She did it.
And now it’s up to me to keep her safe.
“Okay,” Kyle said quietly. “Now we plan.”
Planning was hell.
Colin had been through mission planning in tents, aircraft hangars, back rooms, and vehicles moving through terrain where stopping meant dying. He’d planned extractions with bad intel, bad weather, bad assets, bad odds, and one truly memorable lack of working comms.
None of it had felt as horrible as this.
Because this time, the principal was Maren, and there was a child being left behind in Colorado who had no idea what was about to happen. He glanced out the windows. Juni, Arden, and Mac were at the barn, Juni ‘helping’ Arden with her chores.
Colin’s ability to think clearly was in active combat with every instinct in his body that told him to grab Maren and Juni and run, as Kyle laid out the bones of the mission. Elissa would be their remote tech cover from LA, with Flint backing her from Lyons. Gina would coordinate with Lynn long enough to verify whatever clean NCIS contact Lynn claimed to have. Lachlan would stay in the loop but out of the visible chain, because if this turned into a federal hurricane, Watchdog needed one person watching the whole board who could bail them out.
Maren had to look disposable. That meant only sending Colin from Colorado. They had to assume Voss had eyes on both Watchdog offices. Elissa hated this almost as much as Colin did.
“I could cover their tracks, I know I could,” she argued over the screen.
Kyle shook his head. “Negative. As much as I want to send in every bodyguard we have including myself, we’re not risking it, not from this office or LA.”
That meant Mac would stay behind guarding Juni.
Colin hated that, which was unfair as hell.
Mac was steady. Competent. Good with Juni and ridiculously proud of his tea party invite. He was exactly who Colin would have chosen if he wasn’t busy being an unreasonable, jealous asshole over a preschooler’s affection.
He glanced out the window again. Maren noticed. Of course she did.
“Mac will keep her safe,” she said quietly.
“I know.”
“She trusts him.” Maren’s mouth curved, just a little. “But not as much as she trusts you.”
Colin grinned down at her. “You have a knack, you know that?”
Maren smiled back. But her smile faded almost as soon as it appeared. She looked away.
“I’m still scared.”
“You’re doing great,” Colin reassured her.
“I’m not sure impersonating my twin at an attorney’s office to retrieve evidence against a defense contractor qualifies as great.”
“It does in this room.”
She looked back up at him, her eyes filled with gratitude.
And love.
Colin never imagined he’d see that look directed at him from any woman again, let alone one as beautiful and brave as Maren.
I can’t lose her, he thought.Whatever happens in San Diego, I cannot lose the love of my life.
By the time the plan was ship-shape enough for Kyle, the sun had shifted west. Golden light spilled across the great room floor. Outside, Juni’s laughter came closer as they returned from the barn. Camo barked once—not alarmed, just announcing the return of his tiny commanding officer.
Maren closed her eyes.
