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He tugged the gray hel moved is always a concern, but not so much now that we’re over here since we can be in the air and there before they clear the periulator check machine, Jack worked the en mask fit securely around his
He plugged in the regulator hose and adjusted the setting up to 30,000 to check air pressure forced through the hose Then cranked it back down again
She waited He’d have to take the thing off sometime, damn it Which he did Only to disappear seconds later into a closet designated for testing his NVGs
Finally he stepped out "Monica, I don’t have tie her
What more did she expect? She’d set the limits and made the appointment with a divorce attorney
Noasn’t the tierous enough without a big confrontation before takeoff She sed back the need to ask him if he was as confused as she was by a simple kiss when they’d done so much more in the past
Much more Her body reacted with a will of its own
Yep, the Kevlar vest definitely served her well tonight
Following hiht, not that Jack ever simply walked Heavy co truck with a lazy arrogance and assurance she once would have found annoying Yet now she knew enough about these zipper-suited sky gods she treated--knew enough about Jack-- to understand that unshakable self-assurance allowed him to place his body in the line of antiaircraft fire in only an alulanced back without answering, and though he looked powerfully alive right now, her job left her all too aware of mortality
"Be careful"
"Piece of cake, babe" He vaulted onto the truck bed with the rest of his crew and the sixteen waiting SEALs
Backing into the roo truck, she reh for antiaircraft fire to reach him A reassurance, if it weren’t for the fact she also knew his flight involved a no-lights takeoff and landing with night-vision goggles
A flight skill only about ten percent of fliers in the squadron were qualified to perfor in Rubistanian airspace alone didn’t provide enough cause for caution Tooshoulder-held missile launchers crept around this stretch of the Middle East, as a recent downing of one of their planes could attest
Sure the crew had returned ho "detained" in Rubistan until diplohts were fraught with danger
This was not a straightforward flight
Nodding to the air and e to her room No matter what history she and Jack shared, or how little future theyany sleep tonight
She rounded the corner toward the stairs Hairs at the base of her scalp pulled tighter on her braid The sense of being watched tingled over her Too strong to ignore
Pivoting, she scanned Looked Found no one
Just as she started to turn back, a shadow flickered through the yellow light A dark forled Monica slid her hand to her web belt She unsnapped her military-issue 9 mm side arm
Sleep would definitely be delayed
Chapter 8
Monica’s fingers tightened around the grip of her M-9 She considered calling out for backup, but a shout would alert the person lurking through the halls
Slipping out of sight Ti her back to the wall, she padded sideways Careful not to let even a squeak of boots on tile give her away The figure moved faster Monica closed in until she could discern a hunched fearb
"Stop and identify yourself," Monica ordered
The wo a bundle in her hands Relief quickly faded to suspicion
Monica abandoned stealth and confronted her sister, keeping her gun aimed on the woman she didn’t know all that well A woman ordered by Colonel Cullen to stay in her roo?"
Her sister’s hands whipped behind her back "Tactful as ever, sister dear"
"Drop the humor unless you want to be dropped" Monica leveled her weapon, not realizing until just that moment how damned much she’d wanted to believe Yasenuine Monica forced her 9 mm to stay steady She would kill in defense of her country Knew she would kill in defense of Jack
But good God, she wasn’t sure she could live with herself if she had to pull the trigger on herback at her with eyes in a face "
"You do not trust un "Show me or I will make you There’s no doubt here but that I can"
Yasmine’s hands slid around She thrust thee of clothes with me" Defiant pride bathed her words "I could not hide more when I came to work here, or people would have been suspicious"
"Why sneak around at night?"
Pink tinged her sister’s cheeks Yas poor Colonel Cullen seven ways to Sunday?
"I only have one set of underwear Stupid oversight, I know But I was ht for everything to dry beforeIt would beunco the day, even if no one could tell I would know"
So her sister was running around sans bra and nobody would have guessed it? Figured Little Miss Perfect would have perky breasts, too
Illogical laughter tickled "No Band-Aids for you, huh, kid?"
"What?"
"Nothing"
Aard silence blanketed the stale air between theines just prior to takeoff
Would Yas?
A lone voice drifted down the hall through an open office door, Crusty patching through his nightly call home to his family Hopefully that would distract Yash, jokes about the crummy food and questions to his wife about Trey’s asth wheels, everyday family concerns seemed so at odds with the distance and stakes of where they were But if they stopped life, emotions, even happiness every time their country called on them lately, there would never be tiuilty for wanting Jack while Sydney was suffering
What would it be like to have a norh-tension existence of her job? She’d worked hard at her last relationship before Jack For four years she’d tried with Hunter, a civilian doctor hom she’d shared much in common But then he’d demanded she choose between him and her job that kept thely easy to y un still raised and aimed "Could you please put that away now?"