Chapter 9
NINE
Mason had spent the past ten hours following Con’s orders. First came a raid at dawn. Another false alarm, another empty building where, according to their FBI contacts, Cipher’s network should have been.
When the Charlie team returned to base with dawn breaking the sky, Mason’s first thought was to go find Elin, to recalibrate his world.
But of course, Con set him and Henner on another task. Listening to communications between other Blackout teams that were tracking weapons shipments through Eastern Europe was tedious work. That led to difficult coordination with some of their assets about suspicious money transfers.
Henner leaned back in his seat with a heavy sigh. “Damn, is that really the time?”
Mason glanced at the clock. So much for catching breakfast or even lunch with Elin—it was dinnertime. “I prefer raids to this kind of work.”
He set aside his headset and pushed to his feet, his spine popping as he stretched to his full height.
Henner chuckled. “We could use a masseuse on base.”
He grunted. “That’d be nice. But May wouldn’t like another woman rubbing down her partner.”
He threw Mason a slanted grin. “You’re probably right. I’m going to grab some dinner with her, then she’s taking me down into the casino. You been yet?”
“No. I heard the guys talking, though. Con’s got me on a short leash.
” Actually, he was beginning to wonder if his commanding officer was giving him all the jobs to keep him from distracting Elin.
He hoped to hell Elin was having better luck with her hunt than the dead ends he and Henner had come up against all day.
Henner scraped his fingers through his hair that had been flattened by the headset. “Check it out when you can. I hear it’s pretty great. We’ve been on this base for a couple years now. I can’t believe we never found the hidden room.”
He rubbed the spot of strain between his eyes. “We’ve been busy hunting terrorists.”
He huffed a laugh. “Ain’t that the truth. Catch ya later, man.”
Mason gave him a nod of farewell. Now that he was free for the time being, he knew exactly what he’d do with his time.
When he entered the computer lab, Elin’s chair sat empty. Her monitors were dark. No Sophie or Dante either.
Her absence felt wrong—she’d been practically living in that space since arriving at Blackout, matching his long hours with her own relentless drive.
He began a sweep of the mansion, systematically checking the common areas, followed by the kitchen. Finally, he checked her bedroom. But after knocking softly, she didn’t answer.
He hesitated for a beat before cracking the door to see if she was asleep.
She wasn’t there either.
A prickle of unease ran down his spine. She couldn’t be finished with her work so soon.
But what if she had completed her contract and left the base without so much as a goodbye?
Hadn’t he done that very thing to her?
His lungs felt too tight to allow air, every breath a reminder of the fact that he had no ties to Elin.
He headed downstairs again. There were two places he hadn’t checked yet—the casino and the patio.
When he reached the kitchen, he caught movement outside on the patio. Sinner stepped out of the bright orange halo of the setting sun.
Then he saw her.
Elin stood near Sinner, her body language practically vibrating with anticipation.
She’d thrown a long cardigan over her tank top and leggings, one of those enormous sweaters she was so fond of curling up in during her downtime.
Her hair was pulled back in a messy bun that made his fingers itch to free it.
Even from this distance, he could see the way she shifted her weight from foot to foot.
Shopping bags were scattered in front of the outdoor kitchen as Sinner stocked the supplies. As Mason looked on, he reached into a shopping bag at his feet and handed Elin a small brown bag.
Mason’s brows slammed together, and his hand twitched toward the door handle. But he held his ground, unsure whether or not to intrude.
Elin clutched it like a lifeline, her whole face transforming with relief and something that looked almost like giddiness. She spoke rapidly to Sinner—thanking him, probably—then practically ran toward the house.
Mason ducked around the corner, out of sight. She hurried for the stairs with whatever Sinner had procured for her, leaving Mason standing there, listening to her fading footsteps.
What the hell was that about?
His mind raced through possibilities, each one making his chest constrict more. It looked like a pharmacy bag. Did Elin take regular medication?
He knew how thorough she was—she would have packed everything she needed and about ten more things just in case. If something cropped up, there were proper channels in Blackout to get things.
Unless it was something she didn’t want on record—
Stop.
He couldn’t do this. Couldn’t stand here speculating about her private business when he had no right to any part of her life anymore. He’d given up that right when he walked away.
Without thought, he took off in the other direction. He was halfway to the gym before his mind registered his intention.
The weights didn’t judge. They didn’t ask questions or demand explanations. They just required strength, focus and discipline—things he could control.
Mason loaded the bar with more weight than usual, needing the strain, needing something to channel the chaos in his chest and the frustration of what felt like a wasted day. Each set should feel like a win, but not today when everything felt like a loss on the scoreboard.
He hit his workout hard, reaching a new personal record on the bench press, then another on deadlifts. His muscles screamed and sweat dripped into his eyes, but it wasn’t enough to quiet the storm in his head.
Every rep brought him back to Elin. Her beautiful face twisted in pain when she walked into the war room and saw he was alive. The way her eyes softened when she was on the verge of release.
The trust in her eyes when she looked at Sinner right before she darted inside with that package.
“You’re going to tear something if you keep that up. You should have waited until someone could spot you.” Con’s voice cut through his focus.
With a groan, Mason racked the weights and grabbed his towel to wipe his face.
His CO leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed, that knowing look on his face that meant a conversation Mason didn’t want to have was coming.
Even after their day of failures and dead ends, Con looked like his usual unshakeable self.
It was part of what made him such a good leader.
Mason rolled his shoulders. “Just pushing limits.”
Con moved into the gym, his gaze steady. “Yours or the equipment’s?” He paused, studying Mason with those eyes that missed nothing. “She’s affecting you.”
Mason’s jaw clenched, his grip tightening on the towel. “Not my performance. I’ve taken every order, executed to perfection. My focus hasn’t wavered.”
Con shook his head slowly. “That’s not what I mean.” His voice dropped, carrying the weight of experience. “You left things badly with her. Unfinished business has a way of compromising even the best SEALs.”
Mason met Con’s gaze directly, shifting to face his CO fully. “You could say that.”
“I am saying it.” Con crossed his arms as he seemed to weigh his words. “She’s here, Mason. And she’s staying. Blackout just sent through the contract—she’s on board until she finds all eleven handlers. Could be months.”
The words hit like a physical blow. Months.
Months of seeing her every day, being close enough to touch but not having the right, of watching her brilliant mind work while remembering how it felt to be the focus of all that intensity.
Months of circling each other, waiting for that single look that would ignite the blaze between them…only for it to sputter out and leave them hollow again.
Without the words that used to bind them together, sex was just sex.
Con let out a low sigh. “Go talk to her, Mason. That’s not your commanding officer talking.
That’s someone who’s watched too many good men let unresolved shit eat them alive.
” He gripped Mason’s shoulder briefly. “Whatever happened between you two, whatever you need to say or hear, deal with it. Or it’ll affect more than just you. ”
Mason nodded slowly. Con was right. He always was when it came to reading people.
He showered quickly, the hot water sluicing away sweat but not the knot in his chest. The sun had set completely now. The sounds of the base settling into its nighttime rhythm drifted up to him.
He pulled on clean clothes—jeans and a black henley—and made his way to her room.
He knocked, then waited. “Elin? It’s me.”
After five beats of silence, he started to twist the knob again before stopping himself. She deserved her privacy. If she didn’t want to see him, then he needed to respect that.
As he started toward the stairs, another door opened and female laughter rippled out. He stopped in his tracks, sifting through the women’s voices and picking out each.
One soft soprano sent ripples through his senses, the same voice that haunted his dreams for the torturous two years they were apart.
The sound of Elin’s laughter flooded through him like oxygen after a long dive. Hearing her laugh and knowing she’d found friendship with the ladies eased him.
If she couldn’t be comfortable with him, at least she was with everyone else.
* * * * *
Elin closed the door to Alyssa’s room behind her, silencing the last of the women’s laughter, a warm echo that surprised her with how much it settled under her skin.
She’d never thought she’d like girl time.
She never had it before. But tonight had felt…
good. Easier than she ever imagined, when she considered herself to be an awkward tech nerd.
She didn’t really fit in with women in a conventional sense—but it helped that the women involved in SEAL Team Blackout weren’t conventional.