Page 241 of Unexpected Heroine

The more he talks, the more questions I have. He’s waking up my squirrel. So much for mental serenity.

“Did you say Millennium Falcon? As in the plane thing from Star Wars?”

“Plane thing?” Cort snort-laughs. “Did you hear that, babe? She said plane instead of spaceship or light freighter. She’s adorable. Can we keep her?”

Regardless of his teasing, I grin like a goober. Amber and Cort are easy to like. I bet they make awesome babies.

Since her husband was ultimately unable to give me a straight answer as to where their son is, Amber takes over. “Cam is at Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge at Disney World with my brother, Hudson, and his wife, Chloe, for a super long weekend. They’re giving Cort and me some alone time before the baby comes. Cam adores their daughter, Daisy, and Chloe usually watches him for us when we’re at work, so he’s likely having the time of his life.”

“Plus Star Wars, more importantly,” Cort teases with a playful roll of his eyes.

Touched by the closeness of their family and the love reflected in how they describe them, I press my hand to my chest to settle my pounding heart. “Oh my goodness. I love that so much. Talk about thoughtful.”

Cort catches my gaze briefly in the mirror. “The rest of the Amos-holes will join them on Saturday with their other kids. We’ve got quite a brood.”

With my mental peace gone thanks to Cort’s exuberant storytelling, my mind wanders.

I’ve never been to Disney. When I was young, we came down to Florida for vacation. However, we stayed at the beach. My parents—well, grandparents—weren’t keen on long lines and standing out in the heat all day for rides or getting autographs from people wearing furry costumes.

Looking back, I suppose it’s because they were already up there in age. Makes sense they’d enjoy a beach trip instead.

Anyhow, working at Bask, I saw plenty of furry shit. So I’m good on that front.

For the last few minutes of the ride, I pepper them with random questions, including asking what an Amos-hole is. Chatting with them keeps me from worrying about meeting the man that made me.

Soon enough, it’s time to face the music.

The guard manning the Redleg Headquarters entrance stops us, keeping the gate closed.

Cort lowers his window. “I got this, ladies.” There’s a dash of cockiness in his tone that I find comical. No one else was planning on speaking to the guard.

Amber shakes her head, her thoughts probably mirroring mine. “That’ll be a big help, honey. Especially since I’m on the other side of the car and left my freeze ray at home, so I can’t take out the guard.”

Looking over her shoulder, she glances my way and gives me a showy roll of her eyes.

Yeah, her hormones are all over the place. Poor thing.

The guard peeks inside the vehicle, his eyes darting between the three of us. “Morning, folks. Unfortunately, Redleg isn’t allowing visitors today without proper clearance.”

Interesting.

Scanning the parking lot, I spot a handful of people wearing the same tactical-type gear as the men who rescued me, minus the ski masks. They seem to be patrolling like you’d see in a military movie.

A chilling shudder starting in my neck scrambles out toward both shoulders.

“We’re old friends with Big Al and the boys. And the young lady in the backseat is a VIP, as is my lovely wife here.” Cort gestures toward Amber. “If you give Peggy a call, I’m sure she’ll clear us.”

The guard’s posture stiffens, and a grimace works its way across his facade. “Hold tight.” He backs away, returning to his little booth.

Cort trades glances with Amber, his brows lifting in question. “Um, dear lady of my loins, her name is Peggy, right? I didn’t hallucinate that, did I?”

“Lady of what now?” I interject, my verbal filter returning to Lettie’s factory setting of never working.

“Yes, Peggy is Big Al’s assistant,” Amber answers him before looking at me. “Ignore him. It’s a dumb thing we’ve been doing since our honeymoon.”

“The first honeymoon,” Cort amends. “The fake one when we tried to bang it out of our systems.”

“Dude!” Amber whacks him harder. “You know we’re not alone, right?”

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