She swept a glance over the plush leather theater recliners. Five chairs had blankets, one in her favorite color. When Hudson set her down in one and draped the thick hand-knitted neutral tan throw blanket over her lap, a carefree laugh burst from her.
He proceeded to slip off her shoes and ease matching slippers onto her feet. When he passed her a cup of her favorite flavor of margarita and a bag of peanut M&Ms, she shook her head in incredulity. “How do you know all my favorites?”
His smile was soft and devastating. “The beige I already guessed from your wardrobe. I admit, I thought it was a dull color…until I knew you. Now I see it’s not boring at all. As for the rest… Well, we have our ways. But now that I know what you like, I’ll remember forever.”
And there it was—the final piece clicking into place.
She was home.
THIRTEEN
Steele came awake instantly, his body on alert in a way that his mind hadn’t caught up with yet.
He lay perfectly still in the darkness, throwing out his hearing to learn what woke him from a deep sleep.
Voices. Low but urgent, coming from somewhere in the mansion.
Izzy was curled against his side, her breathing rhythmic, one hand splayed on his chest where it landed after they crawled into bed following the movie marathon. Her chestnut hair spilled across the sheet, her face peaceful in a way that made his chest tighten.
With extreme care, he began the process of extricating himself without waking her. Years of pre-dawn missions had taught him to move like a ghost. He slipped his arm out from under her head, replacing it with his warm pillow. Next, he bunched the blanket under her hand where his chest had been, giving her something to hold on to.
Then, inch by inch, he eased his weight off the mattress.
Izzy shifted slightly but didn’t wake.
The voices were clearer now, starting to make sense. He picked out the words his teammates spoke as they passed his room on their way to the stairs.
Con’s voice, definitely. Dante’s too. In a tone all wrong for casual late-night conversation.
They were heading toward the war room.
He pulled on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt, moving on autopilot. Whatever was happening, it was important enough to drag his teammates out of their beds in the middle of the night.
At the bedroom door, he paused to look back at Izzy. She looked so vulnerable lying there, trusting in his strength and skill to keep her safe from harm.
The urge to wake her, to take her in his arms, was almost overwhelming. But in the end, he silently closed the door and headed for the stairs.
As he passed Mason’s room, the door opened and his brother stepped out. He sliced his hand through his messy hair. “Any idea what’s going on?”
“About to find out,” he drawled in a low tone.
Together, they strode toward the war room. As they entered, Con met Steele’s gaze and gave him a nod. “Alert everyone. Gear up.”
“On it.” Steele was already swinging away with Mason on his six.
“I’ll take the second floor, you get the third,” Mason said.
He gave him a nod before taking the stairs two at a time. Within minutes, the entire Charlie team was assembled in the war room, locked and loaded and prepared for anything.
Thoughts of Izzy echoed along the back of his mind. For the first time since she came to stay on base, she would wake to find him gone. Would she worry for him? He didn’t know if that made him feel good or terrible, so he firmly pushed the notion away and focused on Con.
“Dante intercepted a message on a dark web board. One Cipher has used before for his criminal activities.”
A rustle ran around the room, but they zeroed in on what he was saying.
“Sophie deciphered the message. There’s a huge convention that starts tomorrow. Finance bigwigs from all the major corporations are going to be there. And Cipher was hired to blow up the venue and wipe them all out.”
Silence met his words. The enormity of the situation landed square on Charlie team’s shoulders. And they were more than prepared to face it.
