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"And I was rollerblading on the trail to impress a boy," she said and they both laughed.
“What were you like in school? Not a geek, I’d guess. A cheerleader? Academic team member?” he asked and scribbled on his paper.
She snorted. "I was one of those kids that were part of the crowd in the yearbook. I was a member of the French club, the Latin club, and the German club. If I could have taken another foreign language, I'd have done it. I could wear the headphones, block out the world and learn."
“Headphones?”
“My school had one teacher who was proficient in French so we had conversations in that class. But German and Latin were optional courses that used computer programs and headphones. I signed up for them rather than study hall.”
He eyed her. “So, you blocked yourself from socializing with other kids? Why?”
She shrugged. “I was shy. No other reason, really. And I enjoyed the languages.”
He spoke in French and she replied and they sparred in three languages for a few minutes, each sputtering a laugh when they couldn't remember the correct pronunciation. Finally, she looked at him. "Tell me something else about yourself."
He leaned back and studied her for a minute then looked away. "I joined the military straight out of high school. I might have been geeky, but I didn't have great grades, didn't score scholarships, and couldn't afford college. When I joined up, I figured I'd go through one of the tech-centric programs and in four years, leave the military and find a decent job. Instead, I scored high in the technical area but also in some areas that Military Intel looks at. I was approached by an officer who asked if I'd like to work with them. I started out collecting intel, worked my way through analysis, and then was approached to do some undercover work."
“I didn’t think intelligence officers did undercover.” She said quietly, staring into her coffee cup.
“There aren’t many and we don’t advertise our existence, since some of the assignments are geared toward uncovering crimes within the military.” He sighed. “It’s been a long time since I was that geeky kid signing up at my local recruiter.”
“For me too,” she said and shook her head when he waited for her to continue. “A story for another day. Let’s get back at it. If you want a sounding board for your decoding, just yell.”
He smiled and, as they worked into the small hours of the morning, the mood was both lighter and focused. Three pots of coffee and an empty thermos later, Rachel sighed. “Done.”
Gavin glanced up, his eyes bleary from staring at the computer screen. “You got them all enhanced?”
“Yep.” She stood and stretched her arms over her head, exposing a thin line of skin at her waist when her shirt rose with her movements. “You?”
He shook his head, rubbing his eyes. “Everything’s blending together.”
She walked over to his side of the table and stared at the code. “Good grief, no wonder you’re having a problem. Numbers, letters, figures. It’s a bunch of gibberish.”
“Gibberish I have to figure out.”
She tilted her head at that. “Doesn’t Hank Patterson have his guys on this too?”
Gavin shrugged. “I guess so.”
“And you’ve been at this how long?”
“A few hours.”
“It’s time for bed.” She blushed when he grinned up at her. “Separate beds.” When he protested, she pressed. “Look, you just said everything was blending together. A few hours’ sleep will help.”
He focused on the screen a minute longer then closed the laptop with a snick. “It has to.”
They left the room, flicking the house lights off as they made their way through the now silent building. When she started to rinse the coffee maker, Gavin took the carafe from Rachel's hand and put it in the sink. "Mrs. Finch won't mind. Let's go." He turned off the kitchen light and led her to the stairs. "Besides, she'll be up and in the kitchen in a couple of hours."
“Don’t remind me,” Rachel said around a yawn.
By the time they’d made it up the stairs, Rachel had gravitated to Gavin’s heat and her shoulder brushed his as they walked down the hall. He stopped at her doorway and faced her. “You did a good job tonight. You picked up on those programs like a seasoned pro.”
She flushed with pleasure and joked. “If we work long enough together, maybe I’ll graduate to geek status.”
He grinned, “A beautiful geek,” and leaned in to kiss her. Rachel accepted the kiss and more, rubbing his lips with hers and letting her tongue moisten his lips. When they broke apart Gavin was breathing heavily and leaned his forehead against hers. “I’d ask to come in—”
"Too fast." She said resolutely, though she wanted nothing more than to invite him into her room. "And we have a lot of work later today. We both need rest."
