Willing

by Lucy Monroe

  “It shouldn’t be, but sons of bitches stupid enough to think they can use my training camp to develop domestic terrorism techniques are stupid enough to be brought down without a five-star effort.”

  Maybe his business partner was right, but Daniel planned to call Wolf and Hotwire in to be two on the team. He wanted the best with him because he knew Josie was going to insist on coming along, and he wasn’t going to let her get hurt if he had to stop a bullet with his body.

  She was the other half of his soul, and somehow he was going to have to come to terms with that truth, whatever it meant.

  “I’m not sure about your plan to disarm them.” Josie wrinkled her nose as if she’d smelled something bad. “That doesn’t seem like a simple objective with an organization like this one.”

  “The armory is kept in an underground storage facility. We weld the doors shut, and it will be days before they can get the supplies in necessary to cut through the two-inch-thick metal. They’re a real live-off-the-land type of group, and their transportation in and out of the compound is pretty rudimentary.”

  “But what about their personal weapons?”

  Tyler grimaced. “That’s going to take more doing. Everyone in the compound is armed, but they store their weapons in communal rooms when they aren’t using them, and as far as I can tell, only the sentries take firearms with them at night. We have to infiltrate the rooms and take out the arms.”

  “The easiest thing to do would be to put them in the armory before we weld it shut,” Josie said musingly as Daniel became more convinced this was one mission she should not go on.

  Tyler nodded. “I think so, too.”

  But Daniel shook his head. “No way.”

  “Why not?” Josie asked.

  “We’re good, but no matter how good we are, with the kind of invasive mission objectives your father has outlined, someone is going to wake up and raise the alarm.”

  “Not if we put a sleeping agent in their evening meal. They all eat from the same supplies. All we have to do is mix it in with the flour the women use to make the bread they serve every night.”

  “Too risky.”

  “I got in before; I can do it again.”

  “There’s no way to regulate how much of the agent they ingest. Enough to knock out an adult could kill a child.” And Daniel wasn’t willing to take that chance.

  “What do you suggest?” Tyler asked.

  “Change our objectives.”

  “To what?”

  “The four men who went through your training school are probably the same ones who set the bombs on the mountain. I assume you noted their sleeping quarters. We take them prisoner and deliver them to the FBI, along with copies of the extremists’ files. Welding the armory doors shut is doable, but one level of risk higher than I think we should take.”

  “With the four soldiers gone, won’t the others run?” Josie asked.

  “Possibly, but with the evidence we’ll provide them, the FBI can put a hold on their funds and confiscate the property housing the compound under the Terrorist Act.”

  “And unlike big-name terrorists, these men don’t have a whole lot of financial resources at their disposal,” Tyler mused. “The feds will get them eventually. From what my investigator can tell, their alternative identities are pretty thin. Even the suits in Washington should be able to see through them.”

  Josie nodded, her expression saying she had a lot more confidence in the authorities than her dad did. “And if they don’t run, with the inside information you’ve accumulated, the FBI should be able to infiltrate the camp without allowing a hostage situation to develop with the terrorists’ families.”

  “I don’t suppose there’s any way I can talk you out of being on the team that goes in to take down the extremists?”

  Josie looked critically at the paint job she was giving her toenails. She’d never done this before, but it wasn’t all that hard. Not for a woman who had been trained to hit a target before she’d learned how to ride a bike.

  The pink nail polish she’d picked up at one of the airport stores while they were waiting for her dad glistened with a pearly shine. She wiggled her toes. Nice. Very feminine.

  She raised her gaze to Daniel. “Why would you want to?”

  “I don’t want you hurt.”

  “I’m a soldier. This is what I do.”

  “No, you aren’t. You’re building a different life for yourself. Maybe you should consider giving that life a chance before taking on a mission like this.”

  “There isn’t going to be another mission like this.”

  His expression said that wasn’t a bad thing.

  She went back to painting her toenails, giving them a second coat. “Wow, the color really changes when you add another coat.”

  “Haven’t you worn nail polish before?”

  “No. There’s tons of stuff I haven’t done.”

  “Like what?”

  “I’d never been in a girls’ locker room until I joined a health club near my house.”

  “Did you join so you could go in one?”

  She finished her right foot and switched to her left. “Yeah. It probably sounds crazy to you, but there are so many normal life experiences I want to try.”

  “You can’t exactly do stuff like go to dances, pass notes with your friends and have a crush on the most popular boy in school now.”

  “I didn’t go to school at all. The one time I tried in junior high, I felt so out of place I never wanted to go back. I like college, though. Claire and I have even passed notes.” Having finished her toenails, she closed the bottle of nail polish and put it on the nightstand beside the bed. “I wonder how long these will take to dry.”

  “What does the bottle say?”

  “It doesn’t. I guess they figure women don’t need directions for this sort of thing.”

  He came around the bed and sat down beside her, laying his long legs alongside hers. “I’d give it at least fifteen minutes.”

  She wiggled her toes again, careful not to let them touch each other. “Sounds good.”

  “Are you sure you’re up to a mission right now?”

  She looked sideways at him. “Of course.”

  “But you’re having your woman’s thing.”

  “Woman’s thing?” she asked and giggled.

  That was another thing she hadn’t really done before, but her big, bad mercenary was looking distinctly uncomfortable, and she couldn’t help herself. Considering how solicitous he’d been of her, this obvious discomfort over discussing her monthly was hilarious.

  “Well, men don’t have them.”

  “I guess not, and anyway,” she said, dismissing the subject for a more important one, “I’ve gone on lots of missions during that time of month.”

  “You were so fragile yesterday morning.”

  “I’m feeling better now. It’s not a problem.”

  Daniel didn’t look as though he trusted her current state of healthiness, but after the day before he couldn’t very well argue that she was still in a state of fragility.

  “No more excuses. I’m going.” She grinned at him, ready to talk about something else again.

  She’d said what needed to be said on the subject, which was that there was no reason for her not to go.

  “Would you like to hear what else I want to try?” she asked with a wink, making her voice as provocative as possible.

  It worked. His eyes narrowed with interest. “Sure.”

  “I want to be kissed on a first date, preferably by a guy I can’t resist.” She looked down at her hands, fanning her fingers out. “Do you think I should paint my nails, too? I don’t know if it’s conventional to paint your toes and your fingernails the same color. Do you suppose the fashion police will get me if I do it?”

  He grabbed her shoulders and turned her to face him. He’d been tense about her involvement in the mission, but now he positively vibrated with obvious displeasure. “No way in hell.”

&
nbsp; “You don’t think I should paint my fingernails?”

  He clenched his jaw. “No first date. No kissing.”

  “Why not?” she asked, all innocence.

  “You belong to me.”

  “And that means I can’t go out on a first date and get ki—”

  “No other man is touching you with his lips or anything else,” he growled.

  “Did I say another man?”

  “You said on a first date.”

  “Since we’ve never actually been on a date, is that a problem? Don’t you want to go out with me? We could see a movie, or go to a show, or go on a picnic in the park.”

  “We can go on a date.” He sounded as if he was agreeing to take her on a tour of a mushroom farm the day they fertilized.

  “That’s magnanimous of you.”

  “I mean, if you want to go out, I’ll take you out.” His voice was infused with slightly more enthusiasm.

  She cocked her head back, giving him her best come-hither look. “And will you kiss me?”

  “Are you saying I’m the irresistible guy you were talking about?”

  “I haven’t been able to resist you yet, have I?”

  His eyes dark with the desire that never seemed to diminish, he cupped her face. “Then I think I can take care of this first for you, but maybe we should practice a little just in case.”

  She didn’t get a chance to answer because he was already starting.

  Later that night Josie was snuggled against Daniel on the verge of sleep when he said, “We’ll have to play spin the bottle when your woman’s thing is done, too.”

  That would mean a lot of kissing between them if they were the only ones playing. She smiled around a yawn. “Sounds good.”

  Curling around her more securely, he settled his hand possessively over one of her breasts. “I bet you never played doctor either.”

  “No.”

  “We’ll have to get a stethoscope.”

  “Who gets to be doctor and who gets to be patient?” she asked after another yawn.

  “We’ll take turns.”

  She thought of something else that would be fun with him. “Can we have a slumber party where we stay up all night, too?”

  “I can guarantee when all this is over that I’ll give you an all-nighter you’ll never forget.”

  She wiggled her bottom against him. “Sounds wonderful.”

  “It will be.” He groaned when she wiggled again. “And it can’t come soon enough for me.”

  Chapter 18

  Hotwire and Wolf arrived the next day. Lise came with them and gloated when she realized Josie and Daniel were a couple.

  “I knew you two had a thing for each other. I told Joshua, but he didn’t believe me,” Lise crowed to Josie while they dangled their feet in the shallow end of the pool.

  The others had checked in to the same hotel as she and Daniel. Over lunch, Hotwire had challenged Wolf and Daniel to a competition to see who could swim the most laps. They were all even at the moment.

  “I was as clueless as Wolf,” Josie admitted. “I thought Daniel couldn’t stand me.”

  Lise shook her head. “The guy practically spontaneously combusts every time you are around.”

  “He’s volatile, all right.”

  “Is he really?”

  “You mean you haven’t noticed?”

  “To tell you the truth, no. I’ve never seen Nitro even come close to losing his cool. Until I saw him around you the first time, I didn’t think he had any emotions to speak of.”

  “Is lust an emotion? I thought it was more like a chemical reaction.”

  “He feels a lot more for you than mere lust.”

  Josie watched Daniel slicing through the water, his powerful body rippling with muscle. “I hope so.”

  “I’m positive. He’s so possessive.”

  “The male animal is sexually possessive, but that doesn’t mean his heart is engaged.” She’d told Daniel she loved him again that morning when he’d woken her with a tender kiss that made her toes curl with emotion.

  He’d kissed her again, but he hadn’t said anything.

  “Daniel isn’t an animal. He’s a man, and his heart is engaged or my name is Aunt Fanny,” Lise said emphatically, her Texas drawl acute.

  “Do you really think so?” Josie wanted to believe Daniel’s silence meant more than tolerance of her emotional reaction. “I’m having my period right now, and he’s been really affectionate and caring.”

  “There, you see. That’s a great sign.”

  “I thought so, too, but when I told him I loved him, he didn’t say anything back.”

  “Welcome to the club.” Lise smiled wryly. “I told Joshua I loved him over and over again, and he never said a word. I thought he only wanted me for my body, but I was wrong, and I’m sure you are, too. More than any other woman, you should understand how reticent these guys are to admit to any kind of weakness, love included.”

  “Love doesn’t make you weak.”

  “But it does make you vulnerable to hurt.”

  Josie couldn’t deny it. She had no defenses to hide behind when it came to Daniel. Her love left her heart open to him in a way it had never been to another person, not even her parents.

  “What are you two talking about?” Wolf moved to stand beside his wife, his hand automatically making connection with the part of her body he could reach, her head.

  Josie hadn’t even noticed they’d finished their competition. Daniel and Hotwire were still drying off a few feet away.

  Lise looked up at Wolf, her expression wry. “What do you think?”

  He responded with a probing look that jumped from Lise to Josie to Daniel and back to Lise. She made a small inclination of her head, and some silent communication passed between them because he heaved a sigh and frowned at Daniel.

  “Who swam the most laps?” Josie asked as Wolf lifted Lise from the side of the pool.

  “I did.” Hotwire tossed his towel in the bin beside the pool and then struck a pose, flexing his biceps. “It’s easy to see why, don’t you think, ladies?”

  “By one lap,” Daniel said, coming to stand beside them, and then shoved his friend sideways into the pool.

  The resounding splash sent water spraying over Josie, and she shrieked, jumping to her feet.

  Daniel grinned at her, his gaze dropping to where her now wet tank top clung to her chest. “Wolf and I were ready to get back to you two.”

  “I’m always ready to get back to my wife.” Wolf caressed Lise’s protruding middle, his warrior’s eyes reflecting joy and satisfaction. “Pretty soon you’re going to be too round to be sitting on the ground.”

  Lise looked down at where his hand rested against her and grinned. “I’m already there, but as long as I’ve got you around to hoist me back up, I’m safe.”

  Hotwire heaved himself out of the pool, no limitation to his strength and agility in evidence. “Was that my victory dunking?”

  “Watch it or you’ll get another one,” Wolf warned.

  “The element of surprise works only once in an encounter, unless your enemy is stupid, and my mama didn’t raise any idiots.” Grinning and giving Josie a once-over, he shook himself, and water sprayed all of them again.

  Josie jumped back from her second unplanned cold shower and landed right against Daniel. His arm came over her shoulder as a towel landed around her neck, strategically covering parts of her wet tank top. Her gaze shot to her lover’s face, and the expression there stunned her. He was looking mean, and he was looking at Hotwire.

  She glanced over at the blond Georgian and couldn’t see anything in the other man’s expression that could have upset Daniel, until she remembered that Hotwire had been looking at her as he deliberately sprayed the water again. Apparently it bothered Daniel that Hotwire had seen her wet tank. She could have told him not to worry. Most men she met did not react to her modest attributes with unbridled desire, but saying so would do no good.

  Daniel
had gotten extremely territorial since Hotwire showed up. His friend had noticed, making it obvious he delighted in pushing Daniel’s buttons.

  She was used to being around strong men who jockeyed for position with each other despite close friendship, but she wasn’t used to being the target they jockeyed around.

  “You afraid she’s going to run away if you don’t hold on to her all the time?” Hotwire asked, his smile nothing less than a goad.

  “I like touching her.”

  “Do you now?” Hotwire mocked, “I never would have noticed.” But the significant look he gave them said otherwise.

  Heat that had nothing to do with the summer sun climbed up Josie’s neck. She was unfamiliar with being the other half of a couple, particularly around a friend intent on teasing her to death. His target might be Daniel, but she was the one embarrassed. She knew without looking that he wasn’t blushing.

  She threw out the first verbal sally she could think of to change the direction of the conversation. “And I’m not going anywhere, even if you’d all like me to.”

  The other two had joined Daniel in trying to convince her to stay behind. It made no sense to her. She was one of the best soldiers they’d ever worked with, and she didn’t have to be arrogant to think so. They’d said it. They’d also brought her in on more than one independent mission. Their desire to keep her behind this time baffled her.

  “We don’t want you gone. I like watching Daniel squirm around you. It humanizes him,” Wolf said, proving he could be just as irritating as Hotwire.

  Lise elbowed his stomach. “Behave.”

  He smiled down at her. “If I behaved, you’d be real disappointed, honey.”

  Lise’s gaze went unfocused in a way Josie understood very well. “Yes, I guess I would.”

  A disgusted sound erupted from Hotwire. “Would you two stop it? You’re bad enough back home, but I thought you’d at least try to behave in front of company.”

  Josie had to smile. Beginning a start-up company around a couple of newlyweds no doubt had its challenges.

  “Nitro and Josie aren’t company,” Wolf said, still looking at his wife with enough heat to singe her.