Jake shook his head. “I don’t know. I think about the situations we go into. Hell, my last job kept me away for two solid months. The thought of leaving Li...a wife at home to worry, or worse, take care of everything on her own if something happened to me?”
Damn, that was close. No telling how Mike would have reacted to that little slip. “I always figured it would be pretty fucking selfish to ask someone to live that way.”
“Women are a hell of a lot stronger than we give them credit for, Jake. Shit, my sister’s a perfect example. After everything she’s been through, she keeps pushing forward. I don’t know how she’s done it all these years on her own.”
This time, Jake couldn’t hide his smile or the affection in his voice. “She’s the strongest woman I know.”
Mike tilted his head, and Jake worried he’d given himself away. He moved his eyes forward, doing his damnedest not to show how he truly felt about the guy’s little sister.
Somber again, Mike said, “We almost lost her in that jungle. When I heard she was gone, what those bastards had done to her and the others...that was the closest I’ve ever come to blowing a cover.”
Jake looked over at his friend and vowed, “I’d die before letting anything else happen to her.”
Mike simply nodded. He may have ‘died’ himself years before, but Jake knew the thought of losing his sister for real was more than his friend could bear.
****
“I’m so sorry,” Olivia whispered the apology to Mac as they drove down Jake’s road. It was one of about twenty she’d given to her during the drive home from the mall in Dallas.
“Would you stop already? I keep telling you, there is nothing to apologize for. And if you do it one more time, I’ll be forced to bring out that badass side of me you seem so fond of.”
Despite the harsh words, Mac smiled at her and winked before rolling her window down and scanning her eye for entrance through Jake’s gate. “I still can’t believe that asshat came up to you the way he did.”
Olivia gave her a quick smile back, still hating that they’d had to cut the day short because of her. It had started out great. Perfect, even.
In the first hour, they’d stopped for coffee and breakfast at a quaint little bakery then hit a few dress shops before heading to the mall.
They’d gone into one of the larger department stores. While Mac was busy trying on a pair of awesome boots with surprisingly high heels, Olivia had gone into another section nearby, looking for some new tennis shoes for work.
She was trying on a pair of her favorite brand when she caught a man staring at her.
Olivia had smiled politely, but only because they’d made eye contact. When she looked back up a few minutes later, he was still there. Staring.
It took about twenty seconds before she was overwrought with terror, flashbacks of being attacked assaulting her.
Her pulse had raced. A thin layer of sweat had formed on her brow, and she’d frantically looked toward Mac, praying she could get her attention, somehow.
When she realized Mac was too focused on the boots to notice her, Olivia had quickly turned and started walking toward the other woman. She kept her eyes looking straight ahead and not at the man who had begun to follow her.
He started to reach for her, and that’s when she’d screamed. Olivia had yelled as if her life depended on it, and in that moment, she’d truly believed it had.
For a moment, she was back in Toamasina, being chased by Cetro and his men. She’d flung her arms out and swung her purse at the man trying to take her.
Except, he wasn’t.
Olivia had been so busy trying to defend herself that she hadn’t realized the guy wasn’t actually attacking her.
Instead, he’d backed up a good five feet, and had been standing with his arms held up to show her and the other customers who’d stopped to watch the crazy lady in the mall that he meant her no harm.
Unlike Olivia, Mac had been of sound mind. She’d sped to Olivia’s side, and quickly ascertained that there was no actual threat.
When Olivia had finally calmed down, she’d realized—with total humiliation—that the guy was actually much younger than she’d originally thought.
He very quickly explained to Mac that he’d seen Olivia on the news a few months before, and had simply wanted her autograph. Said he’d never met anyone “famous” before.
The poor kid had looked at her as if she was insane. Maybe, she was.
Mac parked the car close to Jake’s truck, but didn’t get out right away. Instead, she grabbed Olivia’s hand.
“I won’t say anything to Jake about what happened. It’s your story to tell, if you choose. Just know that there’s nothing to be ashamed of. Your reaction to that guy today was perfectly normal given what you’ve been through. I know from experience that terrible things happen to really good people, and there’s not always an explanation or a reason why. Not one you can find, anyway.”
Mac glanced away, and for a second, Olivia wondered if the other woman was referring to what she’d seen in her line of work, or if it was something more personal. She didn’t have time to analyze things more because Mac quickly blinked, her eyes finding Olivia’s once more.
“It takes time to sort it all out, and you, my friend, haven’t had hardly any time at all to deal with everything that’s happened to you. But I have no doubt that you’ll get there.”
Olivia wiped her leaking eyes again, grateful for her new friend. “Thank you,” she said as she squeezed Mac’s hand. “Do you think you could, um...” Olivia turned and looked out
