Under Fire (Love Over Duty #1)(97)

When Cabe had walked out with Vasilii over his shoulder, Six had been torn between staying with Louisa and storming over to Vasilii to pound on the other side of his face. But the guy had been a sniveling wreck. Vasilii had turned himself into the police and given evidence against the men. After the fire had been put out and investigators had been allowed back inside, they had conducted a thorough search of the building for Ivan, but no remains had been found.

Six hoped that if the guy was smart enough to get out of the house in the chaos, he was now very far away.

By the time they arrived at Mac's, Cabe and the rest of the guys were already there. Lou greeted Mac and Cabe warmly. A by-product of her ordeal seemed to be a new resilience to being around people, but only those she knew well. It still wasn't easy for her, and the rest of the team, especially the new hires who brought Eagle Securities' personnel up to twelve in total, were treated to a wave. But the small increase in newfound confidence looked good on her, even if she still stacked shit and alphabetized things when she was out of her depth.

Louisa had insisted on making the birthday cake for Cabe, and while Six would never admit it to another soul, especially not one of the guys he served with, he kinda liked the quiet domestication of carrying it into his friend's home for her.

Once the food and cake had been eaten, Six made himself at home and grabbed a beer from the fridge, and when Mac's cell phone rang, he left him to it.

Less than a minute or two later, Mac hurried back into the room and waved to him, signaling to grab Cabe.

"What's up?" Six walked into his room and eyed the bag on the bed. "We got a job?" He hated the idea of leaving so soon.

"I gotta go," Mac said. "Delaney is in Landstuhl." He unplugged his chargers from the wall and shoved them into the front pocket of his pack.

"What the hell?" Six tugged his hand through his hair. "The place or the hospital? What happened?"

Mac shook his head and stopped what he was doing for a moment. "Hospital. I don't know how she ended up there, but she isn't fully lucid. All I know is that she's been asking for me. I'm sorry guys, it means we're going to be short for-"

"Shut up," Cabe said. "You need to go. And we've got your back. Don't worry about tickets. I'll find you a flight while you are en route to the airport. I'll text you details, okay?"

Mac nodded and shoved his coat into the top of his backpack. "Thanks, guys. I'll let you know what's what as soon as I get there."

Cabe stood and slapped him on the back in a hug. "Take care, man."

Six repeated the action.

"Lock up for me?" Mac said to Six, but he didn't wait for a response.

"What do you make of that?" Cabe asked as the door to the condo slammed shut.

Six shook his head. "I don't know, but I'm going to wrap the party up."

When at last he had everyone out of the door, Six wandered to the kitchen and found Louisa wiping down the counter. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her back against his chest. Something about Delaney being injured had caused image after image to appear in his mind of what could have gone wrong in their rescue of Louisa. What if they'd hurt her? What if she'd been killed in the cross fire?

Louisa dropped the wet cloth into the water in the sink and placed her damp hands over his. Neither of them said a word, instead they stood in silence and looked out over the bay. Just being next to her calmed him.

"I'm sorry about Delaney," Louisa said finally. "I hope she's okay."

Six pressed his nose to the soft skin of her neck and then kissed her just behind her ear. "From your lips to God's ears," he said. "I don't know what I would've done if something had happened to you, Lou."

She turned in his arms and placed her hands on either side of his face, a gesture that always warmed him from the inside out. "Well, we'll never need to worry about that, because you didn't let anything happen to me. You had my six," she said stepping up onto her toes to kiss him deeply.

Yeah, he did. Having her back was something he intended to do for the rest of their lives. "And I always will. Especially if it's naked."

Louisa laughed as he'd intended, and it broke the mood. She reached forward and wrung the wet cloth, placing it over the faucet to dry, then pulled the plug to let the water drain.

Six handed her the towel to dry her hands, and she looked up at him. "I love you, Six," she said, tilting her head to the side, letting her bangs fall away, a move he'd come to love. Because it meant he could see all of her.

"I love you, too, Lou," he replied gruffly, wishing he had the courage and words to tell her everything she meant to him. "Ready to go home?"