One minute he was broken up about Gwen liking Neil and the next…What?
“What did you say?”
Sam started laughing. “Wasn’t the stomach flu after all.”
Good thing he was sitting. “Pregnant? You sure?”
“Been there. Done that.”
They’d been less than careful. Tempting pregnancy more than really planning one. But Eddie was toddling and they both wanted more kids. “Oh, Sam. I love you.” He couldn’t stop smiling.
“I love you, too. I thought I’d wait to tell you when I saw you again…but we both know I’m not good at keeping the pregnancy thing to myself.”
“Want me to fly home?”
“Don’t be silly. And I’m not getting on a plane until my stomach settles. I’ll wait to say anything to Eddie until we’re together.”
Blake leaned back in his high back leather chair. “Eddie’s going to be a wonderful big brother.”
“If he’s anything like his dad.”
“I’m smiling…damn happy to know I’m going to be a dad again…and feeling guilty all at the same time.”
“Stop, Blake. If Gwen’s in any real danger there is no one better to protect her than Neil. If there isn’t anyone out there…then at least she and Neil can hammer out the sultry come-hither looks they’ve been sending each other for the last year.”
“I never saw any come-hither anything.” The thought of his sister as a sexual person made his skin crawl.
“You weren’t looking.”
“That’s a blessing.”
“Poor Blake. If Neil knocks her up I’ll have to remind you that he’s the weapons expert.”
“Doesn’t mean I won’t insist on a shotgun wedding.”
“Neil’s an honorable man. He’s not that guy.”
“He is if he’s knocking up my little sister.”
Samantha laughed so hard she could hardly talk. “Your little sister is older than me.”
Blake growled. “Can we talk about something else now?”
Sam kept laughing. “OK, how about morning sickness. Remember how much fun that was? And diapers. Oh, joy…the fun we get to have.”
Blake found his smile and kept it.
Chapter Twenty
The air was a lot cooler in the mountains than it was on the desert floor of Nevada and Utah. Neil kept an eye on the clouds. The last thing they needed was bad weather. The tent was dime store quality and meant for perfect weather conditions and not for a deluge of rain. He’d watched the weather report at the hotel, but that was several hundred miles away, and the mountains were known to have their own weather patterns.
Gwen had fallen silent after he’d revealed some of his past. He was surprised at how often she thought logically and came to some of the same conclusions he did.
He’d thought briefly about Raven having a brother…that or terrorist scum like he had been was gunning after them. Neil dismissed the idea almost immediately. Terrorists were great at taking out big targets and creating mass panic. One-on-one wasn’t their style. Not enough airplay on the global platform for their taste.
As for Rick or Mickey holding a grudge…Mickey was out of reach. Probably deep inside again and halfway across the globe. Rick was the one who came to him. Weren’t they both working to find the one responsible for Billy’s death?
Neil knew there was the slight possibility that Rick or Mickey could harbor an issue with him. Billy didn’t take the shot and Neil knew he didn’t make the call. Both outcomes might make Billy or himself a target with the other guys.
Neil wanted to think longer, work through every possible angle before he gave his cards to anyone. Even Rick.
Neil told himself he hadn’t called Rick the minute his plans changed because he needed to work things out alone. Neil worked solo now. No one else was on his team to depend on. No one else to get killed.
His eyes traveled beyond the spot Gwen had disappeared behind to find some privacy in the woods.
“You’re not solo, Mac,” he told himself. There was someone he cared about depending on him. In harm’s way because of him. I’m not solo at all. Only this time when the mission was completed they would both walk away.
He kicked away a few rocks that would make it difficult to relax inside the tent before returning to the car to gather their things. A couple of nights camping in the middle of nowhere with Gwen. Could be worse. He thought of her the night before. He’d fantasized about her more times than he could count. Never did he picture her as responsive as she’d been. He’d made love to his share of women, some he quickly forgot, which probably made him all kinds of a bastard. There were a few he remembered with fondness. But none had left him feeling empty inside when they were gone.
Gwen would change that. He knew that from the beginning. His emotions were involved before he ever touched her. That made his mission even more dangerous. The one after them knew it and would exploit it.
The best thing for Neil to do was grasp the situation with both hands, solidify it, and deal. Once Gwen sat in the ivory tower, he could nail the mother shut and move on.
A twig behind him snapped. His body tensed.
“Setting up the tent?”
Neil sighed. Dropped his hand that reached for his weapon on impulse. He’d pulled a gun on Gwen once. Damn if he’d let it happen again. There was no one out there except them and the deer. “Yeah.”