Jessica stood and eyed the black dress. “And what’s that supposed to mean?” She wished Luke hadn’t told Eva everything.
“Just get dressed,” Eva ordered. “And wear the red lipstick, okay?”
“Are you trying to score me a date tonight, or what? I thought I was your plus one.” She reluctantly walked toward the en suite, dress in hand.
“When was the last time you had sex?” Eva’s arms crossed.
“You’re marrying my brother.” She pivoted to face her. “I probably shouldn’t be talking about this stuff with you.”
“You honestly think I’d share your secrets with him?”
“I don’t have any secrets.”
“Mm. Sure.” Eva’s eyes narrowed.
“The last thing I need right now is sex, anyway.” Even if I want it with Asher. Only him.
“Are you sure?” She arched a brow. “Maybe you need to let loose.”
She silently contemplated the notion.
“Or is it that you already found someone you want?” Eva asked.
“Don’t start.” She already knew what was coming.
“Luke saw Asher’s message to you just before . . .” She found Jessica’s eyes and took a breath. “When Owen was syncing all your data after your phone got destroyed in Berlin, Luke saw the text from Asher.”
“What text?” Jessica tossed the dress onto the bed and went to her nightstand to grab her phone.
“Asher told you he missed you. It’s not on your phone now?” Eva stood next to her as Jessica scrolled through the messages to and from Asher right before Egon had tried to destroy her life.
“The last message on here is from me.” She blinked and put her phone down. “Why would Luke delete the text?”
Eva dragged a palm down her face.
“And why’d Luke tell you about it in the first place?”
Eva slumped onto the bed and pressed her palms atop her red pressed slacks. “He’s been venting to me. You know how hard it is for him to open up, but—”
“What is it?” Jessica sat next to her.
“He thinks there’s something going on between the two of you, and I’m honestly surprised it’s taken him this long to figure it out.”
Jessica’s brows scrunched. “But there’s nothing going on.” Never can be. And she’d told Asher that before he’d left for Mexico.
“You’ll always be Luke’s little sister, even though you’re this powerhouse of a woman.” She shifted on the bed to better face her. “It won’t matter what guy you end up with in the future—Luke’s not going to like him. Well, not at first.”
“There’s nothing for Luke to worry about.” But her mind breezed back to the supposed I miss you text from Asher.
It wouldn’t have been a big deal to most people, but it was a huge-ass step for Asher. He didn’t do I miss yous or hugs. He was like her. Practically cut from the same cloth. Well, he used to be, but he had changed, hadn’t he? Admitted as much in her office, anyway.
“I think I need a drink.” Jessica rose to her feet and grabbed the dress from the bed.
“So, we’re going?” Eva’s dark brows rose. “No fighting me?”
“Yeah, I guess.” She sighed. “But I’d better wear a wig. The image of me in that vest, is, uh, still making its way through the news cycle.” Her throat thickened at the memory.
“It’s not that clear of an angle.” Eva stood. “Maybe I’ll wear a wig, too, though.”
“The paparazzi still hounding you since you’re back in the spotlight?”
Eva was part of the famous Hollywood Reed family, but she’d hidden from her name for years until she met Luke.
“Unfortunately. And the last thing we need tonight is to draw attention to me, only for them to discover you.”
“Good call.” Jessica went into the bathroom and shut the door behind her and then peeled off her pajamas.
As she went through the motions of getting changed, Asher’s text continued to batter her mind: words she hadn’t even read because her control-freak brother had deleted them.
She’d have to deal with Luke’s invasion of privacy at some point. But she wasn’t itching to talk about the subject matter: Asher.
Right now, she just wanted her team back home safe. Not being with them on an op had driven her nuts the past three days, but she also knew it’d been best to stay behind. She couldn’t risk their lives with a bad call if she lost her focus.
Two weeks ago, she’d had a bomb strapped to her chest.
Yet somehow, right now, all she could think about was a simple I miss you.
Jessica studied the glitzy club, but she wasn’t focused on the flashy lights, the people dressed to the nines, or the music. No, she was scanning every door to note possible escape routes and checking for anyone who looked dangerous.
She’d let her guard down in Berlin. She wouldn’t make the same mistake again.
“You look tense,” Samantha’s best friend, Emily, commented.
The woman bore a striking resemblance to Jennifer Garner, who’d starred as a CIA spy in the old show Alias—a show Luke had teased Jessica about watching when they were younger.
“How’s your brother doing? Stopping that massive attack back in 2017 like he did—he’s an incredible guy.” Jessica thanked the bartender for her martini and refaced the group.
Emily tucked her golden-brown locks behind her ear and gave a light shrug. “Jake’s good. He thinks he needs to be Superman, though, I swear. Trying to save everyone. Kind of like you and your team, huh?”
Jessica wondered how much Owen’s fiancée, Samantha, had told Emily about her team, but her thoughts faded as they clinked their glasses together in a toast.
“Happy Valentine’s Day, ladies,” Eva said.
“You, too,” Samantha and Emily said at the same time.
Jessica inhaled a breath and followed it with a large gulp of liquor, hoping it would settle her nerves.
“Think the boys are okay?” Samantha asked, stress lines appearing between her eyes.
“They’ll be fine,” Eva said, but she was unable to hide the crease of worry in her forehead.
“Sorry about what happened to you,” Emily said shortly after in a low voice. “And I’m so sorry about your friend.”
Jessica’s heartbeat ramped up, but she managed to utter, “Thank you.”
Despite the loud house music pumping through the room—an interesting remix of a Charlie Puth song—the silence between them became deafening.
Eva reached out for her arm. “I’m glad you came out with us. I know this can’t be easy, and maybe I shouldn’t have pushed, but—”
“No, you were right.” A total lie, but what could she say? She didn’t want her future sister-in-law feeling bad. “Why don’t you guys have some fun. Hit the dance floor.”
“I’m thinking Luke and Owen wouldn’t be thrilled with you grinding up against any guys. We should probably stick close together if we do go out there,” Emily said with a chuckle.
“Owen’s progressive and all,” Samantha began, “but not when it comes to men groping me.”
“Yeah, Luke, too. But we can protect each other on the dance floor.” Eva looked to Jessica, but before she could reply, Jessica’s gaze snapped to a familiar face at a booth in the back of the club.
“I’ll, um, be right back.” She slipped her glass back onto the bar and, before anyone could ask questions, maneuvered through the crowd.
Asher’s sister sat alongside a few other women. Bottles of expensive champagne crowded the table. Angelo wasn’t in sight, though.
Sarah’s long dark hair, a reminder of Asher’s, was swept into a high ponytail, and the dress she wore—well, Asher would’ve had a brotherly heart attack.
“Uh, hi.” Sarah shifted off the leather to stand. “What’s with the hair?”
Jessica touched her long black wig. “Right. Um, it’s a Valentine’s Day thing,” she sputtered. “Don’t ask.” A quick, forced laugh tumbled free. “So, you’re here with friends?”