by Meg Ripley
It was Leona. He’d known it, somewhere deep down, and yet he couldn’t quite believe it. He’d never seen her wear anything like that, nor had he expected it. Her typical style didn’t seem much different than his own, and she preferred things that were comfortable and utilitarian instead of fashionable. But now, she was dressed like the goddess of summer. Even her face looked different, and he realized she was wearing makeup.
“You…um…you look great,” he managed to murmur. “I like your hair.”
She bit her lip, accentuating her bright red lipstick as she looked down at her dress. “You don’t think it’s too much? I brought it along just in case, but I don’t want to stand out too much.”
He swallowed. It was hard enough being in the house with her, but now that she was in that dress, he didn’t know how much longer he could control himself. He turned away toward the kitchen and pulled his dish out of the fridge to give himself something else to do. “No, I’m sure it’s perfectly fine.”
“I don’t think I’ve ever been to a block party before, unless maybe it was something that my mom dragged me to when I was a kid. I’m not sure what to do with myself.” She ran her hands over the skirt of the dress again with uncertainty.
Hudson shrugged, trying to turn this outing back into part of the mission instead of anything that seemed like a date. “Mostly, we’ll just have to hang out and be ourselves. Talk to as many people as possible, see what you can find out about them without getting too invasive, eat a bit, have a beer, and then we’ll come back home.” Even saying “home” sounded too familiar, given that they were nothing but teammates. Teammates. Right.
“You’re right. I’m sorry. I don’t even know why I’m asking you this. I mean, it’s not like I haven’t done an undercover mission before. This is just totally different. I’m more comfortable in camo.” She touched her hair, obviously having no idea just what she was doing to him.
He uncovered the bowl and picked up a bag of tortilla chips. “Here, try some. Tell me if it needs more salt or anything.”
Leona picked up a chip and frowned into the bowl. “What is it?”
“Cowboy caviar. Sounds weird, I know, but it’s really good. Beans, corn, tomatoes, avocados, stuff like that.” Hudson didn’t consider himself a five-star chef, but he knew how to make things that were simple and tasty. Being a bachelor had made him more than sick of drive-thru faire.
He watched as she loaded up her chip and placed it between those luscious lips. Her lined eyes widened in surprise. “Oh! That’s really good!” She reached for more.
Hudson turned away. “You’ll have to wait until the party. I’m sure Kevin and Kim will want to try it, too,” he said with a grin. “Let’s go and get this over with.”
The Hartfords’ home was similar to their own, brick with a nice front yard and plenty of space. They weren’t exactly living in a poor neighborhood, and Hudson wondered if he could ever settle down in a place like this instead of his luxury apartment. It seemed more homelike, more normal, more friendly.
“Hey! You made it!” Kim Hartford clapped her hands together when she opened the door, pulling it open wider to admit them. “Come on in! Just about everyone else is here. We’ve got the grill going out back. There are plenty of drinks in the fridge, and we’re just putting all the food here on the table. Let me introduce you to a few people.”
Hudson had told Leona that they were to use the party as part of their mission, but he found it much more difficult than he would’ve thought. Kim and Kevin seemed genuinely excited about introducing them to the other neighbors. The men gathered around the grill on the back patio while the women laughed in the kitchen. He glanced at Leona a few times to make sure she was holding her own, unable to believe he was there with such a beauty, and then easily got lost in conversations about baseball and road construction.
At one point, he headed out to the back porch after grabbing a beer from the fridge when a woman stepped in front of him. “Oh, excuse me,” he said as he tried to step around her.
But she didn’t let him. She moved directly back into his path, tipping back her chin and jutting one hip forward. “You just moved in down the street, didn’t you?”
“Yeah, sorry. Hank Talbott.” He held out his hand.
“Cathy Cooper.” She took his hand in both of her own. Her fingers circled his, making their way slowly up his arm. “Mr. Talbott, someone said you were in sales, but I have to wonder what kind of sales would keep you in such good shape.” She arched one slim eyebrow that matched her flowing dark hair.
Hudson felt his skin heat. It was flattering, but a little too flattering. He didn’t know this woman, and he couldn’t see any reason for her to be talking to him like this. “I’m in computers.”
Cathy practically batted her eyelashes at him. “Oh, that’s exciting! Always on the verge of new technology. I’d love to hear more about it. Why don’t you come over here with me? There’s a lovely little shaded area on the edge of the garden.” She began leading him away from the crowd and toward the back corner of the yard.
There was something about this woman he didn’t like, and Hudson wasn’t about to go disappear with her. “I can’t actually, but thanks.”
“Ahem.”
He turned at the noise behind him to find Leona standing just outside the sliding glass doors. Her cheeks were pink as she glared at Cathy, and her look wasn’t any more friendly when she riveted it on Hudson. “I think it’s time for us to go, dear.”
“So soon?” Cathy pouted.
He managed to untangle himself from her grasp. “Yes, we’ve got some other things to attend to.” Hudson, glad for the excuse, followed Leona back into the house.
“Kim, I’m afraid we’ve got to get going,” Leona said to their hostess. “Thank you for inviting us.” She didn’t wait for a reply before she headed for the front door.
Hudson had to jog to catch up with her on the sidewalk. They’d chosen to walk to the party, since it was just down the street. It was a gorgeous evening, with a nice breeze blowing away the humidity, but there were also waves of anger billowing off his partner. “Hey, slow down! What’s the hurry?”
She surprised him by stopping in her tracks and whirling on him. “What’s the hurry? Really? Are you actually going to tell me you don’t have a clue what was happening back there?” Leona was a full head shorter than he was, but she’d managed to shove her face within an inch of his as she spoke. Just as quickly as she’d stopped walking, she whirled around and stomped off down the sidewalk again.
Hudson watched her go, allowing himself a chance at a smile. She was clearly pissed, but he only found it flattering. “I don’t see what the big deal is,” he said innocently when he caught up again. “She was just introducing herself and trying to get to know me, and that was the whole point of this adventure anyway, wasn’t it?”
“That woman was trying to do a lot more than get to know you.” Her brows were knitted together, but she refused to look at him now as she charged toward their house.
“Maybe so, but in that case, I should’ve gone with her. I mean, what better way to infiltrate the neighborhood and get a feel for what’s really going on, right?”
He was grinning when she glared up at him again. They were right in front of their place now, and she snorted as she let her shoulders drop slightly in defeat. “It may be funny to you, but for all anyone here knows, we’re together. Mates, married, common law, whatever the hell you might want to call it. It’s rude for someone to assume they can just waltz up and talk to you like that. Takes a lot of balls.” She stormed into the house.
Hudson watched her go, admiring the way the dress swished around her thighs. Leona was crazy if she thought he’d be interested in anyone but her, yet he’d enjoyed yanking her chain a little. Sure, maybe it was just the principle of the thing, but he liked the way jealousy looked on her face.
7
Leona couldn’t stand another minute inside those perfectly painted walls. The house w
as beautiful. It was the kind of place that most people probably dreamed of living in, and she had no doubt they’d be willing to take on mortgage payments bigger than what they could actually afford just for the status symbol of a nice home in a nice neighborhood. It even had stainless steel appliances, hardwood floors, and a stone fireplace.
But she absolutely had to get out of there. Her muscles were getting sore from sitting around listening in on phone conversations and keeping track of the various vehicles and people in the neighborhood. She hadn’t seen anyone but Hudson since the block party. The walls were beginning to close in on her, and it was time to get out.
She rose early, pulled on leggings and a tank top, and dug her favorite shoes out from under the bed. Leona whipped her hair up into a quick ponytail without even bothering to brush it. Coffee could wait until she got back and had time to enjoy it on the porch, but right now, she had something she absolutely had to do.
It was the perfect morning for a jog. The sun was already beginning to rise in the summer sky, but the commuters hadn’t yet left their garages. An old man on the corner was watering his flowers. A dog barked from within a fenced yard. It didn’t look like the sort of place she should be doing recon. That, however, is exactly what she told herself she was doing. She was just another part of the scenery, and she’d seen plenty of other people jogging and walking.
When she reached the corner, she took a right and kept going. The park wasn’t far, according to the maps she’d studied. Leona stretched her legs out into longer strides, pumping her arms and expanding her lungs. Her jog had turned into a run, and she was sprinting with all her speed before she knew it. God, it felt good! The wind whistled against her ears and combed through her ponytail, gracing her skin and cooling her sweat. She felt free and real, part of the Earth but not part of it at the same time. She veered into the park and circled it, her feet barely touching the asphalt track as she blasted past an elderly woman who was keeping a much more leisurely pace.
“Good morning!” Leona called cheerily behind her. She wanted to laugh, because she couldn’t remember a time when she felt this good. Yes, she was on a mission. The enemy could be sitting in the house on her right with the blue shutters and proliferating rose bushes. It could just as easily be the paper boy who’d appeared, chucking rolled up newspapers at front doors with a satisfying thunk. When she stopped in at the little convenience store a few blocks further down for a bottle of Gatorade, she knew the bored man behind the counter or the shifty guy near the beer cooler could also be the enemies she was looking for. She almost didn’t care. Leona was happy with any result at the moment. She could kick herself for not getting out and doing this earlier.
Someone was waving at her when she came back around the corner, and Leona noticed it was Kim. She waved back, but Kim was walking toward the fence, waving her down. Leona slowed, catching her breath. “Hey! Beautiful morning!”
“Sure is! I just wanted to check in with you and see if you were doing all right, hun.” Kim was dressed in cropped leggings and a loose-fitting tank top with a sports bra underneath. Her hair was pulled back like Leona’s was, but it was obvious she’d taken a lot more care with it. She’d curled and teased the red strands to a massive pouf. The layers of makeup on her face indicated she wasn’t planning to work out any time soon.
“Sure. I’m fine. Why?” Leona took advantage of the break to stretch. She bent one way and then the other, feeling her muscles gliding under her skin. She’d have to find some time for her other form soon.
Kim made a face, looking concerned. “Well, you and Hank left pretty quickly the other night. Jamie Sandusky said she thought she saw Cathy Cooper talking to your husband, and I was worried. You see, Cathy is quite the flirt. She doesn’t mean to hurt anyone, though.”
“Oh.” Leona was grateful her face was already flushed from her run. She’d been absolutely infuriated when that woman had flirted with Hudson, but that didn’t mean she wanted anyone else to know that. “It’s fine, really. I’m not the jealous type.” How could she be, when she and Hudson weren’t anything but coworkers? Right?
Her neighbor didn’t look ready to accept that. She leaned on the split rail fence between them, her fingers gliding across a nearby lilac bush. “It’s perfectly fine if you are. I mean, it wouldn’t be the first time we’d seen some domestic issues in the neighborhood. Nothing major, mind you, but enough to get people talking. It’s not a huge town, and we do get to know and care about each other.”
“It’s very nice around here. And we really enjoyed ourselves at the block party.” That was true, up to a point. The women Kim had introduced her to had been very kind to Leona. She’d expected them to treat her like an outsider who didn’t know all their secrets and inside jokes, but it wasn’t like that at all. The only thing she had felt excluded from was the “mom talk” from those who had little ones. And then, of course, there had been that Cathy Cooper incident.
“I’m glad. I really was worried, but I didn’t want to rush over there and get in your way. I’m sure your busy with all the unpacking.”
“No, not really.” Leona wrapped her arm around her head to stretch all the little muscles that hadn’t had a good workout in ages. “It was all taken care of before we moved in.”
“It was?” Kim said with disbelief. “I guess I underestimated the two of you when you said your husband is in computer sales. A service like that costs a lot of money.”
Shit. She was getting too comfortable, and she’d slipped already. “What I mean,” Leona said, “is that we had the movers take care of the furniture, but we didn’t have much else to bring in. We’re sort of minimalists.”
“Oh, yes! I’ve heard of that. I don’t think I could ever do without my shoe collection,” Kim laughed.
Leona laughed along with her, glad she’d gotten out of that one.
Kim smiled happily as she plucked one of the lilacs and held it to her nose. “Now tell me about your plans for the future, Leona. Are the two of you going to have any children?”
“No way,” she answered automatically. “It would really interfere with my job.”
The neighbor’s auburn brows knitted together. She laughed uncomfortably. “I’m sorry. I could swear you told me at the party that you stay at home.”
“I did. I mean, I do.” Shit. How could she be screwing this up so badly. Leona had successfully performed numerous undercover missions that required her to successfully infiltrate enemy territory. This one should be much easier, and yet it was somehow proving to be the complete opposite. “I do stay at home right now, but I plan to get a job soon. I like to get out and interact with the world.”
“Oh, I see. I understand. It’s not always easy taking care of my own and never having any time for myself, but I manage here and there. You really should think about children, though. They’re so wonderful. I don’t know how I ever managed without them.” Just then, two kids came tumbling through the front door and onto the porch. Leona recognized them as Kim’s offspring, who were introduced at the block party, but she couldn’t remember their names.
The oldest had his younger brother in a headlock. “Mom! He took my tablet and he won’t give it back!”
“I only took it because he took mine first!” the younger one squealed. He might’ve looked like he had the disadvantage with his older brother’s arm around his neck, but one quick stomp to the instep and he was free. Leona had to smile at that.
A little girl poked her head out the door and, seeing that her older siblings were otherwise occupied, stepped down off the porch and began picking flowers from the bushes in the landscaping. She was still in her bright pink pajamas.
“Boys! Stop that right now!” Kim’s fists curled at the arrival of her kids, and she turned an embarrassed smile to Leona. “Like I said, such angels. I’d better get them off to school before they kill each other. See you later!”
Leona jogged on home catching the angry undertones from her neighbor as she got onto her children.
Kim had brought up an interesting point. Leona hadn’t worried much about having children. Her career had always been first, and she’d always known it would be. But what, exactly, was her career now? Would working with the SOS Force preclude her from becoming a mother? Was that something she even wanted? It was an idea she’d never allowed herself to ponder before.
Hudson met her at the door, the muscles of his jaw twitching as he pressed his teeth together. “There you are!”
“Yes, here I am!” she exploded. Even the strange conversation with Kim hadn’t ruined the good mood from her jog. “You should get out and see this neighborhood. It’s like something from a movie. That really bothered me at first, but I’m starting to like it. Is there any coffee?” She headed into the kitchen.
“There is.” His presence was like a heavy shadow behind her, and when Leona finished pouring, she turned to see him still glowering. “Why didn’t you tell me you were leaving the house?”
“Excuse me?” Leona slowly stirred her creamer into her coffee, smiling at the sheer audacity of this man.
“You heard me. You can’t just disappear, Leona. I had no idea where you were or what happened to you. You didn’t even take your phone!” He put his hands on his hips as he paced the kitchen. “You clearly don’t know just how important this mission is.”
“I do,” she countered. Her muscles tensed despite her efforts to keep calm, and she felt the good effects of her jog swiftly being undone. “In fact, that’s exactly why I left. I needed to get out of here before I went crazy. It wouldn’t look normal if I never left the house. And it was a good chance for recon.”
“And for nearly giving away our secret to the nosiest neighbor,” Hudson retorted.
“Wait, what?” She stared at him for a moment before it dawned on her. “You were using the surveillance equipment to spy on me?” Leona was used to having a life that was less than private. Her position as a Green Beret meant she’d spent plenty of time being poked, prodded, and watched. That was all right, because she’d agreed to it. This was different.
