Page 57 of No Reason to Trust

“Yeah.” Livvy took a big gulp of beer and swallowed the cough that wanted to erupt. “I want to be alone.”

“Okay, Greta Garbo.” Mel propped her chin in her hand and studied her. “You’ve always been very social. What’s changed?”

“Nothing’s changed, Mel. So why don’t you go back to the bar and sit with your husband and let me enjoy my beer in peace.”

“Not gonna happen, Livvy,” Mel said, and her voice was gentle. “Something’s wrong. I can see it. Dev sees it. Hell, every other Blackhawk Security agent sees it.” She leaned across the table and held Livvy’s gaze. “You don’t have to tell me what’s going on. I have a few ideas, but I’m not gonna push you to talk. But you might feel better if you do.”

Livvy stared into the dark beer in her glass. “Not in the mood for chit chat.”

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mel nod. “I’ve been there. I think everyone has. But I’ve left you alone for a week. It’s time to spill it to someone who cares about you. Someone who knows what you’re going through.”

Livvy jerked her head up to stare at Mel. “How the hell do you know what I’m going through?”

Mel slid her hand across the table and covered Livvy’s hand. “Because I’m pretty sure I’ve been where you are right now. It’s no fun. Especially without a friendly shoulder to cry on.”

“I’m not crying,” were the only words that came out of Livvy’s mouth.

“Maybe you’d be better off if you were,” Mel said with a sigh. She leaned closer. “Did I ever tell you about Dev and me? How we ended up owning Blackhawk Security?”

Livvy shook her head. “I know you were both in Afghanistan. I assumed you came home and started the company.” The knot in her stomach eased a little. This wasn’t about her. It was about Mel and Dev.

A smile curled one side of Mel’s mouth. “Not exactly. Dev and Iweretogether in Afghanistan. Then one day, out of the blue, he dumped me. I was devastated, and I left the foreign service shortly after that. Came home and decided to drive to Seattle to visit my sister. I was driving through Montana when I saw what’s now the Blackhawk Security compound. It was abandoned, but I could see its potential. I’d had an idea for a security company, and this abandoned piece of land would have been perfect for what I was envisioning.

“So I contacted Dev. I made it clear I didn’t want to get back together with him, but I knew he was the partner I needed to start the company. Long story short, we pooled our money, bought the land and buildings, and rebuilt and repaired them until we had what we thought we needed. And that’s how Blackhawk Security came to be.”

Livvy lifted one shoulder. “Nice story, but it has nothing to do with me.”

“Oh, I think it does,” Mel said. “I’d been hiding my feelings for Dev, because he’d hurt me. Badly. He’d been hiding his feelings for me because I’d bought him out a few years after Blackhawk Security got off the ground. It took a long time, but we finally talked everything out and got back together. Best decision I’ve ever made.”

“With all due respect, Mel, what does that have to do with me?”

Mel tilted her head as she studied Livvy. “I suspect you’re moping around here because either you dumped Jake, or he dumped you.” She raised one eyebrow. “Would I be right?”

This wassonot Mel’s business. But Livvy felt trapped. Either she stayed in this booth with Mel, or she’d have to walk past half the staff of Blackhawk Security to get out the door to her car. “Fine,” she finally said. “Yes. I dumped Jake after our job was done.”

“And you’re regretting it,” Mel said in a soft, kind voice.

Livvy lifted one shoulder. “I have had occasional thoughts that maybe I made a mistake.”

“So why don’t you do something about it and call Jake? You still have some time left. You could go to Washington, or he could come here.”

Livvy gripped her glass until her knuckles whitened. “Because I’m pretty sure I’m in love with him, and I swore I’d never do that.”

Mel put her hands on the table, palms down. As if she was restraining herself from reaching for Livvy. “Why not, Liv?”

So Livvy told Mel about her mother, and her endless string of boyfriends who never stuck around more than a month or two, and Livvy’s devastation when her mother fell apart right on schedule. “I swore I’d never be that woman,” she said. “Swore I’d never fall in love every month.”

“Have you ever been in love?” Mel asked.

Livvy drank another gulp of beer to hide her reaction to Mel’s question. But Mel saw through it. When Mel didn’t say anything, waiting patiently for Livvy to answer, she finally spit out, “No. I wouldn’t let myself fall in love.”

Mel frowned. “Not even with someone who loves you and wants to make a life with you?”

“Especially not then,” Livvy muttered.

Mel studied her for what felt like hours but was probably only a few moments. Finally she said, “But you are, aren’t you? You’re in love with Jake Dunbar.” Mel reached across the table and took her hand.

Livvy took a deep breath. Stared at the table. She could either lie to Mel or get it over with and then escape. She nodded. “Yeah. I’m in love with Jake. How could I not be? He’s wonderful.”

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