Page 33 of SEAL's Spitfire
“Are you out of your freaking mind?” Lizzie’s voice came out high-pitched and furious. Slamming her hands on the table, she stood up and turned toward the window then turned back. “You are not going.”
“Shh, you’ll wake the twins.”
“Meghan, promise me. You can’t go. I won’t lose both of my siblings to those maniacs.”
“I can’t make that promise. I need to do this. For Charlie, for all of us. But so far, I haven’t figured out how to get the clearance. I’m hoping that Rafe’s friend Tex will be able to help.”
“And what about Rafe? He’s okay with your little excursion into a war zone? Face it, if missionaries aren’t safe, what makes you think you’ll come back alive?”
“I have a plan, and I have to try. I can’t just sit here and do nothing. Journalists go in and out of there all the time. I’m going to use that as cover and see if I can get them to give me an interview.”
Lizzie opened the cabinet, grabbed a bottle of scotch and came back to the table with two glasses. “I don’t know about you, but I need a drink. I think you’ve lost your ever-loving mind.”
“I’ll be fine, Lizzie. I promise I will.”
“You can’t make that promise.” She was right, she really couldn’t. It was dangerous, and maybe reckless, but she had to try. It was their baby brother and a bunch of other people who were only there to help others.
“To answer your question about Rafe, he doesn’t know. He’s been sent on a mission and no I don’t know where. That’s why he gave me his friend’s contact information.”
“Answer this. If he wasn’t on a mission, would you still be trying to do this?”
Meghan thought about it for a bit. He wouldn’t like it any more than Lizzie did, but the reasons for going wouldn’t change. If he loved her the way he said, then he’d have to understand.
“Yes. I absolutely would. It would probably be harder because I wouldn’t have his friend’s information.”
“And his friend is going to help you?”
“I don’t know yet. I haven’t talked to him.”
“Maybe he’ll say no.”
“I suppose he might. Then I’ll just have to find another way.”
“You’re gonna be the death of me. You and Charlie both. You’re crazy, you know that?”
“Maybe. But traveling the world covering stories is what I’ve dreamed of doing my whole life. I’d be doing it anyway if I didn’t work with a bunch of egotistical jerks. I can do this. I know it.”
Lizzie shook her head and looked up at the ceiling. Then she poured another round of scotch. “I pray the good Lord watches over you, and you come back to us in one piece.”
“I will.” It had been hard for her to say those words. They both knew it, and Meghan would do her best to keep her promise.
“You ready for dessert?”
Meghan wasn’t sure she could eat anything else. She’d been so hungry but now it was sitting like a lead weight in her stomach. Lizzie had taken the time to make it, so she’d eat it, somehow.
“Of course. You teased me with it, I can’t wait.” White lies aren’t really bad, she told herself. The last thing she wanted was to piss off the big guy upstairs before she took this trip.
Lizzie but a plate in front of her with a huge slice of pie.
“You made lemon meringue pie for me?”
“Yup. I figured why not. What're a few calories between sisters?” It was Meghan’s favorite pie of all time but as she put the first forkful in her mouth it tasted like sawdust. But she’d hurt her sister enough already and bite by bite she ate every bit until her plate was empty.
“It was delicious.” Ugh, another white lie. But it probably wouldn’t have been if she hadn’t begun second-guessing herself because of Lizzie’s argument. Nope, she was going. With or without Tex’s help.
“Since I can’t talk you out of going, what’s your plan. I need to know everything. So don’t even try to hold anything back.”
“I don’t know everything. How about we call Tex together and see if he’ll help?”
