a woman they’d like to bed. No, it hadn’t been very mature; yet, it had been funnier than hell back in the day.
“You’re right, I don’t.”
And he imagined that one leaving the yard. No, she didn’t get it, and if she did, she hid it pretty well.
“Pizza?” he asked.
“Delivery?”
“Yes.”
“Sounds good to me. I’ve never had a pizza brought to the house. I was always afraid that it would end up being the government and not a delivery guy.”
“I’ll protect you,” he said. “At night is when I see best.”
“Oh, Zach. The jokes are so bad.”
“I will protect you,” he said again, more serious this time, and meaning every word.
She must have heard the weight of his voice because she answered him this time, seriously. “I’m sure you will.”
As she called the local pizza joint, he couldn’t help but notice how they sounded like a couple who had been together for a long time, despite most of their conversations gravitating toward a corrupt government, murder, and some of the very bad people of the world.
Ah, well. It seemed more exciting than discussing kids’ homework, the car repairs that needed to be done, and fighting over who would fold the laundry.
Give him a good clandestine operation any day.
Chapter 16
Ella woke the next morning completely exhausted. She’d tossed and turned most of the night, her thoughts filled with Zach, the little detail he hadn’t mentioned about him being a killer, and her realization that she remained very attracted to him.
Joe had asked her to be in on this mission, and a large part of her wanted to say no. However, a small fraction of her being yearned to go for numerous reasons.
First, she wanted to step out of her life.
Zach’s arrival had skewed her reality in such a way, she no longer felt content with her existence. She realized how sorry she’d been feeling for herself because of her scar, and what it represented to her—the loss of Joe’s love.
Yet, Zach had lost his sight, and he still came to her with a grin, with jokes, and showed her how self-sufficient he could be. She admired his tenacity, his dedication to proving everyone wrong in the assumption that blind people needed to be helped.
She had wasted so much time wallowing in her anger and self-pity. The thought of being there while Zach killed someone didn’t disgust her, especially if the guy truly was funneling money to ISIS. This seemed to be an important step for her to take, a way of starting over.
Slipping out of bed, she used the toilet, washed her hands and brushed her teeth immediately afterward, a habit she’d learned from her father while growing up, and one she hadn’t bothered to break. She missed her parents, but they were safer believing she lay dead in the ground. Pulling on her light, cotton, blue robe over her nude body, she made her way toward the kitchen.
She smelled coffee, and her mouth watered while her body begged for a shot of caffeine.
As she turned the corner, she heard a couple of grunts coming from the living room, and she bypassed the coffee machine to take a peek. Zach usually moved around like a cat—silent and stealthily. The first few days, she hadn’t been sure where he’d turn up, especially in the mornings. He’d surprised her more than once. Hearing grunts coming from the living room almost startled her, and if she hadn’t set the burglar alarm the night before, she might have wondered if they had an intruder.
Zach moved furniture around, clearing a large space in the middle of the area, while Savannah sat in a corner, staring at him questioningly with her ears perked and her head tilted to the side.
“What are you doing?” she asked from the juncture between the kitchen and living room.
He stood, a couple beads of sweat dampening his brow. “Moving furniture.”
She chuckled. “That’s obvious, Zach. I guess my question should have been, why are you moving furniture?”
He leaned over and gripped the arm of the
“You’re right, I don’t.”
And he imagined that one leaving the yard. No, she didn’t get it, and if she did, she hid it pretty well.
“Pizza?” he asked.
“Delivery?”
“Yes.”
“Sounds good to me. I’ve never had a pizza brought to the house. I was always afraid that it would end up being the government and not a delivery guy.”
“I’ll protect you,” he said. “At night is when I see best.”
“Oh, Zach. The jokes are so bad.”
“I will protect you,” he said again, more serious this time, and meaning every word.
She must have heard the weight of his voice because she answered him this time, seriously. “I’m sure you will.”
As she called the local pizza joint, he couldn’t help but notice how they sounded like a couple who had been together for a long time, despite most of their conversations gravitating toward a corrupt government, murder, and some of the very bad people of the world.
Ah, well. It seemed more exciting than discussing kids’ homework, the car repairs that needed to be done, and fighting over who would fold the laundry.
Give him a good clandestine operation any day.
Chapter 16
Ella woke the next morning completely exhausted. She’d tossed and turned most of the night, her thoughts filled with Zach, the little detail he hadn’t mentioned about him being a killer, and her realization that she remained very attracted to him.
Joe had asked her to be in on this mission, and a large part of her wanted to say no. However, a small fraction of her being yearned to go for numerous reasons.
First, she wanted to step out of her life.
Zach’s arrival had skewed her reality in such a way, she no longer felt content with her existence. She realized how sorry she’d been feeling for herself because of her scar, and what it represented to her—the loss of Joe’s love.
Yet, Zach had lost his sight, and he still came to her with a grin, with jokes, and showed her how self-sufficient he could be. She admired his tenacity, his dedication to proving everyone wrong in the assumption that blind people needed to be helped.
She had wasted so much time wallowing in her anger and self-pity. The thought of being there while Zach killed someone didn’t disgust her, especially if the guy truly was funneling money to ISIS. This seemed to be an important step for her to take, a way of starting over.
Slipping out of bed, she used the toilet, washed her hands and brushed her teeth immediately afterward, a habit she’d learned from her father while growing up, and one she hadn’t bothered to break. She missed her parents, but they were safer believing she lay dead in the ground. Pulling on her light, cotton, blue robe over her nude body, she made her way toward the kitchen.
She smelled coffee, and her mouth watered while her body begged for a shot of caffeine.
As she turned the corner, she heard a couple of grunts coming from the living room, and she bypassed the coffee machine to take a peek. Zach usually moved around like a cat—silent and stealthily. The first few days, she hadn’t been sure where he’d turn up, especially in the mornings. He’d surprised her more than once. Hearing grunts coming from the living room almost startled her, and if she hadn’t set the burglar alarm the night before, she might have wondered if they had an intruder.
Zach moved furniture around, clearing a large space in the middle of the area, while Savannah sat in a corner, staring at him questioningly with her ears perked and her head tilted to the side.
“What are you doing?” she asked from the juncture between the kitchen and living room.
He stood, a couple beads of sweat dampening his brow. “Moving furniture.”
She chuckled. “That’s obvious, Zach. I guess my question should have been, why are you moving furniture?”
He leaned over and gripped the arm of the
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