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My need to comfort and protect her is crushing my chest, but this isn’t about me. I vow I’ll make it about her. I won’t lose sight of her in our mission, and this time, when it’s over, I will be coming for her.
“Well, I’m glad you made the choice to be here. As exciting as that other option sounds.” Apparently, I’m attempting to lighten the mood with another flimsy response, but it must be working, because her expression is bright.
It’s the same look I couldn’t wait to see every single morning when I saw her at school ten years ago. It’s the look that told me I was the only one she saw, the only one who mattered. It’s the look I should have woken up to every morning since then. But I didn’t, because it’s the look that was taken away from me.
“I’ve missed you.” My voice is a whisper, and as I realize I’ve said my thoughts out loud, her face falls. The smile she hides behind drops, giving me a glimpse of her suffering.
“I’ve missed you too.” Her words are only meant for me.
She swallows her truth hard, and I want to pull her into me. I want to wrap my arms around her and physically show her I won’t let anything get to her.
But I can’t.
I shift in my seat to get more comfortable in our conversation just as a squeal takes Jessa’s eyes away from me.
Dana’s triumphant voice rings out into the room. As she reaches across the table and pulls a heap of chips away from my team and toward a mountain in front of her, Jessa chuckles.
“Do you want to play?” I offer. So many years have passed now, and I don’t know what Jessa likes to do anymore.
“No way. You couldn’t pay me to play against her.” She laughs, catching Dana’s attention as she reaches across the table for more chips.
“What?” Dana grins from ear to ear. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” She winks at Jessa.
“Are you sure about that?” From the door, Logan cuts through their friendly banter, catching everyone’s attention. “Because from where I’m standing, it looks like my team is unknowingly playing blackjack with a card counter.”
Four sets of eyes silently turn back to Dana, and she feigns doe-eyed innocence as Jessa snorts into her beer bottle, confirming Logan’s accusation.
“Fine. You’re no fun, Joker.” She sits back in her chair and crosses her arms with a taunting smile on her face, and Logan walks right into it.
“Again—it’s Jekyll, but I’ll tell you what. Since, miraculously, not one of my guys realized you were counting cards”—he motions around the table, unimpressed by the ease at which his own team got played—“you’ve earned yourself the use of my real name. Mostly because I can’t stand you butchering my code name. Please, call me Logan,” he requests patiently.
“Wow. Really? But I had so many other names ready to go! Let’s see, there was Jolly, Jinkies, Jerk Face, and Uptight Motherfucker. Except I think that last one was kind of a stretch as far as plays on words go, don’t you agree?”
Jessa’s eyes round into saucers, and all of the men at the table are frozen in place as they look between Dana and Logan, unsure of whether to laugh or hide. In truth, I’m not even sure which way this is going to go.
We’ve agreed to a cease-fire, but Logan has his limits.
“If you’ll agree to give my men back their poker chips, I’ll agree that ‘Uptight Motherfucker’ is a bit of a stretch. Anyone want a beer while I’m up?” Unfazed, Logan walks to the fridge as everyone around the table relaxes and resumes their game—with Dana now demoted to spectator.
“Hello, Jessa. Jack. Where’s Tex?” Logan asks as he takes a seat across from us.
“He said he was going to go for a run, and that he’d be by later for a drink.” Grizz’s voice comes up from behind the couch. As Dana slides a chair over to sit beside Jessa, I realize my alone time with her is now over.
“So what kind of movies do you guys have?” Dana asks. Grizz hands her a glass of wine, and it isn’t lost on me that he isn’t offering anyone else some of his private stash.
Then I notice her smile when she takes the glass from him. No one else gets that smile either, and I worry this will cloud his judgment.
Who am I kidding? I’m the last person to have an opinion about these things. I glance at Jessa while Hunter leans back in his chair to offer his two cents. “TV is down again, but I’m sure I can fix it after this hand. I’m losing my shirt over here anyway.” He motions to his three chips and slides them all in as something else catches Dana’s eye.
“Is that what I think it is?” She points to the contraption sitting beside the TV. “Is that a karaoke machine?” Her grin stretches across her entire face. Grey perks up as Logan groans, and Dana looks like she’s about to vibrate out of her skin. “Jessa, do you remember Des Moines?” She’s practically squealing.
“How could I forget?” Jessa laughs and tries to calm her friend down. Then she looks toward Logan and me to explain. “We had a couple of quiet days while we were running code. We wanted to unwind, but rules are rules, and we couldn’t go out, so we brought the fun home and—”
Jessa doesn’t get the chance to finish as Dana jumps in, and I notice Logan listening and observing.
I was right.
Their guards are coming down, and they’re starting to relax.
