Page 115 of Wrecked
“Hey, babe,” he said. “How you doing?”
“I’m okay.” She set her computer bag on the table.
Like he expected, she’d worn a black shirt, black pants, and her long, black duster. She hadn’t pulled her hair out of the way and she didn’t have on any camouflage paint yet. He’d left his team enough time to get mission-ready.
The old Addison would have asked him about his day. She would have told him something about hers. Not tonight, though. She dropped into a chair, turned her attention toward the images he’d projected on the screen.
“I want to go back to being friends,” she murmured.
A stabbing pain shot through him. He fucking hated that she wouldn’t even look at him. “You sure?”
“Yup. I made a mistake.” Her ice-cold tone sliced through him.
He wanted to push back, but not here, not now.
The tension rolling off her was brutal. When she turned her gaze on him, daggers shot from her eyes. He needed their heads in the game, so he’d play this chill. If he incited her, he’d have to pull her from the mission and possibly stand down himself. Scrubbing a mission because two Operatives can’t manage through their conflict would never fly. Operatives were expected to bring their A-game.
No A-game? No mission. No exceptions.
“I’ll do whatever you want,” he lied.
“Thank you,” she said as Barry strolled into the room.
“Hi, Hawk,” Barry said. “How’s it going, Addison?”
“Yo, babe,” Hawk said. “You ready to get this done?”
Barry smiled. “I’ve been chasing some of these scumbags from my days with the Bureau, so I’m pumped for this mission.”
Barry had been with ALPHA for six months. Before that, he’d worked at the FBI’s Tucson field office in Arizona. Hawk didn’t know him well, but the few times he’d run into him at HQ, they’d talked shop. This was their second mission together.
Stryker and Emerson rolled in next. “How’s everyone doing?” Stryker asked before pulling out a chair.
Emerson sat next to Addison. “Hey,” Emerson said. “It’s great to see you.”
“You guys, too,” Addison replied.
“Skye, you riding shotgun, or am I?” Stryker asked Addison.
“You can,” she replied.
“Addison is with me,” Hawk said. “You two are partners on this one.”
Emerson and Stryker exchanged glances. “I got your back,” Stryker said to his fiancé.
“You better,” Emerson replied with a smile.
Tommy strolled in, sat next to Barry.
“We’re all here,” Hawk said. “Let’s get started. Has everyone met our newest Op, Tommy?”
Stryker hadn’t.
“Whoa, dude,” Tommy blurted. “What’s Addison doing here?”
“She’s an Operative,” Hawk replied.
“Oh, wow.” Tommy shot Addison a smile. “How come I’ve never seen you here before?”
