Touching Ghost(9)

Ren laughed and adjusted his legs around her body until they had a perfect fit. “Pushy little thing, aren’t you?” He paused for a second then scooped up her hands and, after twining his fingers with hers, settled them over her bare belly. “Since I’m fluent in Arabic, I’m the guy who goes into tribal areas and into towns to mingle with folks. Basically, I’m a spy.” Ren shrugged. “Once we know where the bad guys are hiding out and what their plans might be, we can move on them. So they call me Ghost.”

“I understand how you could blend in. You’re so dark, but what about your eyes? They’re gray.”

“Contacts. Not a big deal. Once I’m dressed to fit the part, I blend in.”

Sadie found it hard to imagine Ren ever just blending in. He was a commanding guy. Even as a kid, people had watched him, and it wasn’t just because he had that bad-boy reputation. His dark good looks and the proud way in which he carried himself earned him a lot of attention and she doubted that had changed much.

“Sounds dangerous.”

Ren kissed her wet hair as she nestled closer. “Don’t worry about it. Just doing my job.”

Don’t worry about it?

With a little mental sigh, Sadie realized it served no purpose to beleaguer the point. His work was tough, patriotic in the extreme, and sometimes deadly. Despite the warmth of the bath water, she shivered. “Tell me about your team.”

“SEAL Team Arapaho. They are my brothers and good men. Coyote and Zeus rode into town with me this evening. Badasses in every sense of the word. Dagger got us hooked up with the fancy digs while we’re here in Key West. Though you’d never know it, he has friends in high places.” He laughed. “Then there’s Ice. One cool customer, and he always hits what he aims for. Hands down, he’s the best sharpshooter I’ve ever worked with. Trip is a downright cool customer, too. Jonesin’ and Jagger are great guys and good soldiers who know how to take down the worst kind of creep. They are all rock-hard soldiers, and I’d give my life for any of them. I know they feel the same way.”

Sadie thought about the darkness of his life. The violence and pain he’d experienced in his early years had served to make him the hard man he was today, and she wondered what other dark episodes he’d endured as an adult doing the hardest, most dangerous work imaginable. Yeah, she sometimes dealt with life and death issues in her practice, but the environment was stable. Nobody shot at her.

Impulsively, she turned her head and rested her cheek against his damp chest. “How old were you when you first climbed into my bedroom window? Eight? Ten?”

Ren expelled a breath and dragged his palm over her upper arm. His touch was loving and so tender that tears filled her eyes. “Ten, I think.”

“You were so skinny but tall for your age. Though you really tried to hide it, I knew you were scared.”

“Long time ago.”

“I still remember. It seems like yesterday.”

He laughed softly. “I still can’t believe your folks didn’t know I was there. You had flowered wallpaper. Hell. It felt like I’d landed on another planet with all that pink, ruffly shit everywhere. I’ll never forget it, but you were so warm and funny. You kept patting my back at random moments. I think even then you knew how hard things were at home, but you didn’t talk about it continually. You allowed me to forget about it for a little while.” Pressing his lips against the crown of her head, he continued. “Still remember you sneaking downstairs for food. It had to have been three in the morning.”

“I think it was. Mainly I just knew it was really dark and that you had to have been awfully scared to sneak into my window that way. Honestly, I didn’t know what to do except feed you, let you talk if you wanted, and then tuck you into my bed. Food came first. I was so nervous heading downstairs to the kitchen knowing Dad would go ballistic if he knew what was up. Still remember the first thing I grabbed. Cereal. The chocolate kind.”

“Such a girl.”

It was Sadie’s turn to laugh as the memory unfolded, blooming to life in her mind. “And peanut butter and jelly on whole wheat. I think I brought strawberry cupcakes, too, though I confess, those were probably mainly for me.” She giggled, rolling her head against Ren’s chest.

“Extreme sugar overload, but hey, I was a kid. Tasted like Thanksgiving dinner to me.”

Finally, her laughter died as she recalled more recent events. “Heard your dad passed away.”

Ren went still for a second then gave her a little squeeze. “Rat bastard. It’s not good to speak ill of the dead, but I didn’t waste a tear over him. Men who bully and terrorize women and kids are less than human in my book, and it’s fitting that he died sick and alone. “