12. April 10, 2023
Demon
As Demon headed from his office toward the elevator, he came upon TB and Flame.
“Waters is going to take you home tonight.” One arm was around her shoulders, the opposite hand rested on her belly.
He had to bend way down to meet her forehead with his, especially since she could no longer wear her signature five-inch heels.
“I’ll be back before you know it. Be careful with the beach ball.
” He pressed his lips to her mouth. Then, with his lips against her forehead, he whispered, “Love you, Flame. With every breath until the last.”
“Be safe. I love you too. Every breath until the last.”
“ Ayo ,” TB whispered.
When the elevator doors opened, TB brushed one more kiss against her lips, then met Demon inside the carriage. Once the doors closed, Demon apologized. “Sorry to intrude. Didn’t know she was still here or that you were saying goodbye. I would have waited. ”
TB waved him off. “Not a big deal. I don’t care if everyone knows I love her or that you all hear me say it. She deserves that.”
Demon couldn’t help but think of another redhead who also deserved that kind of outward devotion.
Quickly, he shut the thought down. There were too many issues there, and it was going to be hard enough for her to get through this surprise assignment with him.
He wished she wasn’t being forced into this.
Steel could have posed as her husband, but he also knew that had God assigned the man to her, the conference room would have burst into flames to make sure it was him instead.
He was nothing if not a sea of contradictions.
They met everyone in the armory for a final weapons check.
Demon and Cherry would not be carrying to solidify the honeymoon illusion.
A driver would drop off TB, Midas, and Steel at various points, so they would arrive separately at the airport.
Gem would meet them in St. Lucia to get them weapons and other equipment they might need, avoiding any difficulties with travel.
Each of the men had a weapon on them they would not be checking in and would miss detection by the scanners.
When Waters cleared the three men to leave, they took the elevator to the garage and headed to their pickup points.
Turning to the “newlyweds,” he handed them their passports as Mr. and Mrs. McCarthy. “Hope you both studied D’s new background.”
Both nodded.
He looked at Cherry. “Midas kept him as close as possible to avoid slipups, not that you would. He even did a deep dossier on him, including social media presence, so it should stand up to scrutiny. He’ll keep adding details as you travel. Should be complete by the time you arrive.”
Holding out his hand to Demon, he pulled him in for the one-arm man hug with the two requisite slaps to the back. He whispered so that Cherry couldn’t hear. “Take care of her. Maybe try to fix this, yeah? You deserve her.”
When Waters released him with a last look of “Yes, you do,” he followed with a look at Cherry.
Their boss hugged her tight. He whispered something to her, then pulled back.
Demon saw her eyes go glassy when they pulled apart, and the soft smile on Waters’ face, along with the single affirming head nod, caused her to throw her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly.
She held him like that for a long time, and Waters ran his hands gently up and down her spine as he whispered in her ear. When she pulled herself together, he told them both, “Stay together. Be careful. Trust no one. Make sure you keep in touch with me and the guys. Ayo .”