“How so?”
“Well,” Nate started, “of course 9/11 had an effect on me like it did most Americans, even though I was younger. But I always sort of felt an obligation to serve. I played sports in high school and college, and I’ve always been an athlete. As a young, able-bodied man, serving my country seemed like the right thing to do.”
“That’s very noble,” Ana said. His were the genuine words of an idealist, and solidified her opinion of him as a good person.
“You think so?” Nate asked dryly. “Maybe you could convince my father.”
“He didn’t approve of your service?”
“Let’s just say he would have preferred I skipped that part and went straight into academia.”
“But then you wouldn’t have had all these experiences,” Ana countered. “You wouldn’t have met these friends of yours. You wouldn’t have experienced the Middle East like you have.”
“There is something special about this region of the world,” Nate said, nodding in agreement.
A chill of excitement ran through her, and she realized how much she was drawn to the man in front of her. He was experienced in the world and extremely intelligent, and yet she didn’t think he had any idea that she had been putting signals out all night. His obliviousness was adorable and made her want to kiss him. Maybe it was the alcohol, but she decided to take matters into her own hands and try a less subtle approach.
“Really?” Ana asked in a low, sultry voice. “Like what?”
“Well… the history,” Nate started.
“Uh-huh,” Ana nodded, and inched her face closer to his.
“And the culture,” he continued.
“Of course,” Ana said, smiling and moving closer.
“And,” Nate appeared to catch on to what was happening, “the women.”
“Hmmm,” Ana hummed as she closed the gap and kissed him affectionately. When their lips parted Nate grinned like a schoolboy.
“That was, uh, great,” Nate said, and Ana laughed.
“Well, it’s late,” Ana said in a low, raspy voice.
“Yeah,” Nate agreed, “we should probably get some sleep.”
Ana smiled at him. “Walk me to my room?”
“Sure,” he said. As they strolled to where the cabins were located, Ana intertwined the fingers of her hand with his.
“This is me,” she said, and looked up into his dark-green eyes.
“Well, good night, Ana,” he said.
Nate turned to leave but Ana grabbed him by the front of the shirt. He stopped and looked back in her direction just as she stood on her toes and kissed him again. His surprise was only momentary, and then he wrapped his arms around her and passionately returned the kiss. She melted into him as his muscular arms enveloped her. Finally, they paused and looked at each other.
“Do you want to come in?” she asked him, looking into his eyes and nodding toward her cabin.
Nate’s face broke into a wide grin. “As a matter of fact, I do.”
Ana laughed. She still had the front of his shirt bunched up in her hand. Without breaking eye contact she used her free hand to turn the handle on the door behind her and kicked it open with her foot. With a smile, she backed into the room, pulling Nate along with her.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
Salalah, Oman
Novikov let the bolt ride forward on the AK-47. Based on his examination it appeared to function smoothly. It wasn’t safe to test-fire the weapons here, but he would do so out in the desert after the deal was done. Regardless, he was confident that all the equipment he was purchasing would work. If it didn’t, then the sellers were dead men, and they knew it.
