London Calling

by Veronica Forand

  She hadn’t seen her team while she trained. Had they added anyone else? Had they lost anyone? She wanted to call, but their numbers had changed, and she was under strict orders to focus on her lessons. So she did.

  Arriving at the flat was the most terrifying aspect of her journey. If Macknight had replaced her with another woman he’d been assigned to protect, she’d be unable to go on. Somehow, though, she didn’t think he could replace her.

  She couldn’t rid her heart of him. Perhaps that was because they’d almost died together. But that type of relationship should fade over time. Her attraction for him, though, hadn’t faded, despite months apart. It followed her through training at Fort Monckton, back home to New Hampshire to sell the house, and right back to London.

  Maybe she wouldn’t see him right away. He might be on an assignment.

  As she climbed the stairs to her new home, dragging two ridiculously large suitcases and her computer case, second thoughts haunted her. She didn’t belong here. She wasn’t ready.

  She knocked on the door and held her breath. If they weren’t there, she could stay in a hotel for a few days. Acclimate to her new position without being thrust into the group immediately.

  She’d turned to leave when Trinity opened the front door. Fleming was right behind her with a wagging tail and a cold nose on the back of Emma’s hand.

  “Perfect timing. Can you help me put the groceries away?” she asked, as if Emma had only been gone for a few hours.

  The informality of the greeting took the weight of her nerves off her shoulders. “Sure.”

  During her time at the flat before leaving for training, Emma had found Trinity a kind, warm soul under an icy exterior. Not that she’d ever say that to her. Trinity seemed to like the cold facade she carried.

  “So we’ve decided that since you should have your own room, Owen and Jack need to share. Owen’s not happy about it, but his space is the biggest, so Jack can fit there easily.” Trinity kept talking as she moved the milk to the fridge and the bread to the counter.

  “Jack and Owen are willing to share a room for me?”

  “They don’t tell you anything, do they? Macknight’s the team leader, he’s not budging from his location, and there’s no space for two people in my room.” Trinity didn’t miss any nuance in a person’s emotions. A serious, focused player, despite the bleached-blond exterior.

  Emma glanced around for anyone else, but the place seemed empty except for Trinity and Fleming.

  After the groceries were put away, Trinity disappeared to change. Emma went to her room. Gray walls and a pale blue duvet on the bed—a style more utilitarian than comfortable. Very Jack. She dropped off her bags and returned to the kitchen with Fleming in tow.

  She poured herself a glass of milk and picked up the newspaper. Most days at training, she’d been required to read every article that touched on international relations, no matter how small. Ecuador was building a new airport, Turkish and Russian relations were at a three-year low, the United Nations were meeting on sanctions for Iran. Her job now involved an understanding of how the world held itself together through a complex web of relationships and transactions.

  Owen arrived a few minutes later with spiky red hair and black goth clothes. “There you are,” he said, lifting her into the air and swinging her around. “I missed your beautiful smile.”

  He’d gained back the weight he’d lost in prison. His carefree demeanor returned for the most part, although a darkness remained in the corners of his eyes.

  “I missed you, too.”

  “Now that you live here permanently, I owe you a tour of London.”

  “You do.” She laughed. “Although I bet you have a million women who would gladly have your escort.”

  He grinned and hugged her again. “And men. But for the moment, I have you, and that’s all I need.”

  Trinity returned, dressed in jeans and a black T-shirt. “Don’t bother with him. Owen saves himself for unsuspecting victims, mostly drunk, mostly blind.”

  “Speak for yourself. At least I have a social life. I haven’t seen you anywhere but in front of the telly.”

  “I prefer to limit my sluttiness to work situations.” She poured herself a glass of wine and plopped onto the couch.

  “To each their own.”

  Emma missed this camaraderie. She should blend in fairly well with everyone, except the leader. She wasn’t sure how she’d breathe around him.

  She sighed and then asked the question she didn’t want the answer to. “Where’s Macknight and Jack?”

  “Waiting for you.” Trinity chugged down her wine and grabbed a leather jacket.

  “Me?”

  Owen placed an arm over Emma’s shoulder. “We had your flight schedule. We’ve been waiting for you all morning. The traffic must have been bad. We’re meeting them in the park.”

  They headed downstairs and out the back door of the building into the park. The afternoon sun was on full blast as they strolled to the Japanese pond. It was peaceful there, with the water, the trees, the ducks swimming through the water looking for food.

  Jack and Macknight were sitting on a bench. Emma hesitated, but Owen dragged her right in front of the man who haunted her dreams. He was smiling at her. She loved his smile. From the dimples to the perfect white teeth peeking out of lips that had kissed her a few amazing times and a few not so amazing times.

  Strange that he didn’t stand to greet her. Instead, he remained seated shoulder to shoulder next to Jack and winked at her arrival. His eye color always changed based on his moods. Ice, storm, tropical. Right now, they were sky blue. Did he know they changed? Probably not. He tended to look at others more than he examined anything about himself.

  “Umm, hi.” She waved, unsure what the proper greeting was when everyone around her was acting so strange.

  “You look beautiful,” Macknight said, without any effort to move from his spot. He and Jack didn’t appear comfortable. They were completely upright, not exactly military rigid, but more awkward.

  “Thanks. What’s going on?”

  He elbowed Jack. They stood up and stepped to the side. Everyone else stared at the bench, so she did, too. Specifically, at the plaque in the middle of the backrest.

  Eleanor and Edward Ross

  For Service to the Commonwealth and Humankind

  “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself to the service of others.”

  -Mahatma Gandhi

  Her throat tightened, and her eyes teared up. She didn’t know what to say. Her parents had something for the world to remember them by. Seeing their memory engraved in bronze gave her past an anchor, something she could physically see and touch.

  Macknight pointed to the rest of the team. “We all donated to the cause when we heard you were coming back to us. I have to say, you’re the perfect addition to our team.”

  “You set this up? You requested me.” Why else would she be assigned to them instead one of the hundred other positions?

  He shook his head. “Hanson thought you worked well with us last time, and had been thinking about growing the team anyway. I was never opposed to the idea.”

  She glanced around at the group. Owen, his hair growing out in every direction, with tattoos still climbing up his neck. Jack, so serious, dressed like a Wall Street banker. Trinity, so sexy. And Macknight…Emma’s heart.

  “I love every single one of you.” She walked over to Trinity and hugged her.

  She received bear hugs from Owen and Jack, and then curled herself into Macknight’s arms. “Thank you.”

  Macknight squeezed her tighter and whispered into her ear. “You deserve so much more.”

  Their kiss wasn’t the fall-into-each-other’s-arms passionate kind of kiss she’d dreamed about. It was more tentative. She pulled back with an awkward smile. The audience seemed to be talking amongst themselves, ignoring their embrace.

  Owen, Jack, and Trinity turned and walked away from their leader. She could hea
r them arguing over whether to have Chinese, Indian, or pub food for her welcome lunch. They never bothered asking her.

  There was a moment of silence, then a sudden flight of one of the ducks from the pond. Emma and Macknight were alone. She stared at the bench.

  The beauty of the garden was the perfect place for her to come and visit her parents’ memorial. Not that they weren’t with her every day, but this was special. The gift was more than she could handle. Her eyes moistened.

  “I don’t know how to thank you for this.”

  “Being here is a start. You have no idea how much I’ve missed you. I need to get the hang of caring so much for one of my teammates without placing anyone in the group at risk.”

  “You still care for me?”

  He opened an arm wide to her and pulled her in tight to him. She rested her head on his chest, inhaling a decadent mix of cinnamon, coffee, and a musky, sexy smell that made her want him even more. “I love you, Emma. It started simple enough. I liked your fight and the way your eyes burned when you were mad. Since you’ve been gone, it’s only intensified. I have it pretty bad for you at this point.”

  “What if I’d never come back?” Her chin lifted so she could meet his gaze. He was so damn beautiful.

  “I specialize in tracking people down.” He then kissed her in a way that melted all her doubts.

  She kissed him and received a hard, possessive kiss in return. The one she’d wanted when she first saw him. His kisses were delicious. Her heart squeezed tight, and she lost her breath in the moment. They kissed as though time were running short, and all they had was this moment. Maybe that was all they did have. She’d take it. From now on, she’d take every chance offered at loving him.

  When she leaned back, Macknight held a small box in his hand.

  She inhaled as he took the ring from the box and handed it to her. Owen, Jack, and Trinity had returned, standing around them as though waiting for what looked like a marriage proposal.

  Inside the box was her own ring. The one from her mother.

  “You found it. That’s impossible. Maslov had taken it.”

  Trinity placed a hand on her shoulder. “He had it on him when the police located his body. I offered one of the police officers a bribe in exchange for the ring.”

  “A bribe? You didn’t sell yourself for it, did you?”

  Trinity chuckled. “Money was easier.”

  Emma’s entire being was overloaded with such warmth for these guys. “Thank you.”

  Macknight slid the ring onto her finger. The place where it had always been.

  She glanced down at the ring, teary eyed, her heart pounding in her chest. “Damn. For a moment I thought you were going to ask me to marry you.”

  “Would you have said yes?”

  She shrugged. “I guess you’ll never know.”

  “I know everything.”

  “Then you know how much I love you.”

  He stood on his feet and clasped her hand. “I love you, too, if I have to spend my life proving it to you.”

  “Are you going to kiss me? Because I have nothing else to say.”

  He laughed and lifted her up, swinging her around. When her feet touched the ground, he pulled her into his arms and kissed her.

  They kissed as though the world had gone away. Except the team was still there.

  Owen slapped Macknight’s back. “Jack can move out of my room as soon as we get back to the flat. He keeps the damn computers online all night. Too much light can’t be good for a quality sleep.”

  “I couldn’t sleep with you snoring like a bear,” Jack replied.

  Trinity hugged Emma. “I’m happy for the two of you. My only question is what happens if there’s a falling out?”

  Jack wrapped an arm around her. “I’m not moving out of my room again, but if you want this to be fair, Emma can have your room. You could stay with me.”

  Trinity’s hand slid over Jack’s shoulder, down his back, and patted him on his ass. “You couldn’t handle one night with me.”

  “I’m willing to try.” He lifted his eyebrows.

  She kissed him on the cheek as though he were a ten-year-old flirting with the babysitter. “Not happening.”

  Jack shrugged and strode away with Owen and Trinity, leaving Macknight and Emma alone.

  “Will our relationship screw up the team dynamics?” she asked.

  His lips brushed over hers. His smile healed every broken part of her soul, every crack through her heart. “We’ll be fine as long as you follow my lead in the field. Can you handle that?”

  “Absolutely. As long as I control the bedroom.” She patted his ass as Trinity had done to Jack.

  “That’s fair.” Macknight clasped her hand and pulled her into his arms again.

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  Acknowledgments

  With every new story, there are new challenges and obstacles. This book came into existence during some very difficult days, yet the struggle was worth it. I’ve grown as both a writer and a person. The characters in London Calling mean so much to me, and I hope they mean something to you as well. I’d like to thank my editor Candace Havens for forcing me to keep the quality high and the plot solid, even when my mind was focused on mourning real life heroes and struggling to stay on track. My agent Michelle Grajkowski has provided so much support both professional and personal during the past few years. Thank you so much. You are a rock star. I’m also sending a shout out to Kate Forest, who read every version of this book, the good, the bad, and the downright pathetic, and sent me off in a better direction after every reading. Thanks also to Lori Mann and Deb Wiseley: your support matters. And last but not least, I’m thankful for my family, Jim, Sophia, Vivienne, Mom, Dad, and Steve. I wouldn’t be a writer without your love and encouragement.

  About the Author

  Veronica Forand is an attorney and an award-winning writer of romantic suspense. She’s lived in Boston, London, Paris, Geneva, and Washington, DC and currently resides near Philadelphia. An avid traveler, she loves to roam across continents with her husband and kids in pursuit of skiing, scuba diving, and finding the perfect piece of chocolate.

  For more information on Veronica Forand, see her website at www.veronicaforand.com.

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