Chapter Four #2
“I'm sorry, I shouldn't have …” he started, but Harper shook her head, trying to convey with her eyes that she wasn’t upset about it. Not even close.
“Come on, let’s get to the airport,” he said, a slight flush on his cheeks as he turned towards the door.
Harper touched her lips, still feeling the tingling sensation that lingered there, a smile creeping onto her face despite the chaos that surrounded them.
She enjoyed the kiss far more than she should have been willing to admit, and as they headed to the airport, part of her wondered what the future held for them, both immediately and beyond.
The fears and uncertainties of their situation were real, but so too was the budding connection between them, now more palpable than ever.
Harper and Toby hurried out to Toby’s car, the urgency of their task pressing on them as they left the security of her home.
As Toby navigated through the traffic toward the airport, Harper checked her email again, finding a new message from Jack.
It contained the name and location of the hotel where he was staying in Peru.
She read the message to Toby, and he nodded.
“Good. Now we just need to get there and talk some sense into him.”
In the car, the atmosphere was a mixture of tension and an unexpected ease. Harper felt a flutter of excitement mixed with nerves. She glanced at Toby, who seemed focused on the road yet aware of her gaze.
“So, Toby,” she began, breaking the silence, “what do you do for a living? I mean, when you’re not rescuing damsels in distress or turning into a coyote.”
Toby smiled at her description, his eyes briefly meeting hers before returning to the road. “I usually give people the state department spiel,” he admitted with a hint of hesitation in his voice. “But I don’t want to lie to you, especially not about this. You’re my mate, and you deserve the truth.”
Harper braced herself, wondering what on earth he could do that would require such secrecy.
Toby paused, as if weighing his words carefully. “I work for the CIA,” he said at last.
Harper blinked, taken aback by his revelation, but also intrigued. “Really? The CIA?” she said, a mix of surprise and curiosity coloring her tone. “That sounds... dangerous.”
“It can be,” Toby agreed. “Most CIA officers work alone, but I’m part of a team. There are seven of us. Each of us is a different species of shifter.”
“Really?” Harper leaned closer to him, her interest piqued. “What kinds?”
Toby chuckled, the sound warm in the confined space of the car. “Well, there’s Max, he’s a tiger shifter and he was also the first person on the team to meet his mate. Carter is a mountain lion, and he’s mated too. As is Seb. He’s a bear shifter, and Logan is a wolf. Then there’s Arlo, a shark.”
“A shark?” Harper spluttered, both amazed and amused. “How does that even work?”
“It’s a bit complicated,” Toby said with a grin. “He has a particular affinity with water and a very pronounced sense of smell, especially for blood. And then there’s Ezra, he’s— oh!”
He cut himself off as he glanced at the GPS. “Looks like we’re here,” he said as he pulled into the airport’s entrance lane, cutting the conversation short. “We can talk more about this later if you want.”
Harper nodded, the information swirling in her mind as she processed everything he’d told her.
His world was vastly different from hers, filled with dangers and secrets she had never even imagined.
Yet, as they parked the car and headed into the building, she felt a growing connection to Toby, a bond that was both thrilling and daunting.
As they walked through the airport, Harper found herself glancing at Toby frequently, appreciating his honesty and the protective presence he provided. She was stepping into a world that was entirely new to her, but she couldn’t have wished for a better guide.
They navigated through the check-in process quickly, securing tickets for a flight to Mexico City where they would pick up a connecting flight to Lima.
The weight of their mission loomed over them, but as they settled into their seats on the plane, a sort of quiet ease had begun to form between them.
As the aircraft hummed along, Toby turned to Harper, a curious look on his face. “You've been taking care of your brother for a long time, haven’t you?” he asked gently.
Harper sighed, looking out the window at the clouds below before answering.
“Yeah. Ever since our parents died in a car accident. I was nineteen and he was just fourteen. I was supposed to start college that fall, but...” Her voice trailed off as she turned back to Toby, a wistful look in her eyes.
“I put my plans on hold and bought the coffee shop instead. It seemed like the right thing to do at the time.”
Toby nodded, his expression softening. “You've given up a lot for him. He obviously means a lot to you.”
“He’s all the family I've got left,” Harper admitted, her voice thick with emotion.
“There isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for him, although I wish he’d pull himself together and start acting responsibly.
I mean if anything, I would have expected that the loss of our parents would have made him grow up quicker, but it seems to have had the opposite effect.
It’s as if he’s regressing. Every year he gets more reckless. ”
“That must be a tough thing to witness.”
“It is.”
The plane’s gentle turbulence mirrored the emotional currents between them. Toby reached out, his hand brushing against hers, sparking a tiny electric thrill that made Harper catch her breath.
“He’s lucky to have you,” Toby said, his voice low and intimate.
Harper turned her hand over, her fingers tentatively intertwining with his. “Thanks,” she murmured, her cheeks warming under his intense gaze.
Toby flashed a mischievous grin. “So, about this coffee shop of yours. Do you make a killer cappuccino, or should I stick to my usual black coffee when I next visit?”
Harper laughed, the sound light and freeing. “I make the best cappuccino in town, thank you very much. I’ll have you know my customers are very loyal.”
“Hmm, that might be owing to the very pretty blonde owner who serves them every day,” Toby teased, his eyes twinkling. “I guess I'll have to put your claim to the test.”
“Oh, you’re welcome to try,” Harper retorted, her tone playful. “But be warned, I might just convert you to a coffee connoisseur yet. Once you’ve had one of my caramel lattes there’s no going back.”
Toby threw his head back and laughed. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
As they chatted, Harper felt an unusual lightness, a flutter in her stomach that wasn’t just from the flight. Toby’s presence, his easy charm and warmth, were quickly dismantling her defenses, leaving her feeling both exhilarated and a little bit flustered.
Their conversation continued onto other lighter topics as the flight wore on, each as fascinating as if he was pouring out his darkest secrets.
She wondered if it was the same for him.
As they approached their destination, Harper found herself grateful for Toby’s presence, his strength and unexpected gentleness was like a beacon helping her to navigate the uncertain waters ahead.
When they reached Peru, they hired a rental car, and Toby maneuvered it effortlessly through the bustling streets of Lima.
Inside the compact vehicle, their closeness accentuated the growing connection between them.
The confinement of the space seemed to amplify every shift, every small movement, and every fleeting touch, as they continued their conversation.
“So, tell me,” Toby began as they made their way down one of the busy roads, “Do you often let Jess and Lee take care of the coffee shop so that you can take time off to relax?”
Harper laughed, the sound rich and warm in the close quarters of the car. “Relax? What’s that? In all honesty, I haven’t taken a vacation in forever. At least not in the traditional sense. I’ve taken plenty of time off, but I’m usually running around the country after Jack.”
“The sounds tough.”
“I could take more time off if I wanted to, I just never saw the point before. Most of my high school friends are married and I never thought it would be much fun to vacation alone. The only reason I have a passport is because one of my friends got married in Cabo and I was a bridesmaid. What about you? Do you ever get a break from, uh, saving the world?”
Toby laughed at her description of his job. “Well, it’s not exactly a Monday-to-Friday job, but I do get downtime. I travel a lot for work of course and when we’re finished on a job, I’ll often hang around for a day or two to explore the country.”
“See the world, huh? Sounds like you’re using your vacation days a bit more excitingly than I am,” Harper said, her tone teasing but also tinged with a hint of envy.
“Perhaps after we’ve found your brother we can take a day or two to explore Peru,” Toby suggested.
Harper nodded. “I’d like that.”
Their eyes met briefly, a spark igniting in the small space between them. Harper felt her cheeks warm under his gaze, and she turned to look out the window, trying to mask her growing fluster. The road stretched out before them, but the journey felt incredibly intimate.
As they pulled into a gas station to refuel, the tension seemed to thicken.
Toby turned off the engine and reached over to the glove compartment to retrieve his wallet.
As he leaned across, the space between them diminished drastically, his face mere inches from hers.
Harper caught her breath, her heart racing as she turned to face him.
Their eyes locked, and without a word, Toby closed the gap, his lips meeting hers in a kiss that was both gentle and charged with pent-up emotion. Unlike their first kiss, this one was less about surprise and more about mutual desire, lingering and deepening as they each gave in to the moment.