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. Why isn t he talking?Why wasn t she? Sydney cleared herthroat. You re confused, Slade. Shetried to make her voice sound soothing.But her words broke because her controlwas fracturing. Did he wait a few months.or did hego after you right away?The question had her gasping. Itwasn t like that! Gunner hadn t goneafter her at all.Not for two years.Notuntil.The last mission.When she d told him that she d movedon.They d been moving on, together. You re wrong about him, Sydneyfinished, voice quiet. You ll see that,soon.Gunner still hadn t spoken. No, Slade exhaled on a low breath. You re the one who s wrong, andyou ll see that.soon.Then he was leaving the villa.Calefollowed on his heels.The door shut behind them with thesoftest of clicks.Silence.Sydney was still staring at that shutdoor.Her body was tight and aching, asif she d just been through anothervicious battle.Maybe she had. Gunner. Logan s voice. Gunner,you know it s the stress.Slade is goingto have PTSD, he s going to Gunner shook his head. He meantwhat he said. Yeah, well, if he meant it, he waswrong. Logan was adamant. I knowyou, and that.hell.that s not the wayyou operate.You don t leave a manbehind, especially not your brother.She couldn t read Gunner sexpression. But I did leave him behind, Gunnersaid softly. Isn t that why we re allhere now?She wanted to grab him and shakehim. You tried everything you could!If it hadn t been for Gunner, she wouldhave died on that mission.He d barelymanaged to get them both to safety. Rescue teams went back.They sawno sign of him. Logan s sigh wasragged. Stop beating the hell out ofyourself over this. You already let Slade beat the hellout of you. Sydney didn t even knowwhy she said those words, but.Gunner glanced at her.The darknessof his eyes was a banked heat. Whydidn t you ask me? Soft.Logan whistled. Okay, I m going tocheck in with Mercer.Syd, you, uh,finish up in here, and then we ll talkabout our exit strategy.Then he was gone.Pretty muchrushing in his haste to get away.Gunner rolled his shoulders, as ifpushing away a painful memory.Then hestalked toward her.She didn t move, even though she hadthe urge to flee. He told you to ask me, Gunner said. So why didn t you?Because she hadn t wanted the othersto hear his answer.Because some thingsshould be between the two of them. You thought he was right, didn tyou? Not about you leaving him, shewhispered.Logan was on the phone inthe outer room, but still close enoughthat she worried he d overhear them.A muscle flexed in Gunner s hardjaw. You thought I wanted you.This was the hard part.The part thatwould tear her pride to shreds, but whatdid pride matter now? No, but I knew Iwanted you. That was her secret shame.She d been with Slade; she d met himfirst.Then she d met Gunner.And in the beginning, Gunner hadmade her nervous.He d put her on edge,every time that she was near him.Slade had been the one to offer quickcompliments.To take her out on fundates.She hadn t exactly had a whole lot offun in her life up to that point.Her parents had always been so strict,her dad an ex-colonel who ran a tightship.Then her mother had died.A suddenheart attack when Sydney was justfourteen.Her dad and his tight ship.theybecame lost after that.Broken.She dhad to be the caretaker, growing up toofast.Until her father had slipped into abottle and not come out again.She d been eighteen when he crashedhis car.She d joined the air force just twoweeks later.Slade had been the Ortez brother shemet first.The one with the ready smile,the big dreams.But it had been Gunner whom she wasalways so intently aware of.Gunner whoput her on edge with his heated stare.She d agreed to marry Slade, though,because she did love him, and he d saidthat he loved her.While Gunner.back then, he d barelyseemed to tolerate her at all.Gunner wasn t saying a word now.Just staring at her.And she d alreadysaid enough for them, hadn t she? Getsome rest, she told him, and turnedaway.She was supposed to stay inanother villa, the one on the far end.Only she wouldn t be going there first.She needed to talk to Slade.Alone.She headed for the door.Logan hadhis back turned to her as he talked intohis phone, but she had no doubt that he dheard every word she said to Gunner. You don t have to lie. Gunner s flatwords.Stopping her.Insulting her. Is that what you thinkI m doing? Her fingers curled aroundthe doorknob. Then maybe you don tknow me half as well as I thought.And she left him.* * * CALE, DO YOU mind if I speak to Sladealone?Cale stood in the doorway of thesecond villa, his broad shouldersstretching to take up the space.He stareddown at her with hooded eyes. Yousure that s what you want to do? He spretty messed up right now, Sydney. I need to talk to him. To find outwhat had happened to him.Where he dbeen all that time.Cale gave a slow nod. Okay, but ifyou need me, I ll be right outside.Her eyebrows climbed.She wasEOD; she could take care of herself.But Cale s lips curved in the ghost ofa grin. You just look so delicate.A lie.But she used that delicate trapto fool many of her enemies. Sydney? Slade s voice soundedsubdued.Good.Maybe he was calmingdown
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