Page 118 of Wrecked
“I can’t find my face paint,” Barry said.
“Addison’s got mine,” Hawk replied. “Meet me out there. We’ll use it when she’s done.”
“I’ll walk out with you,” Barry said.
“You coming?” Hawk asked Tommy.
He glanced up from his phone. “Be there in a minute.”
While Hawk and Barry waited outside the ladies’ locker room, Barry said, “I’m not usually one to say anything, but Tommy was video chatting with his girlfriend.”
What girlfriend? Is he talking about Mags?
“Anyway, I told him to hang up when she asked where he was,” Barry continued.
Frustration had him clenching his teeth. “What’d he tell her?”
“He said he had a thing to do, but he’d call her tomorrow.”
Hawk growled. “He cannot fucking keep his mouth shut. Thanks for telling me.”
“Be discreet,” Barry murmured.
The door to the ladies’ locker room opened. Addison and Emerson sailed out, their faces concealed with camouflage paint. They were both wearing black knit caps. Two braided pig tails for Addison. Emerson’s long hair was hidden inside the cap. Emerson wore a short leather jacket, but Addison still had on her long black duster.
Addison acknowledged the men before holding out the stick to Hawk. “It’s low, so I’ll order more.”
Taking it from her, he and Barry headed back into the locker room.
* * *
Addison needed a second alone. She was full-blown lying to Hawk, something she’d never done before. Her emotions were out of control. She should pull herself from the mission, but that would leave Hawk without a partner. She’d never do that to him, but she needed to leave her feelings at HQ if she was going to be good to anyone, herself included.
“I’ll be outside.” Addison made her way down the hall.
Tommy caught up with her and her stomach roiled. “This is pretty crazy. Did you know I’d joined ALPHA?”
“Hawk mentioned it,” she replied.
“Why didn’t you say anything to me?” Tommy asked as they stepped outside.
“Where? At the club?” She shook her head. “We don’t talk about ALPHA in public.”
“Yeah, right. I just figured you would since we’re in the same top-secret group. You know, like a fraternity.”
He really doesn’t get it.
Rather than continue their pointless conversation, she grew quiet. Time to move into mission mode. The sooner she could get centered, the more focused she’d be. Having Hawk as her partner was a good thing, except now, it was a distraction. She was lying. He had to know. Her brain was scrambled eggs. Never before had a man gotten to her like he had.
It’s the Hawk Effect.
Strangely, that had her biting back a smile. She used to laugh when it happened to other women, but the same damn thing had happened to her.And it’s all my fault.
The rest of the team filed outside.
Hawk in all black with his knit cap and his camouflage paint always gave her a jolt of energy. He had it going on all the time, but a mission-ready Hawk was a total badass.
If he noticed her checking him out, he ignored it.
