Don't Say a Word - Barbara Freethy [147]
Was he just tired and looking for a good night's sleep? Was that the reason for his distance? Or was this the beginning of the end?
Alex pretended to sleep on the flight back to San Francisco. He knew Julia wanted to talk, but he didn't. There was too much to say, and yet there was nothing to say. It was over. She finally had her answers, and he had his. There was no more left to do. He could return to work, and he was looking forward to that.
He hadn't picked up his camera since Julia had come knocking on his door a week ago. So much had happened in the past nine days. His entire life story had changed, and so had hers. They were both different people now.
The flight attendant came on with the announcement that they were preparing to land in San Francisco. Julia put her seat back up and gave him a speculative, serious look. "Where are you going when we leave the airport?"
"Home, then to my mother's house. After that I'm going to find Stan." He'd been thinking about his father's friend all way the home. It had occurred to him that nowhere in their discussions the day before had Stan's name come up. Why was that? Why hadn't any of the government agents they'd spoken to known of Stan's role in the defection?
"I'd forgotten about Stan," Julia murmured, her gaze catching his. "Your father said he set the defection plans in motion, yet no one mentioned him yesterday."
It scared Alex that he and Julia had begun to think exactly the same. They'd gotten so close. He almost didn't know where he left off and she began.
"Do you think Stan knew about Brady's double cross?" she continued. "I mean, he was the one who contacted Brady about us. He could have been working with him, setting us up to lead them to the jewels." She blew out a sigh. "I thought this was over, but maybe it's not. Maybe I'll always be looking over my shoulder, wondering who's going to come after me next."
"It won't be Stan. I'll make sure of that. If he's guilty of anything, I will see that he pays for what he did. I can promise you that."
"That's a lot of T's.' What happened to 'we'?"
He shrugged. "You have your life, your twin sister, your other sister, your gazillion relatives, your music. I'm sure you'll be busy. I can take care of Stan on my own."
"Where are you going next?"
"Wherever my next assignment is," he said flatly, trying to ignore the hurt look in her eyes.
"We're not going to talk about us, are we?" she asked.
He didn't answer. What could he say? They were sitting in the middle of a crowded airplane, people all around them. It was hardly the moment for that kind of talk. Not that he intended to find that moment. "I don't do good-byes."
"So I wasn't going to get one?"
"Julia, this isn't the time or the place."
"I don't know about that. You're trapped in your seat. You can't escape. It seems to me the best chance I have for getting a straight answer."
He was glad to hear the lighter note in her voice, even if it was forced. He liked emotional scenes even less than good-byes. "I think your life will be very full when Elena comes out to visit you and your family."
"She's coming only for a few days. Then she'll go back to her life in Washington DC."
"And you'll return to your life. You can pursue your music passion with that extra bit of cash you inherited. And I'm sure the jewels and the musical scores are quite valuable."
"I won't sell them. I'll keep them in the family. That's where they belong, although I might see if I can get an orchestra to play my great-grandfather's music. It should be heard." She paused. "What about your dad?"
Alex shrugged. "I'm sure he'll go on doing whatever he was doing." It occurred to Alex that he didn't even know what that was. Maybe someday he'd take the time to find out, but not any day soon. Julia gave him a long stare that told him she wasn't happy with his answer. "Hey, he chose to be separate. Don't try to make me feel guilty."
"He did that to protect you."
"Does that mean you've forgiven Sarah for doing the same thing to you? For lying about everything in your past?"