“You’re saying Samer kept his laptop inside the house, rather than take it with him?” Atwell sounded a bit unconvinced. “Why would he leave something like that behind?”
“He said something about not wanting to risk anyone finding that kind of evidence on him or in his apartment or car or wherever.” Elias shrugged. “I thought it was weird, but whatever. It’s not like I was going to argue with the dude. The guy’s crazy.”
“You’re right.” Atwell began gathering up the photos and putting them back into the folder. “Heiscrazy. Which is why we need to find him before he has the chance to detonate that bomb.” Pushing herself to her feet, she kept a no-bullshit tone when she added, “For your sake, and your family’s, you’d better hope like hell that we do.”
Raegan watched as the federal agent turned and walked out of the door. Taking it as their cue to also leave, she and Rocky went into the hallway to meet with her.
“We need to go back to that house,” Raegan told the other woman the second she saw her.
“I’m going to gather up my team now. If that computer’s there, we’ll find it.”
“I’d like to be there.”
“Not this time.” Atwell’s long, brown ponytail swayed back and forth with a shake of the woman’s head. “But I will keep the both of you posted on what we find.”
“Anything we can do in the meantime?” Rocky offered.
The other woman looked at them both and nodded. With a solemn tone and seriousness in her pretty blue gaze, she said, “You can pray we find that computer. Because without it…we have no Samer.”
And he was the key to finding the bomb.
Twenty minutes and one silent car ride later, and Rocky was walking Raegan to her front stoop. “I hate this.”
“The waiting?”
She stopped, nodding to him as they reached her door. “I just feel so useless.”
In the sweetest show of support and comfort, he reached up and cupped her cheek. “You’re far from useless, sweetheart.”
Raegan fixed her gaze to his as she relished the feel of his gentle touch. “We have to find that bomb, Rocky.”
It wasn’t even about finding Samer anymore. Did she want the asshole to burn in hell for all he’d done? Absolutely. But her priority had to be to the people of Chicago, first and foremost, and if they couldn’t locate the bomb in time?—
“We’ll find it.”
An odd, unfamiliar fluttering rippled through her swelling heart. Placing a palm against his chest, she kept her eyes locked with his when she asked, “How do you do that?”
“Do what?” His light brows bunched together in the center.
“Always know the right thing to say.”
“It’s a gift.”
She smiled, loving that he could do that to her, even in the midst of trying to stop a terrorist from blowing the city to oblivion.
Rocky started to lean in closer. Understanding his intent, Raegan lifted onto her tiptoes to meet him halfway.
Their lips met in a soft, chaste, lovingly sweet kiss.
“It’s late, and you’ve had a helluva day,” he whispered as he leaned his forehead against hers. “I should go home so you can get some rest.”
“You could do that.” She pulled back, because she really wanted to be looking into his eyes when she said, “Or you could stay here tonight.” The tip of her tongue gave her lips a nervous lick. “With me.”
Leaving the ball in his court, Raegan dropped her hand and turned to unlock her front door. Pushing it open, she took a few steps into her living room before stopping for a quick glance over her shoulder.
Her heart kicked hard against her ribs as Rocky’s booted feet crossed over her threshold. He shut the door behind him before securing the locks and walking to her.
Without a word, the first man to make her think of things like a future filled with passion and hope covered the distance between them. Raegan held out her hand and waited.