Chapter 10 Getting Closer #2
Sydney loved that Tank was there, but she would have preferred to be handed off anywhere else. She could see her dad’s mind going a million miles a minute.
“I can ask ThunderStrike—” Mark said.
“Dad, Tank’s got this,” she scolded, at the same time her mom said, “Mark, he’s got this.”
Sydney took a few steps toward the front door, but Tank said, “Don’t go outside. I’ll pull into the garage when Caroline drives out.”
“Thank you,” Mark said to Tank.
“We’re out,” Caroline said as she led Grey toward the garage.
“I’ll close the garage door once I’m inside, then I’ll come in and get you,” Tank said to Sydney.
When the three vanished into the garage, Kathrine said, “Wow, he’s very handsome.”
Sydney smiled. “I didn’t notice.”
Her dad laughed. “Even I noticed.”
“Grey showed us a photo of all four brothers,” her mom said. “Very handsome men.”
“As long as they keep my daughters safe—” her dad said.
“You didn’t raise us to need a man,” Sydney pushed back.
“Not for protection,” Mark said putting his arm around his wife. “But it’s a completely different conversation if we’re talking about a life partner.”
“Why are we talking about life partners?” Sydney asked.
“Because I think we just met yours,” her mom murmured.
Sydney’s mouth dropped open, but no words came out. After several seconds, she said, “Thanks for dinner. It was fun seeing Robby again. Brought back a ton of childhood memories.”
“Sounds like he’s doing well,” her dad said.
“I would never have guessed he was a poker pro,” her mom said.
“Why?” Sydney asked.
“We used to play card games with you kids and he was terrible.”
“Poker is a skill,” her dad said. “Or maybe he’s cheating.”
Knock-knock.
The door from the garage opened, Tank stepped inside. “Okay, Cinderella, your carriage awaits.”
She smiled. “Are you my Prince Charming?”
“Absolutely.” He shook her dad’s hand. “I got this, Mr. Austin.”
“You better,” Mark warned as her mom handed him a wrapped plate. “My apple pie.”
“Thank you.” He took it, then gave her a tender hug goodbye. “No worries, Mrs. Austin. Sydney will text you guys once we get to our destination.”
“And where is that?” Mark asked.
“Creepy Secret Zone,” Sydney replied as she ushered Tank into the garage and shut the door.
“Ohmygod,” she said as she climbed into the back seat. “It’s like the damn inquisition.”
Teddy got behind the wheel. “Call and ask them to open the garage door.”
She did. Her mom answered. Seconds later, her dad opened the door, tapped the opener on the garage wall. The door opened, Tank backed out.
As he drove away, Sydney fastened her gaze on Tank. “I’ve never had a driver before.”
“I do it all,” he replied. “Whatever you need. I’m your man. Just say the word.”
“Cinderella needs one hour with Prince Charming.”
“Just one?”
“I’m feeling the pressure of the case.”
“Same,” he replied.
They drove in silence as she studied his profile from the back seat. Striking cheekbones above a chiseled jaw, with a ski-slope nose and the most kissable lips she’d ever seen. But it was the intensity in his eyes that made her squirm in her seat.
As if he could feel her eyes drilling into him, he said, “How’s the view from back there?”
She smiled. “It’s fine.”
At the red light, he turned to face her, and a whoosh of energy powered through her.
His fiery gaze had her heart skipping a beat.
Beyond his striking good looks, confidence thundered off him.
He was in complete control, and he was handling their challenging situations with unwavering determination.
One sexy-as-hell wink before he turned back. Despite the intensity of their missions—and their overwhelming lack of progress—she appreciated the playfulness he brought to her life.
As he made his way to the Black Site, he said, “Binos on the floor next to you. I got a dark sedan three cars back, other lane. Check ‘em for me.”
Desperate to touch him, she wrapped her fingers around his triceps. “You got it.” She lifted the binos to her eyes.
The headlights blinded her, but she focused her attention on the sedan, trying to glimpse the driver.
“Car windows are tinted, including the windshield.”
“We might have a tail, but I can lose him.”
“Not before I get a visual,” she said.
Teddy slowed, but the sedan in question kept its distance. She strained to see, but the glare of headlights made it difficult.
“I’m pulling into the shopping center,” he said. “See if you can catch the plate number.”
As he drove in, she tracked the vehicle. “No way.”
He stopped, craned to see.
“The license plate has a deflector on it,” she said. “I couldn’t see the numbers.”
He pulled onto the main road, hit the gas. “I don’t see the car. Do you?”
Despite the late hour, there was plenty of traffic clogging the road, but she was determined to find the sedan.
“I got him,” she said. “He’s turning left.”
But Teddy drove past before he could stop.
Sydney spun around in search of her target. “He’s making a U-turn.”
As soon as Teddy drove into the neighborhood that led to the Black Site, he cut the lights, stopped at the curb.
“We had a tail,” he bit out. “Haqazzii is coming for me. You aren’t safe with me.”
“No, that’s gotta be someone in King A’s group,” she said.
“How many weapons do you have on you?”
“Two. You?”
“One. When we get back to the Black Site, we’re gonna weapon up. I don’t know who’s coming for us, but we gotta be ready.”
Adrenaline pumped through her. She’d spent her career on the offense, going after the world’s most violent criminals. Never before had she been the one with a target on her back.
“Payback is hell,” she muttered.
“It sure as hell is,” he replied.
TEDDY
Teddy stopped three more times before passing the No Trespassing sign, then again when the dirt road became paved.
Only then was he convinced they weren’t being followed, so he drove into the Black Site parking lot and around back. Into the hangar he went, but he waited until the oversized door had closed before getting out.
She exited the SUV and threw herself at him. The onslaught of Sydney had him holding her flush against him. But this embrace wasn’t enough. He wanted her closer… air tight.
Before he’d make her writhe with ecstasy, he needed to release his angry energy. If he didn’t, he’d be more man than she could handle.
Of that he was certain.
His gaze found hers, the desire turning the air electric. They came together in a torrent of energy, their kiss releasing his need, boiling just below the surface. One wild kiss turned into a tongue thrashing until his rock-hard cock started throbbing in his pants.
He slowed the kiss, dropped a light one on her soft lips. He could stare into her eyes all damn day long, but what he had in mind for her included more than a make-out sesh in the parking hangar. She deserved more than that.
He pulled two duffles from the back of the SUV, threw one over his shoulder, held the other with the same hand.
Clasping her hand with his free one, he led her to the scanner, stood in front. The light flashed from red to yellow until he plugged in a code.
“Stand in front so we can scan your eyes.”
She did, the machine captured the shot. Seconds later, he was tapping the keypad. Then, he held up his phone. “I’m gonna record your voice. Say something.” He started the recording.
“I’m ready to hunt me down some scum. You in?”
Relieved she wasn’t scared, he shot her a smile, and got rewarded with a power hit when she smiled back.
“You’re still recording.” She tapped the red button on his phone.
This time, he stepped away, giving her access to the scanner. She moved into place, the light flashed green, and the bulletproof glass door slid open.
“Don’t you need permission to give me access?” she asked as they stepped inside.
“No.”
“Gotta love a bossman,” she murmured as they walked down the eerie hallway. With each step, recessed ceiling bulbs flicked on, bathing them in muted light.
He reached into the front of his pants, extracted his Glock from its holster.
“I like the way you think.” She pulled her SIG. “What is it about this place?”
“It’s creepy as fuck,” he said.
She chuckled as they rounded the corner. “It sure is. Where are we going?”
“To the residential wing, then I’ve got something I want us to do.”
She waggled her eyebrows. “I hope Prince Charming won’t disappoint.”
“Never.”
“Are you always this confident?”
A faint sound had him pulling her to a stop. He let go of her hand, put his index finger against his mouth to silenced her. In tandem, they moved with their backs against the wall, and they waited.
Faint tapping continued, getting louder.
At the same time, they both racked their weapons. He shook his head, wondering how in the hell someone had breached the entrance without triggering the alarms.
And then, two rats scurried by, hurrying past them in the opposite direction.
He and Sydney started laughing as he returned his weapon to its holster.
To his surprise, she knelt, aimed her gun toward the rats.
He did not want her to shoot them. Shooting the world’s most wanted was the dark underbelly of their careers, but shooting an innocent—which included animals—was something else.
She stood and holstered her SIG. When her gaze found his, she laughed. “I wasn’t gonna kill ‘em. Just wanted to see if I could.”
“You might have missed,” he pushed back. “They were moving pretty fast.”
“I don’t miss.”
“Who’s the badass now?” he said as they entered the residential wing.
She flashed him a smile. “Whatcha gonna do about the rodent problem?”
“Greystone can chase the rats.” He pulled to a stop in front of the suite she’d claimed. “Where do you want me?”
She sidled close, lifted her beautiful face to his. Her eyes dilated to midnight black as her pupils bled over her dark brown eyes. Her shoulders rose as her breath hitched. “Where do I want you?” she repeated. “Where do you want to be?”