Darkest Hour Page 13
“We did 5K last time,” he said.
“How far is that in miles?”
Jackson smiled. “Pretty far.”
It wasn’t that far . . . But it was a lot farther than his couch. Or his backyard. His old life.
Jackson held open the main door for her, watching her pass by in a sleek black business skirt and a white dress shirt, a beautiful yet unattainable young lady. Watching her there, he knew he’d have to find different hobbies other than running. Other than her.
“5K is probably boring for you, huh?” She spun around outside on the sidewalk, waiting for him, smiling again.
“No, it’s been good.”
They had been walking a downtown street in Washington DC, happy for once to blend into the crowds. Happy to be in fresh air. Just happy.
“By the way,” Jackson said, “Jasper’s in town again. He wants to join us tonight.”
“Well, good. Maybe it’ll pressure me to do 6K.”
Jackson chuckled. “Yeah. We’ve got quite the running club now.”
“So,” she said, waiting next to him at a corner for the light to change. “How are things going with your little club?”
“It’s not so little anymore. I had another meeting with the guys. All of them now.”
“Good. Are they all in?”
“They would have been, even before all this, I think. But now it’s just the icing on the cake.” Jackson crossed the street with her under a chirping crosswalk. “I mean, what the hell else are we going to do?”
“You’ve got a point there,” she said, striding across the street in her heels.
When they reached the other side, they sort of just stood there aimlessly. Annica turned to him, confused. “Where the hell are we going?”
“I don’t know.” He was looking down the street.
Restaurants.
Bars.
Places he’d been to hundreds of times, a few of those times with women.
“I don’t know,” he said again, sighing. “Your pick.”
She shrugged her shoulders. “Coffee?”
She turned, walking away. He wasn’t right for her, nor she for him, it seemed, but what they’d been through together still meant he had another lifelong friend, at least. Even if it wasn’t meant to be, she’d opened his eyes to life again, and for that he owed her.
26
DARC OPS
“So, what do you think?”
Jackson had them standing in a row on the sidewalk, all four of them looking across the street to a vacant commercial space that used to be a law office. Single-story, shabby stucco facade, windows that needed replacing. All of it located in one of D.C’s worst neighborhoods.
“Well,” Matthias said. “It looks affordable.”
It was something of an eyesore, as was its old tenant. Word had it that the law firm there went belly up after some disgraceful conduct of its now-disbarred staff. When Jackson viewed the property himself, he saw the angry remnants. Shattered windows, slashed carpet, ripped-out phone wires leaving slanted gashes through the drywall. But he wouldn’t mention any of that today. Instead, he’d let Matthias, Jasper, and Tansy stare at the possibilities. The future.
“It’ll only get better from here,” Jasper said.
“How could it not?” said Tansy. “The place is a dump.”
Jackson was still looking at their potential office. “It’s a start, Tansy. If you can hack as good as you say you do, then it should only take us a few years for some swanky skyscraper on Connecticut Avenue.”
“We’ll have the top floors,” Tansy said without any hint of sarcasm.
“Good,” Jackson said.
“I’ll be happy if we make it till the end of this lease,” Jasper said.
“So you’re okay with this one?” Jackson asked.
There was a brief silence. Jackson looked at the men. Matthias in particular was smiling.
“We’ll support your decision,” he said. “Right, guys?”
Another brief pause. And then Jasper broke out in laughter.
“Sure,” Tansy said, joining in. “Like that’s never gotten us in trouble before.”
“No guts, no glory,” Jackson said, grinning. “That’s what DARC Ops is all about.”
Who is the woman who will steal Jackson’s heart? Click here to read Dark Secret - DARC Ops Book 1 and find out!
ALSO BY JAMIE GARRETT
Marked By Desire - Romantic Suspense Series
Books 1 - 5
The Dreamcatchers Series
Emily
Keila
Payton
Lainey
Sienna (coming soon!)
DARC Ops Series
Darkest Hour
Dark Secret
Dark Web
Dark Heart
Riley Reid Mystery Series
Books 1 - 3 (first book free!)
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
A huge thank you to you—all my readers, subscribers, and social media followers. Thank you for choosing to read my books!
Thank you to my ARC team, for all your support. You’re all amazing!
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Hi, I’m Jamie. I live with my husband, two beautiful children and three cats. I loves to read almost as much as I loves to write, and can’t imagine anything better than getting to be an author and writing every day. There is at least one cat draped over the keyboard at all times.
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Table of Contents
Copyright and Disclaimer
1. Jackson
2. Tansy
3. Jackson
4. Jasper
5. Jackson
6. Jackson
7. Matthias
8. Jackson
9. Jackson
10. Jasper
11. Jackson
12. Tansy
13. Matthias
14. Jasper
15. Tansy
16. Jasper
17. Matthias
18. Jackson
19. Matthias
20. Jackson
21. Tansy
22. Jackson
23. Tansy
24. Jasper
25. Jackson
26. DARC Ops
Also by Jamie Garrett
Acknowledgments
About the Author
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