“Of course it’s a no. You know I don’t want her in my life. You made the right call.”

“Thank baby Jesus,” Jenn said, relieved.

“You knew that already because you’re my mom,” I said. “You. You gave me a bed. You cooked for me. You drove me to practice. You loved me.”

Jenn was quiet except for a tiny squeak.

“You’re crying, aren’t you?” I said, wincing.

“Hello?” Brad said.

“Hey. Sorry. Didn’t mean to make her cry.”

“Happy tears, Zeke. You just make her so happy.”

“Good. It’s good to know I can do that for at least one woman,” I said, grumbling.

“Uh oh,” Brad said. The kids were already yelling in the background. They were starting to get up for school and were likely running around the kitchen. “There’s a girl?”

“There’s a girl?” Jenn said. After a short scuffle, Jenn was back on the phone. “The girl from the bar? That girl?”

“Not yet. Well, kind of. I like her. She feels like…”

“The one?” Jenn said. It was just like her to jump ten extra steps. She was a romantic, just like Brad. Maybe they were rubbing off on me.

“I don’t know. Maybe. I was over at her house, and I definitely felt a … a familiar connection. She smooths out my edges, but that’s because she’s like sandpaper. She drives me nuts, but I have to be around her. Does that make sense? It’s hard to explain.”

I could hear the smile in the Jenn’s voice when she spoke. “I know exactly what that is.”

“Yeah? What is it?”

“My favorite feeling in the world. She feels like family.”

chapter eleven

secrets

Naomi

“W

hat a day, huh?” Harbinger said, elbowing me. He wasn’t a man of many words, so him trying to defuse the situation wasn’t lost on me.

“You could say that,” I grumbled.

It was barely mid-day, and I was already exhausted. Just over the lunch hour, General Tallis had released me from a six-month probation I didn’t know I was on, and Trex informed me what I sort of, deep down, already knew: Peter had pulled strings to bring me to Colorado Springs and work at the Complex. Now, all eyes were on me, waiting for me to lose my temper a third time.

“Do we need to worry about this guy? Keep an eye on him? Is he stalking you or…?” Sloan asked.

“No,” I said, trying to keep my anger in check. “He’s harmless. He just oversteps on occasion. I’ll take care of it.”

“Do you think that’s why Tallis had you on probation?” Martinez asked.

“Likely,” I said.

“Because you’re a widow, and you joined the same outfit your husband was in when he died,” Harbinger said.

“It is a little weird,” Sloan said with a shrug.