Page 25 of Back in the Saddle

So I was in.

The light turned green on the Nespresso machine, so I hit go, turned back to him and asked, “Why’d you leave the FBI?”

“Because we had a mole. Someone who thought money was more important than fighting crime, and worse, keeping his fellow agents alive. I know this, since, due to his shit, one of them died. I made it my mission to ferret out who that fucker was, and I found out it was my partner. My partner, who was also my closest friend. I nailed his ass. He went to prison. He’s still in prison. And I got out of the Bureau.”

Holy fuck.

This wasa lot.

“Turner,” I whispered.

“It was a while ago.”

“That…” I shook my head. “I don’t know what to say. That had to be the worst. I’m so fucking sorry that happened. So,sosorry you had to do that.”

His words were an audible shrug. “It’s over.”

Those words were also bullshit.

“True, but it’s still fucked up.”

“It’s still fucked up,” he agreed.

I was at a loss.

So much, my mouth ran away from me.

“I don’t know what to do.” I lifted my hands at my sides. “I feel like I should give you a hug or something.”

“I’d take a hug,” he said quietly, watching me closely.

It was then it hit me.

Not tight with his dad or his brother.

His closest friend, a traitor.

Someone died along the way.

No, a colleague did, and that band of brothers had to be as tight as others like them.

This hit him so hard, he left his career at the FBI, which wasn’t like scoring a job at the fryer at McDonald’s.

No shade on the fry guys, but it just wasn’t.

Had he ever been hugged after he endured this?

Like my mouth, my feet had a mind of their own.

They took the two steps to him, and when I arrived, I fit my body to his, wrapped my arms around him, and rested my cheek on his chest.

His arms curved around me.

Oh yeah.

That felt exactly as good as I thought it would feel.

Exactly.

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