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.It was who she was, what she was, and she would never know anything different.But Sebastian was going to have a choice, if she could possibly give it to him.“Hey!” Jaimie threw her arm around Rose’s neck.“Stop thinking so much.We’re out here having fun.I want to go to that wicked cool boutique just down the street.I can’t believe I live next to it.It has the hottest boots of all time.”“Of all time?” Rhianna’s eyebrows shot up.“I’ve got to see that.I’ve been around the world and visited every shoe shop I could find along the way.This shop has a lot of competition.”“I love the boots you sent me from Milan.” Jaimie dropped her arm and walked in front of Rose, turning to walk backward so she could face her as she talked.“Rhianna and I both adore boots.”“She has boot emergencies,” Rhianna explained.“Every now and then I get a frantic SOS from her, and wherever I am, I go out and find her a pair of supercute boots.”Rose laughed.“I wear combat boots.”Jaimie rolled her eyes and dropped back to her side.Rhianna closed in on the other side.“We noticed,” Jaimie said.“Hence the boot boutique.Seriously, Rose, you need us.We’re going to show you the true code all women should live by.”“A pair of boots?” Rose asked skeptically.Rhianna and Jaimie looked at each other and then burst out laughing, shaking their heads.“Not just a pair of boots,” Jaimie corrected.“The boots.Hot boots.”Rose frowned.“I don’t understand.”“Just say it,” Rhianna advised.She leaned close to Rose and whispered in her ear.“Fuck-me boots.”Rose’s mouth fell open in a gasp.“You two are terrible.”“Try walking up to Kane in the boots we find you and nothing else,” Rhianna advised.“See what happens.”“I think the same thing would happen if I walked up to him naked,” Rose pointed out.Jaimie and Rhianna laughed again.“I think you’re right,” Jaimie said, “but it’s so fun to see that look in his eyes when you come striding in and sit on his lap.He’s so very appreciative.”Rose bowed.“I’m willing to take direction.”“Every woman should have a sexy red dress in her closet,” Rhianna added solemnly.“And a black one.It’s not only necessary to your soul but to your arsenal.And so are very hot boots.”Rose laughed.“However did I survive without knowing this?”“I have no idea,” Jaimie conceded.“But thankfully, you’re with us now, and we can show you the way.”Rose looked down at her combat boots.“I can see I have a lot to learn.”Jaimie touched Rose’s arm, and they moved into the shadows just outside the store, Jaimie positioning herself just in front of Rose, partially hiding her from the crowds of people on the street.Rhianna didn’t break stride.Entering store now.Dove is outside.Eagle, it’s on you.Roger that.Gideon’s voice was calm.She’s covered.Rose choked back a protest at the ghastly name they’d given her.That had to be Kane’s idea of her.She was no dove, no matter that he persisted in underestimating her abilities—until they were in actual combat.Mama Bear is much more appropriate!Jaimie’s muffled laughter followed by Rhianna’s snort as she pulled open the door to the boutique and disappeared inside changed her mind.They were teasing her, offering her the tight camaraderie that only came when you relied on another to watch your back in a life-and-death situation.It was only a minute before Rhianna spoke again.All clear.Jaimie stepped forward and pulled open the door.Rose went through, and they were inside.Immediately they were just women again, having fun shopping for shoes.Rose found it comforting that the other two women slipped easily in and out of their roles.It meant she had a chance, someday, to be able to walk through a crowd and feel normal.If she could achieve that, maybe Sebastian had a chance after all.The shoes were amazing.She’d never paid any attention at all to shoes, and now Rhianna and Jaimie were pointing out everything from elegant heels to really beautiful boots.“You’ve got the money,” Jaimie pointed out.“Lily put money in a trust for each of the girls she grew up with.That includes you, Rose.It’s just sitting there.Granted, we’re using big bucks to buy up all the buildings around us and renovate them, but you have plenty to purchase a few special items for yourself.Like these awesome, never-to-be-found-again boots right here.” She held up a pair of butter-soft leather boots in a swirling olive green with a square cut toe and a bit of a heel.“What do you think?”“Or these?” Rhianna held up a pair of bloodred boots that snaked up to the knee.“Short skirt or a pair of skinny jeans.Really dramatic.”“You’d look dramatic in anything,” Jaimie pointed out, blowing her a kiss.“Try these on, Rose, they’ll go with a sexy outfit.”“Sexy outfit?” Rose echoed faintly.“I don’t have a sexy outfit.”“Lingerie,” Rhianna said.“You know, thong, corset, a see-through camisole.”Rose shook her head.“I don’t have any of that.”“Oh, girlfriend, you need help desperately,” Jaimie said, putting the boots down.“We’re in the wrong shop.We need to go somewhere else.”You’ve got company.Two women.Both young.Look harmless enough, Gideon warned.Look alive, Javier warned.One had a tattoo on her wrist.I just barely caught a glimpse of it, but it could be the Lopez cartel.They’ve spread through Arizona, Texas, and especially California.“It would be a coincidence,” Rose said aloud.Javier warned us some time ago that they had a hold close to here.It makes sense their women might shop here, Jaimie answered as the bell tinkled, signaling they weren’t alone.Rose kept her back to them, while Rhianna and Jaimie turned slightly, observing the newcomers.Both girls were young, no more than early twenties, with dark, curly hair and sunglasses pushed over their faces.They talked low to each other, but all three women were enhanced and could hear the whispered exchange.Evidently one was certain her boyfriend was sleeping with another woman and wanted her friend, Imelda, to ask around.They ignored Rose, Rhianna, and Jaimie completely.I think they’re more interested in what their boyfriends are doing than us, Jaimie said.We could go to the lingerie store, Rose suggested, sticking with telepathy.How far away is it?A few blocks, three more, I think, Jaimie said.Over my dead body, Kane snapped.We’re not prepared yet.Buy your boots and get out of there.Rhianna sighed.Have you ever noticed certain people are killjoys?Rose laughed out loud.She couldn’t help it.Kane was always going to be Kane
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