Page 32 of It's Always Been You

“Shhh!”

What the fuck?

Travis tamped down his temper, or was it hurt? He had been looking forward to a romantic evening with her, but obviously, she didn’t feel the same. She didn’t even look up when he entered the house, while he had been missing the sight of her face all day. The disparity between their reactions started to bring down his mood, but he fought back the urge to wallow in self-pity again.

“Got it!” Caitlin jumped out of the chair and flew into his arms, catching Travis by surprise. She planted a resounding smack on his lips, which startled both of them.

Even as Caitlin sprang back after realizing the impetus of her actions, hope flared within Travis.

“Got what, sunshine girl?” Travis grinned.

She was adorable when she was excited.

“I broke the encryption on the first file,” Caitlin said. “The rest of the files won’t be too hard. I finally figured out the algorithm to apply once I recognized the file headers.”

As his wife chattered away in a language he didn’t fully understand, a cold chill snaked up his spine.

“Porter has been to see you?” Travis cut her off in mid-sentence. Caitlin must have noted the tension that suddenly suffused the air.

“You didn’t know?”

His silence was answer enough. He said, “Go and get ready, Cat.”

Eyeing him warily, she packed up her laptop and disappeared to the second floor.

“Mr. Blake—” Sam spoke tentatively behind him.

“Why wasn’t I informed that Ben Porter was at the NEST?”

“I didn’t know who he was.”

“But you saw Caitlin go into a room with him?”

“No. I wasn’t allowed beyond the reception area, but I saw a distinguished gentleman enter the facility.”

“These are the things I need to know, Sam,” Travis said tightly. “You may go.”

“Sir, I’m sorry—”

“That’s okay, Harper. Consider this part of your training.” He assured the young man. “Situational awareness. You need to be able to identify possible threats. Sometimes friends can be your worst enemy.”

“Understood, Sir,” Sam answered. “Have—have a good evening.”

The second Sam left the house, Travis whipped out his phone and called Porter.

“Blake,” the admiral answered on the third ring.

“Sir, I just found out that you’ve been to see my wife.”

“Not sure I like the hostility in your tone, Lieutenant.”

Addressing him by his rank as a SEAL, the admiral was putting him in his place. But Travis wasn’t backing down.

“I don’t like it when things are done behind my back, Admiral, especially where my wife is concerned.”

“Are you sure she’s still your wife?”

Travis bristled. That was a dirty blow.

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