"I am not the CIA," J.T. said, looking grim.
"No, you jus: work for them. And I trusted you."
"No, you didn't," J.T. said. "You slept with me. It's not the same thing."
"I thought it was," Lucy said and started back toward base camp.
"Oh, come on, Lucy," J.T. said. "Get in the Jeep."
She turned around. "I was actually thinking about spending the rest of my life with you."
"What?" He looked so startled that she wanted to throw something at him.
"Hey," she said, clamping down on her hurt. "Last night meant something to me, okay?"
He frowned at her. "It meant something to me, too, but I usually don't propose after one night. Slow down a little."
"Really?" Lucy said. "How long does it usually take you to propose?" She read the look on his face and said, "You've been married before?" trying not to sound outraged. So much for saving him from a lifetime of loneliness. God, you're stupid, Lucy.
"See, this is why it's a good idea to know somebody longer than three days before you start planning a future," J.T. said. "It would have given me time to mention them."
"Them?" Lucy said, straightening. "There was more than one?"
"Two," J.T. said. "If you hadn't rushed me, I'd have told you about them."
"I'll keep that in mind with the next guy I sleep with," Lucy said and turned back toward base camp. Yeah, you really rescued him.
"Come on, Lucy," J.T. called after her.
I am an idiot, Lucy thought as she stepped over the ruts.
Somehow, the thought didn't make her feel any better.
Chapter 15
By the time Wilder had the Jeep started and had caught up with Lucy, she was a hundred yards down the road and moving fast. "Come on, Lucy," he said again, as he pulled up beside her with the Jeep in first gear, his foot working the clutch to keep pace with her stride. "Get in here."
She didn't look at him at all, just kept striding along.
Okay, so he worked for the CIA and he'd been married. Technically, the CIA were the good guys here, and hell, he was divorced. She should be happy. Wilder could never figure women out. He guessed that was why he had exes. Thinking of that reminded him of his next move.
"I'm sorry."
Lucy's head swiveled, and he was appalled to see her blinking back tears.
"Lucy!"
She kept walking, her face stony. "Sorry about what?"
Crap. Lying to her? Getting married twice before he met her? Get-ling sucked into this mess by the CIA? Being born?
"Anything I did to hurt you." That should cover it. "Don't cry."
Lucy came to a halt and turned and faced him, so he shifted into neutral and the Jeep rolled to a stop.
"I'm not crying," she said, and her voice was steady. She stood there for a minute, digesting his words, turning them over, probably deep-frying them. Women. There was a reason he was in the Special Forces with other manly men. Then she said, "Okay. I'm upset."
No shit. He nodded, wary.
"I know I'm overreacting but…" She shook her head. "No but. I'm overreacting, period. You're right, last night was just last night, nothing to get upset about."
She looked at him narrowly, like she was waiting for him to say something, and he nodded again, not sure what to say but pretty sure whatever he said would be wrong.
Lucy cast her eyes to the sky in exasperation. "Oh, stop looking like that. I know you don't have a clue what I'm upset about." She looked at him, straight on. "Do not lie to me again."
Wilder's shoulders relaxed. "Never."
"Because in spite of your ex-wives…" She took a deep breath. "I really do trust you, you bastard."
Wilder nodded. "You can."
She swallowed. "This movie. These people. My family. I'm responsible for them. It's like…" She hesitated. "It's my mission."
Wilder nodded again.
"Which is why I'm not going to let the CIA hijack my set and endanger my team. The team is more important than the mission. I'm shutting down the movie, J.T."
Crap. "Get in the Jeep, Lucy," he said, keeping his voice gentle.
"No more lying."
"I didn't lie," he said. "I just didn't tell you the whole truth."
"That counts," she said and got in.
He shot her a glance. "Then you lied to me too."
She snapped to look at him, scowling. "I never-"
"Daisy's not your sister," he said, knowing she couldn't be. They were just too different.
"She's my sister in every way that matters," Lucy said coldly.
"Adopted?"
Lucy swallowed. "Same foster home."
Shit. "I'm sorry."
"Don't be." Lucy faced forward again. "It was a good home. Nobody hurt us. We were fine. And she's my sister. She is absolutely my sister."
Yeah, Wilder thought. Foster kids always have a good time. Boy, does this explain a lot. "Look-"
"Daisy and I have been sisters since she was one year old and I was five. That's twenty-nine years and that's good enough for me."
Okay, then. "Fasten your seat belt," he said gently.
"J.T., we were fine," Lucy said, but she buckled herself in just as a black car came from the direction of base camp and swerved, screeching to a halt in front of them and blocking their way. Wilder recognized Crawford behind the wheel, dressed in a suit and looking older than the kid he'd been in the diner. Crawford stared at him, a cold look, different from any expression he'd shown before.
"Who the hell is he?" Lucy asked.
"I don't-" Wilder caught himself. "My CIA contact. Name is Crawford."
"What's he doing here?"
"I don't know." Okay, this truth thing is working okay so far. Two for two. "Listen, I wasn't lying when I came on the set. Bryce did hire me. Everything was aboveboard as far as I knew. But the CIA set it all up. That guy"-he jerked his head at Crawford, now coming toward them-"called me out of the blue to meet me after the first day. That was the appointment I went to that day, the day I got Pepper the Wonder Woman doll. He told me about Finnegan."
Lucy tensed. "What about Finnegan?"
Hell, where to start with that? Wilder opened his mouth to answer, but then Crawford was there at his door. He flashed an ID, and Wilder squinted at it. It said Crawford was a Special Agent with the FBI. What the fuck?
"Sir, may I speak to you?"
Wilder couldn't resist. "What?"
"Please step out of the vehicle," Crawford said with a straight face. Either he was very good or he didn't get it. Wilder wasn't so sure anymore.
Wilder opened the door and got out. Crawford put a hand on his arm and directed him away from the Jeep.
"What the hell happened?" Crawford demanded once they were out of earshot. "There's a police report on an accident with a van from the movie shoot."
"The assistant to the director of the film, Stephanie-" Wilder realized he didn't even know her last name. "She took the stunt van to stop the picture from shooting tomorrow because she thought the stunts didn't belong in the movie. Nash has the stuff from the van back."
"Good," Crawford said.
" 'Good'?" Wilder echoed.
"The movie goes as scheduled."
"Why?"
Crawford ignored the question and nodded toward the Jeep. "Who's she?"
Wilder looked back at Lucy, watching them with her arms folded and her eyes narrowed. "That's Lucy Armstrong, the director."
Crawford nodded and dismissed her. "So you ran this Stephanie into the bridge?"
Yeah, and then we waited for the EMTs. "No. It happened before we got there. We called 911 and then waited for them to show."
Crawford nodded. "Just checking. The cops say it looks like she lost control."
Wilder didn't say anything.
"There's no sign of foul play," Crawford continued, filling the silence. He stared at Wilder. "Do you have any reason to suspect otherwise?"