Operation: Endurance (When the Mission Ends) (10 page)

“I’ve set up the picnic table on the deck out back. So if you want to grab the wineglasses, we can just go out there and enjoy the evening.”

When Julie stepped through the sliding glass doors, she couldn’t hold back her gasp. His deck had been transformed, with a cozy feel in the evening twilight. A teak bar-height table with two chairs took center stage, topped by a small black umbrella with twinkle lights strung around the edge of it. Lit topiaries flanked the corners of the staircase railing that led to the golf course below. On the other side from the grill and table, a small padded couch and chair for cozy seating surrounded a low slung fire pit with a fire already crackling in it. There was even a bowl of marshmallows and metal skewers sitting on the end table waiting for them.

It was decidedly romantic and Julie was a little bit overwhelmed. “Wow, Chris, this is just…wow! This is amazing. Was this you or Cassie’s doing?”

He looked embarrassed when he admitted, “This was mine. I’ve always loved Cassie’s outdoor area behind her house and I wanted something like that. With these townhouses on the golf course, we have this amazing view. It seems a shame not to enjoy it.”

She looked out over the golf course. It was beautiful, especially now that the sun had set. A watercolor of pinks, purples, and peach hues spread into the dark navy of the sky. It evoked a peaceful feeling that Julie hadn’t experienced in a long time. In fact, it had probably been over a year now since she’d felt this at ease.

“Well, your work was worth it. It’s gorgeous. Do you want to come over and help me do mine?”

“I could do that, or, since we’re neighbors and friends, you could just enjoy mine.”

She gave him a soft smile. “I’d like that.” They could make this friend thing work. It was nice having him in her life. She’d take that any way she could get it. She was self-aware enough to know that she wasn’t what anyone needed in a relationship right now. Maybe not ever. She’d get a puppy. That was the only companion she needed.

Two nights later, Julie opened her front door to find Toni standing there chatting with Chris. She hadn’t seen him since their perfectly pleasant platonic dinner. If nothing else that night proved they might have a future as just friends. She was still drawn to him in a physical way, but she connected to him mentally too which meant they could be friends, good friends, if that was all that was available.

She’d surreptitiously felt out Cassie to see if she knew anything about Brian’s visit, but it quickly became obvious that whatever was going on with that visit, Chris hadn’t shared it with his twin. She hoped it was the nothing he claimed it to be and tried to drop it from her long list of worries.

It was another gorgeous evening in West Texas and Toni was dressed in denim shorts, a fitted purple t-shirt, and cute purple espadrilles. In contrast, Chris looked like he was about to head out on a run in a loose tank top which showed off his muscular arms, basketball shorts, and running shoes. “Hey, guys.”

Toni turned to her and raised an eyebrow. “You’ve been holding out on me. I didn’t realize you two were neighbors.”

Julie started to explain, but Chris jumped in. “It’s a new thing. I just moved in a little over a week ago.”

“Hmm, I don’t know if I can be friends with someone who lives next door to my boss.” Toni’s eyes sparkled. “Somehow that seems somewhat incestuous.”

Julie laughed. “Oh, you have no idea. Our entire group of friends is a mish mash of friends and siblings that becomes more enmeshed every week.”

Toni smirked. “Well, that sounds intriguing.”

“I’ll have to draw you a flow chart so you can see how everyone is related. You already know the guys from Mad Rob so it shouldn’t be that hard to catch up with the girls.” Julie turned back to Chris. “Toni’s here for dinner. I made enough if you want to come join us, although you look like you’re ready for some exercise.”

He’d already begun shaking his head. “No, I don’t want to get in the way of a girl’s night.”

She turned back to Toni. “See, this is what having a twin sister does for a guy. He’s much more aware of the sacred nature of girls’ night than most guys.”

Toni asked Chris, “You have a twin sister?”

He nodded. “Yep, Cassie’s my twin. She’s marrying Jake, the third owner of Mad Rob that you didn’t get to meet Friday.”

“And Colton’s your brother, too, right?”

He gave a low chuckle. “I never thought about it before, but it does almost feel incestuous, doesn’t it?” He looked at Julie with a touch of humor that was quickly replaced with something else before his eyes skittered back to Toni. “I’ll let Julie fill you in on the rest of the relationships within the group. I need to get going on my run.”

“There’s more?” Toni looked speculatively between the two of them.

Julie pulled Toni into her house, not wanting to discuss this any further with Chris standing there. There’s no telling what Toni might blurt out. “Like I said, I’ll draw you that flow chart.” She gave Chris a wave. “Have a good run.”

Toni turned on her as soon as the door shut behind her. “What was that about? Is there something going on between you and—“

“No! Sorry,” Julie ran a hand through her short hair trying to calm her thundering heart rate down. She worked for a more moderate tone. “No, I’m not part of the romantic mix with any of our friends. I’m just friends with all of them.”

“O…
kay. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to jump to wrong conclusions. A lot of times there’s no filter between my brain and mouth.”

“It’s okay, Toni. My love life has been a bad thing lately so I’m touchier about it than I should be. Let’s just ignore it and enjoy our evening. I have some wine chilled. Would you like some or something else to drink?”

“Wine sounds great. And speaking of great, it smells wonderful in here. What are we eating tonight?”

“It’s a new recipe I’m trying so hopefully, it works out. You’re my guinea pig. We’re eating pork medallions in orange sauce, almond-glazed asparagus, and a pecan spinach salad.”

“Mmm, if it tastes near as good as it smells, I can volunteer to be your full-time guinea pig.”

Julie laughed and handed Toni her glass of wine. “Let me get everything out of the oven and we can try it out. By the way, congratulations on getting the job.” She lifted her own wine glass in a mock toast. “So tell me, what did you think about Mad Rob?”

“It’s definitely going to be a change from the law firm, but I cannot tell you how excited I am about that. I think it’s going to be a good change. I really like Chris and Colton. They seem laidback, but still professional. The whole business is so different from what I’m used to. I have a lot to learn with the scheduling programs and all the stuff to do with Homeland Security, but I’m really looking forward to it.”

Julie smiled. “I’m glad. The guys need someone good to handle the office for them. I love them, but it will be good to have you around. It will help keep the place from becoming a mature frat house.”

Toni giggled. “Colton doesn’t strike me as the frat boy type.”

“You may be right there, but Chris and Jake together can cause a ruckus.”

“What’s their history? How do they all know each other? Is it from their time in the military?”

“No, actually, they all grew up here in Lubbock as friends. Cassie, Chris, and Jake are the core three in the friendship. From what I understand they’ve been inseparable since elementary school. But last year, Chris’s Air Force jet crashed and he was presumed dead for six months.” Julie’s voice cracked so she took a sip of wine. “When they found him, he’d been tortured and held captive that entire time. He was in bad shape. They weren’t sure he was going to survive it for a while.”

“Wow, you’d never guess that when you meet him.”

“He’s getting better every day and becoming more like that guy we all knew before, but it hasn’t been easy for him or any of his friends and family. Both Colton and Jake got out of the Air Force because of everything that happened. It’s been a crazy year for all of them.” Her eyes widened as she looked up at Toni and their blank plates.

“I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to get into all that. Geez, talk about a downer for dinner conversation.” She waved a hand over the table full of food. “Go ahead, and dish up your plate.”

“I don’t mind if I do, but thanks for telling me all that. I have to work with these guys and maybe having a little bit more information will keep me from inserting my foot in my mouth, at
least for the first few days. I’m afraid there’s no avoiding it long-term.” She gave a self-deprecating laugh. She took a bite and looked down at her fork in surprise. “Whoa, this is so good. Can I move in with you and just eat your food?”

Julie laughed. “Thanks. It’s nice to have someone else to cook for. I love to do it, but it hardly seems worth the time for just me.”

“Not to take us from one bad dinner subject to another, but have you heard anything else about the serial rapist?”

Julie took a fortifying sip of wine. “I heard from one of my friends at the hospital yesterday. A seventh victim was brought in. She’s alive, but in a coma. Someone found her early yesterday morning, but they think she’d been in a ditch for a long time and she’s had head trauma so they aren’t sure she’ll ever wake up.”

“Oh my God. That’s awful. Do they have any leads?”

Julie nodded. “The only thing they know so far tying the rapes together is that he always draws a heart in their palms.” Julie shivered. “I can’t believe this is happening here. Lubbock’s always been such a safe town.”

“I don’t know. It doesn’t seem like it is lately. Wasn’t there a doctor killed at the hospital where you work last year?”

Suddenly, the room began to spin.

“Julie?” There was a hand pushing her head between her legs. “Come on, Julie, breathe before you pass out.”

Julie took several gulping breaths before her lightheadedness began to recede. She pulled back from Toni who still held her. She closed her eyes and winced. “I’m sorry. I’m okay now.”

Toni’s eyes showed her remorse. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t even think about the fact you would know him, but of course you would. You work at the same hospital as him. I’m sorry. Like I said, I need to work more on that filter between my brain and mouth.”

“It’s okay, Toni. I wasn’t expecting Aaron to come up in conversation so it just took me by surprise. I’m okay now.” God, talk about over-reacting and now she’d made Toni feel bad, too. Julie winced inwardly. Yep, she was getting better. Not.

“You were close to him?”

The tears built behind her eyelids as she nodded. “He was an amazing man.”

Julie pulled herself together and managed to make it through the rest of the meal without falling apart. The rest of their conversation remained light and didn’t touch on anything serious. Julie really enjoyed Toni. She might have a habit of sticking her foot in her mouth, but honestly, Julie liked that irreverence for life. It was the complete opposite of how Julie approached everything, so being around her felt like a breath of fresh air.

Toni set her napkin next to her plate. “That was amazing, Julie.”

“It’s not over yet. No meal is finished unless it includes chocolate.”

Toni groaned which just caused Julie to chuckle. “It’s a nice night. How about we go for a walk and work off some of our dinner? Then we can come back here for coffee and dessert, guilt free.”

“Guilt free works for me.” Toni pulled herself up from the table. “Bring on the exercise portion of the evening.”

He sat outside her house, hidden in the bushes. He’d been able to watch the two girls as they ate dinner and heard their conversation since Julie’s windows were open in the cool of the evening.

She tried to hide it, but every time that neighbor’s name was mentioned,
Chris,
emotion filled her eyes. He knew her too well. She couldn’t hide that deep of response from him. Just the thought of it sent his blood boiling.

He’d seen the girls’ exchange with Chris before their dinner began. He was entirely too comfortable with Julie. The ties of their friendship and something more were stronger than he’d ever realized. Why didn’t she ever talk about him? What exactly was their history? There definitely seemed to be more than he’d first thought. It was not acceptable.

He would not allow the neighbor to screw this up for him. It was time to step up the threat toward him, since his warning hadn’t been taken to heart the first time around. Maybe it was time to convince Chris that he meant business. Julie was his and Chris would not be allowed to get in the way of that.

Julie sank her head into her hands on her desk in her office. It had been a long day and every minute she was more exhausted than the one before it. God, her head was pounding and her sinuses were killing her. She didn’t have time to get sick this week. There was only six days before Jake and Cassie’s wedding.

Time! Crap, she was even later now for
Krav Maga class. She dashed out from behind her desk to get to the gym.

When she arrived, she was relieved to see the guys had already set everything up for her. Toni and Pete were off talking to the side and that looked promising. Julie headed directly for Lyle and Stephen. “Thanks, guys, for covering for me. I had someone drop by the office just as I was leaving. I owe you all an extra case of beer.”