Flawlessly Executed (Dark Horse Guardians Book 3) by Ava Armstrong Read Free Book Online Page A

bed close to Lara’s back and listened to her breathe for a long time. Although he knew she couldn’t hear him, he whispered, “Oh darlin it’s you I love and it always will be you ….”
    It was Moshe’s phone call from Israel that woke him. The satellite phone chimed and he slid into the office at 2:00 AM.
    “Hey, what’s up?” Ben whispered.
    Moshe spoke with slow deliberation, “You’ll be contacted soon about the upcoming mission. We don’t need to go over the fine details right now, but as you know, this thing is personal for me…and I know it is for you, too.”
    Ben yawned and ran his hand over his face, “How the hell do you know all of this already? Shit, you’re good.”
    Ben noted Moshe wasn’t laughing, “Yeah, right. Listen, we need to work together on this. I have a ton of intel compiled. We’re doing the tactical stuff on the website. I’ll send you the times to sign on. As for me knowing everything…I’m friggin’ clairvoyant. See you on the battlefield on-line…talk later.”
    The phone clicked off and Ben got a drink of water and used the bathroom quietly.
    Everything was set into motion. He’d received the mission details on a thumb drive at the dead drop from the CIA. The planning and execution of the mission was being worked out on the Dark Horse Guardian war game site. The players would log in at the assigned time and work through the mission plan many times over. The unique Israeli-designed battle game utilized a unique proprietary software known as Macro-Vision. The mission was laid out in 3D with sound and high definition Geosynchronous Space Situational Awareness Program (GSAP) overlays.
    He didn’t want to wake Lara for more than one reason. He certainly didn’t want her to know about the next mission yet and he knew she was mentally and physically drained. Maybe in the morning she would apologize for not kissing him goodnight.
    He fell back into slumber but slept fitfully, waking once reaching for his weapon, sweaty and confused. Once he got his bearings, he fell back to sleep, but made a mental note to get more exercise to get his sleep cycle regulated again.
     
    ~ Lara ~
    Lara slept soundly and felt rested upon rising. She could hear Ben cooing to Einstein in the kitchen. She knew he had already taken the dog down to the beach for his morning run and Einstein was whining for the tennis ball stashed in the kitchen drawer. Usually, the moment she stirred, Ben would pop into the bedroom and embrace her. But he did not do so this morning. She slipped into the shower and enjoyed the hot water for a long time. After thirty minutes, dressed in a red suit with her hair swirled into a French twist, Lara strolled into the kitchen.
    She noticed his blue eyes lit up as he took her in. As expected, Ben flew to her side for a good morning kiss. He didn’t hold back; his lips were full of passion and he managed to remove most of her lipstick.
    She tasted peppermint mouthwash. “Mmm!” she laughed while his arms were still grasping her tightly.
    His steel blue eyes gazed intently into hers, “Well, I didn’t get my goodnight kiss last night ~ thought I’d make up for it now.”
    She broke away and sat at the breakfast nook. Ben placed French toast and sausage in front of her and she smiled.
    “Are you feeling better?” He asked.
    “What do you mean?” Lara replied.
    Ben selected his words cautiously, “Well, last night you seemed a little out of sorts , shall we say.”
    She sensed he was tiptoeing around hoping for something more from her.
    “I’m sorry I went to bed without kissing you goodnight, Ben.” There, she said it.
    She hoped that would satisfy him. “I have a lot on my mind this morning. Another meeting with Attorney, John Maxfield, for starters. Financial stuff.”
     
    ~ Ben ~
    He felt his heart break when Lara flatly said she was sorry about not kissing him goodnight. It wasn’t the message so much as her tone of voice. It lacked sincerity. Worse than