Page 47 of Fighting for Lucy

Lost his sister, and he was pretty sure he was never getting her back.

Fingers squeezed his, and then lips brushed a kiss to his jaw. “She’s angry right now. She loves you a lot and your death hit her hard. I don’t say that to make you feel bad, I know why you did what you did, but she doesn’t. All she knows is you chose a job over her. Again. She just wants your love, she wants back the brother she remembers from when you two were kids,” Lucy told him.

“I made a mistake trying to get my parents to love me. They aren't worthy of my love, my respect, or anything else. If I'd picked Scarlett and my relationship with her over them, none of this would have happened.” He wouldn’t have joined the Army, wouldn’t have made it to Delta, and maybe the lives of his teammates would have been spared.

“You can't think like that, Zander. You're good at what you do, I can attest to that, and in Delta, you saved so many lives and stopped so many people who would have done unspeakably evilthings. I'm glad you're the man you are, I just hate my friend got hurt along the way. But that doesn’t change the promise I made you. I'm here for you. I'm not going anywhere.”

Her words were so confident, her intent so clear, that he couldn’t not grab her and drag her close so he could kiss her. “Thank you. You're more than I deserve, Lucy Elrod.”

The smile she shot him was pure sass. “I'm going to remind you that you said that,” she teased.

“So, you guys are … together?” Ella asked, her green eyes full of curiosity.

“Because that we did not see coming,” Cassie added.

“We’re seeing how things go, but yes we bonded out there,” Lucy replied, giving him the option of an out if he wanted one.

Since he was in no position to make plans for the future, he merely maintained his grip on Lucy’s hand as they all headed for the lift that would take them down to the conference room.

Well, the rest of them would go there, but Lucy had to go to the hospital. Her arm needed to be x-rayed so doctors could see if it needed surgery. And she should be properly checked out after her seizure as well. He knew she had epilepsy and didn't necessarily go to the hospital every time she had a seizure, but given the drug she’d been pumped full of, he wanted her to be thoroughly examined.

“One of you needs to take Lucy to the hospital,” he said to Ella and Cassie as they all got into the lift.

“I'm not going to the hospital,” Lucy protested, sounding aghast at the prospect.

“Your arm, babe,” he reminded her. Unsure if she wanted her friends to know she’d had a seizure, he didn't mention that.

“Can wait until the debrief is done. I'm not leaving you alone here without backup.” The way she said it made it clear arguing was going to be futile, and a big part of him didn't want toanyway. That she was so determined to be there for him and have his back had a delicious warmth spreading through him.

“As soon as it’s done, you go to the hospital.” That was non-negotiable. After everything she’d been through, she needed a doctor, not just a medic. Those guys were trained to deal with gunshot wounds and things, keeping a patient alive until they got to a doctor, so as grateful as he was to the SEALs, he still needed to know his girl had been seen by someone with a medical degree.

“I’ll go if you go. You did get shot remember.”

Actually, he’d forgotten all about the wound. It was nothing more than a flesh wound. He’d lost a bit of blood but now he was fine. Still, he wasn’t going to argue against a reason to spend more time with Lucy. When everything felt so up in the air and unsettled it was nice to have something solid to hold onto.

“We’ll go together,” he agreed.

“Aww, you two are really very cute,” Cassie said, watching them with curiosity. The youngest member of Athena Team was a verifiable genius. Despite her high IQ, Cassie had an innocence that made her incredibly endearing. While he’d been attracted to Lucy from the beginning, he’d felt more of a brotherly vibe with Cassie. And the least connection of all to Ella, although the woman was sweet and a talented musician.

“We’re not cute,” Lucy said, making a face that made the rest of them laugh.

“You are,” Ella agreed. “I can't believe that first Scarlett and Tate fell in love, and now you two are … bonded from your experience,” she finished although it was clear she’d been going to say they were a couple.

Even though he wanted to claim Lucy in that way, making sure everybody knew she was his and he was hers, he wasn’t ready to take that step yet. He had to be sure that the darkness curled inside him ready to spring out like it had when he’dcaught that man assaulting Lucy was not going to be a threat to her.

“Bonded,” Lucy echoed, and from her expression she was completely satisfied with that description for now.

By the time they reached the conference room, everybody else was there. Eagle Oswald himself, the team of former SEALs who now ran Prey’s East Coast office, Rocco’s SEAL team who were going to be sticking around until Raul and the mole were in custody, and Scarlett and her boyfriend.

Much as he’d love to be able to go to his sister, make her smile like he used to do when they were kids, tickle her till tears of laughter rolled down her cheeks, or make silly jokes until he had her giggling and forgetting what had made her sad in the first place, he couldn’t do that anymore.

It wasn’t his place.

The distance between them was his own fault. Enlisting had been the first step, and it had all culminated in the lie about his death.

There likely wasn’t a bridge on Earth long enough to breach that distance now.

“You should talk to her,” Lucy said quietly, following his gaze. “Once she understands she’ll get over her anger. She loves you, Zander.”

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