Page 118 of The Honeymoon Hack

“I’m working on a plan with another party about next steps,” Evelyn added.

“Details?” asked Scarlett.

“We’ll discuss when I’m certain.” Another secret. Another need-to-know limitation. Six months ago, that would have frustrated me. But I was learning to accept that some information had to stay compartmentalized. Mum knew what she was doing.

The call concluded with discussions about logistics and timelines. Mum talked about coordinating with legal contacts. Drew told us Gideon was planning a trip to the Bahamas toassess the damage from Lark’s explosions and check on the resort after the hurricane.

When the screen went dark, Rav stood and rolled his shoulders. “I should check in with the Pendragon team. See if they need anything else.”

“Rav?” I looked up at him.

Something flickered behind his eyes.

Maybe that was what I was looking for. “Will mentioned you worked with one of the men on the Pendragon team, but that there was something between you and the woman.”

“Brooke.” The muscles in his jaw flexed. “We’ve crossed paths before.”

“Professionally?”

“What’s your real question, Brie?”

“Is she the woman you told me about?” I studied his face, searching for a crack. In his room last night, before Pendragon, Lark, and my world almost shattered, he’d helped me understand that avoiding risk was sometimes another way of guaranteeing loss. “The one you said you regretted not taking a chance with?”

He picked up the laptop he’d brought, staring at it for a moment before snapping it shut. “It’s complicated.”

“Most things that are worthwhile are.” I kept my voice gentle. Rav had been there for me when I needed someone to talk sense into me about Will. He’d picked up a gun, strapped body armor on, and charged in to save me and Will. The least I could do was encourage him to face the fears he had shared with me.

He was quiet for a long moment. “I was assigned as part of a security detail for the research team she was part of.”

“What kind of research was it?”

“The kind that puts you in the middle of a war zone because the work is too important to wait for peace.” His gaze shifted tothe door, and for a second, I was sure he was about to leave. “Some stories don’t have happy endings, Brie.”

“But lots do?”

“Not mine, I’m afraid.” He touched my shoulder, gave me a sad smile, and left, closing the door with a little too much force. I stared at the door, half of me wanting to chase after him until he had the same realization I had. But what did I know about wartime romances?

“That was… interesting?” Will closed my laptop and came to sit next to me on the bed. He wrapped one arm around my shoulders, and I nestled in close. “What do you want to do now?”

“I can’t go to The Bridge and work. Can’t help Ashley while we’re still here, and I worry someone’s monitoring our connection.”

“Meeting’s done.” He used his knuckles to tilt my face. “It’s not lunchtime yet.”

A pulse started between my thighs. “Whatever shall we do?”

“I think?—”

A knock on the door interrupted him. Will and I exchanged glances—we weren’t expecting anyone.

Will went to the door and opened it, revealing Ronnie, who looked harried and exhausted. His long braid had strands escaping around his face, and there were dark smudges on his hands and cheek.

“There you are,” he said.

“Nowhere else to go right now,” Will replied, and I stifled a laugh.

“Good, because I need a hand.” Ronnie stepped into the room, gesturing broadly. “Look, I don’t care you turned out to be some kind of spy or whatever. You’re still the best tech I’ve worked with in years, and I’ve got more broken servers than I can handle. Half our infrastructure is slag, corporate’s breathing down our necks about restoration timelines, and I’vegot too many junior techs with soft hands who won’t go near the incident site.”

“It’s hardly half.” Will released the door and followed Ronnie in. “Plus, I’m not actually a Mnemis employee, Ronnie.”