Page 85 of Iron Willed Warrior

Westwick probably thought he’d fit in a little fun with Brianna, have dinner, then jet off to his next locale. Instead, he’d be on his way to a safe house for interrogation.

Yet another thing going according to plan A. But if anything, the smooth runway toward our goal only wound me up.

There would be bumps in the road. It was just a matter of time.

One of the hardest parts of any mission was the waiting. Any soldier could tolerate boredom. That was a given. It was all about reserving your strength, relaxing your mind so that you’d be sharp when the time came to act.

But Westwick and his business seminar were really testing me.

The hours ticked by with agonizing slowness. During thelunch break, we sat with Molly and her husband and the other attendees. Brynn, playing the ambitious young influencer, kept up the conversation, while I sat back and continued looking bored. Which was not remotely a challenge.

Luckily, Cameron wasn’t supposed to be all that interested anyway.

But one thing I couldn’t do was keep myself from touching her, so it was a good thing I didn’t have to. Throughout the afternoon session, I played with her ponytail, massaged her shoulders. Sought out the soft places I had discovered at the side of her neck and behind her ear. Just needing to feel her there beside me, since soon she wouldn’t be.

We’ll only be separated a short while, I told myself.No longer than necessary. My eyes kept seeking out my watch. The minutes passed.

Just before the afternoon session was scheduled to end, I took Brynn’s face in my hand. Planted my lips on her in front of everyone, including Westwick. I kissed her a few times, slow and deep, soaking in the feeling of her.

“I’ll see you soon, honey,” I murmured in her ear.

When I pulled back, she was smirking. “Careful,” she warned. “I might get tired of you calling me that.”

“You can lay down the law when it’s just us.”

I caught a glimpse of Brynn’s determination, that strength I admired, before her sweet Brianna-smile replaced it. “Soon,” she whispered back.

Westwick clapped his hands together and announced we were finished. “Thank you, everyone! I’ll be happy to take all your questions this evening at dinner. It’ll be in the same room where we had breakfast.”

With one more kiss to Brynn’s lips, I got up to head back to our room.

As I walked, I hit the timer on my watch. I had to get final word to River that we were ready for the diversion. I was on the clock now.

Brynn and I had timed things out carefully. A few attendees would linger in the seminar room, but soon, Brynn would be alone with the head of Stillwater. The very thing I’d been hoping to avoid since the start of this mission. But she was a trained soldier. Sorry, a trainedMarine. I would see her soon. That kept repeating in my head. The very word that had been on her lips, the last thing she’d said to me.Soon.

As expected, O’Hanlon peeled off to follow me at a distance. I spotted the man in the reflections of artwork as I passed. If anything, his presence reassured me. I assumed Manning was prepping for tonight’s late departure from the resort. Ryker would stick with Westwick, but we’d planned for that as well.

At our room, I waved my keycard and hurried inside. Set my daypack onto the bed. After the search last night, we hadn’t risked keeping weapons or anything sensitive here. I’d been carrying the laptop and a gun around all day.

Taking out the computer, I booted it up and sent off a message to River.We’re a go.

River wrote back,Roger. Ten minutes.

I stuffed the laptop back into my daypack. Grabbed our suitcase, which we’d packed this morning.

Then furious knocking at the door interrupted me. I went to the peephole and looked out. But it wasn’t Manning or O’Hanlon here to mess up my timing.

It was Molly. The older woman from Dallas who’d taken Brianna under her wing.

“Mr. Clay, I know you’re in there. I saw you go in. I want a word with you, if you please.”

“Not now,” I grumbled through the closed door. “I have a phone call.”

“I don’t want your excuses!” She started knocking again.

I almost laughed. Molly had guts. I had to give her that. She was half my size, yet acted like she towered over me. Reminded me of my foster mother. Mom had been just as fearless when she was defending her kids.

But at the moment, Molly was an obstacle between me and my timetable. Between me and getting to Brynn.

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