AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She shook her head with another laugh. Then they both took a seat to talk.
“How many hours do you think it will take for you to fill me in on all that’s happened while I’ve been out?” She settled back in her chair, her body remembering how the lines conformed to her. Her office had become more of a home than the apartment she’d taken and the beige furnishings she’d selected.
Brown waved a hand. “We’ll cut through the clutter after lunch. Right now, I want to hear about you.”
She rubbed a fingertip between her brows. “Must we? It took me half an hour to get to my office because everyone had to hear the tales.”
“I don’t mean any of that. I read the report. I want to know aboutyou.” His stare burrowed into hers.
With a shake of her head, she said, “How did I get such an amazing partner?”
“You were damn lucky. You could be stuck with Davenport.”
She gave a mock shudder. The man they referred to had all the brains for the job but lacked the commonsense portion necessary to make a good agent.
Brown stretched out in his chair, one leg extended and his arm hooked on the back. When she didn’t answer him, he started to speak.
She cut him off. “I know what you’re about to ask.”
Their stares met.
“Lazarus.”
Her lips twitched. “His name is AJ.”
“I’m sorry, but he’ll always be Lazarus to me. Now spill your guts, Devi. I know you want to.”
God, did she. While a few of the women in Blackout were friends and good listeners, they didn’t compare to her own partner. They’d spent years discussing their personal lives and gotten to know each other on a level that was unmatched.
Brown was like the big brother she never had. Or maybe her twin.
She bit down on her lower lip. Sheneededto confide in him. A lot had happened since he told her to go for it with AJ.
“I don’t know where to start. I guess to say AJ took such good care of me. Almost too good.”
His lips quirked in a smile. “Uh-oh. He suffocated you, didn’t he?”
She giggled. “A little bit. But only in the best way. He’s very protective.”
“Comes with his training.”
She nodded, glad he could see that. “He made me see that when I lost him, I stopped living.”
Brown dropped his gaze to the floor. “I couldn’t figure out how to help you, Indika. I’m sorry.”
Her lips parted in surprise. “Brown. I never asked for you to pull me out of the desert sands I stranded myself in. Part of it comes with the territory of grief, but I wasn’t able to see how low I sank.”
He held her stare. Understanding branched out between them, and she hoped that her words eased some of the pressure he’d placed on himself. Pressure she never knew he carried.
“So back to Lazarus. You’re living with him?”
She nodded. “He doesn’t have much room, but then again, I don’t own much now.”
A quiet heartbeat passed as they processed the explosion that could have killed her, and thankfully hadn’t taken the lives of any of her neighbors.
“I forgave him for all of it. I saw that he suffered for his decision to go deep undercover. He gave up what little life he had and devoted it to stopping Abubakar. And look how far he came, almost singlehandedly.”
Brown shifted in his seat. “Definitely a hero in my eyes.”
