Chapter
4
Annabelle
I faked a drunken swagger as the Sullivan brothers pretended to half-drag me out to the parking lot. When we were clear of the front door, with nothing except the sounds of bull frogs and crickets surrounding us, Declan leaned in to whisper in my ear.
“You put on one hell of a show there, honey. Group One has already made it to a secure location to change and arm up. We’ll wait here until they get back in about fifteen minutes.”
I pulled the gate down on my truck bed. The three of us could sit there like we were shootin’ the shit and wasting time. In other words, a typical, laid back, southern night.
“Give us a story to pass the time, Annabelle. Tell us something horribly embarrassing about Bobby.” Declan grinned as he leaned back on his elbows against the bottom of the truck bed.
Raising my eyebrow in amusement, I watched the other man’s lazy demeanor. “I don’t know about that, Declan. Perhaps it would be best if I didn’t talk about Bobby with y’all. I’m a bit biased on the subject.”
The guys chuckled and then Declan quickly grew serious. “Do you mind if I’m brutally honest with you, Annabelle?”
I let loose an unfeminine snort. “You might as well. I’ve got this funny feeling you’re the type that would tell me whether I want to hear it or not.”
“I promise I’m not trying to pry into your business, I want you to know I’ve known Bobby for the last three and a half years he’s been on this team. In that time, we’ve grown close. I’d do anything for him; including step into something that is clearly not my business by telling you things I should leave for him to say, but since you won’t give him the time of day, let me lay it out for you. Bobby’s my boy. Over the years, we’ve had a few drunken nights where he told me all about the mistakes he made over the course of his life. He always said the biggest mistake he ever made was leaving you. Did you know a couple of weeks after he broke it off with you, he had his parents searching the entire county for you since he couldn’t find you by phone? Apparently, you up and disappeared out of that small town you guys grew up in.”
Shock rolled through my body. Bobby had looked for me? Wow.
I sure as hell hadn’t seen that one coming.
How different would my life have been if I hadn’t left town the day after getting Bobby’s letter? A letter that was, by the way, still in my possession. It was something I’d used over the years to help me mourn the heart I’d left buried back in Georgia. Many things had happened in the last fifteen years. As much as I would love to think Bobby genuinely wanted to clear the air between us, as he’d hinted over the past two days, I didn’t think it was possible. If Bobby ever knew what I’d done, what I’d hidden from him, he’d look at me with the kind of burning hate you bestowed on the people you despised with every fiber of your being. I don’t think I could survive knowing the only man I’d ever loved felt that way about me.
Turning back to look at Declan, I considered my next words carefully.
“The comm. link you got in your ear, what’s the range on that sucker?”
With a knowing smile, Declan answered, “Oh, about two miles. So we’re safe for…” he looked down at his watch, “I’d say about another four or five minutes before they’re in range again.”
“Good. While they’re out of earshot, I’d like to say thank you for telling me that. No, I didn’t know Bobby ever looked for me after his ‘I-don’t-think-we-should-see-each-other-anymore’ letter. That being said, I don’t think anything can change between the two of us. My life changed forever after that letter. Things have happened that have made it impossible for Bobby and I to go back to the way things were. Yes, part of me will always be hurt or angry over what happened in the end between the two of us, but I also hope he has a good life. I’m not that much of a bitch to want it otherwise. I wish it could have ended differently, but it’s time for Bobby to move on.”
Declan hung his head a little and sighed. “I think you still care for him, Annabelle. Otherwise, you wouldn’t still be this pissed off at him. If I’m right, and you do, then I don’t see why the two of you can’t work through whatever happened in the past. I know for a fact Bobby would move heaven and earth to have a second chance with you.” As I was about to say something, he held his hand up to hold me off. “But I understand if you feel like you can’t make the leap. I’d like to ask a favor of you, then. Talk to him once. Let him say he’s sorry. That way, maybe he can finally move on with his life instead of always looking back to the past he had with you.”
I sat there, watching the sincerity in Declan’s face as he pleaded Bobby’s case. The man would have made a hell of a lawyer. Thousands of thoughts poured through my stunned brain. Did Bobby honestly think he was still in love with me? Was he genuinely sorry for doing the one thing he’d always promised never to do, leave me behind? Could I ever trust him after what had happened before? My heart couldn’t handle that kind of rejection again.
Riley shifted his butt on my other side, inadvertently reminding me he’d been sitting there the whole time. Looking over to him I asked, “You’re too quiet, Riley Sullivan. What’s your two cents about all of this?”
Riley shrugged his shoulders, then jerked his head in Declan’s direction. “I agree with him.”
I laughed. “You don’t talk much do you?”
Shrugging his broad shoulders, he replied, “Nope.”
Shaking my head in amusement, I took a moment to look at Declan’s watch. “What have we got, Declan, two or three minutes until they’re in range again?”
“Sounds about right, beautiful.”
“Okay. I’ll think about talking to Bobby, but in the meantime, why don’t I tell you about the party at Jason Bueller’s house.” With a wistful smile I added, “You’re not gonna believe this shit…”
~~~
Bobby
The comm. link crackled in my ear when we came back into range of the bar. In a few minutes we would be parked and hidden away in various positions in the woods behind the bar. As I checked my pockets on the black combat pants I was wearing again, making sure everything was in its place, I heard the roaring cackle of laughter pour through the link. It damn near blew my ear drum out.
I barked in annoyance, “What the fuck, Declan! Are you trying to make us go deaf?”
Declan continued to laugh. Hell, he was laughing so hard he was gasping for air, choking several times in the process. He was such a dumbass. When he finally had some self-control, he said something that stopped me dead in my tracks as I silently moved through the woods behind the Big Bull Bar.
“Tell me, Bobby, how much liquor do you have to drink to get chased by a truck through a cornfield? Or have a fist fight with a tree before you decide it would be a brilliant idea to try and piss on an electric fence that nearly zaps your dick off? But wait, that’s not the best part. No, that would be where you passed out underneath a trailer in nothing except your boxers and you cuddled up with a beach ball while your ridiculously hot and totally willing girlfriend was waiting for you inside the trailer! We’ve been promised photographic evidence as proof to this incredible account of your male, teenage idiocy. I think we should submit the pictures to National Geographic’s ongoing study about the effects of alcohol on impressionable young males with low IQs.”
The line choked up with several amused men’s laughter.
“SON OF A BITCH! Where’s the loyalty? You tell Belle to stop recapping our ridiculous adolescent adventures before I break out a few about her I’m sure she’ll wish never saw the light of day again.”
Declan relayed the message to Belle and then her soft southern drawl came over the line. “Bobby, you telling stories about me would be about as useful as a trap door on a canoe since I don’t have to work with these guys every day and you do.”
Jaxon cleared his throat to hide his amusement. “Playtime is over, kids. Let’s get back to work. Sullivan team, we’re in place. Mingle with the natives until it’s almost closing time. Then head to our truck to pick up your change of clothes and weapons. Once you’re done, meet up with us behind the bar in the woods.”
Declan’s, “Roger that,” was immediate. Now it was time to hurry up and wait.
~~~
Three o’clock in the morning finally rolled around before the target left with Henderson. The bar’s patrons had all been rounded up and kicked out an hour earlier. Thirty minutes after the departure of the two men, Chase went in with Riley covering his back to disarm the security system and let us in without tripping any alarms. Now I stood in the same large storage room Belle had described to us hours earlier. With me were Jaxon, Declan, Riley, Agent Boyd and Belle.
One wall was lined with metal shelving units filled with large bottles of various liquors. Across the room, three crates sat on the floor covered up with blue, all-weather tarps. The concrete floors were exposed under our feet and the three walls left bare were painted a stark white. The sparseness of the room should have comforted me. There was nothing blocking my view of the area. No cluttered corners that could contain surprises. However, my instincts were screaming at me and I couldn’t help the instinctive reaction of my finger tightening closer to my rifle’s trigger.
Alert and wary, I continued to scan my surroundings looking for all of the things common sense told me should be there. Like security cameras. Where were the small red lights indicating the room was being monitored? It wasn’t possible criminals involved with smuggling guns were actually dumb enough to leave their storage area utterly defenseless. Was it? Although, the lack of small glowing lights mocked me until I had a horrible sense of unease in my gut. Getting in and out of this place as fast as possible was starting to sound like a really damn good idea.
The sound of Riley gently using a crowbar to pry the lid off one of the crates, quickly brought my attention back around. A few seconds later, Jaxon shined a light through the gap of the crate’s lid and its body before letting out a low whistle.
Jaxon passed the small, high-powered flashlight to Belle while motioning his head for her to take a look inside. When she shined the light through the good size gap Riley had made, I watched in interest as she pursed her lips and looked at the contents. After a few seconds of perusal, she handed the flashlight back to Jaxon, who then gave the signal to seal the crate back up.
Riley closed the crate quickly as the remaining members of the room gave one last look around. My feet were itching to haul ass out of there. If only I could locate the source of whatever was putting me on edge, then I could take care of it. Something told me there was someone watching—someone waiting—which went against the all clear we had initially given the room. I looked back to see Riley putting the finishing touches on the crate, it looked exactly as we had found it. No one should ever be able to tell the contents had been opened and viewed.
As Riley gave the hand signal for the group to leave, I couldn’t help silently giving thanks we were getting the hell out of there. I didn’t know if we’d overlooked something—or if my instincts were all off—but the hairs standing up on the back of my neck told me we were standing in a trap and Belle was in danger. Either way, I heaved a tremendous sigh of relief when we finally cleared the building.
~~~
Thirty minutes later, weary EX Ops members filed through the door of Jaxon’s hotel room. Belle was the last one through and I took a second to admire how hot she looked in her ATF gear. Wearing black jeans, a long-sleeve, black t-shirt with a bullet proof vest on top, and her badge and gun holstered to her waist. The whole kick-ass outfit she had going on right now was enough to make me sport an erection that felt seriously uncomfortable since I was in a room filled with other men. Including a couple of guys that were like brothers to me, but that hadn’t stopped the boot stomping I’d promised Declan and Riley if they’d been trying to get an eyeful of Belle while she’d been getting dressed into her work clothes earlier. Frankly, I’d never known it was possible for a woman to change in less than three minutes in a vehicle without showing a peep of skin through the windows the whole time, but Declan had discreetly promised me neither he, nor Riley, had seen so much as a toe while she was getting ready. Not that my good ol’ buddy Declan had been trying to take advantage of my sweet, vulnerable woman while she was changing clothes. He’d never do anything that despicable. Riiiiight.
She’d managed to pull her hair back into a loose bun at the nape of her neck, showcasing the almost angelic features of her face. High cheekbones. Her slender neck that I once licked down to her collarbone. Damn, I’d give anything to strip her down right here and now, pull her hair loose, and bend her over the back of a chair while I spread those luscious globes of her ass wide and— “Deputy Miles might have been on to something after all, Agent Roberts.” Jaxon crossed his arms over his chest while considering the young Deputy in question.
Belle nodded her head in agreement. “Looks like tonight wasn’t a complete bust. A couple of crates of M4’s and AK-47’s aren’t quite the load we were told to look for, but it’s a start. My recommendation is to set up shift surveillance on the bar with small teams. That way we can rotate out. Those who aren’t on surveillance duty can help follow any leads we come across. How does that sound to you, Commander Wall?”
Jaxon’s gruff voice answered, “It’s a place to start. We’ll split up into teams tomorrow morning. Everyone should rest up tonight while we can and I’ll expect a call in the morning from you so we can get specifics started.”
Belle shook his hand before sending a general wave to the rest of the occupants in the room. “Everyone sleep tight now. Goodnight.” She left the room with Boyd, Sheriff Jenkins and Deputy Miles right on her heels.
After I finally got back to my own room, I peeled off my black BDUs, weapons and boots, leaving them in a pile on the floor. Wearing nothing but my boxer briefs, I lay in the bed, thinking of Belle. She’d been hard to pin down when we were teenagers, but I’d won her over back then. It had taken a lot of time, a lot of talking in places like our high school cafeteria or in the hallways after class whenever I could track her down. Small moments had added up, proving to her that she wasn’t some prank I was trying to pull by getting in her pants, or that I thought she was easy. By all means, the girl I’d known back then—and obviously the woman I was coming face to face with now—was the exact opposite of easy.
There were a lot of factors not in my favor this round. I’d hurt her; apparently, much worse than I’d ever dreamed of, and instead of loads of time and plenty of opportunities to wear her guard down, I was working on a short time span. All I could hope was that between the little bit of time I had, a little patience while I sat through what would undoubtedly be one nasty ass-chewing when she finally felt like talking to me again, and laying it all out on the table for her, maybe I could win her back. The first step would be to get her to agree to dinner. I could start off by apologizing. The rest would come after that. Baby steps and careful maneuvering around any emotional landmines I’d left behind when I’d just plain left her. I had no intentions of giving up this time. Belle was my woman. The other half of my soul. An intricate part of me that had felt lost for far too long.
Closing my eyes, my mind drifted back to better days.
Hot afternoons in the Georgia sun where we hid under a gigantic tree in the cooler shade. My larger body pinning her much smaller one beneath me as we lay in the prickly grass. Her soft hands gliding over my body. Fingertips tracing the lines of my chest before traveling down over my abdomen. One of my hands buried in her hair to hold her still for a kiss. My other hand slipping up under her shirt to stroke her breasts over her bra. Warm, sweet breath mingling as tongues entwined. A small extension of the two hearts that constantly sought solace in each other.
My heart constricted painfully at the thought of never getting that back. What would it take to lure the love of my life back into my arms? What were the chances Belle would forgive me? What the fuck would I do if she refused to forgive me after all?
God, I hoped I didn’t have to find out.