Ride with the SEAL (Norse Security 1)

An aggrieved snort issued from beneath the vehicle, followed by Everly’s long shapely legs shimmying slightly as she slid out from under the vehicle. She sat up and peered at him, eyes squinted, looking stunningly gorgeous despite the dust and grease streaking her skin. “You still don’t trust me, do you?”

“Hmm.” Cam made a show of considering that before giving her a flat look. “No. Not any more than you trust me.”

“Right.” Everly climbed to her feet, her arm brushing against him as she moved under the open hood. Tingles raced through the left side of his body from the contact before he shook them off. She wiped her hands on a rag then placed her hands on her hips. “How many times are we going to have this conversation? I’m a licensed mechanic. I’ve got over a decade of experience. There isn’t an engine on this planet that I can’t figure out how to take apart and put back together again. Just because I’ve got boobs doesn’t mean I’m stupid or any less capable of doing my job than a man. Any questions?”

“Are you working for the mob?”

She blinked at him several times, a bit of the color draining from her flushed cheeks. Everly looked away and the corners of her mouth turned downward. “We’ve talked about that too. I told you I wasn’t.”

“But your family is?”

“I don’t have any control over them.”

“What about them over you?”

Expression exasperated, Everly cursed under her breath and crossed her arms. “I do what I want. Have since I turned eighteen. There were times I needed the money, yes, so I helped my dad out on occasion. But this isn’t one of them. I told you why I need this car—to make the sale and get the money to start my own place, free and clear of my parents and their underworld connections. Don’t believe me? That’s your problem.” She walked away. “Now, leave me alone so I can get this vehicle back together again. Having you loom over me all the time makes me nervous.”

Cam stepped back, shoving his hands in his pockets. Truth was, he did believe her. The girl he’d known in high school had been rowdy and fun and flirtatious, but she’d never run with the truly bad crowds, had never gotten into trouble. And one really couldn’t help their parentage. So far, she’d been nothing but helpful on this little adventure too—well, if you counted trying to steal the Aeon out from under him helpful. But damn if he couldn’t understand her motive behind that too. Honestly, if he’d been in her situation, he’d have done the same thing.

Carefully, he made his way through the maze of parts laid out on the floor and stood before the open door of the factory. There was a slight breeze blowing now and brilliant streaks of orange, pink, gold, and purple lit the sky. Night was coming and with it cold. They hadn’t eaten all day, except for a few energy bars he’d picked up at the gas station when he’d stopped to refuel. He remembered seeing a burger joint and a dollar store about half a mile down the road from where they were. With luck he could make it there and back before it got too dark outside.

“You hungry?” he asked Everly over his shoulder. “I’m going to walk into town for bedding supplies and can pick something up at the fast food place, if you want.”

She turned to face him, a wrench in one hand and a smile on her face, and his breath caught in his chest. Hair mussed and clothes wrinkled, she still affected him as no other woman had. Cam swallowed hard as she approached slowly. Part of him warned she might bean him with that wrench and take off with the car, once it was fixed. The other part of him realized he was a goner anyway. He’d stopped Everly Knight from stealing the Aeon, but somewhere along this convoluted path, she’d stolen his heart.

But as she drew nearer, he could see the spark in her dark eyes wasn’t malicious.

To the contrary, it was grateful. “I’m actually starving.” She rattled off her order and he committed it to memory, just like he had everything else about her. “Oh, and if it’s not too much trouble, I’d die for one of their cherry pies for dessert.”

“No trouble at all,” he said, his voice emerging far gruffer than usual. Cam coughed to clear the sudden congestion from his throat at the mental picture of her licking gooey cherry pie filling from her fingers. “I’ll, uh, I’ll just go then and be back shortly.”

He backed toward the door, loath to leave her for more reasons than just the car. She followed that small smile curving her lips and making him wish he could feel her mouth beneath his—taste her, touch her, see if she smelled as good as she looked.

Yeah, the walk was a great idea.

Cold air and shadows surrounded him as he stuck to the gravel berm of the two-lane highway. Thankfully, there wasn’t much traffic and he made it into the small town with no problems. After a trip to the dollar store where he bought two travel pillows and a couple fleece blankets emblazoned with football logos—along with other personal items they’d need—he headed to the burger joint and got their food then started back toward the factory. His mind wandered as he walked, wondering about Everly’s mysterious buyer for the car. She’d mentioned having a deadline for the sale, but it seemed unlikely she’d make it now. Guilt stabbed him deep. Why? He wasn’t sure. Yes, he liked her. Yes, he believed she really did want to get out from under her father’s crooked business dealings and start over. But neither of those things negated the fact he had his own mission here, his own purpose and goals. This was supposed to have been his chance to show Loki and Hunter that he was more than a coding geek, that he could handle the brute, physical side of stuff too.

Still, he was worried. Everly’s father was heavily involved with the local crime families. The two thugs who’d tried to ambush them three times now wouldn’t stop. And chances were high that this buyer of hers was involved in the mob syndicate too. After all, Aeons weren’t cheap, nor were they readily available. Whoever she’d set up to buy the car didn’t care where it came from and obviously had the financial means to pay for it. Plus, where else would she meet a person like that other than through her father’s connections?

By the time he returned to the factory, Everly had gotten most of the parts off the floor and the majority of the engine put back together. She was just finishing up under the hood when he walked in with the bags of stuff and set them atop a crate they’d turned into a makeshift table. He went around setting up and lighting the candles he’d bought, setting the old factory aglow with warm, golden light.

“You’ve been busy,” he said, grinning.

“So have you.” She tossed her rag aside and took a seat on another, smaller crate to open her bag of fast food. “Don’t suppose you got any wet wipes or hand sanitizer?”

“Both actually.” Cam pulled the things from a white plastic bag. “I also got us each a toothbrush, toothpaste, travel deodorants, a couple large bottles of water, toilet paper, and paper towels.”

“Wow.” Everly laughed. “Aren’t you just the survivalist.”

“No. I’m a SEAL. Well, ex-SEAL. And a former boy scout. They teach us to always be prepared.”

“Do they now?” Everly finished cleaning her hands and face with a wet wipe then dried off with a paper towel before shoving it all into the trash bag Cam pointed to. “Well, thanks for getting all this. I’ll pay you back for my half after this is all over.”

“No need.” Cam cleaned his hands too, then tore into his food, hard pressed to remember when a burger and fries had ever tasted so good. “I’ll just add it to my expenses for this mission.”

She took a few more bites of her burger, making these cute little humming noises as she chewed. Cam was glad to see she wasn’t one of those gals who picked at their food like it was toxic waste or something. He liked women who were comfortable with themselves and who they were. So far, Everly seemed to fit that in spades. “How did you come to work for them?”

“Loki recruited me after I got discharged from the Navy. Our other guy, Hunter, is an ex-SEAL too. Anyway, I handle all the tech stuff for the team—computers, coding, hacks, all that sort of thing. But this mission came up with the Aeon and with its advanced technology, it was right up my alley.” He shoveled in more food before continuing. “So yeah, it’s nice to get out of the office, you know? Spread my wings and show these guys that I’m more than a nerd.”