Free Breach of Trust by Jodie Bailey Page A

head against the passenger window. He wouldn’t be a fan of having Phoebe around for the afternoon, but Meghan needed the distraction. She needed to focus on her new dream at the foster home, not on her old dreams with Tate, even if her future at the farm was now in jeopardy.
    The foster home was her original dream, anyway. Meghan had joined the army so she could obtain the education she needed, then tucked away every dime she’d earned in the military and at the school in order to fund a future home. When Phoebe had approached her with the opportunity to work for her family’s foundation, Meghan had jumped at it. This was the work that gave her life meaning.
    When it came to the kids, she could pour out her whole self. Meghan had walked in their footsteps. This was her calling, to lift those kids out of their pasts.
    The truck hit a pothole and Tate shifted, but he didn’t wake. Further proof soldiers were conditioned to sleep anywhere.
    Meghan bit back a smile. He’d battled her about making the drive. It wasn’t the first time they’d butted heads because “sleep was for the weak.” It had taken all of her patience not to remind him he was human and she was as well trained in evasive driving as he was, something his male ego had clearly forgotten. He’d eventually stood down, asleep before they reached the end of the half-mile driveway, leaving Meghan nothing to do but watch her mirrors and think too much about Tate’s life while they’d been apart.
    She had to let that go.
    There had never been anything between the two of them. Meghan had kept her feelings to herself, and he’d been free to do whatever he wanted. The fact that his marriage had ended despite his best efforts made her heart ache for him.
    Meghan wrapped her fingers tighter around the steering wheel. Whoever this Stephanie woman was, she’d better hope she never met Meghan. It took some nerve to betray Tate. Even though he seemed to have healed, there was no excuse for the other woman’s selfishness.
    Checking her mirrors one last time before turning into the parking lot of the school, Meghan allowed herself to relax.
    Tate sat up, instantly awake. “Everything okay?”
    â€œYes.”
    â€œYou let me sleep the whole ride?”
    â€œI did.” Surveilling the surrounding area to make sure no one lurked in the shadows was better for her sanity than getting a view of a just-awake Tate Walker. From experience trading sleep time on ops, she knew he’d wear a rumpled little-boy look that totally undid his strong soldier image, the look that had first caught the attention of the decidedly non-soldier part of her. “We’ve walked this road before, Walker. Sleep is good.”
    â€œI think I’m the one who taught you the sleep lecture.”
    â€œPossibly.” Meghan allowed herself a small smile as she shoved open the door and slid out of the truck. The temperature of the asphalt made the late morning steam like a sauna. Meghan swiped her short bangs away from her face and pulled the key from her pocket while Tate covered the rear to make sure no one surprised them. “We should be safe for a couple of hours. The principal may be in after lunch to wrap up a few things, but we’ll be long gone by then.”
    When Meghan unlocked the door, Tate edged in front of her, his pistol at the ready. He slipped into the building ahead of her as though she had no idea how to defend herself if someone came at her. Digging her teeth into her lip to keep from saying something she might regret later, Meghan headed for the alarm, following it by sound in the darkened interior hallway.
    There was something about watching him in his element that stopped her, made her forget why they were there. He carried himself with the kind of confidence that said he was comfortable in his skin and in his role as protector. He never hesitated, never drew back. For the only time since she’d