Time to change that.
I lead her out to the deck. "Have a seat, and I'll make you a drink."
"If you spoil me, I might get used to it."
I place my arms on the armrests and bend over her. "Do I get anything else if I spoil you?"
"Extra treats."
"I liked the extra treats last time."
She wraps her hands around my head and kisses me.
"If you keep this up, you won't be getting your drink."
She releases me and pushes me away.
I chuckle. "Guess I know where I rate."
"Well, it was a long plane ride."
"Excuses, excuses. Okay, the sun should be setting soon. Let me make these drinks."
I go back inside and take out all the ingredients, glancing out at Vanessa from time to time.
She's doing so well.
In the last month, she worked with Sloane, and her panic attacks have gotten less severe and frequent. Sloane said they could do virtual meetings to continue therapy, too.
We still haven't had any contact from the guys, and Axel isn't picking up his phone. So Andre, Blaise, and I aren't sure where they are, but we hope they are alive.
After many discussions, we decided that Vanessa and I were safe to come to Australia. We flew in a private plane and used our fake passports to be extra cautious. But we're able to stay connected via technology to Andre, Blaise, and Naomi.
Interpol wanted me to come back and join another team until Andre and the rest of our squad are back together, but I told them no. Now that I have Vanessa, I'm not sure if I'll ever go back. I'm definitely not leaving her while the Global Leaders are still out there and the rest of the guys are missing.
I make the drinks and take them out to the deck.
"Wow. You even made it look pretty," she gushes.
"Wait till you taste it."
"I didn't realize you were such a frozen-drink connoisseur."
"I'm not. I've been researching."
"Really? For me?"
"Yep."
Her face lights up. "You're a keeper, Hunter Ward."
"You haven't tried it yet."
She takes a sip then another. "This is seriously good. What is it?"
"Rosé champagne and cherry granita cocktails."
"Fancy," she teases.
"Nothing but the best for my girl." I wink.
We stare at the water for several moments, and I inhale the salt air.
"Does it feel good to be back?"
I turn to her. "Yeah. I'm ready to surf tomorrow."
"I think I'll watch you tomorrow before I try it. My neck is a bit sore from the plane."
I sit up straighter and pat between my legs.
She sits down, and I rub the knots out of her neck.
"I'll need to set up my new schedule with Sloane since we have a big time difference," she says.
"Whenever you need to have your sessions, we'll work around it."
"Okay."
We stay on the deck until the sun goes down, and when we get inside, we make dinner together.
"I'm so glad you had someone grocery shop before we got here," Vanessa says.
"Agreed."
We eat and go to bed, trying to combat the jet lag. My alarm rings when it's still dark, and Vanessa is still sleeping.
I sneak out of bed and put on the wetsuit that's in my closet.
She stirs. "Hey."
I sit on the bed and stroke her cheek. "Try to sleep some more if you can. The jet lag won't be as bad."
"But you're up."
"You know I don't need as much sleep as you," I reply.
"I want to watch you surf."
"I'll be out there awhile. And if you don't watch today, you can tomorrow." I lean down and kiss her. "Go back to sleep."
She curls into the pillow, and sleepily replies, "Okay."
The sun is starting to rise when I get into the water. I surf for hours, and when I finish, she's still sleeping. I take a shower and crawl back into bed.
We sleep for several more hours. When I wake up, she's on the phone, softly talking and pacing.
"Naomi, I don't understand. Why can't you run it?"
Run it? We discussed not publishing anything yet.
I sit up in bed.
"But we're safe here."
Flower, what are you doing?
"What about Emilia?"
She runs her hand through her hair.
"When? And is she okay? What about Malin?"
"Are they in Bermuda?" I blurt out, and Vanessa jumps. "Sorry to startle you."
She turns and puts the phone on speaker. "Hunter just woke up. You're on speaker."
"Hey, Hunter."
"Naomi. What's going on?"
"The U.S. President just proposed to inject another $50 billion into the War on Drugs budget."
"Which is why we need to get this out now. That doubles their annual spending. It's all part of the plan," Vanessa insists.
"Emilia is getting closer to me. My dreams confirm it. If they are in the U.S., there's a reason."
I grab the phone. "Naomi, what do you mean they are in the U.S.?"
"Kalim called Andre. He's tracked them there."
"He knows where they are at?"
"No. He lost them, but as of Monday, they were still in the States."
"Where?"
"In D.C., at an embassy party."
Embassy party...?
"Why would they go there?" I ask.
"I'm not sure."
"Naomi," Andre's voice booms through the phone, and Vanessa jumps.
I scoot closer to her and put my arm around her.
"Hold on," Naomi says.
"That money accelerates the plan. It wasn't supposed to happen for another year. They've gained more power," Vanessa insists.
"Oh my," Naomi gasps.
Vanessa's eyes widen. "Naomi, what is it?"
"Zoe's on the news. Hold on."
I grab the remote and turn on the international news channel and hit mute on the phone. There's a video of Zoe being mobbed, and she disappears into the sea of people.
A male news anchor reports, "As of this broadcast, the management team for Zoe Diego is not disclosing where she is or any other details regarding her whereabouts or health."
"That crowd looked dangerous. I hope she's okay," the woman on TV says.
"I think the bigger question is, where has she been all these months? She seems to have a history of disappearing and reappearing."
"Or maybe she's a ghost, since she seems to have completely vanished, without a clue as to where she's gone again."
The story changes to something else, and I turn the TV off, then hit the unmute button.
"Did you see it?" Andre asks.
"Yeah. Where did that happen?" I ask.
"Nuevo Laredo, Mexico."
"Isn't that near the border between Mexico and Texas?"
"Yep. And you know what that means."
"There's a high probability Dirk's with her."
Vanessa twists her fingers. "That would be good news. But I hope they didn't hurt her. That crowd was fierce."