Running on Empty (2 page)

“More wine?”

“No, thanks. Good choice, though. It was fabulous with the risotto.”

“I was surprised the restaurant had a bottle. It’s sometimes hard to get.”

What she knew about wine or the finer things of life, she had learned from Declan and her Agency training. Odd that knowing such things as the correct wine or proper fork were important, but when infiltrating certain organizations to get close to the leader, that knowledge could be paramount. Men and women who perpetrated some of the most heinous acts on mankind often cloaked their evil ways behind wealth and privilege. Blending in had been vital to her success.

Working for LCR was a refreshing change in many ways, but more than once she’d had cause to be grateful for her earlier training. Though she now rescued kidnap victims instead of assassinating evil leaders, she occasionally went deep cover. Her skills had come in handy.

She eyed the beautiful man across from her. Though Declan could hide any emotion or thought behind a cool, implacable facade, she had known him for twelve years, loved him almost that long. Making a career of being someone else enabled him to hide behind a mask, but she knew every nuance and expression…something was bothering him.

Their time together was so limited that neither of them liked to bring the outside world in, but she knew that was about to happen. And if it was bothering him, then she definitely wanted to know. 

“You want to talk about it now or do you want to wait till later?”

She appreciated that he didn’t bother to pretend he didn’t know what she was talking about. 

He swallowed as if what he was about to say was difficult and gave an odd, twisted smile. “I’ve been giving a lot of thought to our marriage. What I want out of life.”

She wanted to tease him and say she was glad he’d been thinking about her. The darkness in his eyes prevented that. “You want out?”

He jerked slightly. “No…hell no.”

Relief flooded through her. “Well, then…what? If you don’t tell me quickly, I’m going to imagine all sorts of terrible things.”

“I want more than this…clandestine, too dangerous life. I want a family, a house with a yard, I want pets…maybe a kid or two.”

Frozen in dismay, she could only stare. Never had he indicated that he wanted something like that. The nature of their careers made those things almost impossible to carry off. “I…uh…”

He grinned. “Damn, I love seeing you speechless.”

“But, Declan, the Agency is your life. You’ve been with them for years.”

An intense light entered his eyes. “The Agency is not my life, Sabrina. You are. Never forget that.” Then, as if pulling himself back from the force of those words, his body relaxed and his expression cleared. “I’m proud of what I’ve accomplished. But I want to be with you more than a few days out of the year. I was fooling myself thinking I could have both. I don’t want both. I only want you.”

Happiness burst within her. To have him out of danger. To not worry while watching news of bombs exploding and people dying in war-torn countries if he was there in the midst of it all, trying to stop the chaos. To not worry about that middle-of-the-night phone call telling her he’d been killed or injured. Yes, yes, yes!

“So you’re leaving the Agency? I mean, really, seriously leaving it?”

“Yes. I talked to Albert about it already. He was surprised, to say the least, but he understands. I have just a couple of minor issues I need to rectify. Nothing major. Won’t take more than a month or so to finalize everything, and then I’m all yours.”

“So…you want to, uh, like…get a regular job? Nine to five, the whole deal?”

“I’ve got some money saved up, so I don’t have to make a decision right away.”

She bit her lip. While she was thrilled that Declan would be out of the dark, gritty, and dangerous world of covert ops, she wasn’t sure how he felt about LCR. She loved her job, and though it was dangerous, often just as much as his was, she didn’t want to leave it.

A thought flashed across her mind like a meteor. “I have an idea. How would you feel about working with me? I’m sure that No—”

His fingers covered her mouth. “Let me get this out of the way, and then we’ll see. Okay?”

Even though she was a little disappointed at the lack of enthusiasm for her suggestion, she told herself it was understandable. Here he was finally giving up a dangerous job, and she was asking him to jump right back into the fire.

“So the things you’re finalizing. Is it an op or—”

He leaned forward and grabbed her hand, squeezing it gently. “Don’t ask, darling, and I won’t have to say no.”

Even though she understood, it still hurt. It wasn’t because he didn’t trust her—she knew without a doubt he did. His reticence to share was always about one thing—protecting her. And that scared her most of all. 

“I love you.” She didn’t know why, but she felt the need to say it once more.

His face softened. “I know. Believe me, sometimes it’s the only thing that keeps me alive.”

“Don’t say that.”

“For now, it’s the job.”

She nodded. They’d had this discussion before. Either of them could be killed on any mission. They’d agreed to make the most out of their lives, their marriage. Soak in as much as they could. But that conversation hadn’t seemed as grim as it did now. 

“You’ve got that look on your face that I don’t like. I can’t tell you what I’m finishing up, but I will say that it’s much less dangerous than usual. Very routine. Mostly paperwork and assignment shifts. Absolutely nothing covert.”

Why did she suddenly feel as though they were talking about two different things? She shook away her disquiet. His news had just thrown her off-kilter, that’s all. 

Realizing their discussion had changed the atmosphere of their time together and wanting to get back to enjoying themselves, she asked one last question, “When do you need to leave?”

“Tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow? But we—” She held her tongue. This was the job, too. Missions rarely came at convenient times. If he could’ve delayed it, he would have.

She drew in a silent breath. Okay. All right. Complaining about it would do no good and only spoil their last few hours together. No way was she going to let that happen. And once he was finished, he’d be back with her permanently.

“Then let’s not waste time we don’t have.”

His smile of appreciation washed away the taut atmosphere. Still seated, he pulled her into his arms, onto his lap. “
Tha gaol agam ort
.” 

She smiled her delight. Other than some sexy time when he was seducing her or turning her on in bed, Declan’s Scottish heritage rarely showed itself anymore. Occasionally, she’d catch a hint of brogue, but for the most part he sounded as American as she did. However, he knew she loved it when he spoke Gaelic to her. His words,
Tha gaol agam ort
meant
I love you
. 

Surprising her even further, he did something incredibly odd, something he had never done before. He drew her closer, cupped his hand around her ear and said in an almost soundless whisper, “You’re my everything, Little Fox. Never ever forget that.”

Last Chance Rescue Headquarters

Paris

“For right now, I’m offering the job only to those with special ops or covert experience.”

Sabrina sat before Noah McCall, her boss and the leader of Last Chance Rescue. Even though she’d been with LCR for four years, she had not yet learned how to read him. A few months back, he had hinted that there were going to be some changes for LCR. She had never anticipated this. Not only was Noah moving the main headquarters to the States, he was creating another branch, LCR Elite. 

She loved being an LCR operative, but this sounded even more exciting. And with her background and training, a natural fit for her. Rescuing victims from the most dangerous places in the world. Totally unsanctioned and off the grid. Every mission a high-stakes risk. Her blood pumped with excitement.

“So. You interested?” 

His black eyes coolly assessing, Noah asked the question with no emotion, not a hint of coercion. Not that the LCR leader would ever try to persuade an operative to take on an assignment. That was not his style. However, the question he’d asked her wasn’t as easy to answer as it might have once been. With the changes Declan wanted to make in his life, how would this new job mesh with it? If only he would come back so they could discuss this together.

“I actually don’t know yet.”

Black eyes flickered with compassion. “Still no word from your husband?”

She shook her head. “He said he’d be gone for no more than a month…it’s been almost two.” 

“He ever been gone this long before?”

“Yes, but for some reason, this feels different.” She wasn’t much for psychic premonitions, but she did trust her gut. Something wasn’t quite right.

Aware that Noah was waiting for her answer, she said, “How soon do you need to know?”

“You’ve got some time. I’ve commissioned the building of a training camp outside Tucson, Arizona. Three former Navy SEALs are designing it. Once it’s done, they’ll be chomping at the bit to put us through their own version of Hell Week.”

Adrenaline surged within her. She loved challenging her physical and mental skills, pushing herself to do more. Hopefully, Declan would be back before she had to give Noah her final answer.

“I saw Aidan leaving when I arrived. I’m assuming you offered him a spot, too?”

“Yeah. With his Special Forces background, Thorne is a natural fit. If you join, you can continue as partners. You work too well together to mess with that.”

That was another reason she’d hate to turn down this offer. She’d be losing Aidan Thorne as a partner. They’d been watching each other’s backs for a long time. She’d miss the man she considered a friend.

“Just a warning. He’s already expecting that you’ll be on the team. And since he doesn’t know you’re married, he might be a little confused if you turn it down without explaining.”

She inwardly winced. She had been putting off that conversation for too long. Her brutal childhood had trained her to keep her mouth shut about private matters. And her Agency training had only reinforced her reticence to share personal information. Breaking a thirty-one-year-old habit was damned hard, but she owed her partner the truth.

“It’s time I told him.”

“Any reason why you haven’t? I know it’s not because you don’t trust him.”

“No, trust isn’t an issue.” She shrugged, unable to explain what probably was a defect in her personality. Getting the hell beaten out of you for telling personal details created an adult who had trouble opening up to others. She’d fought with all her might to overcome her past but still carried scars, both physical and mental. Declan had been the only person she’d ever been able to be completely open with, allowing him to see the real Sabrina.

“Aidan’s like a brother to me.” She’d never had a real brother, but her stepbrother had been a monster, so that was probably not the best description of their relationship. “Outside of you and Declan, there’s no one I trust more.”

“Good to know. I—”

The ring tone on her phone played Rod Stewart’s
Purple Heather
.
Declan!
Heart leaping to her throat, she jumped to her feet and barely took the time to throw Noah a look of apology before she dashed out the door. The amused glint in his eyes told her he understood completely.

The instant she was out of Noah’s office, she read the short text:
Meet me in Florence tomorrow at 3:00. Salvatore’s Café. Have a surprise for you. DS

Her feet flew to the elevator, thinking about all the things she needed to do to get to Florence by three tomorrow. Didn’t matter what she had to do. She would not miss this opportunity.

Florence, Italy

Sabrina rushed out of the airport. Flying commercial and getting somewhere at a specific time rarely meshed anymore. Why hadn’t Declan given her more notice? She was going to be at least fifteen minutes late, if not more. 

Waving madly at a taxi, she caught the attention of the driver. Barely waiting for it to stop before she opened the door, she threw herself into the backseat. 

Giving the driver the location and street address, she sat back into the seat and tried to make herself relax. Silly. She didn’t know why she was so anxious about being late. It wasn’t as if he’d leave without seeing her. In fact, she was a little surprised he hadn’t already called to check on her. She’d called his cell phone to let him know she was running late and gotten his voice mail. 

She tried not to be disappointed that it was just going to be a quick visit. If he were through with his assignment, he would have come to Paris. She’d already given Noah notice that once Declan was finished for good, she would be taking several days off. Her boss was a happily married man and understood. 

The taxi driver slammed on his brakes as a gridlock of traffic loomed ahead. Cursing softly, Sabrina spoke in rapid Italian, “I’ll just walk from here.” She dropped several euro into his outstretched hand and jumped out of the car.

She stood in the middle of the stopped traffic to get her bearings. Up ahead was a traffic jam of massive proportions. Horns were blaring, people were getting out of their vehicles and shouting. Any other time she might have enjoyed the entertainment of drivers spouting colorful and inventive curses. Today, she was too focused on her target—getting to Declan. 

She spotted a street sign and realized she was within three blocks of the café. Even though she’d worn heels and a dress, she didn’t let that stop her. Weaving in and out of stopped cars, she got to the sidewalk and then started hoofing it toward her destination. 

She stopped at a street corner and caught a glimpse of the café in the distance. Squinting against the afternoon sun, she focused on a man standing beneath the canopy in the doorway. That was Declan, or was it? He was the right height and coloring. She waved and was glad to see he waved back. 

Traffic had picked up again, and she was going to have to either wait until the light turned red to cross the street or take her life into her own hands. She assessed her chances of making it across the busy street without getting hit—not good. Shrugging slightly, she waited. She’d rather arrive alive.