He took out his phone and sent a text. I want to take you somewhere tonight. Could you get Bailey to watch Ana?
Her reply came back quickly.
Kayla: I can ask. What time?
He looked at his watch. 6:30?
Kayla: I’ll let you know in a few minutes. Do I have to dress up?
Neo: No. Wear something you don’t mind getting dirty.
Kayla: ??
Neo: Trust me.
Kayla: Okay.
He stared at that one word for a long moment. She’d responded without hesitation. It made him happy that she had. She might not know it yet, but she could trust him with more than her safety.
She could trust him with her heart.
Chapter Eleven
Kayla threw on a pair of torn jeans, a clingy tank top, and a pair of flip flops. She pinned her hair up in a messy topknot and waited for Zach to arrive. Bailey had given her clothes a disbelieving once over when she’d dropped Ana off.
“Where is he taking you? A barn?”
Kayla laughed. “I don’t know. He said to wear something I didn’t mind getting dirty.”
Bailey held Ana and shrugged. “Okay. Well, have fun. We’ll be here staying clean, won’t we Ana-banana-boo?”
When Zach arrived, Kayla didn’t wait for him to open the car door before she jumped inside. He frowned at her.
“I was coming around to open the door.”
“I know. It didn’t make sense to let you do it though. Where are we going?”
“It’s a surprise. And you have to kiss me.”
Kayla’s heart thumped. Was she the one he’d been hung up on? She didn’t know if Chloe was right, but she sure liked the idea. She leaned forward and pressed her lips to his. He caught her before she could pull away and dipped his tongue into her mouth. Kayla shuddered with pleasure at the stroke of his tongue against hers. Too soon, he was straightening and giving her an appraising look.
“Have you eaten yet?”
“I had an energy bar.”
“How about a hamburger? I could use a burger.”
Kayla laughed. “You’re a junk food junkie, aren’t you?”
“Yeah, but only good junk food. Like I prefer the Mom & Pop burger joint to the fast food chain. Didn’t you notice the pizza wasn’t from a chain last night?”
“I did. It was really good, too.”
“Damn right it was. Okay, so how about dinner and then I take you for the surprise?”
“Do I get a hint? Are we going mud wrestling or something?”
He waggled his eyebrows as he backed the car out of the drive. “That sounds fun, honey, but we’ll have to save that for next time.”
“So no hint?”
“No hint. You’re too smart.”
She didn’t feel smart, but she glowed with the compliment anyway. Zach took her to a local diner where they ordered hamburgers and french fries, and they sat at a corner table and talked about the things they’d done that day. Kayla had shampooed a variety of clients, washed and dried towels and smocks, swept the salon, and had her nails done when JoJo wanted to practice her skills with gel nails after she was done with hair for the day. Zach listened as if it was the most interesting stuff he’d ever heard, but then Kayla stuttered to a halt after she realized she’d been talking for fifteen minutes straight and he hadn’t gotten a word in.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I’ve been hogging the conversation.”
He grinned. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard you say so many words all at once, beautiful. But I like it.”
Her ears grew hot. “You’re just saying that.”
“No, I’m really not. I like listening to you tell me about your day.”
Kayla dragged a french fry through ketchup. “Well, I’ve got nothing left now. Tell me about yours.”
“Hmm, I shot a thousand rounds of ammo today—”
“A thousand rounds?” she exclaimed. “Did that take all day?”
He laughed. “Not at all. Trust me, babe, a thousand rounds goes fast. It was range practice followed by a live fire exercise where we had to rescue some hostages and take back a naval ship from pirates.”
Kayla could feel her jaw dropping. “You let me talk for fifteen minutes about shampooing hair and sweeping floors like it was the most exciting thing in the world, and you did that?”
“Baby, it’s your day. I’m interested in it. And yeah, it sounds normal and sane. I like it. What I do isn’t sane.”
She thought about that show they’d watched together. Jack Ryan. It was Hollywood and over the top, but people really did that kind of stuff. Zach did that kind of stuff. Maybe not in exactly that way, but he was a real life badass hero who did things for the right reasons, not a criminal who thought he was tough because he rode a Harley, trafficked women, sold drugs, and carried a gun while he did all of it.
God she’d been naïve when she’d fallen for the bad boy who paid attention to her instead of staying strong and realizing she was being manipulated. She would never let that happen again. Not with anyone.
“Maybe not,” she told him. “But it’s necessary. Thank you for doing it. The world is a better place because of you and Alexei. All of you.”
“The world is a better place when people cooperate and help each other out. We’re there to balance out those who would use their power over others to do harm. Terrorists, rogue states, drug cartels, dictators—those people don’t care about anyone but themselves. We put a stop to it when we can.”
“I think it’s wonderful, Zach. I really do. There will always be people who do bad things. They don’t need to get away with it.”
“Unfortunately, some people always get away with shit. But those who can be stopped need to be stopped. That’s my mission.” He tossed down his napkin and gave
