Page 38 of Tactical Lies

“Are you hurt?” Becca asked, pointing to the bandage peeking out of the neckline of his T-shirt, then glancing over to the bandage covering Susanna Zangari’s arm.

“Nope, we got tattoos,” Cole replied, tugging Susanna to his side. “Matching tattoos. Becca, this is Susanna, my girlfriend. Susanna, this is Becca. She’s an old friend of the family, grew up across the street from us.”

“Nice to meet you,” Becca said, and even though Susanna struggled with letting people get close to her she offered a genuine smile at Becca. The two women had more in common than Becca was aware of.

“Nice to meet you, too,” Susanna returned.

“And this is Willow,” Cooper added.

“I’m glad you're home safe and sound,” Willow said as she came to stand before Becca.

“Me too,” Becca agreed. “For a while, I wasn't sure we were going to get out of there alive. Where’s Cassandra? I thought she’d be here with all of you.”

“Cassandra had to go someplace safe for now,” Cade informed her.

Although it was clear Becca wanted to ask more questions, she didn't push, instead falling into easy conversation with his brothers like over a decade hadn't passed since she last saw them.

However, he was still stuck on her revelation.

Engaged.

His brain couldn’t seem to comprehend what should be an easy enough concept. But it wasn't easy. Nothing about his reunion with Becca had gone like he’d hoped it would, and worse than that, he had no idea how to get things back on track.

Or if it was even possible.

August 19th

3:32 P.M.

Trying her best to keep her concentration on the conversation she was trying to engage in, Becca found it next to impossible.

Her attention kept sneaking over to the man standing in the doorway to the kitchen. Connor hadn't come in to join the rest of them around the table, and she knew that was her fault.

Why had she blurted out that she’d been engaged?

That was a conversation they should have had when it was just the two of them. To be fair, she hadn't realized that his brothers and their girlfriends and families were there, but still, she shouldn’t have blurted it out on the garden path.

Now she was wishing she’d kept her mouth shut.

Did Connor really need to know that she’d been engaged?

Reluctantly, Becca admitted to herself that he did, which was why she’d told him. He’d asked for a second chance, and while she wasn't sure whether she could give him one, she did know that for both of their peace of mind, they had to talk everything through so they could finally set down the burdens of the past.

“You okay, Becca?” Susanna asked, her green eyes full of empathy and something else she couldn’t quite place.

“I'm hanging in there,” she answered, that seemed to be the most truthful response she could give. Her ribs pulsed with pain when she breathed, although the painkillers she’d been taking helped. A headache throbbed behind her eyes, but it wasn't as vicious as it had been, and although her stump ached, it was nothing like the pain she’d experienced just after the amputation.

“Sometimes that’s all you can ask of yourself,” Susanna said, more like she was reminding herself than Becca. While she didn't know all the details of what had happened to the other woman, she knew that Susanna had been targeted because the same men who had ordered her village to be attacked thought she was dating Cole.

“What’s your tattoo?” she asked.

Absently, Susanna brushed her fingers along the bandage. “It’s a quote. Something Cole said to me. Something I desperately needed to hear. It says, I believe you.”

“It’s always important to be believed,” she agreed. How much harder would her own ordeal have been if she’d been called a liar? Told that she wanted what Dylan had done to her. He’d tried to claim that during the trial, but the fact he’d shoved her out of the car door and driven off with her still tangled in the seatbelt helped prove her case. “I’m sorry someone didn't believe you. You deserved better than that. Telling your story is brave and to have someone shove that back in your face sucks.”

A beat passed then a wide smile lit up Susanna’s face. “It definitely does. Thank you for saying that, I needed to hear it.”

Becca smiled back at the other woman. Susanna seemed like someone she could become friends with, and she got the feeling that perhaps they shared a few things in common when it came to being hurt.

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