Free Wishful Kisses: A Fountain of Love Novella by Krista Lakes Page A

managed to whisper. He chuckled and kissed the tip of my nose.
    "I'll be right back," he said, reaching for the car door. "Can I leave a note for them? I don't want anything to happen to Dean and Matt."
    "I never really got the details. It was a top secret mission. You were supposed to guard someone important in January. No one would tell me anything else. I guess, just tell them to expect the worst on the missions in January." I shrugged. I had dug for more, but it was still classified top secret. Part of the pain of his death was not knowing anything about it.
    He nodded gravely. "I love you," he said one last time before opening the door.
    "I love you," I said as he stood up and closed the car door. I watched him walk back onto the base and leaned back in my chair to wait for his return.
    ***
    T he next ten minutes were the longest of my life. My brain went through every possible scenario as I waited for him to return.
    He changed his mind. He was really just seeing if I had somehow gotten top secret info and is actually telling his commander. He ran into Dean and Matt, and they convinced him to stay. He fell and broke his leg walking in to get his stuff.
    I almost drove the car to the gate at least five times before looking at my watch and telling myself that I just needed to give him time. Logically, I knew that he needed more than thirty seconds to walk to his room and gather his things, but every second that passed just made me more nervous. I was terrified that he was going to change his mind or get caught. We were so close to being together that every minute spent waiting was torture.
    My foot tapped restlessly against the floor of the car until I finally saw him emerge from the gate. He had his green duffel-bag slung over his shoulder and a broad grin plastered across his face. I popped the trunk and he tossed his bag inside.
    Tony opened the door and immediately kissed me. I could smell the heat of the sun on him from walking back and forth. It was like he brought heaven with him.
    "I told them I was going to go spend some time with my girl," he said with a wink. "No one will look for me for at least a day."
    "Then it's a good thing that we can get to the Mexican border in just a couple of hours," I replied and put the car in reverse.
    "Then start driving, Ladybug." He leaned back in his chair, getting comfortable. He grinned at me. "I'm looking forward to some authentic tacos."

Chapter 14
    August 2, 1990
    For the second time
    ––––––––
    A little over three hours later, I pulled the car into a small motel a few miles away from the Mexican border. We were safe. Tony was safe. I pulled out my wallet and carefully counted out the money we would need for the night.
    "Well, I hate to tell you this, but I kind of wish I hadn't given the gate guard all his money back. What are we going to do for money?" Tony asked, watching me count the bills. A hint of worry crossed his face. "I don't exactly have a lot of marketable skills, and my Spanish is a little rusty."
    I grinned. "I'm from the future remember?"
    He frowned and I grinned wider.
    "It will be tight for a little bit, but I know the big, upcoming sports upsets." I tucked my wallet back in my pocket. "With that money, my savings, and a small inheritance I will receive next year, we will invest in some companies. Apple and Microsoft for now, and then later on, Google and Amazon."
    "Amazon and Google? What kind of businesses are those?" Tony asked, his eyebrows raised as we got out of the car. He stretched his arms up over his head, the talons of the eagle peeking out from under the plain civilian shirt he had changed into. It was the red shirt I had met him at in the bar. In fact, I was pretty sure it was the same entire outfit. It looked so damn good on him, I couldn't wait to get to the room.
    "They're huge international companies that will make us billionaires. There's going to be something called the dot-com boom, and we are going to ride it like a