Page 47 of Brooks

“I think that’s a lot of armed guards. I count ten on the perimeter. Three in the courtyard. Five on the roof. Not to mention, he’ll have a personal detail surrounding him. That’s eighteen guns we can see, and more than likely a shit ton we can’t. There are six of us.” She told us something we’d already calculated.

“Easy day,” I told her.

“I hate that SEAL shit. All your tough-guy lingo doesn’t make you invincible. We’ll be out-numbered a minimum of three to one. His staff will be armed, too. Not to mention, the sympathizers in the area will come to his aid. Al Issa isn’t stupid. He keeps the locals in money, just for this reason.”

Max, Thad, Kyle, and Declan all chuckled at her outburst. Obviously she wasn’t pleased they’d found humor in aggravation. She looked madder than a wet hen.

“We’ll set charges in the surrounding area as a distraction. Once those go off, we’ll set the perimeter to blow—”

“Or, you wait until he leaves the compound and take out his convoy. The guards will scramble to the location, leaving minimal security at the compound and I can slip in and snatch the tablets.”

“Doll, this isn’t a quick snatch and grab. And once again, there’s not a snowball’s chance in hell you’re going anywhere alone,” I corrected.

“That’s—”

“Not up for negotiation,” Declan cut her off. “Once we have updated intel, we’ll go over mission specifics. Until then, wrap up your business in Bahrain so we can get ready to go.”

Tatiana looked like she wanted to argue but wisely kept quiet. I understood she’d spent the last two years working on her own, but she was going to have to learn that no man on the team was ever going to let her go into a situation solo. That wasn’t how we worked. Every man had a battle buddy. It was smart—two is one, one is none.

“You ready?” I asked.

“Yep.”

Her short-clipped answer made me smile. Hot damn, she was feisty. And so pretty even in her cargos and long-sleeved button-up shirt that showed none of her toned, tanned flesh. I didn’t need to see it, the memory of her hot and sweaty on top of me was tattooed on my soul.

Chapter 19

The first ten minutes of our drive was done in silence. I was more annoyed than I should've been but after the morning I'd had, my nerves were fried. I couldn't remember a better way to wake up than in Brooks’ strong arms. And the two smokin' hot rounds of toe-curling sex were fantastic, too. It was the vulnerability I could've gone without. The verbal sparring where Brooks had outright told me he thought I was beautiful. I still didn’t believe him but when he'd promised to make me see what he saw, I wanted to. I wanted to feel as strong and as brave as he thought I was. I knew I was more than capable of doing my job, but I no longer felt courageous.

"We have a tail," Brooks told me, breaking the silence.

"White Mercedes?" I asked.

"Yep."

I'd been watching the car in the side mirror for the last few miles. The driver was trying to stay a few lengths back but he stupidly changed lanes every time Brooks had.

"Where are you going to try and ditch him?"

"Once we get closer to the naval base. On the north side, near the pedestrian entrance."

"There's nothing there but small side streets. Most are one-way. I think you should stay on the Causeway, take the last exit before the bridge. To the east of the base, there's nothing but industrial parks, it will be safer without the congestion of all the shops on the north side."

"I agree less traffic, but a wide-open space gives him a better opportunity to catch up. Not to mention, a straight shot if he opens fire."

"Ah. I hadn't realized Brooks Miller was afraid of a little gun play."

"Being shot at is not my most favorite pastime. I'm more concerned about what the passenger's packing. I'd prefer not to give them the range to detonate an RPG."

That was my preference as well. I'd had enough of having missiles shot at me for a lifetime.

"Take us into the industrial park. Better to be on the offensive."

"And what? You gonna go all Wile E. Coyote? Did I miss where you packed your dynamite and boomerang?"

I would've been pissed if it wasn't for Brooks' playful tone. Something strange hit my chest, normally when I picked up a tail, adrenaline kicked in and I got a little nervous. I was always by myself. I had no one to rely on but me. But today I had Brooks, and in turn, he had me. The heart-pounding fear of someone hunting me was absent. Together, Brooks and I would figure something out.

"You totally missed me packin' the car. I have my Wonder Woman Underoos on under my cargos, too."