handed it to him.”
The theory made sense, but Lara wasn’t convinced. When she closed her eyes she felt the storm brewing around her, not him. She truly believed whatever guilt he had about dragging her into this was misplaced. “You’re still certain the attacks are about your work?”
“I think someone leaked the boat information and my house address to your attacker. The same someone who knew that you had ties to me and suspected you would come to me for help. My fear is someone came for me and decided the best way to get to me was through you.”
The comment sat there for a second. Joel and Connor stared at her, probably realizing for the first time she was the ex. And wasn’t that just great? She could only assume she didn’t come out well in Davis’s version of their breakup.
“We haven’t been together for eleven months,” she said because they were likely all thinking it.
Joel rolled his eyes. “Oh, please.”
The air shifted again and she wasn’t sure why. “What?”
“The last job...” Joel choked on the last word when Davis sent him the death glare. “What did I say?”
Oh, something was definitely going on. Something about her that they all knew. She hated that. “Someone explain.”
Pax glanced at Davis and then back to her. “Joel’s just talking out of his—”
“Davis.” Yeah, that was where she would have to get the information. “Now.”
Joel looked over at Connor. “Why did he break up with her again?”
“You think he left her?” Connor frowned. “Come on.”
Davis turned the death ray of a look on them all, clearly not happy with whatever this was being played out in front of them. He should try being in her position.
He finally spoke up. “I was on an off-the-books job.”
And that told her absolutely nothing. Well, except that whatever he was hiding was going to be bad.
She grabbed on to the back of the conference chair and dug her dirty fingernails into the soft leather. “Skip the covert-operative speak and tell me.”
“Someone from an old job made a threat. It got back to me and I neutralized the guy.”
Her stomach clenched. He made it all sound so mundane, but she knew better. “Neutralized?”
He shot her one of his famous you-can’t-be-this-naive glares but stayed quiet.
Joel filled in the blank. “Killed.”
Davis exhaled loud enough to drown out all the other noise in the room. “Yeah, Joel, I think she figured that out.”
She blocked them all out except for Davis. She could see figures moving on the screen behind Connor and hear the buzz of the lights over her head. The only thing, only person, who mattered was the man trying so hard not to answer a straight question.
Davis’s careful wording finally penetrated her brain. “What kind of threat?”
“Against you.” Joel slid his chair back when Davis took a step in his direction.
“Wait, your rib injuries are because of me.” She didn’t phrase it as a question because suddenly she knew the right answer.
“Technically, they’re because a guy hit him with a car,” Pax said.
Davis never broke eye contact with her. “Don’t help.”
It all made sense. A sick kind of sense. “Someone was following me and you stopped them?”
Davis didn’t even blink. “Yes.”
She’d had more attackers following her and he’d never warned her. People she didn’t know wanted her dead and he stepped in front of her and suffered in quiet on her behalf. “Who was it?”
“You don’t know him.”
“I can stand here all night, dripping on this floor, until you spill more facts.”
Davis’s gaze bounced down to her feet, then back up again. “We work with the Department of Defense and other agencies and private companies to conduct kidnap rescue missions.”
He stopped there, acting as if that told her anything. “And?”
“We helped out recently when an off-duty service member got caught in the wrong place in the Philippines. A drug runner was killed and his brother didn’t
The theory made sense, but Lara wasn’t convinced. When she closed her eyes she felt the storm brewing around her, not him. She truly believed whatever guilt he had about dragging her into this was misplaced. “You’re still certain the attacks are about your work?”
“I think someone leaked the boat information and my house address to your attacker. The same someone who knew that you had ties to me and suspected you would come to me for help. My fear is someone came for me and decided the best way to get to me was through you.”
The comment sat there for a second. Joel and Connor stared at her, probably realizing for the first time she was the ex. And wasn’t that just great? She could only assume she didn’t come out well in Davis’s version of their breakup.
“We haven’t been together for eleven months,” she said because they were likely all thinking it.
Joel rolled his eyes. “Oh, please.”
The air shifted again and she wasn’t sure why. “What?”
“The last job...” Joel choked on the last word when Davis sent him the death glare. “What did I say?”
Oh, something was definitely going on. Something about her that they all knew. She hated that. “Someone explain.”
Pax glanced at Davis and then back to her. “Joel’s just talking out of his—”
“Davis.” Yeah, that was where she would have to get the information. “Now.”
Joel looked over at Connor. “Why did he break up with her again?”
“You think he left her?” Connor frowned. “Come on.”
Davis turned the death ray of a look on them all, clearly not happy with whatever this was being played out in front of them. He should try being in her position.
He finally spoke up. “I was on an off-the-books job.”
And that told her absolutely nothing. Well, except that whatever he was hiding was going to be bad.
She grabbed on to the back of the conference chair and dug her dirty fingernails into the soft leather. “Skip the covert-operative speak and tell me.”
“Someone from an old job made a threat. It got back to me and I neutralized the guy.”
Her stomach clenched. He made it all sound so mundane, but she knew better. “Neutralized?”
He shot her one of his famous you-can’t-be-this-naive glares but stayed quiet.
Joel filled in the blank. “Killed.”
Davis exhaled loud enough to drown out all the other noise in the room. “Yeah, Joel, I think she figured that out.”
She blocked them all out except for Davis. She could see figures moving on the screen behind Connor and hear the buzz of the lights over her head. The only thing, only person, who mattered was the man trying so hard not to answer a straight question.
Davis’s careful wording finally penetrated her brain. “What kind of threat?”
“Against you.” Joel slid his chair back when Davis took a step in his direction.
“Wait, your rib injuries are because of me.” She didn’t phrase it as a question because suddenly she knew the right answer.
“Technically, they’re because a guy hit him with a car,” Pax said.
Davis never broke eye contact with her. “Don’t help.”
It all made sense. A sick kind of sense. “Someone was following me and you stopped them?”
Davis didn’t even blink. “Yes.”
She’d had more attackers following her and he’d never warned her. People she didn’t know wanted her dead and he stepped in front of her and suffered in quiet on her behalf. “Who was it?”
“You don’t know him.”
“I can stand here all night, dripping on this floor, until you spill more facts.”
Davis’s gaze bounced down to her feet, then back up again. “We work with the Department of Defense and other agencies and private companies to conduct kidnap rescue missions.”
He stopped there, acting as if that told her anything. “And?”
“We helped out recently when an off-duty service member got caught in the wrong place in the Philippines. A drug runner was killed and his brother didn’t
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