Free Protecting Fate by Katee Robert Page B

mercenary business? You seem like you would have fit in just fine with the normal military.”
    He had. He had fucking loved it. But the choice had been taken away because of one shitty decision. It wasn’t something he was going to get into now, though. “Men like me—like your brother—sometimes have a hard time fitting back into society after the service. I floundered a bit, but when I looked around, I realized there was a need that I was uniquely qualified to meet.”
    “And that’s…it? You were qualified and so you stepped up?”
    It sounded foolish when she said it like that. Z crossed his arms over his chest, giving the idea more thought than he had in years. “I like what I do. More than that, if I wasn’t the one doing it, someone else would be—and they’d be doing a shittier job of it. I make sure we only take missions that don’t compromise my men.” Though he wasn’t above taking those missions himself on occasion. “And I stack the deck as best I can to make sure they get home safely.” The explanation still felt inadequate, but Sara nodded like she understood, so he asked, “And you? Why the fixer business?”
    “Because there are far too many problems in this world that don’t have easy fixes. Or any fixes at all.” She eyed the saucepan. “I think Uncle Rodger had a similar experience to yours when he got out of the service. He might be a right bastard on occasion, but he’s got an honorable streak a mile wide. Growing up with him was like knowing a real life hero.” She shrugged. “I guess some of that rubbed off on me. I like puzzles. I like taking a seemingly impossible situation and twisting it to my client’s benefit. I like the relief and gratitude in their eyes when I can deliver on my promises.”
    “Seems you have a little bit of a heroic streak, yourself.”
    “Nah. I’ll leave that to folk like you and my brother and my uncle.” Sara crossed her legs, drawing his attention to the long line of skin disappearing under the bottom of her robe.
    He wanted her. Fuck, he wanted her more than he’d wanted something in a very long time. But, strangely enough, he wanted to continue this conversation more than he wanted to bury himself between her legs. “What else do you want to know?” A bold question—reckless even.
    A strange look passed over her face, something like fear. “I think that’s enough for now. The food’s ready.”

Chapter Nine
    Sara couldn’t believe she’d let herself get drawn into such a potentially exposing conversation with Z. Sure, they hadn’t talked about anything particularly revealing, but she still felt a little raw. A little vulnerable. Because, for just a few minutes, she’d forgotten that this man was one she was sleeping with. There was a place for friends who she spilled out her heart to, and a place for men who drove her out of her mind with pleasure like Z had done earlier.
    And ne’er the two shall meet.
    Except she…liked talking to him. Even as she dumped half the stir-fry into a bowl and slid it across the island to him, she wanted to ask him more questions, to find out more about him. Doing so meant revealing more of herself, though, and she couldn’t do that. He already knew too much.
    Sex was so much easier. There was no need for heart to hearts or finding out that he liked Mexican food and had a hero complex to rival her brother’s. There was no excuse for her curiosity. None.
    She took a bite to distract herself, but all it did was give her more opportunity to study him. He watched her just as closely, an unreadable look on his face. She found she liked those pale green eyes of his, liked how they were such a contrast to the rest of him and yet managed to fit him perfectly.
    She wanted to know what got him kicked out of the military. Sara couldn’t imagine what it could have been. From the tone of his voice and the look on his face when he skated over that particular conversational landmine, his discharge hadn’t been