"You too." Juniper leaned across the cab and cupped Sterling's face. “Be safe out there, okay?”
Nick grinned. “I always am.”
"She's talking to me." Sterling lifted her chin. "You be careful, too."
“I own a bar in Calusa Cove. Careful is a relative term.”
“Call me if anything weird happens. Anyone shows up. Bea calls. Doyle walks through the door. Tara decides to marry him. Anything.”
Juniper narrowed her eyes. “That last one was uncalled for, and last I heard, she was giving him the cold shoulder because he hasn't been calling her regularly, which is strange. She's not usually that possessive.”
“He has a way of making women like him, and I don't appreciate that.”
“He's never lasted long with anyone. I'm sure he's gotten bored," Nick said.
“Doesn't make either of us feel any better,” Sterling added.
Juniper gave him a quick kiss before sliding out. “What time will you be back?”
“Shouldn't be much past two or three,” Sterling said. “Nick and I are going to check out the Pike lead and then check in with Buddy.”
“Call me when you're on your way back to town?"
“You got it.” Sterling hooked his thumb on the wheel. “Maybe we'll come back for lunch. We'll need to eat.”
Juniper rested one hand on the open truck door. “I'll try to save you some of the special.”
“Thanks.”
She shut the door, and Sterling watched her disappear inside through the kitchen door. He always knew leaving the CIA would change his life. But he never expected that a woman would change his ways.
Nick buckled his seat belt. “Are you ready?”
Sterling put the truck in reverse. “I could look at her all day."
“You got it bad."
"For the first time in my life, I won't deny it." Sterling turned to his old friend and smiled. Big. "I fucking love her, and it feels better than any drug I've ever been given."
"I know, right?"
"Who'd ever thought we'd ever be sitting in a truck talking about this shit."
"Not me." Nick laughed. "But I called Sloane this morning and told her all about Juniper, and then realized I hadn't informed her of her previous name, so when I hinted at that one,she went real quiet for a bit and then was completely ecstatic. For both of you. Told me it made sense."
"Not sure it does to me, but I'm not questioning it. I'm just rolling with it." Sterling made the turn onto Main Street and went through the traffic light.
The Saturday morning traffic in Calusa Cove consisted of three golf carts, two pickup trucks, a delivery van parked half in the street, and Mrs. Ludwig walking her tiny demon dog in front of the post office. The dog was a menace.
Sterling followed Main for two more blocks, turned at the bait shop, and headed toward the bridge that led out of town.
He pressed two fingers to his wrist and counted. Slightly elevated. This was an odd habit he'd gotten into a long time ago when he'd been a young CIA agent. He'd check his pulse before and after missions. He just wanted to know. He might have required self-observation because his brain's immense data processing capacity often caused it to miss fear signals, resulting in his body failing to react correctly. At least that's what he told himself.
But he’d never had a partner to go home to. Someone, outside of his parents, who told him to be safe out there. Someone who wanted him to come back without injury. That was new, and it changed his perspective.
Nick pulled a folded piece of paper from his pocket.
“You printed directions?” Sterling asked.
