Before Dr. Yang could respond further, the door opened wider, and another figure emerged. Time seemed to slow as I took in Dr. Lauren Valentino in the flesh, just a few feet away from me.
She was taller than I’d expected—probably five-ten—with the kind of presence that made her seem even taller. Honey-blonde hair was up in a simple ponytail, escaping in ways that should have looked disheveled but instead looked effortlessly beautiful. She wore worn scrubs that had seen better days and work boots that were more practical than pretty.
She wasn’t conventionally beautiful in any sort of polished way that I usually found attractive—not that I’d done much, or any, dating in the past few years. Dating tended to require going out in public and being around other people. Not a good fit for me.
The fact that she wore boxy scrubs, with no carefully applied makeup or delicate feminine touches, should be a turn-off. Instead, there was something raw and real about her that took my breath away.
The way she carried herself spoke of someone comfortable with hard work and harder decisions. Her hands bore the calluses and small scars of someone who worked with them daily, and she had a smudge of something that looked like antiseptic on her forearm.
Fuck if that wasn’t somehow more attractive than anything I’d encountered in years.
But it was her eyes that completely fucking derailed my professional focus—green and intelligent, with the focused intensity of someone who’d seen too much suffering and refused to look away. Those eyes took in our group with a quick,assessing glance that lingered on me for just a moment longer than the others.
“Dr. Valentino,” Dr. Yang said, and I caught the deference in her tone. Despite being the youngest doctor, Lauren was clearly the leader here. “These men say they’re looking for the medical clinic.”
Lauren’s gaze settled on me, and I felt that electric connection again—like she was measuring me and finding the calculation interesting. “You found it. What can we do for you?”
“I’m Logan Kane,” I said, deciding to drop the pretense. There was no point in keeping these doctors in the dark. “This is Ty Hughes and Jace Monroe. We’re with Citadel Solutions, a private security company. Compass Medical Outreach hired us to get you out of here.”
The temperature seemed to drop ten degrees. Lauren Valentino the coldest of them all.
Dr. Yang stepped forward, her expression shifting from confusion to understanding. “We knew there were concerns about cartel activity. We discussed the possibility of additional security measures, but our communications have been down for nearly a week. We had no idea anybody was coming today.”
Communications blackout explained the radio silence and everyone’s near-panic back stateside.
“What do you mean, you’re here to get us out of here? What if we don’t want to go? It’s dangerous, but we knew it would be when we signed up.” Lauren’s tone carried a skepticism that somehow made her more attractive. This wasn’t someone who accepted things at face value.
“Current threat levels have changed that. Dr. Merrick made the call and sent us in. Things have been deteriorating here on multiple levels.”
Lauren glanced at Dr. Yang. Obviously, they’d already had a similar conversation.
“How long do we have? Six weeks? A month?” Lauren crossed her arms over her chest.
“One week.”
“What?” Those ridiculous green eyes got big then promptly narrowed. “Compass always gives at least a month, sometimes more.”
I mimicked her action, crossing my arms over my chest. “That wasn’t an option.”
Telling her that a full week might not even be an option didn’t feel like a good plan.
Yang touched Lauren’s arm. “You know this is the best thing. Especially after…”
My eyes narrowed when she didn’t finish the sentence. “After what?”
Lauren shook her head. “Nothing has happened. No one has gotten hurt. But yeah, the area has become progressively less stable. Cartel stuff. I knew we’d have to go. I just thought we’d have more time.”
The other doctors nodded, but they obviously lacked the same conviction as Lauren. They were ready to go.
“I can give you a week.” Maybe more than that, but I wasn’t willing to make the promise, only to see heartbreak in those green eyes.
And what the fuck was that about? Was I going to start spouting poetry next? I needed to fucking pull it together.
“While we’re here,” I continued, turning slightly so I was speaking to everyone more equally, “we’ll need everyone’s cooperation in maintaining our cover story to the locals and especially any cartel members. If anyone asks, we’re meteorologists studying storm patterns from the hurricane headed in this direction.”
Dr. Martinez, a stocky man in his fifties, looked between his colleagues nervously. “Hurricane? How bad is it? We haven’thad any news from the outside world since our communication system went down.”
“There’s a storm system that could potentially hit this region,” Jace said, consulting his laptop. “Still a couple days out, but we’re monitoring its development and projected path. It gave us a plausible reason to be here in case the cartel had misgivings about people showing up unannounced.”
