“Have a seat.” She motioned toward the white granite kitchen island that had enough chairs around it for eight people.
He complied.
“How was your flight?” she asked after pouring water into a container and then pushing a couple of buttons on one of those fancy automatic coffee makers.
The machine hummed to life as it started spitting the dark roast into a clear cup.
Daniel didn’t want to do small talk and he sure as hell didn’t want to be in the same room with a woman glowing from pregnancy.
“I’ll wait outside.” He pushed away from the island and got to his feet.
“Don’t go,” Lauren pleaded. His gaze on her belly caused her to rub the bump subconsciously. A train horn sounded from the cell phone in front of her cutting through the air, thick with tension. She picked up her phone and read the screen. “Jaden’s headed in from the barn now.”
Her gaze darkened and he could almost feel a wave of fear ripple off of her.
“That all he said?” Daniel’s interest was piqued. Why the reaction?
She stared at him blankly. “He said I should ask you to wait outside and then lock the door the second you leave.”
Chapter 5
Daniel smirked. He appreciated the honesty. “You can tell him that I’m not going to hurt you.”
He reclaimed his seat at the granite island.
“I didn’t think you would.” A nervous smile played with the corners of her mouth, but she turned her back to him in order to pour coffee into a mug—a move that showed trust. One of the fundamentals of combat was never turning away from an enemy. Soldiers were trained in the move but, honestly, most people knew it on instinct.
“Do you take sugar?” she asked, turning her head to the side.
“No,” he practically grunted, causing her shoulders to tense.
“Cream?”
“Black’s fine.” Seeing a pregnant woman wasn’t doing good things to his mind. He hadn’t been there for Naomi’s pregnancy. He’d found out that he would be a father via a video chat. She’d kept it a secret for the first six months, afraid of his reaction to the news. He’d lied and told her that having a baby would be a good thing, covering the fact that he’d been planning to break off their engagement. Guilt picked at the edges of still-fresh scabs.
Naomi had sure as hell deserved better than him.
For the past two years he’d wallowed in self-pity, hating the world, trying not to get sick to his stomach when he looked at pictures of his wife and daughter, hating himself for missing so much of their lives.
To make matters worse, he could’ve come home for Naomi’s last trimester but volunteered for an additional deployment instead. Yes, that made him a bastard.
“Here we go then.” Lauren turned around. Her smile was plastered on but he appreciated the effort she was making. He shouldn’t let it put a chink in his armor as he took the cup of fresh coffee. It might be hot outside but the A/C in this house ran on full tilt.
“Thank you.” He took a sip and set it on the granite.
The back door opened so fast and hard it smacked against the wall.
Lauren gasped as Jaden filled the frame, his face a study in tension and anxiety. His gaze froze on Daniel, who didn’t bother to stand.
Instead, he sipped his coffee like this was nothing more than Sunday brunch.
Lauren’s gaze bounced from her husband—Daniel could tell they’d married by the matching gold wedding band she wore—to him.
“I’ll leave you guys to business,” she said, catching Daniel’s gaze. It was almost like she was asking permission to go, checking to see if Daniel would be okay.
He’d be damned. The kind gesture softened him and for a split-second he remembered what it was like to have someone on this earth who cared about him. Another jab of guilt followed as he remembered the burden he’d been to Naomi.
The image of his dead wife and child assaulted him. He mentally shook it off and gave a curt nod in Lauren’s direction.
“Holler if you need me,” she said before walking over to give her husband a kiss. She turned to Daniel and patted her bump. “We’re getting close to meeting this little guy. Seems like he’s all I can think about these days. That and sleep since I’m not getting much more than naps anymore.”
Daniel nodded and grunted. He took another sip of his coffee and worked hard not to let her condition impact his judgment with Jaden. Daniel did realize why Jaden would come to him. The young girl’s face in the photo was someone Jaden wanted to help. Coming to Daniel to save a child was the equivalent of emotional blackmail. What grieving father would turn down the chance to save someone else’s little girl?
The ploy wouldn’t work.
“Mind pouring me a cup of coffee before you go?” Jaden asked his wife.
Daniel laughed.
“I won’t stab you if you turn your back. Pour your own damn cup.”
Lauren flashed nervous eyes at Daniel but her smile was genuine and warm. She was telling him that she was grateful for the confession.
It was true. He hadn’t show up to fight with Jaden. He could think of one place he’d like to shove the picture on Jaden’s anatomy, but Daniel hadn’t come to stir up trouble. He’d come to tell his old buddy that he was barking up the wrong tree.
Deep down, Daniel knew his friend had shown up in Cuba out of concern. Hell, he probably thought this mission would be therapy. Jaden needed to know that his intentions were misguided. Daniel also realized that on missions he’d always been the go-to guy for locating a target. He had an uncanny ability to anticipate people’s moves and locate an ideal interception point.
He also knew how to hide and that was one of the many reasons he’d chosen Havana. No one would look for him there. He hated hot, underdeveloped crime-ridden
