She blew out a breath. “Don’t you think you’re being a bit melodramatic?”

He placed a hand on his chest. “Me? C’mon, Layla. These aren’t games you want to play. I know you believe in the Agency and all the good they do, but do you really have any doubt in your mind that they would turn on you if they thought you were dirty? I think you’ve been set up, and we have to assume they will do everything in their power to get answers from you that match their expectations.”

As much as she hated to admit it, Hunter had a point. If none of the other stuff had happened and this investigation was in isolation, that would be one thing. But she couldn’t close her eyes and pretend like everything was going to be okay. “All right. What do you suggest?”

“Bring your lawyer.”

“But I don’t have a lawyer.”

He stood up. “You do now.”

She couldn’t hold back her laughter. “You’re not a lawyer, Hunter.”

“Hey, I am an active member of the Virginia and DC bar. Just because I don’t have a law practice doesn’t mean I’m not legit. And if they deny you legal counsel, then we just say thanks, but no thanks and hightail it out of there.”

She considered his offer. As much as she hated to admit it, he was right. She’d been at Langley long enough to know that if she had been set up, there could be disastrous consequences. Scarlett’s words of advice echoed through her brain. This was far from a routine legal inquiry. “Scarlett told me I absolutely couldn’t go in there without an attorney and that it would be foolish to represent myself.”

“Sounds like great advice to me. I hope you’ll take it.”

“You realize that if you’re right and there’s danger involved, then you could be put right in the middle of it.”

He nodded. “I’m not going to let you down this time.”

And there it was. The opening for the conversation that the girls had encouraged her to have. Was it now or never? Would there ever be the exact right time? “About that.”

“Yeah.” He sat back down.

“Can we talk?” she asked.

Hunter looked away for a moment before making eye contact. “I wondered how long it would be before we had this conversation.”

“You look like you’re dreading it.” Probably not as much as she was, but this seemed like a necessary evil if she was ever going to move on with her life. And that was something she desperately needed to do. Living in the past with his memory always floating around was not healthy.