Bodie by Nyssa Kathryn

Chapter 20

Bodie stepped off the ice with Wyatt at his side. They’d only been on the ice for ten minutes, but he already wanted a break. Watching the women skate felt a whole lot more fun to him than falling on his ass.

Sitting down, Bodie and Wyatt replaced their skates for shoes, all the while keeping the women in their vision. Oliver had skipped the ice-skating to do a perimeter check.

It was midafternoon. They’d been at the fair for a couple of hours but had spent most of that time eating burritos and sitting for a caricaturist. This was the first physically exerting activity Maya had attempted, and he didn’t think she’d last long.

Once they both had shoes on, Bodie and Wyatt leaned against the railing and watched Maya and Quinn glide on the ice. Both women had smiles on their faces.

“Do you hear it?” Bodie asked, without drawing his gaze from Maya.

“The whooshing in her chest?” It didn’t surprise Bodie that his friend didn’t need to ask to know what he was referring to. “I did.”

Bodie had heard it at other times. Today it was louder. More constant.

Wyatt ran a hand through his hair. “Did you ask her about it?”

Yes. That was the annoying part. “The couple of times we’ve been alone today, I tried asking if she was okay. Even specifically mentioned her heart. Both times she said we’d talk later.”

He knew that today was about fun, but her safety was his priority. If she had something she needed to talk to him about, if something was wrong, he wanted to know now.

“The woman clearly likes to keep her cards close to her chest. It’s no surprise she doesn’t want to say anything around people she’s just met. We’ll get a room at a hotel tonight. Give you guys some privacy.”

The offer brought Bodie some relief. His friends had planned to take the spare room and the couch, but Bodie and Maya needed time to talk about her health. He scrubbed a hand over his face. “Her breathing’s been off today, too.”

“I can do a deeper check on her medical history if you want?”

Did Bodie want that? It was tempting. But it was also an overstep. He wanted Maya to talk to him. If a relationship with the woman was the goal, trust between them was important.

“I’ll see how tonight goes.” Wyatt would be his last resort.

His friend nodded.

Bodie shot a quick glance around. “Ax must be sick of us to have disappeared for so long.”

“Maybe he got distracted by a woman during his check.”

A smile tugged at Bodie’s lips. It wasn’t a surprise that Oliver and Kye were the last single men standing. Neither of them had ever shown the slightest interest in pursuing anything long-term with a woman.

Wyatt clamped a hand on Bodie’s shoulder. “I’m glad you’ve found someone who makes you happy, my friend. You deserve it.”

The smile on Bodie’s face grew. “We’re new, and we have stuff to work through. Her health being one of them. Her moving to Marble Falls another. But I care about her.” Bodie paused. “I think I might be falling in love with her.”

Every moment he spent with her just confirmed it.

“Nothing crazy about that. Love doesn’t know time and it doesn’t ask permission. It just hits you square in the face.”

That was damn true. “It’s different to how I thought it would be.”

“How so?”

“I thought love would touch one part of me. Maybe the part of my heart that had been vacant.” How wrong he’d been. “I feel it everywhere. This all-consuming need to be with her. To protect and love her. It’s wrecked me. But at the same time, it’s breathed new life into me.”

Wyatt’s lips stretched into a smile. “That’s love.”

“Lucky that Rocket was the first to experience it. If I hadn’t seen you guys go through it, I might have been scared of its intensity.”

“Rocket’s fearless.”

Yes, he was. “Have him and Evie set a date for the big day yet?”

Luca, Rocket to the team, was the first in the group to meet the love of his life. They’d gotten engaged not that long ago. Everyone on the team was eager to know when the couple was tying the knot.

“Nope. He’s thinking of having a ceremony with just us and a bigger wedding later. I think the guy’s on edge that it will never happen. He’s sick of waiting.”

Bodie scowled. “If we could just find that asshole Hylar, we wouldn’t need to put our lives on hold or hesitate over big decisions.”

It wasn’t enough that their former commander had to impact their pasts by injecting them with experimental drugs, he also had to affect their present.

“I feel your rage, brother. He’ll get what’s coming to him.”

That needed to be true. For everyone’s sake.

Taking his eyes from Maya, Bodie scanned the area. He was about to turn his attention back to the rink when something caught his eye…or someone. Someone familiar.

The person disappeared before Bodie could be sure it was him.

Straightening, Bodie studied the crowd, searching. After a few seconds, he caught sight of the man again.

“We have company.”

He felt the shift in Wyatt straightaway. From relaxed to alert. “Who?”

“Agent Sinclair.”

Wyatt swore under his breath. “What the hell is he doing here? He’s supposed to be on leave.”

“The asshole’s watching us,” Bodie said with deadly calm.

“Or watching Maya?” Wyatt suggested.

Sinclair had been searching for Maya since the lab break-in. She was the only surviving witness, but she’d disappeared, leaving the agent short of answers.

Bodie took a step toward the crowd. “You watch the women. I’ll go.”

He’d find out why the agent was here. And if it was for Maya, Sinclair would need to get on board with the fact that Bodie wasn’t leaving her side. Not for a second.

* * *

“Guessthey couldn’t hack the ice any longer.”

Maya laughed at Quinn’s comment. “I don’t ever want to leave. Don’t get me wrong, I’m very aware of how terrible I am. You and Bodie have had to scrape me off the ice more times than I care to count. But I love it. Choosing Keystone was a good decision.”

She’d researched towns extensively. The moment the image of a frozen Keystone Lake had popped up, her decision had been made.

“You like skating?” Quinn asked.

“This is my first time…don’t tell me you didn’t notice.”

Quinn’s brow furrowed in surprise. “Well, you’re a quick learner.”

Yeah, right. Maya wasn’t even going to pretend to believe the other woman. “It’s okay, I know I suck. It doesn’t bother me.”

Quinn laughed.

Maya shrugged. “I always wanted to go ice skating but I’ve never had the opportunity.” Growing up, no foster family had taken her skating. Then she’d spent her adult life studying and working. “I wanted my own Lorelai moment.”

“Your own Lorelai moment?”

Maya chuckled. “I watched a lot of Gilmore Girls growing up, and Lorelai had this love for snow. There’s this one scene where Luke builds her a skating rink in her own backyard. When she skated on it, she was just so…happy.”

And free.

“Your parents never took you?”

“I grew up in foster care.” Maya slowed as they approached the turn. This is where she usually hit the ice with her butt. “None of the families ever took me.”

Quinn reached out and clasped Maya’s hand. Over the day, she’d slowly started to get used to the other woman’s easy affection. “Now you have Bodie and us.”

Her heart warmed at Quinn’s words. The other woman was easy to like.

As Maya breathed in her next breath, she felt the familiar constriction of her airways. Even though they’d taken it relatively easy over the day, the tightness hadn’t faded.

She rubbed a hand over her chest.

Quinn’s hand tightened around hers. “You okay?”

Just like she had with Bodie, Maya smiled and nodded. She needed to tell Bodie what she was feeling. That’s exactly what she intended to do once they were alone tonight. “I’m okay.”

Quinn’s intelligent eyes studied Maya’s face. “Are you sure? Because I remember you telling me you had a heart defect. I looked it up, it can be pretty serious depending on how large the hole is.”

“You looked it up?”

“Of course. I was worried about you.”

It still astounded Maya that she and Quinn had only met once, but she’d clearly left an impact on the other woman. “That’s nice of you to be worried. It’s probably just a bit too much exercise for my unfit butt, but do you mind if we have a break?”

“Of course,” Quinn said, as they headed to the exit. “And Bodie told Wyatt about your morning runs. Trust me, if either of us gets the label of ‘unfit,’ it’s me.”

When they reached the edge of the rink, Maya spotted Bodie moving away from Wyatt and into the crowd. Quinn walked straight into Wyatt’s waiting arms. Even with her skates on, she wasn’t close to reaching his height.

Maya sat on the bench. “Where did Bodie get to?”

When Wyatt was silent for a few moments, she looked up to see him studying the crowd.

Quinn sat beside her. “He’s probably trying to isolate the sounds. Listening to something.”

“Got you.” Wyatt said the words under his breath, but both Maya and Quinn heard.

Once Maya’s shoes were on, she searched for Bodie in the crowd. It only took her a few seconds to spot him. He came in and out of view as people milled around him.

He wasn’t alone. He was talking to a man who stood a couple of inches shorter than him. They were across the park and a fair distance away.

Standing, she placed her hands on her hips. Wyatt remained silent. If he could hear the conversation from that far, and with all the people, Maya would be seriously impressed.

Maya turned to Quinn, who stood as well. “Do you know who that guy is?”

Quinn shook her head. “No clue. By the expression on Mr. Serious’ face here, it’s someone important.”

Wyatt pulled his phone from his pocket. “I’m just gonna call Ax.” He took a step away from both Maya and Quinn.

Just then, the tightening in Maya’s chest worsened to the point her breath was stolen completely. Leaning over, she placed her hands on her knees.

God, it rarely got this bad.

Quinn put a hand on her back. “Hey! You okay?”

No. She didn’t think she was. Her body needed rest. “Do you think Bodie will mind if I interrupt him? I don’t feel very good?”

Quinn turned her head, making a gesture to Wyatt that they were going to Bodie before turning back to Maya. “Let’s get a bit closer and see if we can get his attention.”

Nodding, Maya straightened. As they drew closer, she studied the other man’s face. There was nothing remarkable about him. He was of average height, with brown hair and eyes. Fit, but nowhere near Bodie’s level of fit. But he had a look about him. A look that made Maya almost certain he was accustomed to being listened to.

Definitely a man of authority.

They were halfway there when the sound of his voice drifted in their direction. It was faint over the noise of the crowd—but it had her feet freezing to the spot.

She’d heard that voice before. Not only in real life, but also in her nightmares. It had been on repeat for months. Tormenting her day and night.

Ringing sounded in her ears. So loud that every other noise was wiped out.

Quinn moved directly in front of her, grabbing Maya’s arms. But she barely saw or felt the other woman. Every muscle in her body screamed at her to run. To get away from the danger. She took a hurried step back. Then another. Her breaths were coming out in short pants.

Go!

Her brain screamed the word before she began moving. Away from him.

Agent Sinclair.

Maya weaved her way through the crowd. Dammit, people kept getting in her way! Bumping into her. Slowing her down.

Why was Bodie speaking to him? Did they know each other? Had they worked together? Oh god! She hoped not.

Slow. She felt way too slow. She forced her feet to move faster. She was vaguely aware of the pain in her chest increasing. That she was barely getting air to her lungs. But that was secondary. Getting away was the priority.

Maya was now running. She darted through the flock of people like she was being chased by an army. The fear cascading through her mind was blinding.

She’d made it to the outskirts of the fair when she collided with a large body.

Oliver held her arms tightly, stopping her from rebounding back onto the ground. When Maya tried to pull away, his fingers tightened like manacles. “Whoa, darlin’. Everything okay?”

No. Everything was far from okay.

She opened her mouth to tell him exactly that but she couldn’t, because all her energy was being spent on her breaths.

“Breathe. In and out.”

She tried. Oh lord, did she try. “I-I can’t.”

Oliver wrapped his arms around her. One moment they were out in the open, the next they were standing in a quiet corner in between two buildings.

She felt the coolness of a wall behind her and the warmth of his hand on her arm. With his other hand, he pulled out his phone and pressed some keys before shoving it back in his pocket.

Darkness was starting to dim her vision.

She was going to pass out.

“No…no hospital.” She gasped the words to him. If she passed out, and he took her to a hospital, the agent would find her more easily. But what if they were all friends with him? He’d find her anyway.

She could see Oliver’s mouth moving, but the buzzing in her ears had grown louder.

She turned her head just in time to see Bodie running toward them. Before he could reach her, she lost consciousness.