And that fact scared her.
“We’ll get through this,” Aiden said. “We’re a team, remember? We made that pact from day one. It’s one of the things that has made our relationship so solid.”
She smiled. “Since you came into my life, I see things differently. I was in such a dark place before. The lack of trust, the pain and fear. But being with you has shown me another way.”
He pulled her close to him. “I worry that this ordeal threatens to take you back to that very dark place, and I don’t want you to go there.”
She sighed. “I don’t either, but if I’m forced to go, I know that you’ll be by my side this time.”
“Always. If you’ll let me.”
She closed her eyes and rested her head on his shoulder. She didn’t think he was making a real forever statement, but she did have hope that one day they would get there. As long as her past didn’t overtake her.
After the ordeal at her house, Cass had welcomed the DEA safe house. Zane was pacing around the kitchen, trying to figure out their next move. The target still didn’t seem to be on his back, and his top priority was keeping Cass safe.
He’d never seen real, true fear in her eyes until she was in the arms of her attacker. He hated that he’d had to kill the guy—one, because he never liked to take a life, and two, because that meant they had no leads. Zane felt pretty confident that he could’ve gotten some actionable intel out of the hit man, but if he had to go back and do it again, he would make the same decision. Cass’s life was paramount.
His phone rang, and he saw it was Mason. “Hey.”
“All secure on your end?” Mason asked.
“Yeah. Cass is resting right now.”
“Let me guess—you’re stewing.”
“Wouldn’t you be?”
“I always am. We’re alike in that way.” Mason chuckled. “But I have an update for you.”
“Good.”
“We got a hit on the perp who attacked Cass. His name is Rod Gaynor, and he’s a known mercenary. Works for the highest bidder and has cartel contacts.”
“And you think the cartel hired him for this job?” Zane asked.
“I can do you one better. We were able to trace a couple of his offshore bank accounts, and he was wired money from one of the Cayman banks that is a favorite of the cartel. It’s not conclusive evidence, but it points that way.”
“That makes sense. All the more reason why it’s good Cass is in the safe house. They’ll just send someone else. We have to figure out how to get the kill order removed.”
“If you have any ideas, I’m all ears,” Mason said.
“Not yet, but as long as that order is out there, Cass is in danger. Layla too. Although there seems to be a lot of other stuff going on with Layla, and I’m not sure it’s all related to our op.”
“I can’t be either, but I’m still willing to help her in any way I can. She’s been a real team player, and I appreciate that. We can’t always say that about Agency types.”
“I want to help her too. I have no idea why Langley is giving her a hard time,” Zane said.
“If we get to a point where you think you can’t trust her, for whatever reason, I need you to let me know.”
“I doubt that’s going to happen, but I get the request.”
“I’ll be in touch.”
Mason ended the call, and Zane turned around as Cass walked into the kitchen. Her hair was pulled back in a low ponytail, and she wasn’t wearing a stitch of makeup, but she still looked pretty.
As that thought crossed his mind, he had to check himself. Since when did he look at Cass like that? All of this danger they were facing was messing with his head.
“What is it?” Cass asked. “What’s wrong?”
He quickly shook off those thoughts and tried to get his head back in the game. “Nothing. We got an ID on your attacker. Standard merc with financial ties to known cartel accounts.”
She pulled her hair out of the ponytail, letting it loose on her shoulders. “It’s like whack-a-mole at this point.”
He moved toward her. “Hey now. You can’t have a defeatist attitude. We’ll beat this thing. There will be a way.”
“We’ve talked about this before. Once the cartel orders the hit, the only way you get off that hit list is if you’re dead. And before you even suggest it, no, there’s no way I’m going into WITSEC. That would require me to give up everything. The only real solution is to take down the Mejía cartel. Did Mason say anything about the traitor on the inside?”
He shook his head. “No. I don’t think he’s at liberty to talk about any of that.”
“If they can figure out who that is, maybe we have a fighting chance at beating them.”
“We’ll push Mason if we need to. There’s got to be a way out of this, and we’ll find it together.”
Her expression softened, and she moved closer and took his hand in hers. “I can’t thank you enough, Zane. I knew as my partner that you would be there for me, but you’ve stepped up in ways that go far beyond the call of duty.”
He squeezed her hand. “You would do the same for me, and I want you to keep your head up. This could be a long battle.”
She looked up at him with her big brown eyes, and he felt a punch of desire.
“I can fight as long as you’re with me,” she said softly. Then she put her arms around his neck and rested her head on his chest. Her hair smelled like flowers. She felt so small pressed against him, and his need to protect her only grew stronger.
What was he supposed to do now? He figured this was likely just her wanting to be comforted.
