And I fell asleep with a smile on my face, despite the hell I was in.

I leaned back against the car seat, my eyes focused out the window. Hernandez was driving me to the airport so I wouldn’t have to leave my car there, and all I could do was sit there listlessly.

It had been close to two weeks now. Two weeks with no Finn.

I was absolutely miserable.

I kept going out of my way to live my life like normal. To not be one of those girls who was miserable because her boyfriend was gone. But my boyfriend wasn’t away on a vacation or visiting home. He was away getting shot at or attacked.

I had nightmares about it every night, and I barely slept.

I’d tried to fill my days with activities. I’d studied. I’d even rock climbed and dragged Marie there with me. We’d skateboarded again a few times for fun, drank more coffee than was healthy, and even gone out dancing a few times.

Yeah. Me. Dancing.

Finn would never believe it, even though I told him every day what I did.

He always wrote back with encouragement and enthusiasm about my activities, but I felt almost guilty telling him the things I was up to.

While he worked, I danced and drank coffee. How was that fair?

Hernandez cleared his throat. “I heard from Coram last night.”

“Oh yeah?” I sat up straight. “What did he say?”

“He thanked me for watching you and threatened my life if I failed in my job of protecting you.” He shot me a grin. “You know, the usual.”

I rolled my eyes. “He wouldn’t actually kill you. He likes you too much.”

“Um, I think he likes you more.” He chuckled. “I don’t kiss him or fu—” He broke off, his cheeks going red. “Well, you know.”

“You can say dirty words in front of me,” I said, my tone dry. He reminded me of how Finn was before we connected—all cautious and reserved. Ah, who was I kidding? He had never been cautious around me. “I won’t tell my dad.”

“I’m more worried about you telling Coram. I don’t want him getting the wrong idea. You know?”

Like what? That we were flirting?

I looked over at him, eyeing him critically. I hadn’t really paid him much attention, to be honest. He’d just been the guy who followed me around. The guy who wasn’t Finn. I mean, he was nice and all, but we hadn’t talked much.

He was cute. Really, really cute.

He had the same lightly tanned skin and dark hair that most men of Spanish descent had and dark brown eyes. There were tons of muscles and a few tattoos, just like Finn. He was a stunner.

If Marie ever saw him, she’d be all over him like white on rice. She loved exotic men, and he definitely fit the bill. Which got me thinking… “Are you single?”

He shot me a narrow eyed look. “Yeah.”

“I have a friend. Her name’s Marie. Blonde. Pretty.” I tapped my fingers on the door. “Maybe when Finn gets back we can double-date or something.”

“Uh…” Hernandez ran a hand over his short hair. “Yeah, maybe. We’ll see.”

I pulled out my phone. The home screen was Finn and me on “Christmas” night. I’d have to fix that before I touched down in D.C. I pulled up the picture of Marie at Starbucks the other day and held it out. “Here she is.”

He stopped at the stoplight and looked, disinterest on his face until he focused on the phone. He leaned closer and grinned. “Okay. We’ll do it once Coram’s back.”

“Deal.” I laughed and shoved the phone in my purse. “Tell me, how did you two meet?”

He pulled forward and merged into the left lane. “At drill. When he moved out here, he told me how he was babysitting some spoiled little brat for a year.” He shot me an apologetic smile. “Oops. Sorry.”

“I know what he thought of me at first,” I said, shaking my head. “It’s not exactly news to me.”

“I know. But then I asked for the whole story and all he would tell me is you were a politician’s daughter and you’d never known a day of freedom in your life. We got closer over the weekend, and made plans to hang out the next weekend.”

I nodded. “And then?”

“We met up for drinks and he said, ‘Dude. I was wrong. She’s not spoiled and I like her a lot. I’m fucked.’” Hernandez laughed. “I remember the look of panic on his face. He looked like he was in hell and about to fall off a ledge into the fiery pits.”

I pursed my lips. “How long after he met me was this?”

“I think a week?”

“So we’d already kissed.” I smiled. “Yeah, he was ‘fucked,’ all right.”

“He told me about it. Told me he’d never met anyone like you but he couldn’t have you.” Hernandez pulled into the airport. “He also told me about your dad blackmailing him, basically, about his dad’s pension. Did you know they’ve been friends for years? His dad and your dad? He begged Coram’s dad to come work for him in D.C.”

I blinked at Hernandez. “I didn’t know that, no. If he’s friends with Larry, why would he threaten to take away his bonus?”

“I think it’s just that. A threat.”

“You don’t think he’d do it?”

“I don’t know much about your dad. Just what I’ve gotten from his texts. But it seems to me that if a man begs a buddy to come out and work with him…” Hernandez turned the car off and gripped the door handle. “Then the last thing he’ll do is take his friend’s money. Right?”

I nodded. “You’d think so.”

“I think your dad struck where he thought it would hurt Coram most. To make sure he would keep his hands to himself.” Hernandez opened the door. “So he got Coram to agree to those terms.”

I opened my door and got out, meeting Hernandez at the back of the car. “Yeah. Maybe.”

“He’s been very nice to me. Checks in a lot, but I already knew what to expect.” He pulled out my luggage and set it on the pavement. “You have everything? Passport, ID, tickets?”

I patted my purse. “A politician’s daughter never travels without that stuff. I got that drummed in to my head at a young age. Oh, and hey?”

He looked at me. “Yeah?”

“Thanks for taking me to Finn’s guy for my tattoo. I can’t wait to show Finn when he gets home.” I pressed a hand to my hip. “It’s his present.”

He smiled. “Anytime. It gave me some ideas for my next one.” He motioned me forward, my luggage behind him. “You walk, I’ll pull.”

We passed a military vet with a sign asking for a ride to San Diego. I reached into my purse and handed him some money and a gift card to McDonald’s. “Good luck, sir. I hope you get home.”

“Thank you, miss,” the man said, squeezing my hand and smiling up at me.

Hernandez stood behind me, hovering close enough to grab me and protect me if necessary. “If you don’t mind, I can give him a ride there after I leave,” he murmured in my ear. “But it’s your car.”

I nodded. “This man will give you a ride, if you’d like. He’ll be out in a few minutes.”

“Bless you.” The man shook Hernandez’s hand. “Bless you.”

Hernandez inclined his head. “I’m always willing to help out a fellow member of the military, sir.”

After the arrangements were made for the man to remain where he was and wait for Hernandez to come back, we went into the airport. He shook his head. “Coram wasn’t kidding about you wanting to save the world and everyone in it, was he?”

I flushed. “I wouldn’t say that. I just like to help.”

“You’re going to school to be a therapist, right?”

“Yeah.” I smiled and swiped my card down the slot for the baggage claim and ticket printout. “It’s a good fit for me.”

“I believe that.” He set the baggage on the scale and watched as I checked in and paid. Once I was finished, he held out his right hand. “Well, have a nice trip. I’ll be here waiting for you, if Coram’s not stateside yet.”

“Thanks, Hernandez.” I shook his hand and laughed at myself. “I have to stop calling you that. Your name is Joe, right?”