“What did he say?” My heart actually stopped at the sight Bennett made walking back to me from the payphone at the internet café we’d stopped at deep in the heart of Chicago.
“He said how in the hell did we manage to miss the damn flight.” He flashed that boyish grin that lit my whole body up and took the seat across from me, sexy as hell despite the lack of sleep from which we both suffered. “I explained about the whole exploding car situation, but the Commander was not moved. He said to find a way to get our collective asses to the Pentagon and ASAP. Or else.”
I nodded because the “or else” very likely ended with both of us rotting in a body of water somewhere. “I used a VPN to log into my email address and the committee members have all received their copies of my dissertation research. I’ve made small but significant changes to each copy so I guess now we wait.”
“And then we eat before finding a car to get us to the coast.”
He grabbed my hand and we walked out of the shop, hopping on a couple of buses and then on one of the elevated trains the city was famous for before we stopped at a hole in the wall that served the best pizza I had ever eaten.
“Deep dish, sounds like it should be awful but this is quite possibly the best pizza on earth.”
His chuckle soothed my frayed nerves and I cursed my body’s reaction to him. Our entire relationship was a gigantic question mark.
“I agree. But we should get a move on. I have an idea for a car.”
His idea had been to go to the sketchiest part of the city and find a used car lot where we got an old gold clunker for less than a thousand bucks.
“Do you think this will get us where we need to go?” The salesman, an older black man with an impressive white beard and a dazzling smile smacked the hood.
“It may be ugly as hell little girl, but the engine is solid. It’ll get you to California and back and that’s a promise.” He must have seen my hesitation because he leaned closer to speak to both of us. “You want the truth? This car was bought at auction, used to belong to a high ranking gang member and that’s why I can’t sell it. I’ve dropped the price, but folks are terrified to be caught driving it. Something tells me you won’t be in town long, so that shouldn’t be a problem.”
Bennett stuck out his hand and grinned broadly. “You have a deal. Cash okay?”
“Nothing better,” the man said, leading us to a desk. “Comes with thirty days insurance but after that you’re on your own.”
Bennett laid down five hundred bucks and his face took on a fierce expression. “If anyone comes asking about two people who look like us, we said something about heading to a cabin in Maine, right?”
The older man slid the bills across the table and tucked them into his eggplant blazer. “I hear Maine is lovely this time of year. You lovebirds enjoy your vacation,” he said loudly and waved us off.
We stopped at the first gas station we saw. Bennett filled up while I got food and a gas can. “If we need to stop it’s better we do it on our terms,” I told him.
“You would have been a good damn SEAL Laney.”
Why that compliment touched me so much, I couldn’t say. “Thank you.” The drive this time started less tensely, but both of us were pensive, lost in our own thoughts as we drove straight through Indiana and Ohio. But somewhere outside of Pittsburgh tension filled the car.
“You feel it too, don’t you?”
“What’s that, the danger, or this thing between us?”
I rolled my eyes. “The former.”
He shrugged. “Yes. Hell yes. To both.”
There were cars on the road, but mostly they looked like bored commuters and the occasional trucker or minivan of tourists, but I felt on edge. Like the danger we’d been running from had come closer. Was upon us.
“I can’t explain it but I feel, suddenly anxious. More than normal.”
In response Bennett weaved through traffic, “To see if we have a tail,” he explained.
We didn’t have a tail, but the feeling didn’t go away. When traffic grew heavier, Bennett’s hands tensed on the wheel and he moved aggressively to the right lane and exited I-76. Every few seconds, blue-green eyes darted to the rearview or side mirrors, checking diligently.
“What’s the plan?”
He blew out a long breath and I knew he felt lost too. “The plan is to get to D.C. as soon as fucking possible. We need gas now, then we can finish the last four hours of this trip uninterrupted.”
I nodded because I couldn’t think of anything else to say. “Thank you Bennett. Whatever brought you into my life, thank you for protecting me. For making me feel like a woman, a desirable woman.”
“Well sweetheart the pleasure was all mine.” He winked and threaded our fingers together, holding them on his leg as he drove with a fierce expression burning in his gorgeous eyes.
I love you. The words hovered on my lips as he pulled up to the side of the gas station, but instead of voicing them out loud, I jumped from the car like it was on fire.
“Should I get anything from inside?”
“Nah. I’m filling up the can.”
I grinned. “Me too,” I said hoping to break the tension. It didn’t work so I pressed a kiss to the side of his mouth and made my way to the second most germ-ridden place in America. The public restroom. Luckily it was unoccupied and I moved quickly, trying desperately not to touch any parts of any surface. Washing my hands seemed pointless when I had to open the door but old habits die hard and I had a miniature bottle of sanitizer in my bag. “Ugh,” I shivered and pulled the door open.
And ran smack into a man with too many gold chains and a distinct patchouli scent. “Hello Doctor. You are very hard woman to track down.”
I stepped back and pushed the door in his face. “No!” His hand slammed against the door, pushing it open and grabbing me by my ponytail. “Stop.”
“I won’t hurt you, as long as you know that your research is now mine. The Harness requires batteries that my boss can produce cheaply. He only wishes to convey his thanks and remind you that your work is done.”
“What? What the hell are you talking about, my work is complete? This is my life’s work!” He frowned and I knew there was something I couldn’t understand, but it was right there. “I didn’t conduct this research for anyone but myself.”
“What…never mind. We have it now, consider yourself lucky you still have your life.” He pushed me roughly and my head smacked against the wall. He tried to get away, but for some reason I reached out for him and he turned, landing a blow right on my face.
I don’t know how long I was out, but I heard footsteps running to me and I pushed off the ground only to fall back down under the blinding pain throbbing in my head. “No, stop! Get away,” I screamed, eyes clenched, as hands clutched at me.
“Laney babe, it’s me. Calm down and talk to me.”
Bennett. I blindly reached up until I cupped his jaw, raspy with several days of growth. “Bennett, you’re here. I love you.”
“Babe,” he groaned and then I felt myself being lifted into his arms. “You’re bleeding.”
“I know you don’t love me back, but there is good news.”
“There is?” he asked, voice sounding suspiciously amused.
“I know who the mole is.” It was the last thing I remembered until I woke up and looked into the eyes of a solider. Or a doctor.
Maybe she was both.