He stared straight ahead and squeezed the steering wheel. Was he having second thoughts? “I get it. You work for the State Department. And you feel like you’re getting in over your head.” Mackenzie reached for his hand, still on the wheel, and covered it with hers. “I love hearing your positive attitude and spin on the story—that your part in this will be seen as heroic. We’re all heroes for saving the day. When I went to the FBI with the cybercrime I’d committed and turned over all the information I had on both my partners, I didn’t get any free passes. Maybe a couple of nods of approval that I’d done the right thing. I wasn’t tried as an adult, but I was considered a delinquent and sentenced to community service.” Julian too. They had both felt that Nebulous 2.0 was taking them to dark places they didn’t want to go. Her throat constricted at the thought. What did the cybercriminal have in mind? What secrets was he stealing? “Hero status aside, the reality is that you could get into serious trouble.”

He dropped his hands from the wheel but quickly grabbed her hand again and squeezed. She loved the connection she had with him, the feel of her fingers in his strong grip. Why did they have to go through this? Why couldn’t they have met by chance again or through God making it all work out for them? Like normal people. But really, neither of them was normal.

“Mackenzie, I won’t let you do this alone. I’m in this with you, no matter what. I hope I don’t have to tell you again.”

Brave man.

“You might.” She sent him a wry grin.

But hearing the sincerity in his voice made her wonder how he could choose her over his career when he hardly even knew her. Mackenzie didn’t want to be responsible for destroying anyone’s life or future, like she’d almost done her own.

“So how do we get in? Security isn’t going to let us walk in without a good reason, especially since it’s past ten o’clock.”

“It’s been a rough day, so it’s reasonable that I might need to get into my locker tonight since I left my iPad behind.” The iPad was proving useful in brand-new ways. “Besides, it’s night security. Probably Tilden. He’s more likely to trust us and let you come with me this time on protective duty.”

“You hope.”

Yes, she did.

They scrambled out of the car, and she bounded toward the glass doors to peer inside. They were locked. Tilden approached, looking surprised, but unlocked the door.

He opened it but also blocked their path. “Miss Calhoun, is everything alright?”

She allowed the grief she truly felt to show on her face. “I left some stuff in my locker that I need.”