Page 17 of Keeping Laryn
Shaking her head, Laryn let it drop. Tate was confusing the heck out of her. He’d always sniped and griped at her like a brother would to an annoying little sister. And she’d reciprocated because she had no idea how else to act. But this was all new. This…concern. Jealousy? No, that couldn’t be it. Edge was one of his best friends. And he wasn’t remotely interested in her. None of the pilots were.
Everyone hopped out of the back of the chopper, and when she started to sit down to make it easier to jump out, Tate said, “Hang on, Laryn.”
She hesitated, watching him easily jump down, then he turned around and reached for her. “I’ve got you.”
She stared at him in confusion. He had her? What did that mean?
“Laryn? Go ahead and sit, I’ll help you down.”
Oh!That’swhat he meant. She blushed at her lack of understanding. “I’ve got it.”
“Of course you do. But I can help.”
She would’ve continued to refuse his help, but she was just bringing more attention to them by drawing this out. So she quickly sat, and his hands closed around her waist once more as he basically lifted her out of the chopper and set her on her feet. For a split second, neither of them moved. Tate stared down at her, while she returned the look.
Then someone cleared their throat, and both of them took a step back.
“I’ll call after our meeting and let you know what the mission timeline looks like, and if there are any updates to the trials for tomorrow night,” he told her.
Which was a very considerate thing for him to do…and something else he’d never done in the past. When pilots met with the colonel for any reason—meetings that often went on for hours—she normally learned any pertinent info the day after, when she arrived at work in the morning.
“It’s okay. I can find out tomorrow.”
“I’ll call. You need the info as much as we do. You’re as much a part of this team as we are.”
He wasn’t wrong, at least about the first part, and pleasure bloomed in her chest even as another blush warmed her cheeks. Yes, it was three years late in coming, but she wouldn’t turn down any intel if he insisted.
“Okay.”
“Shit. You’ve had to wait until the next day every time for updates?” Obi-Wan asked.
Laryn shrugged. “It hasn’t been a big deal.”
“Of course it is. That’s bullshit,” Chaos swore. “Honestly, youshould be in the meetings with us. You have top-secret clearance just like we do.”
Laryn shook her head quickly. “No. I don’t want to have to go to your meetings!”
Everyone laughed at that.
“Good point. Well, I know it probably doesn’t mean much after all these years, but we’ll make sure you’re kept up-to-date with all the need-to-know info in the future,” Buck told her.
That warm feeling returned. Again, she had no idea what had changed in the last month since Pyro and Tate’s close call when the latter was rescuing his brother, but she liked it.
“Thanks.”
“You guys go ahead, I’ll be right there,” Tate told his friends.
The other guys all gave her chin lifts, which made Laryn smile a little, then she braced herself as she turned to Tate. “Is everything okay, based on what you’ve seen of the chopper?”
“Of course. I wanted to apologize for being a dick.”
She blinked in surprise. “What? When?”
“The last three years.”
Laryn burst out laughing. “Um…okay.”
“I mean it. You’re an integral part of our team. We couldn’t do any of the things we do without you. Don’t think I’ve missed how often you’ve stayed up all night working on the choppers after we’ve returned from missions. You always make sure everything is perfect before we have to go out again. I haven’t thanked you enough for any of that.”
