Secured Secret by Charity Parkerson Page A

wonderingly. He thought he’d have to make a spectacle of himself but she loved him too. He didn’t really want to make a fool of himself. However, he would have if she had kicked up a fuss, except that she already loved him simply because she did. “Wow,” he said again.
    “You just said that.”
    “It’s still true.”
    A small frown appeared between her brows. “You can’t really be all that surprised. You’re perfect in every way.”
    He snorted at her words. “I’m not perfect. I’m a workaholic and,” he searched around for more faults to point out about himself since he didn’t like being thought of as perfect—that was a tall pedestal to fall from. “And I snore,” he added.
    She nodded her head solemnly. “I bet you pick up after yourself too.”
    “Well of course I do, I mean, I live alone. If I don’t do it, who else will?”
    She burst out laughing, finally after a deep breath, she seemed to have it all out of her system, but her eyes were still shining as she said. “I love you, Shannon.”

CHAPTER FIVE
    Six months later- Murfreesboro, Tennessee
    The distance between Shannon and him had grown by leaps and bounds over the last several months, leaving Weave at a loss as to how to fix it. They were receiving considerable amounts of work from the contacts they made while in Abernathy, and now Shannon divided his time between the two places, making it even more difficult for Weave to try. Shannon had been gone the past two weeks, only returning a day earlier. They hadn’t exchanged two words since his return even though their offices we’re right next to each other, and he knew Shannon would be leaving again the next day to return to Texas making it impossible, once again, for Weave to nail him down for a much needed talk. He was debating the merits of storming Shannon’s office when Bob skidded to a halt outside the open doors of Weave and Shannon’s offices. He bent at the waist in an attempt to catch his breath, managing to gasp out: “Turn the T.V. to channel 2.”
    Both men shot out of their seats since Bob wasn’t one for dramatics. Shannon was the first to find the remote, and he flipped through the channels, finding the right one. A special news report was flashing across the screen, and as an anchorman read the story, a picture of a burning building with a huge presence of emergency personnel played on a screen behind him. “Sources confirm that at least fifteen are dead and dozens more are injured tonight after a car bomb exploded in front of F.B.I. headquarters in Abernathy Texas earlier today. The names of the victims are yet to be released pending the notification of family members.”
    The three men along with Mookie, who was attracted by all the attention, stood in a shocked silence, and Weave felt the world sway beneath his feet. Bob reached out to steady him, holding his gaze as he breathed. “Genie.”
    “We don’t know anything yet,” Bob reassured him. “Let Shannon call around and find something out.”
    It was only then that he noticed Shannon was indeed already making calls.
    “There’s no answer on her cell phone,” he called over his shoulder. “I’m going to try her brother and see if her family knows anything.”
    Her brother must have answered right away because Shannon switched his attention back to his phone. “Hey it’s Shannon, how bad is it?” He listened intently and when Shannon lifted his eyes to meet his, Weave knew the news wasn’t good but still he held his breath and prayed.
    “Thanks for letting me know, and don’t hesitate to call if you need anything or if you hear anything more. I’ll let you know if I hear anything on my end.”
    Shannon slid his phone into his back pocket. “She was inside the building at the time of the explosion, but that’s all they know so far. They haven’t been able to reach her or any members of her team and Jacob can’t get a flight out for three more hours which means I probably won’t be able to