Her fitful thrashing and quiet sobs broke Evan’s heart. He had hoped her nightmare days were behind her, but he also knew recovery was never a straightforward line. Steps backward were also part of the process. All he could do was keep his word and show Juliet she wasn’t alone any longer.
Because she damn sure would never sleep on a closet floor again.
“Juliet.” Evan kept his voice even and didn’t touch her, not wanting to cause her further duress. “It’s Evan, baby. Can you wake up? You’re safe. It’s okay.”
He spoke the calming words over and over, and began gently and very loosely stroking her arm. Nothing that would seem like a grasp.
At first Juliet became more fitful, but then began to relax, almost as if his words were sinking in. He hoped that was true. He would’ve given his own life to have saved her from the brutality that now haunted her dreams with such poignancy.
“Evan?” Juliet’s eyes fluttered open.
Thank God. “Yes, baby. I’m right here. It’s okay. You were having a nightmare.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you. Us sleeping together was probably a bad idea.”
Evan wasn’t sure if she meant the actual act of sleeping or their lovemaking earlier. Either way, she was wrong.
“No, it was the best idea either of us have ever had.”
Juliet shrugged. “I’m not a great sleeper.”
“You have nightmares. So do I. The important thing is you don’t have to wake up alone anymore. You don’t have to fight these demons by yourself.”
She nodded, but Evan could tell she was still upset by what had happened. He wasn’t quite certain what upset her more, the nightmare or him being there to witness it. She got up and headed to the shower. Evan let her go. She needed space.
And if she stuck around his bed, he was afraid he might start talking to her about always being there when she awoke, and holding her through any nightmares. It was too soon to be discussing that, and it might scare her off even more.
Evan could be patient. He’d been patient for years, even before the attack. He could be again.
And besides, now was not the time to worry about the future. They both needed to be concentrating on today, and Cady and retrieval of the codes. Everything else would have to wait.
A few hours later they were on their way to the estate near Annapolis. They had stopped by Omega so Megan could fine-tune the tracker and mayday device Juliet wore.
“Okay, remember the acoustic homing signal echoes off the magnetic ray with the tracker, and vertical trajectory also comes into play if the device is utilized as part of a denotation stratagem, so that needs to be taken into consideration. But because of the alloy elements, it’s virtually imperceptible to discovery,” Megan, one of the leading computer scientists in the country, had told them. “Any questions?”
Juliet and Evan had just looked at each other, neither really having any idea what the younger woman had just said. Fortunately, Sawyer was there to interpret, putting his arm around Megan, obvious love in his eyes.
“What giant brain here is trying to say is that Vince Cady and his men are not going to find the device on you, but it is definitely short-range,” he’d explained.
“Sawyer, that’s exactly what I said to them!” Megan blinked at them through her glasses, obviously believing it.
“I know, honey,” he’d responded in a stage whisper. “They’re just slow. Don’t worry.”
The little bit of humor had been just what they needed. Juliet had turned to Evan, shaking her head, her eyes twinkling. She was ready.
They were ready.
As they pulled up to a guardhouse at Cady’s property an hour later in Evan’s Jeep, Juliet slipped her hand into his. He gave it a reassuring squeeze.
“Bob and Lisa Sinclair, here by Mr. Cady’s invitation,” Evan told the guard.
The man looked it up on a small computerized tablet, then nodded and gave them instructions on where to go.
There were a number of cars already parked near the house, all high-end automobiles. Neither the number nor the caliber of the vehicles was surprising. Cady did not deal with lowlifes. His dealings were not something small-time criminals could afford.
Especially when it came to the drone override codes. Anybody interested in buying them would definitely be a big-time player. Someone Omega would need to start keeping tabs on, if they weren’t already.
Like Evan, Juliet was taking stock of the different vehicles. Some of these people would be associates they’d worked with before. Others would be new. All could be potentially deadly.
Evan pulled the Bob Sinclair cloak around him—a friendly guy, good with people, not quite the sharpest tool in the shed, but smart enough. He enjoyed creature comforts and good food, but also had an adventurous side, thus the Jeep as his chosen vehicle.
Evan could tell that Juliet was fully into her role as Lisa Sinclair. Lisa was smart—not a stretch for Juliet—but also liked to pamper herself, and cared more about her appearance than Juliet ever did. She wore expensive jewelry: a diamond bracelet, two almost gaudy rings on her hands, and of course, the locket around her neck.
Lisa’s clothes were a far cry from what Juliet normally wore; her tailored pants and blouse, coupled with high heels, were quite different from Juliet’s more casual jeans and sweaters. But Evan was sure Lisa Sinclair’s outfit helped Juliet dig more into character.
She appeared confident, professional and no-nonsense. Evan loved Juliet’s causal style, but had to admit she could pull off Lisa’s look as if she was born to it. It was a turn-on, for sure.
Evan parked the Jeep, then hopped out to come around and open the passenger door. He helped Juliet down from her seat and kept his hand at the small of her back as they walked toward the main door of the house.
“You look great,” he whispered.
One eyebrow arched. “Of course I do,” she responded, smiling. She was already Lisa Sinclair. “These shoes are Manolo Blahnik.
