Page 13 of Viking

The way his name slips out, soft and almost involuntary, earns me an unreadable look from him. Then he exhales, tilting his head toward the open hangar. “Come on, Mercer. Let’s get started.”

Mercer?

He heads for the double doors we came through, holding one open as I stride past him. We fall into step, walking side by side for the first time in six years. I plaster on a brave face, pretending my heart isn’t pounding, pretending this is just a routine introduction, pretending Vegas never happened.

Langley AFB

April 27, 2024

1219

Logan

Lila Mercer.

What the actual fuck?

Is it possible it’s just an awful coincidence?

“Viking.” Ryan’s voice cuts through the fog of disbelief, sharp and pointed. I tear my gaze away from Lila, forcing myself to focus on him. “Excuse us.” He nods to Lila, pulling me aside.

I go without protest, my mind still reeling.

Mercer?

Ryan doesn’t say anything until we’re a few paces out of earshot, his voice dropping low. “Tell me that’s not who I think it is.”

I exhale sharply, shaking my head. “It’s her.”

“Shit.” Ryan drags a hand over his jaw, glancing back toward where Lila stands. “And Lila Mercer. As in—”

“I know,” I cut in, jaw tightening. “I fucking know.”

Lieutenant General Mercer’s daughter.

But it’s not just the general I’m worried about.

The weight of it all settles deep in my chest, heavier than it should be.

Ryan whistles under his breath, shaking his head. “That’s insane. Of all the people…”

Ryan studies me for a beat, his gaze too damn perceptive because he knows me too damn well. He can probably see the tension running through me, hear the thoughts I don’t say aloud.

The guilt I don’t let surface.

He knows. He wasn’t there. But he knows.

Ryan exhales. “You ever think you’d see her again?”

I grab the back of my neck with my hand before raking my fingers through my hair. “Never.”

I wish I could go back to Vegas because back then, she was just Lila. Just a girl who looked at me like I was worth something more than the uniform I wore, more than the orders I’ve followed, and more than the regrets I carry. A girl with mesmerizing green eyes and a laugh that wrapped around me like gravity.

A girl I shouldn’t have touched.

I roll my shoulders, shaking off the weight pressing into my ribs. “It was one night.”

Ryan gives me a look. One that says bullshit.