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When they reached the tarmac, Brad reached over and took Avery’s hand in his.
As always, when this man touched her, the nerves under her skin tingled.
In some ways, she wished she’d met Brad years ago, but then he might not have been the same man she was falling in love with.
The notion that she loved him had startled her when she’d realized it about a month ago, and she still didn’t have a clue if that love was reciprocated.
Neither one had said the word to the other, but she knew he felt something strong toward her since he’d told her he’d never introduced a woman he was dating to his daughter before.
Avery hoped she and the younger woman liked each other because she knew, even though they rarely had a chance to see each other, Lori and her approval meant a lot to Brad.
As they entered the terminal, a blast of air conditioning cooled the perspiration that’d formed on Avery’s skin during the short walk from the plane.
The building wasn’t large, compared to its US counterparts, and everything—car rentals, waiting areas, check-in counters, and baggage claim—were all in full view.
To their right, there was a VIP lounge. Large mirrors on the wall next to the door were probably one-way glass—those inside the lounge could see out, while those outside could only see the main area of the terminal reflecting back at them.
Avery and Brad joined the rest of the passengers from their flight at baggage claim.
They could see out on the tarmac that the plane’s cargo area was still being unloaded.
Avery looked up at Brad. “Why don’t you go get our car?
I’ll wait here for the bags. Then we can load them up and come back in to wait for Lori and Cameron. ”
“Sounds good. I’ll be right back.” Before walking away, he leaned down and gave her a gentle kiss, which Avery felt all the way to her toes. Damn, he turned her on.
It was a few minutes before the carts with their luggage arrived, and after finding hers and Brad’s, Avery added them to their two carry-ons.
A few feet away was a row of stationary chairs, and she wheeled the four pieces over to them and took a seat to wait for him.
She took a few moments to people watch—something she always did, but not for the same reasons others did—it was instinct for her to assess who was around her and to look for anyone or anything out of place.
A tingling caused the hairs on the back of her neck to rise, and not the same tingling she’d felt when Brad had taken her hand or kissed her.
Acting nonchalantly, Avery stood again, then did a slow three-sixty, trying to figure out who or what was causing her inner “oh, shit” radar to spike.
No one appeared to have her in their sights, nor did anyone seem to be a threat—to Avery or anyone else.
There were several uniformed security officers walking about, but none were alarmed by anything.
Arriving and departing passengers milled about, and airline personnel were performing their assigned jobs.
Avery glanced at the VIP lounge but couldn’t see anyone inside.
“You okay, sweetheart?”
She turned to face Brad. “Yeah. Just getting a weird vibe in here.”
He frowned and glanced around, not even questioning what she meant. That was one of the good things about dating someone in special ops—he didn’t need her to explain things when it came to moments like this. “Anyone out of place?”
“No. Maybe my Spidey-sense is off.”
They both took in their surroundings, but after several more moments without anyone standing out, Avery shrugged. “I must be mistaken.”
“Brad!”
The young woman’s voice calling his name caught their attention. Beside Avery, Brad smiled. “Hey, sweetheart. How was your flight?”
Lori Barton was five foot eight, with a slender figure.
Her long, honey-brown hair was pulled up into a ponytail, and her gray eyes were exactly like her father’s.
Dressed in white capri pants and a navy-blue tank top, she proudly showed off her full sleeve of tattoos on her left arm.
A colorful butterfly adorned her right ankle just above her navy flip-flops.
Brad had warned Avery that Lori had been calling him by his first name since she’d hit the rebellious age of fourteen.
It irked him, but he’d learned to pick his battles with his daughter a long time ago—especially when he only got to see her a few short weekends a year.
At least she called her stepfather by his first name too—although it was a small consolation.
As the father and daughter hugged each other, Avery turned her attention to the young man who stood waiting to be introduced. She smiled at him. “Cameron?”
“Yes, ma’am.” If his polite response hadn’t clued her into the fact he was in the military, his tightly shorn, black hair and proud stature sure did. His brown eyes also didn’t seem to miss a thing about their surroundings.
Avery held out her hand. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m Avery Knapp.”
“Cameron McGee,” he clarified as he shook her hand. “It’s a pleasure, ma’am.”
Lori stepped back from Brad. “Cam, this is my dad, Brad.” She gave her father a reproachful glare. “This is Cameron. Be nice.”
Brad frowned. “When am I not nice?”
“When you’re being the colonel or glaring at any man who dared to eye your daughter.”
“It’s my job, little girl.”
“Brad,” Lori responded with a huff. “I’m not a little girl anymore. I haven’t been for a while.”
Reaching up, he tugged on her ponytail. “You’ll always be my little girl, even when you have one of your own.” Brad waved at Avery to step closer. “Lori, this is Avery.”
“Hi. My dad told me all about you.” Avery was certain Brad hadn’t told his daughter quite everything but, of course, she didn’t mention that. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”
“Same here. I’m so glad you both could join us for a few days.”
Brad reluctantly extended a hand to her boyfriend, who returned the gesture. “Cameron, what branch and rank are you?”
The young man didn’t appear fazed by the curt greeting, which earned him a few more points in Avery’s eyes. “Marine Corps, sir. Corporal. Based out of Camp Lejeune.”
He nodded, not showing any signs of being impressed or cordial. “Brigadier General MacAskie’s command?”
“Yes, sir. He’s a good commander.”
“That he is. What’s your assignment?”
Before Cameron could respond, Lori rolled her eyes and interrupted, “Can we save the interrogation for later, please? There’s a pina colada calling my name at the hotel, and it would be rude to not answer.”
Avery grinned, and, after a moment, Brad followed suit. “Fine. Avery’s been craving a Mai Tai, so let’s get your bags and go.”
Five minutes later, all their luggage collected, the foursome was walking out the door toward where their rental was waiting, but not before Avery glanced back over her shoulder one more time, still feeling like she was being watched.