Secured Wishes by Charity Parkerson Page A

sake.”
    “Imagine that,” Gracie said, trying to sound understanding, after all, Mary was her friend, but she did wonder why his shoe type bore any weight to the success of the date. Finally, she was unable to withstand her curiosity any longer. She asked, “What’s wrong with penny loafers?”
    “Well, when he asked me out he said we were going for pizza so I wore a t-shirt and tennis shoes, but when I met him at the pizza parlor he was wearing penny loafers and a sweater vest, which left me looking like a fool because he was dressed so nice. Instead of his date, I felt like I was a poor relation he was taking to dinner.”
    Gracie tapped her chin thoughtfully. It was more likely that the guy was super thrilled at the idea of staring at Mary’s boobs all night in her tight t-shirt, but Gracie couldn’t very well say that so instead she said; “Did you ever think he might have felt awkward all night too because he was trying to look nice for you and ended up being overdressed?”
    “Oh, I never looked at it like that.” Mary was such a good-hearted person that Gracie knew she’d call him later tonight to thank him again for dinner now that Gracie reminded her about putting herself in other peoples’ shoes, whether they were penny loafers or tennis shoes. Mary and Gracie kept a good working relationship; Mary made sure Gracie didn’t work herself to death and Gracie made sure Mary didn’t let her beauty overcome her personality.
    Mary possessed more than her fair share of everything in life; looks, brains, and a loving family. If Gracie were a different kind of woman, she’d have to hate Mary on principal alone, but Mary was just too damn nice to hate.
    “Come on, Gracie. Let me walk you out to your car.”
    Gracie rolled her eyes. “And then who will walk you back inside?”
    “It’s only ten steps back inside the building.”
    “Then its only ten steps out to my car,” Gracie countered, laughing.
    “Yes, but then you have to stand there long enough to get the car unlocked and I don’t want you to be out there alone for that long, so I’ll go out with you, and then once you get inside your car you can sit there with your doors locked and watch me walk back inside. How about that?”
    “That sounds like a solid plan, so let’s do it.”
    Gracie stood, wincing at the tightness of the muscles in her back, but she managed to get her supplies put away and gathered up her purse in record time.
    Side by side, they walked through the back door to the alley where Gracie’s car was parked. It was close to midnight and it was a pitch-black night without a hint of moon or stars to alleviate the darkness. Gracie was almost at her car door when a row of headlights began filing down the alleyway, blocking her way. She stepped backwards onto the sidewalk, wondering what she should do, when a movement behind her caught her attention. When she turned her head, she spotted several different men dressed from head to toe in black SWAT gear hiding in the shadows. She knew then that she just stepped out into some shit, but she didn’t know what to do, so she and Mary froze, waiting for a signal to either run or duck.
    The whole thing was a setup, a fuck up from the very beginning. They were the ones being targeted and their cover was already blown. The two women stepped into the alley changing the entire game plan. The first woman’s long, dark hair fell in waves down her back, and she bore a pixie like form. The second woman’s shoulder length red hair stood out in a riot of curls around her head. They looked as surprised to see Jacob as he was to see them, and they immediately stopped at the sight of his team members. Even the air seemed to hold its breath as they stared at one another. Then the world exploded into a hail of gunfire. The once quiet back alley now resembled a warzone—even the air smelled the same as it did when he fought in Burundi.
    The dark-haired woman proved to be the smarter of the two, as she