Chapter 20

Chapter Twenty

Palm Beach, Florida

25 Months Earlier

FINN'S DUTIES as best man were finished. He'd stood beside Ski at the altar, handed him the ring on cue, offered a toast during the wedding dinner, and danced with the matron of honor, the bride, and the bride's mother. The online checklist he'd read had listed additional items, but the bride's parents had an army of people taking care of the other details, which meant he was free for the rest of the evening.

The only thing Finn wanted to do was leave.

That feeling became more pronounced as Captain Nguyen approached. He wore a dark gray suit with a red tie, but even out of uniform, he exuded an aura of command. It was second nature for Finn to straighten as BD closed the gap.

"This isn't the best place to hide," the captain said, gesturing to the pool house.

"The good spots were taken. At least I have something at my back." Finn didn't quite come to attention, but he did stop leaning against the structure's fa?ade.

"Relax, Stone Man. It's a wedding, not a mission." The captain took up a position alongside him.

Great. This meant something was up. Not that BD didn't socialize with the team, but Finn had learned to read his CO. He forced the rigidity from his muscles, outwardly appearing to relax, but he kept his mind sharp. To prevent himself from asking questions, he looked around. As if he hadn't memorized every detail.

Ski had married the daughter of a former US ambassador, and the wedding was huge. Eight hundred guests from around the world were in attendance, including prime ministers of other countries, a few celebrities, and titans of industry. The security was like nothing Finn had seen before, and the ambassador's Palm Beach estate was lit up brighter than the Vegas strip. It would have been overwhelming even if the team hadn't just returned from an assignment.

If he hadn't spent the last six weeks in a Puerto Jardinese prison.

This was too much, and the only reason he hadn't run was that he wouldn't abandon his teammates. Until Ski and his bride left, he was stuck here. He focused on his breathing to hold control.

"Are you okay, Stony?" the captain asked.

Finn dug deep. "Fine, sir." He met his CO's questioning look with a bland expression he had to struggle to maintain. And when the other man looked away, Finn fought the urge to run a finger around the collar of his tuxedo shirt.

There was a long silence before BD said, "I hear you're heading to LA after you're discharged."

Finn shrugged. "It's as good a place as any."

The captain's gaze became laser-sharp. "I also hear Pruitt gave you the address for a certain woman, one who lives in Los Angeles. "

He fought off the lie that immediately sprang into his mind. Tom Finley was the liar. "That could be a coincidence," he said, choosing evasion over fabrication.

"Sergeant," the captain chastised, his voice so low that no one would be able to overhear him. "We both know what happened less than two months ago. You ignored every protocol we had in place to rush to her rescue, and it set off a chain of events guaranteeing the gentlemen in question will be back in business shortly, selling weapons that will kill soldiers around the world."

Finn's muscles locked. After glancing around to make sure nobody was nearby, he spoke even more quietly than BD had, but his voice was hard. "With all due respect, captain, you should have sat on the information about where I was and what was going on. I had the situation under control, and because I'd had hours to argue my case with the boss, I'd been able to make a lot of progress on the operation. It was the premature action by the brigade that blew things up. You should have trusted me."

"I do trust you." Nguyen's tone was carefully controlled, a sure sign that Finn had angered him. "But it was a cooperative effort. If I'd kept it to myself, and the brigade command found out about it, our relationship with them would have been undermined, maybe even damaged irreparably. It was a chance I couldn't take."

"The brigade command is as rife with corruption as the rest of the government."

"Sergeant, you should have trusted me . You should have trusted your team."

Finn tried to swallow his words, but they escaped anyway. "You know as well as I do what kind of security the boss surrounds himself with. Getting in there would have been almost impossible, and they would have hurt her, maybe killed her if I hadn't gone."

"Did we have a plan if a civilian was put at risk? "

Finn nodded once. He could come up with multiple excuses for why he hadn't waited for the team to come together for the rescue, but the bottom line was he wouldn't leave Zo at Torres' mercy. While his ass had been behind bars, he'd worried about her until he'd learned she was safely back in San Isidro. He hadn't fully relaxed until after Christmas when he'd gotten word that Zo had returned to the States.

"Heading to LA to seek her out isn't smart," his CO said after a moment. His tone was mild now, and Finn was able to take a deep breath.

"I know."

"And even if you didn't realize it, you've already gotten an earful, am I right?" This time the Big Dog had amusement in his voice.

"From at least half the team," Finn confirmed, some of his tension draining away.

"And the other half hasn't had an opportunity to corner you yet. She's affected your decision-making since you met her, and now you're going to allow lust to drive you across the country?"

Finn stiffened again. Zo wasn't some piece of ass. "If it was only lust, I could slake that anywhere. I've been avoiding some woman named Gabrielle or Gisele or something like that since the reception began. I don't want someone who only cares I wear Special Forces insignia."

"It's never bothered you in the past."

He couldn't deny it, but now he wanted more than some woman who didn't give a shit about him. "Things are different."

"You think your California girl is interested in you?"

He nodded. Zo had been attracted to him. She'd been intrigued by him. She hadn't known he was Special Forces, but she'd been as drawn to him as he'd been to her. "Her name is Zofia, but she goes by Zo. She despises mercenaries, and she might not give me a chance to explain anything when I find her."

"But that isn't going to stop you." The captain shook his head. "Even if she was drawn to you in South America, she might feel differently in the States."

"I know."

" You might feel differently when you see her again."

"Maybe," Finn allowed, but he knew better. Even now, he could remember the warmth of Zo's body pressed against him, the sweetness and heat in her kisses. He wanted more of her, and not only because she aroused him faster than any other woman he'd ever met. Zo also soothed him. Her presence was like a balm for his soul, and he needed that.

The Big Dog laughed quietly. "I can see that your mind is made up. Well, at least I can tell Griff I tried."

Finn scowled before he could stop it. "When did he put you up to this?"

"We talked around half an hour ago."

"After he sicced Gisele on me. After I found him talking to Ski and told him to give it a rest."

BD shrugged. "Griff might come across as an asshole, but you know his attitude hides the fact that he's a mother hen. You and Ski are his remaining musketeers, and now Pienkowski has Langley to watch over him."

"Yeah." Finn debated saying more, then decided what the fuck. If the captain hadn't reamed him out earlier, this wasn't going to push him over the edge. "And if you know Griff well enough to see the core of his personality, why did you let him go on this last op? You were aware of what happened in Tahoe, and that Mako was his closest friend."

"Sergeant Rowland, personnel decisions are none of your concern. Understood?"

"Yes, sir," he gritted out. This time Finn kept his mouth shut.

While he was working through the truth of the captain's statement, he caught sight of Gabrielle/Gisele and stepped back farther into the shadows. Finn was sure she'd set her sights on someone else, but he wasn't taking any chances. The woman was beautiful, but she wasn't Zo. Then he spotted Lurch trailing behind her. "Looks like I'm off the hook."

"And Lurch gets a night to forget being dumped." The Big Dog shot him a sideways look. "If you passed on someone who looks like her, maybe you do need to go to LA."

The captain didn't get it, but as far as Finn was concerned, sleeping with another woman would be cheating on Zo. No, they didn't have a relationship, and he'd only kissed her a few times because he didn't count those quick, public brushes of their lips as more than a hello. It didn't matter. It flat out felt wrong.

"Captain Nguyen, my personal relationships are none of your concern." He'd deliberately echoed the Big Dog's earlier chastisement of him, and the man didn't miss it.

"Now that we're back home, agreed. Puerto Jardin was another story."

"I'd do it again," Finn said before he could censor himself. He'd shot his mouth off more tonight than he had in his entire military career.

"Even knowing what happened next?"

Finn shrugged a shoulder. "She's safe, that's what matters the most, but I could have done without my six-week enforced time out."

"There was no freeing you. We bribed to get you the cleanest accommodations available and paid to keep you safe. It was the best I could do until the government's dog-and-pony show was put to bed."

Finn stayed quiet.

The Big Dog turned to face him. "No one else made it out quicker than you did."

Torres and Silva. Word was they'd been released three or four days after Finn had gotten out. "I know, sir. "

It was tempting to bitch some more about his time in prison, but the captain had already cut him a hell of a lot of slack tonight. Finn wasn't going to push it.

"Sergeant."

Finn braced himself. The captain's tone put him on edge. "Yes, sir?"

"There's time to reconsider leaving the Army."

Shaking his head, Finn said, "Sorry, captain, but I'm out."

"I have re-enlistment papers in my desk with your name on them, and a bonus figure twenty percent higher than the usual Special Forces incentive. All you have to do is sign them."

That gave Finn pause—not because he wanted the money, but because the Army was offering it. "Why me?" he asked, unable to keep the suspicion from his voice.

"Your ability to play any role? It's a skill that's hard to come by."

"It's a skill that can be learned," Finn said. "I joined the Army so I could go to college, not to make it a career."

"You could have done that without joining Special Forces. You wanted the challenge, and a civilian job will leave you bored. Imagine sitting behind a desk for the next forty years."

The thought was bleak, but Finn shook it off. "I'm heading to Los Angeles."

"Re-up, take leave, and go see Zo. Find out what's between you. One doesn't preclude the other."

"Right. Say I go to LA, and Zo doesn't view me as a threat. Say things click with us, and then my leave is up, and I have to fly back to Tampa. Her job is in Los Angeles, and our intel said she travels a lot. I'd be in the field for months at a time. If there was a small chance for things to work out, that would kill it."

"The odds are against you even if you leave the Army."

Finn nodded, and one side of his mouth kicked up. "I know that, but I'm throwing the dice anyway."