A couple of hours later, the party was coming to a close when the door from the garage opened and Johnny walked in. Kat blinked and glanced at the clock in the kitchen. “Excuse me a moment,” she said to the ladies who were standing and holding coats as they prepared to put them on and walk outside to their cars.
“Is everything okay, Johnny?” Kat asked as she approached him. He was standing in the kitchen, staring at the island, frowning. He looked up as if he hadn’t heard her approach, which was crazy because the kitchen and great room were open concept and he could see everything.
“What? Yes, of course.” He drew her close and buried his nose in her hair before kissing the top of her head. “You smell delicious.”
“It’s the Christmas cookies,” she said, her body already starting to tingle with awareness.
“Of course. I should say hello to your guests, then I’ll go to my office until you’re finished.”
“We are finished. They’re in the process of leaving.”
Johnny took her hand and walked into the great room with her. The conversation died as they approached. She knew these women were married or engaged to HOT operators of their own, but her Johnny couldn’t help drawing admiring looks from them. He was the very definition of a silver fox.
“Ladies,” he said, turning on the innate charm he had in spades. “It’s good to see you all. Thanks for coming to Kat’s party.”
“Thank you, General,” they murmured.
“It was delightful,” Evie said. Others echoed her.
Johnny gave Kat a squeeze and let her go. “If you’ll excuse me, I have some work to do. Don’t let me interrupt.”
“Grab some cookies on your way,” Kat said to him.
“I will.”
With polite goodbyes, he left them. Fifteen minutes later, everyone was gone and Kat went looking for her husband. She found him in his office, as he’d said, sitting at the big desk she’d picked out for him and staring at his computer. He looked up, his gaze seeming faraway for a moment. The cookies he’d taken sat untouched on the desk.
“Are you okay, Johnny?”
“I’m fine, baby. Just some shit going on in the world. Nothing to worry about.”
“I wouldn’t worry except that it appears you are.”
“I’m not worried. Really. It’s just a puzzle, that’s all.”
Kat went over to him and he pushed his chair back. She climbed onto his lap and he leaned them backward, his arms going around her big belly as hers went around his neck.
“I love you,” she said.
“I love you, too.”
“I know you can’t tell me everything. I understand it, and I know it’s what I signed up for when I married you. In Russia, we were equals. Here, you’re the big boss and I’m not even involved in operations. But I know what it’s like, and I know when you’re troubled. So don’t hide how you feel from me, okay? I want to know.”
He kissed her neck and her skin sizzled. “Okay. And you’re always my equal, Kat. If you weren’t pregnant, if I wasn’t afraid of losing you again, I’d want you working for HOT. I’d want your mind and your skills on my team.”
“Thank you, honey. I appreciate you saying that. But I’m going to be a wife and mommy for a while. Maybe one day I can consult.”
“And charge an exorbitant fee for your expertise, no doubt.”
She didn’t miss the grin in his voice, and she laughed. “That’s right, mister. I will charge what I’m worth.”
Johnny gazed up into her eyes. “There’s not enough money in the world if we’re talking about your worth.”
She shook her head slowly, grinning. “Flatterer. Are you trying to get me out of these clothes?”
“I’m serious, baby. You’re worth more than money to me. More than anything in this world. I’d do anything for you. You know that, don’t you?”
He looked earnest and she slid her palm along his jaw. “I know, Johnny. But there’s nothing you need to do except love me and our little girl. That’s all I want.”
“You already have that. As long as I live.”
9
December 24th
It was snowing when Mendez woke up at six a.m. He could see it coming down through the top of the transom window, though he didn’t know how much had fallen yet. Beside him, Kat lay on her side, sleeping peacefully. Or as peacefully as possible considering how pregnant she was. She often woke during the night to pee, or because the baby was kicking her, and she was usually exhausted in the mornings.
He slipped out of bed carefully, then went into the bathroom and brushed his teeth before padding back into the bedroom and slipping on the buffalo plaid sleep pants Kat had gotten for him. They were flannel and he didn’t usually sleep in them because they were so warm. He preferred sleeping in his underwear though truth be told he’d rather sleep in the buff—except that old habits from his operator days meant he wore briefs, so he didn’t get ambushed with his dick hanging out.
He dragged on a grey t-shirt and left the room on silent feet. He went into the kitchen to start the coffee—decaf these days because it’s what Kat could drink—and then stood and peered out the window at the backyard. Everything was covered in white, and the snow was fat and thick as it fell. He frowned as he took his phone out and found the weather app.
They could get up to twenty-four inches in the next few days, though that was a long shot. Still, Mendez’s gut tightened. Kat wasn’t due for another week, but the closer the date got, the more he worried. But he had a four-wheel drive truck and enough emergency medical training to understand the fundamentals of delivering a baby. Not a task he wanted, especially when the baby was his own and the woman was his life. No way in hell did he want that responsibility.
But if he had too, he could.
He placed a call to HQ on his secure line to check on things there. He wasn’t scheduled to go in today, but he would if something went terribly awry. Ghost answered and they discussed the situation for a few minutes, then Mendez hung up and went to pour his coffee. He was just taking his first sip when a text from Ian landed.
Ian: Think we’ve located him.
Mendez’s heart thumped once, and then he locked it down and typed back. Where is he?
Ian: Novosibirsk.
Mendez let out a breath. Novosibirsk. Where Roman had last lived with the couple who’d been raising him for Kat. Where he’d been when Kat got the news he’d died in a car wreck. Where he was buried. Mendez remembered standing beside his grave with Kat, not aware at that moment who she really was or that Roman was his. He’d ached for her pain, but he hadn’t known it was his pain too. Not until later.
And then someone had started shooting at them and they’d had to run. They’d holed up with Yuri Budayev, otherwise known as the Tiger. That was where Mendez learned the truth about Kat. Yuri didn’t trust a soul and he’d ran her fingerprints without her knowledge. Mendez had nearly exploded with twenty years’ worth of loss and anger, but they’d worked it out in the end. Thank God.
Still, what was Kazimir Rybakov doing in Novosibirsk?