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“So, I take it Alpha is in the hot seat for this one?”
“Yeah,” Del said. “Let’s get to planning.”
five
Autumn didn’t wantto go to work. It was the first time she thought about calling in sick in about a decade. The last time was when she had a dislocated shoulder. Now, she was trying to avoid a man who had haunted her dreams last night. Well, what dreams she had because she kept waking up hot and bothered throughout the night.
Still, she forced herself out of bed and into the shower to wake herself up. She needed to go shopping for food, so after throwing on some clothes and what little makeup she wore, she headed out the door to make a pit stop at Leonard’s Bakery. She’d called in her order, thankful it was hot and ready when she arrived. Eating a malasada while driving to work probably wasn’t a good idea, but she was starving. Lord knew what was on the agenda today.
Yesterday had been simple. Lots of exercises to build up the upper body and some practicing with dummies. Her favorite part was working with Maya. That dog was a sweetheart.
Today, Seth said something about mat exercises. That could mean so many things, but none of them were good. Once she reached TFH headquarters, she sat in her car to finish her malasada. She knew most people went for the filled malasadasthese days, but she was old school. Her preference was the sugar or cinnamon and sugar. As she shoved the last bite of sugary goodness into her mouth, someone knocked on her car window.She jumped, then looked up to see her nemesis, Seth, standing there.
She went to open the door and almost hit him with it. It was his own fault since he was standing right there.
“I see your eating habits aren’t any better these days.”
She licked her fingers, savoring the cinnamon and sugar. When she looked up at him, he had a strange expression. “I work hard, as you know. The truth is, while I eat a lot of meals, I rarely have huge meals. Plus, I haven’t had a chance to shop and needed something to eat.”
She locked her door, then headed into headquarters. He fell into step with her. Of course, he did. They were going to the same place. Still, it irritated her.
“I take it you’re feeling okay today.”
God, his voice. How had she not noticed the way his voice slipped over each syllable?
“Yeah, I’m fine. My right shoulder feels tight, but that’s probably because of an old injury.”
The parking for the building was on the roof, so they stood in front of the bank of elevators, waiting for a lift.
“You should have told me,” he admonished. Oh, that voice…all grumpy and ready to punish her. Would there be spankings involved?
Nope, that’s inappropriate, Bradford. Stop it.
“It’s nothing. And it’s my own fault. I should always do PT on it, but I put that off because it kicks my ass.”
“What was the injury?”
“Happened my first year at the DEA. Undercover op went bad, I ended up with damaged tendons and a dislocated shoulder.”
“Damn.”
“Yeah, it should have been a sign that I wasn’t made for the DEA, but I don’t like giving up.”
“Maybe you should sit out today.”
Before she could respond, the elevator dinged. He waved her on before him, such pretty manners, and she stepped on the lift. He pushed the button for the main floor. He was in what she called their work clothes, mainly cargo pants and t-shirts or polos. She was dressed similarly. Although, she was pretty sure her ass didn’t look half as good as his. Every day she had to push out the image of taking a huge bite out of his ass.
Just thinking about it, about how attractive he was, and he acted like he didn’t even know, pissed her off. She needed some space.
“And to answer your comment, fuck off.”
“Excuse me?”
She smiled. When he got all persnickety—and yes, people should use that term more often—it made her want to ruffle his hair. He was so by the rules that she always wanted to knock him off kilter.
“Would you ask one of your team to sit it out because they might be a little sore?”
“Yes. I learned while I was an active SEAL that if you can rest and heal, you do it.”
