Broken Wings (The Broken Series Book 3) (24 page)

I
burrowed further into his warm chest and breathed deeply, savoring the soothing
scents of cedar and cloves. “I really like waking up next to you.”

He
chuckled. “Then we should make it a point to wake up next to each other every
morning.”

I
smiled as I shook my head. “I don’t know… I’m finding it difficult to leave your
bed, and I need to go to work.”

He
rolled me beneath him as a mischievous look settled over his face. “I’ll call
in sick if you will.”

My
eyes softened with regret. I slowly shook my head. “I wish I could, but I need
to get a handle on this Ukraine project, and I have Russian immersion classes
every afternoon this week.”

He
kissed me softly on the nose. “Can I swing by and take you to lunch?”

I
ran my fingers over the stubble that darkened his jawline. “I would love to go
to lunch with you. Are you free at noon?”

Rafael
kept a firm hold on me as he rolled over. I giggled as he pulled me on top of
him. He sat up and pulled my legs around his hips. “I think I can make that
work.”

I
locked my arms around his neck, then squealed as he rose from the bed. “Wait!
What are you doing?”

He
grinned as he strode toward the master bathroom. “I’m collecting on that rain
check.”

*
* * * * *

I
spent the entire morning holed up in the conference room with Shae, Sammi, and Cory.
We firmed up tasks and our agenda for Ukraine before practicing one of our simulations.
We broke for lunch shortly before noon.

Rafael
was leaning against the reception desk when we filed out of the conference
room. His hair was pulled back into a neat ponytail. He was wearing black cargo
pants, a black short-sleeved shirt, and black combat boots.

Sammi’s
jaw fell open when she saw him. “Who’s that?”

I
smiled. “That’s Rafael.”

Rafael
looked up from the desk and waved.

I
linked arms with Sammi. “Come on. I’ll introduce you.”

Rafael
pushed off from the desk. He gave me a quick kiss on the cheek. “You look
beautiful,” he breathed in my ear.

Heat
flooded my cheeks. I was wearing a simple heather gray sheath dress. “Rafael,
this is Sammi. She is the program manager for our train-the-trainer program.”

Rafael
reached for her hand. “Nice to meet you, Sammi.”

Sammi
blushed as she shook his hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

I
glanced at Cory and Shae as they joined us in the reception area. “You have
already met Shae…”

Shae
smiled. “Hey. You ready for a rematch on that Scrabble game?”

Rafael
laughed. “Anytime.”

I
turned my attention to Cory. “Cory, this is my boyfriend, Rafael.”

Rafael
glanced at me in surprise. He quickly recovered as he reached for Cory’s hand.
“Nice to meet you, Cory.”

I
continued the introduction. “Cory is the director of our conflict resolution skill
building program.” I waved at the entire group. “This is the team of people I
will be working with in Ukraine.”

Rafael
smiled. “Cory is a lucky man.”

“I
think he’s going to have his hands full with us girls,” Shae countered with a
laugh.

Cory
rolled his eyes. “I’m pretty sure I can handle the three of you.”

Rafael
handed Cory his business card. “You let me know if you need any help, Cory.
This one here…” he nodded toward me, “has a habit of getting into trouble.”

I
nudged his shoulder. “I do not!”

Shae
laughed. “Oh, yes, you do.”

Rafael’s
hand settled on my hip as he draped his arm around my back. “Are you still free
for lunch?”

I
smiled as our eyes met. “As long as we’re back by one-thirty so I can head over
to the Department of Agriculture for our Russian immersion course.”

“Would
you guys like to join us?” he asked, shifting his attention to my colleagues.

They
exchanged glances.

“It’s
fine,” I said. “You won’t be crashing our date.”

Cory
shrugged. “Sure, why not?”

“I’m
in,” Shae responded emphatically.

Sammi
looked undecided. “Where are you going?”

Rafael
looked at me questioningly.

I
briefly considered the options. “Why don’t we just go hang out at Cosi? They
have those comfy couches, and it’s within walking distance.” I glanced up at
Rafael. “I think you’ll like their menu. They have TBMs.”

“TBMs?”
Shae asked curiously.

“Tomato,
Basil, and Mozzarella sandwich,” I replied.

“Ahh.
That’s what you ordered last time,” Shae responded. “I need to grab my wallet.
Do you want me to grab your purse, Kri?”

I
nodded gratefully. “Yes, please.”

Cory,
Rafael, and I waited in the lobby while Sammi and Shae retrieved the purses.
The two men chatted amicably as we exited the building and walked to Cosi.
Rafael held the door open as we filed inside. “Are you sure you don’t need a
security detail for this trip? I can assign a couple of guys to tag along.”

Cory
shook his head. “No. I think we’ll be fine. We were invited by the government,
so I‘m sure they’ll have people assigned to us while we’re there.”

Shae
nabbed a round couch and two chairs as a group of people got up to leave.
Rafael, Shae, and I took the couch. Sammi and Cory settled into the chairs. The
waitress dropped some menus by and took our drink orders. I already knew what I
was ordering, so I studied the dessert menu instead.

Rafael
continued his conversation with Cory. “The government will have people assigned
to you, but they will serve more as minders than a security detail. They’ll be monitoring
everything you do.” He studied the menu briefly, then continued. “Have any of
you been to the former Soviet Union before?”

Sammi,
Shae, and Cory shook their heads. “We’ve worked primarily in Africa and Israel
until recently. This is a new region for us,” Sammi explained.

Rafael
set his menu down. “Well, the offer stands in case you change your minds. I
wouldn’t trust the government to keep you safe, though. Government officials
aren’t necessarily the good guys in places like Ukraine.”

Cory
nodded. “We ran into that problem in Uganda. We’re used to working in places
where the government is corrupt and where they don’t always behave in a
legitimate manner.”

The
waitress set our drinks on the table. She blew her bangs out of her face as she
pulled a notepad from her apron. “Okay, do you know what you’d like to eat?”

A
huge smile spread across my face. “I’d like the TBM.” I glanced at Rafael and spoke
as innocently as I could. “Will you help me eat dessert if I order the
chocolate mousse?”

Rafael
choked on his coffee.

I
tried not to laugh as he reached for a napkin.

His
eyes raked over my body. A wicked smile danced across his face. “That depends
on whether you want to eat it here or save it for later.”

I
laughed as I continued torturing him. “Oh, I definitely want to eat it here.” I
looked up at the waitress. “Actually, I’d like to eat my dessert first.”

Sammi
drew in a sharp breath. “I like that idea! I want my dessert first too. I’ll
take the crème brûlée cheesecake and the Tandoori chicken sandwich.”

Shae
eyed me curiously, but she rose to the challenge. “I’ll have my dessert first
too. I’d like the Cosi bread pudding. I’d also like the TBM.”

Cory
looked baffled. He ran his hand over his short black hair. “I don’t know what
just happened, but I’m not about to be the odd man out. I’ll start with the
Mississippi mud pie. I’d also like the Cosi club sandwich, but hold the mayo,
please.”

Rafael
looked thoroughly amused by the developments. “Well… evidently, I’ll be helping
the lady eat chocolate mousse. I’d also like a TBM when we’re done with
dessert.”

The
waitress stared at us, completely dumbfounded. “You
all
want to eat your
dessert first?”

I
laughed. “Why would we have it any other way?”

She
shook her head as she walked away. She returned with our dessert a few minutes
later. “Let me know when you’re ready for your sandwiches."

Rafael
hooked his arm around my neck as I picked up the plate and handed him a fork. “You’re
going to pay for this later,” he whispered playfully.

I
laughed as I dug my fork into the mousse. “I was sort of banking on that.”

*
* * * * *

I
was sitting on a bench in the center of Rafael’s gym, wondering where the last
two weeks of my life had gone. Rafael and I had stayed close to home so I could
study for final exams. If I wasn’t falling asleep at my computer, then I was
buried in bed under a pile of books.

Rafael
took it all in stride, either carting me off to bed or digging me out from
under the books so he could hold me while I slept. He also made it a point to
nudge me outside for yoga or to picnic alongside the river when the weather was
nice.

I
breathed a sigh of relief. I had submitted my final paper this morning. Spring
semester was officially over. Summer semester would begin as soon as I returned
from Ukraine.

My
pulse quickened. I couldn’t believe I was leaving for Ukraine in four days. This
trip had snuck up on me. There had been an endless list of things to do at
work, and I had been so immersed in finals that I hadn’t really comprehended
how soon we’d be leaving… until now.  

I
twisted the lid off of my water bottle and took a drink as my thoughts returned
to Rafael. I was surprised by how easily he had slid into my crazy life. He
made very few demands on my time and was incredibly supportive while I was
pouring myself into my coursework. We hadn’t spent a single night apart since I’d
shown up on his doorstep. I found it much easier to sleep when Rafael’s body was
wrapped securely around mine. I no longer needed sleeping pills, and I hadn’t suffered
a single nightmare since we’d begun sleeping together again.

I
tilted my head back as I took another drink of water. Rafael and I had just spent
a good hour working on my self-defense skills. He’d announced that he had a
surprise for me before abandoning me in his gym.

Bottled
water sprayed from my mouth as I caught sight of him. I wiped my face with the
back of my hand and laughed. “Why are you dressed like a red Stormtrooper?
Halloween is in October.”

I
could barely see his face behind the heavily padded mask. “You leave for
Ukraine in four days. I told you that you’d beat the snot out of me before you
left. Now’s your big chance.”

I
stood and eyed the bright red padded suit, face mask, and helmet that covered
his body. Clearly, he was serious. He was even wearing goggles under the face
mask. My eyes narrowed. “So I can hit you as hard as I can, and you won’t get
hurt?”

He
nodded. Well, he sort of nodded. “You can bite, scratch, kick, and hit. You can
even try to poke out my eyes.”

I
set my water bottle on the bench. I laughed as he waddled toward the mat. “I
think I should take a picture of you with my cell phone, first.”

Rafael
growled. “Get over here and beat the snot out of me already. It’s hot in here.”

I
circled around him teasingly. I was still cracking up when I reached for his
shoulders and turned him toward the mirror. “Come on. Look in the mirror. Who
wouldn’t want to see you dressed up like that?”

Rafael
chuckled. He shrugged my hands off of his shoulders and slowly began circling
around me. “Okay. So I look funny. Can we focus now?” His voice turned serious
as he stilled. “Look, I’m not stopping until you knock me on the floor and get
down the stairs to the front door. If I fall, I’m going to have a hard time
getting back up and an even harder time getting down those stairs. Don’t hold
back, Kristine. Let everything go… scream, cry, swear. If the memories come
back, embrace them. Use it to your advantage. Draw on that anger and pain.
Ready?”

I
took a deep breath and blew it out. My pulse was already racing. My emotions
scattered as fear raised its ugly head. “Okay.”

Rafael
lunged for me.

I
reached for his wrist and elbow like Kadyn had shown me, but he threw his
weight against me and broke my hold. I stumbled back a few feet. I immediately
raised my left fist in front of my face. I kept my chest and abdomen angled
away from him. I quickly jabbed him in the neck, then kicked toward his groin.

He
grabbed my leg and yanked it up, throwing me on my back.

The
fall knocked the wind out of me, but I rolled away as he attempted to pin me in
place with his knee. I quickly scrambled to my feet. I kicked him behind the
knee, then bolted toward the door.

Rafael
tackled me in the hall, just before I reached the top of the stairs.

My
forehead hit the floor. “No!” I screamed. Fear and adrenaline coursed through
me. My fingernails clawed at the wood floor as I tried to crawl away. I beat at
his face as he flipped me onto my back.