Final Kill by Leslie McKelvey

Author:Leslie McKelvey
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: cia, romance, kidnapping, betrayal, action and adventure, military romance, us navy seals, female sniper, afghanistan war romance, military female
Publisher: Black Velvet Seductions Publishing Company

Chapter Seventeen

Ryan loaded the box of food into the Humvee, his mouth watering as the aroma of fresh-baked naan, Afghan flatbread, and qabili palau, a popular lamb and rice dish, filled his nostrils. He glanced at his watch and saw it was 5:40 p.m. and frowned. He had yet to hear from Cat. Pulling his cell phone out of his pocket, he dialed her number and waited. She picked up after the fourth ring.

“Hello?”

“Hi, beautiful,” he said. “You ready for dinner?”

She paused and sniffed. “Um, yeah, I am. Do I need to order pizza?”

“No,” Ryan said slowly, frowning. She didn’t sound right, and his gut was telling him something was up. “Ahmad came through. I just finished loading a traditional Afghan dinner into the Humvee, and I’m ready to come get you. Where you at?”

“Our picnic spot,” she replied. “I’ll see you when you get here.”

Before he could reply the phone clicked off and Ryan stared at it for a moment before slipping it into his pocket. “Okay. I’ll see you in a few.”

He pulled up near their picnic spot about ten minutes later. She was sitting on the ground and leaning against the same rock they had leaned on the other day. Twilight softened the landscape, the final rays of sunset lending faint hints of violet and orange to the otherwise bland backdrop that was the Bagram Valley. Cat’s eyes focused on the F-15s taking off, the plane’s afterburners glowing gold and pink in the twilight. Ryan approached slowly, hands in his pockets.

As soon as she looked at him he knew something was wrong. Her expression was completely neutral, and the smile she gave him barely lifted the corners of her mouth. Ryan sat down beside her and stared down the runway.

“Wanna talk about it?” he asked after a brief silence.

Cat leaned against him. “Yeah, but I can’t.” She took a shaky breath. “Just... sit here with me for a minute, okay?”

Ryan wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer. “You got it, babe.” He pressed his lips to her temple. “We’ll sit here for a few and enjoy the quiet, all right?”

She nodded in reply, then climbed onto his lap and pressed her face into his neck. He felt the warmth of her tears on his skin.

“Did the talk with the guys go that bad?” he asked softly.

“No.” She sniffled again. “That went great. What sucks is the part I can’t talk about.”

“Okay.” Ryan laid his cheek against her hair and closed his eyes. “I’m here... if you need me.”

“Thanks, Ryan,” she whispered. Her voice caught. “That means a lot to me.”

“You’re welcome.”

They sat like this for nearly ten minutes, until Cat sat up and swiped a hand over her cheeks. She took his wrist and looked at his watch.

“Six-oh-three,” she said. “We’d better get going.”

She tried to climb off his lap, but Ryan stopped her. When she looked at him he cupped her chin.

“Are you sure you’re all right?”

Cat smiled wistfully and ran her fingers over his beard.

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