Page 19 of Finding Carly
When he was done, there was silence on the other end of the phone line.
“Baker? You still there.”
“I’m here,” he said. “It’s obvious I haven’t been putting enough effort into this. That’s gonna change right now.”
Feeling a little concerned about the lack of emotion in Baker’s tone, and knowing that didn’t bode well for Luke Keyes or anyone else, Jag said, “Carly’s safe. She’s here with me.”
“About time,” he bit out.
Jag wanted to laugh. It hadn’t been that long since he’d first met Carly. Only someone in their circle would think too much time had gone by before he’d moved her in. The only person moving slower was Slate. “Keep me in the loop,” Jag ordered. “I want to know what you’ve learned the second you touch base with any person of interest.”
“I work alone,” Baker reminded him.
“Not in this you don’t,” Jag insisted. “I don’t know your story, but SEALs work together. And you might not be active duty anymore, but you’re still a fucking SEAL. Not to mention, this is my woman we’re talking about. This is Carly’s life at stake, and if I’m going to keep her safe, I have to fucking know what the hell is going on. Got it?”
Baker hesitated for a beat before Jag heard a rusty chuckle across the phone line. “Shit, man, I don’t think I’ve heard you talk so much in one breath before.”
“Fuck off,” Jag griped.
“You believe the detective?” Baker asked, abruptly switching topics.
“Yes and no. Obviously I don’t think all the suspects are guilty, but I absolutely believe one of them is.Someonewas out there in the ocean waiting for some sort of signal from Shawn to come and get him.”
“You think he, or she, will try to finish what Shawn started?” Baker asked.
Jag was getting annoyed. The man already knew the answer to that question. “Yes. If they were crazy enough to agree to the scheme in the first place, they’re invested. Maybe invested enough to see Shawn’s plan through.”
“Exactly. I’ll do some digging. Then I’ll be in touch.” Baker hung up without another word.
Jag felt edgy. Keyed up. He wanted to bedoingsomething. Hunting down the suspects and interrogating them himself. But as an active-duty SEAL, he had to tread lightly. It was better that Baker did the legwork, but that didn’t mean Jag liked it.
Without hesitating, Jag spun around and stalked down the hall toward his room. It was earlier than he usually turned in, but then again, he didn’t normally have Carly waiting for him.
He slowly pushed open the bedroom door, and stared at the woman in his bed. She’d left the bathroom light on, giving him more than enough light to see. She was on the right, on her side, curled into a ball. He hated her defensive position.
He grabbed a pair of sweats and headed for the bathroom. Within a minute or so he was done and heading for the left side of his king-size bed. He’d left the bathroom light on, not wanting Carly to wake up and forget where she was.
He’d hadn’t lied earlier. He didn’t mind if Carly took the right side of the bed…because he usually slept in the middle. It made it harder for someone to sneak up on him in the dark hours of the night if he was smack dab in the center of the large mattress. He scooted over to his usual spot and couldn’t help but smile when Carly immediately turned and snuggled into him.
So much for not touching while they slept.
But a part of Jag knew this would happen. There was no way he’d be able to keep his distance. Not after he’d held her in his arms last night. He wanted the right to touch her, and not just in bed.
That was very new. He’d never been fixated on sex. Ever. And it was disconcerting to be thinking about it so often now. Sex with Carly would change his life, he knew that without a doubt in his mind.
He wasn’t ready for that step yet. He wanted to be sure. Wantedherto be sure. Wanted her to be with him because of who he was, not because he was keeping her safe. It was a dangerous line to walk because he had no idea if she’d ever be able to separate the two.
He was a SEAL, keeping people safe was what he did. Well, it wasn’tallhe did, but it was a large part of who he was. He’d made it his mission in life early on to champion those who couldn’t protect themselves. The vulnerable and weak. Not that Carly was weak; far from it. Maybe he should be more worried about himself; about separating Carly from his own past.
Memories threatened to pull him into a dark place, and Jag did his best to push them back. He inhaled, bringing the slightly sweet smell of her lotion into his nose. He’s seen her bottle on his bathroom sink. Cherry blossom. He’d never smell it again without thinking of her.
“What time is it?” she mumbled.
“Shhhh,” Jag whispered. “Late.”
It wasn’t really that late, but he didn’t want her to fully wake up and feel weird about being snuggled next to him and turn away, putting space between them once more.
“’Kay.”
