Chapter 25
T win lines appeared between Callie’s brows as they dropped, and her head tipped to the side in question. Yeah, he might not have thought that pronouncement through before making it, but he wasn’t about to withdraw it.
When she first relayed her plan, he’d swear an invisible, brawny caveman sucker punched him.
He’d barely kept a loud—and possibly inappropriate— “NO” from exploding from his lungs.
Everything inside him rebelled against the idea of her being in physical proximity to anyone in the Nolan family—other than Rian.
In the silence that followed her announcement, he considered spiriting her off somewhere and locking her up.
Or telling her absolutely not. And then spiriting her off somewhere safe.
She was a grown woman capable of making her own choices, and yet all his protective instincts had roared to the surface. Despite the fact that she was a trained (former) special agent. Despite the fact that he had no right, in any way, to be a part of her decision-making.
Having some sense of self-preservation, though, he wrestled with the caveman and managed to subdue him until his temper cooled. And as Callie walked him through her findings, he realized something. Something important. He’d well and truly forgiven her.
Sure, he’d told Mantis he had. But as she talked, as the specter of her traveling alone and confronting Joseph lingered between them, any remaining doubts or thin threads of anger or resentment or hurt faded away like mist on a warm morning.
What was left behind, he couldn’t define or identify, but he wanted her to be safe. To stay safe.
Which was why he announced that he’d go with her.
“You’re coming with me?” she asked, her head still cocked. She’d worn her hair down, and a curtain of black fell over her shoulder.
“I am.”
“You are what?” Sabina Warwick asked as she walked into Callie’s office.
Sabina looked about as scary as a woodland nymph, but everyone knew not to mess with the cyber genius.
She’d make people’s bank accounts disappear for the fun of it.
To be fair, he had pranked her at the recent Halloween party, and she had returned it the next day, but the heart attack he’d had when he’d seen his zero balance was a lesson he didn’t need to learn again.
“Hey, Sabina,” he said, eyeing her.
She grinned and winked at him. “I see you’re still grumpy.”
“Your reaction was a little overblown. I surprised you with a bucket full of orange glitter. Normal people escalate to a glitter bomb in my house or car. They do not make my life savings disappear.”
She shrugged and took a seat. “I’m not most people. And I put it back less than twelve hours later.”
Callie flashed him a questioning look. He shook his head and muttered, “Later.”
“I come bearing gifts,” Sabina said.
“Don’t trust her,” Philly said.
Sabina shot him a pitying look. “Don’t mind him,” she said, handing them both USBs.
“What’s on these?” Callie asked.
“Dossiers on Aiden, Rian, and Joseph Nolan. You’ve been investigating the financial aspects, but Ava—who cannot relax—needed something to do while on bed rest. She decided to do deep dives into their lives. Don’t lose those,” she added, nodding to the drives.
Philly handed his back. “I don’t need it. I’ll use Callie’s. I’m going with her to Utah.”
“Uh—”
“Good idea,” Sabina said, cutting Callie off and taking the device back. “It’s always better to have a partner on an op.”
“They may not have space. My registration was last minute, and I leave tomorrow,” Callie said.
Sabina waved the comment off as she rose. “We’ll take care of it. And travel. I assume you’re flying to Vegas, then driving from there?” Callie nodded. “Great, we’ll get it all arranged. I’ll email you both the details,” she said, then turned and walked out.
“Have I just been railroaded?” Callie said.
“She does that,” Philly replied. “Usually only for the good, but keep your eye on her.”
Callie swung her gaze to him, a question hovering in them.
He shook his head. “Not in that way,” he said.
“You don’t have to worry about her integrity or ethics or anything like that.
She’s as solid as they come, and I’d trust her with my life.
You wouldn’t have joined HICC if you didn’t agree,” he pointed out.
“But she’s wily when it comes to personal matters.
And, as I’m sure you’ve figured out, the line between personal and professional is a little blurry around here. ”
Callie made a face. “I noticed. A little different than my last job. Not sure how I feel about it, but it’s a small price to pay for bringing those responsible for Liza’s death to justice. I guess.”
“Show me where we’re going. I want to see what kind of extreme activities we’re doing so I pack the right gear,” he said.
She stared at him, then sighed. “I should fight this more. I’m perfectly capable of doing this on my own.”
“You could fight it, but why? It will be a lot more exciting than that day we pretended your grandparents’ barn was Mount Everest and we tried to scale it.”
Callie fought a smile and lost. “My grandpa really didn’t like the holes we made with our ‘ice axes.’”
“Or the fact that our ‘axes’ were your grandmother’s good knives,” he added, drawing a laugh from her.
“Okay, fine, I’ll roll with it,” she said, typing something into her computer. When she turned it for him to see, the website of the resort showed on the screen.
“Fancy,” he said. “Which means their definition of extreme is different from yours and mine.”
“It will definitely be different from yours, Mr. Spec Ops,” she teased, clicking on the Activities button.
“Hmm, all the usual stuff. Mountain biking, rock climbing—maybe we can redeem ourselves this time—hiking, BASE jumping. Um, ATV-ing isn’t a sport,” he said, pointing to the last line in the list.
“Neither is golf, but hey,” she replied with a shrug and a grin. He raised an eyebrow at her. “It’s a skill, not a sport. Try to change my mind.”
He chuckled. “Nope. I agree. I wouldn’t mention that around Scipio or Superman, though. Not unless you want to end up arguing for hours.”
She inclined her head. “Noted.” Neither of them commented on the presumption she’d be spending time around Scipio and Superman.
“When’s the flight?”
“Assuming they book you on the same one, we leave from the Mystery Lake airport at nine in the morning. It’s a short hop to Vegas, then a three-and-a-half-hour drive from there. We could have flown into a closer airport, but that involved changing planes.”
He rose, already rearranging his schedule in his mind. “I’m always up for a good road trip. I’ll bring the snacks. You still like salt-and-vinegar Pringles?”
She blinked. “You remember that?”
“And root beer,” he said.
Her eyes widened, and she grimaced. “I haven’t had either of those in years.”
“Then lucky for you that I’m your partner in crime. I make epic road trip snack packs.”
She rose to accompany him out. “Add something healthy?”
“Cheez-Its? They have cheese.”
“Fruit? Or nuts?”
“Excellent idea, Fruit Roll-Ups and chocolate-covered peanuts.”
“Gabe.”
“I’ve got us covered. Trust me,” he said with a grin as they pushed out the main door.
She eyed him, then huffed a small laugh. “I do,” she said quietly. “I actually do.”