“Thanks.” She took three tablets and took out a bottle of water.
He was just heading to the bathroom for his own shower when a knock sounded on the door and a familiar voice called out. “It’s Tuck. Breakfast delivery.”
Matt let him in and took the tray of to-go cups and brown paper bag from him. “Here,” he said, handing Tuck a twenty. “Tell Blackwell thanks.”
“Will do.” Tuck put his hands in his pockets and glanced between him and Briar. “So what’s the plan? Still want us to follow you for a bit then turn back for Denver?”
Matt nodded. “Yeah, that works. Just need to make sure no one’s following us out here. I’ll be off the grid for a few days at least.”
Tuck nodded and focused on Briar. “You need anything before you head out? Want Schroder to come take a look at you?”
“No, I’m good. He did a good job.” She flashed a little smile at the team leader, the hint of a dimple appearing in her right cheek.
A twinge of something like jealousy flared inside Matt, taking him off guard. He didn’t like her being more comfortable around Tuck than she was with him. Especially when he was the one sticking his neck out for her and they were going to be alone for at least the next day or two. Moreover, he didn’t like being attracted to a woman who preferred to ignore him.
Since Lisa’s death he’d slept with just three women, two of them hookups and one he’d dated for a few months. The hookups had left him feeling guilty and lonelier than he’d felt since losing his wife, and the dating thing hadn’t worked out because of his job. His work schedule was insane at the best of times and though she’d been a nice woman, she hadn’t been able to handle it. Though to be honest, his heart hadn’t been involved the way it should have been. Sometimes he thought that part of him had died along with Lisa.
Briar was the first woman who’d interested him in almost a year, and he had about as much chance of getting together with her as he did of getting Lisa back. He told himself that was a good thing. She was way younger than him, she was now under his protection and she was the most closed-off woman he’d ever met.
In addition to all her other secrets, he knew Briar was keeping something big from him and it had to do with that article he’d skimmed over her shoulder a few hours ago. He wasn’t sure who she’d contacted after reading it but it was clear Briar didn’t trust easily so whoever it was, they were important to her. He’d bet she let very few people get that close to her.
That made it doubly disconcerting for him to want to be one of them.
Time to go. “Okay, I’ll grab a quick shower and then we’ll get moving,” he told her and Tuck.
The sooner he could get her to the safe house, the sooner he could go back to his own life and forget all about her.
****
Will Balducci was a man with a mission.
This morning he’d risen at four to hit the gym, run his daily standard of five miles then oversaw the final arrangements he’d put in place. A simple matter of signing and filing some paperwork. Some of the pieces he’d needed to set this in motion had been complicated but he’d managed to pull it off and within a few hours he’d be able to move forward without ever looking back. He had far more important things on his mind now.
The country had gone to shit under the previous and current administrations and he was looking forward to helping reinstate it to its former glory. The United States had once been the glowing example of democracy and prosperity in the world, its armed forces feared by its enemies and respected around the world. He and his like-minded patriots were going to elevate it to that standard again.
Will straightened his bowtie and tugged at the cuffs of his black tux jacket before checking his reflection in the full-length mirror in his upscale hotel suite. At forty-nine he was still in good shape and had a full head of hair, albeit graying slightly around his temples. The Navy was responsible for his confident posture and bearing.
It had also given him the tools to embark on this next phase of his life.
He studied the view revealed in the mirror, liking what he saw. This suite was the best money could buy in New York City. It cost triple what a regular one did at this swanky hotel but the added privacy, security and level of discretion practiced by the staff made it worth the exorbitant price. The woman he’d brought back with him for the evening—an infrequent indulgence he’d begun two years ago—had been quietly ushered from the room by his bodyguard at just after midnight, and the security footage of her presence erased. Besides, money was no object right now, and shouldn’t be for the rest of his life as long as his carefully planned investments gave even a paltry return.