Hot SEALs: A Mission of Love (A Hot SEALs / CSA Case Files Crossover) (Kindle Worlds) Read Free

those she worked with, as well as Schultz. He didn’t need to know about the blackmail note or the pictures. She could handle this herself and he never had to know what she’d done back in college or put him on the spot by forcing him to use resources from his position in the White House.
    “Julia.”
    It was as if her thoughts had conjured up Schultz Jessalyn. She’d not been expecting anyone as she lingered at the table to take care of the bill after her business associates had left. She looked up from her phone in surprise. He stood there as if he’d appeared off of the pages of GQ Magazine in an immaculate executive suit with his black hair cut in a classic style. His dark eyes never failed to make her feel as if she were the only woman in the room. It was something she treasured and had grown used to over the eight months that they’d been together. It wasn’t unlike him to surprise her with a spur-of-the-moment visit, but she hoped that it wasn’t because he’d caught on that something was wrong. She’d done her best to act normal these past couple of weeks and she would only need to keep up the pretense for a little while longer. She looked past him to see that two of his agents had taken up positions toward the front, since the one assigned to her was standing in the back of the restaurant. She’d gotten used to that as well.
    “Schultz,” Julia said with a smile as genuine as she could make it, still not wanting him to notice that anything was amiss. It had been very hard these past fourteen days dealing with someone who wanted to expose a part of her past to hurt Schultz through her. She’d done the only thing she could and took matters into her own hands. “This is a nice surprise. I thought you had meetings all day, but you won’t find me complaining. Have you eaten?”
    Julia waited for Schultz to lean over to kiss her as he normally did but he pulled out the chair opposite of her and took a seat. His usual smile was absent. It was as if he’d switched a lever to release butterflies into her stomach, and not the pretty kind either. Her breathing became somewhat labored as she waited for him to answer. She’d been so careful about how she’d handled the situation that there was no way he could know about the pictures…even if he did work for the White House. Right? She needed that reassurance and she wasn’t getting it from his reticent attitude.
    “I lost my appetite this morning during a meeting that I had with Jon.” Schultz didn’t waste time getting to the point…and it was sharp. He also shook his head at the waiter who’d appeared out of nowhere. The young man had the intellect to back away and leave them to their privacy. Julia’s phone made a thud as it hit the table when his words had finally penetrated. He knew. He was now fully aware of the embarrassing position she’d put herself into and the fact that having her in his life would hurt his career. Her fingers had gone numb and her peripheral vision became thinner until Schultz’s handsome face was the only thing she could see through the tunnel. This couldn’t be happening. “You should read the fine print in your contracts a little more carefully.”
    “Schultz—”
    “You don’t need to worry about the person trying to extort money from you any longer. He or she will be dealt with before Monday’s deadline.” Schultz was lucky that she’d heard anything after his declaration that Jon had gone behind her back and informed the one person she hadn’t wanted this situation to touch. She’d been protecting him, but he wouldn’t see it that way. It dawned on Julia that he’d purposefully chosen a public place so that all she could do was sit and listen to what he had to say. There would be no exchange of heated words and this gave him the ability to leave before she had a chance to explain herself. She’d been in Washington long enough to know how to play the system, but she wasn’t going to allow him to do that