After a full dayof planning one operation and reviewing another, exhaustion rode Adam’s team hard. “That’s it for today.” He checked the time on his watch. Already after eleven, they needed sleep. “I’ll consolidate the feedback on the Miami mission and send it to Chase. The rest of you clear out and get some sleep. That includes you, Jay. Shut it down.” He pointed at the man who looked like he hadn’t slept in weeks. “That’s an order.”
There’d be no finding Tak tonight. Not through a network of computer servers or a bunch of code. And with Johnson off limits, they had no threads to follow. Adam didn’t like it, but he had no choice.
For now.
Regardless of Diane Heughan’s thoughts on the issue, Johnson wore a JTT target on his chest. And if his mother didn’t come clean next week, Adam and his team would take matters into their own hands.
“We’re back here at zero seven hundred to begin tech support for Miami. After Chase and Gray are back in the air and on their way to Glacier, eat some food and get some rest. We’ll go over the LA operation again after Chase arrives and has a look at the plan.” Nobody moved, and Adam fought the urge to roll his eyes. He’d accepted leadership of the unit, and they expected him to act like the man in command. “Get some z’s, motherfuckers. JTT dismissed.”
Permission to leave granted, the men dispersed among complaints of seized muscles, sore glutes, and cricked necks.
“Been a long day,” Grant said, coming around the boardroom table.
“Yeah,” Adam squeezed his shoulder blades together to work out some of his own kinks. He needed to hit the gym. Then maybe the sauna. They all did, going by the various complaints.
One more thing to add to his mental list of shit to do. He needed to get the JTT organized. Start preparing his team for the future. They couldn’t be effective if they needed walkers to navigate from one room to the next.
“You worried about Miami?” Grant asked, rubbing his pec.
“Not any more than usual. Chase’s plan is solid, and Petrova’s team have their shit together. So long as Gray sticks to the script, they’ll be back here by two our time.”
“And if she doesn’t?”
“She will. She won’t put Tara’s parents at risk by doing anything stupid.”
“True.” Grant frowned, his obvious concern for Gray’s safety as plain as his feelings. The man had fallen in love with a woman who was off limits and watching her with Chase couldn’t be easy. Yet, he stayed. For her. Johnson wanted Gray dead. Until they neutralized the threat, he wouldn’t be going anywhere. “She’s going to go full-on Grayson when she discovers what you’ve been up to in the last week.”
Adam snorted his agreement. He’d wanted to give Gray time to heal. Time to find some peace. Time to be a normal woman on vacation with the man she loved. In doing so, he’d also kept mum about Eve and the recent goings-on with the JTT.
Yeah. Full-on Grayson was an apt description. Gray didn’t like surprises.
And Eve was one hell of a surprise.
He grinned and picked up his notes. Eve’s sass and Gray’s snark combined under one roof? God help him.
“Fuck, you got it bad.” Grant shook his head and plucked the pages out of Adam’s hand. “Go find the woman who slapped that goofy smile onto your face. I’ll consolidate the input for Chase. I want to go over everything one more time, anyway, make sure we didn’t overlook anything.”
Adam cocked a brow but didn’t otherwise comment. Grant wouldn’t rest easy until he had eyes on Gray. A week ago, Adam would have called him a fucking idiot and told him to get over it.
Now he understood.
Falling in love wasn’t a choice. Adam had been blindsided. Hit over the head and knocked senseless. Didn’t matter if it took ten minutes or ten years. His heart had chosen Eve. There’d be no getting over it. No getting over her. Not today. Not ever.
“Thanks.” He clapped a hand down on Grant’s shoulder on his way by. “Don’t stay up all night.”
“Is that an order?”
“Yep.”
“You know, technically, I’m not JTT.”
Other than flipping the bird on his way out, Adam didn’t bother to respond. The hired gun was as much a member of the team as the rest of them. He just hadn’t accepted it yet.
Quiet greeted him as he moved down the hall and entered the great room. Outside the wall of windows, a light snow fell, flakes of white drifting lazily to the deck. Inside, a dying fire flickered in the hearth, calling him over to the couch where Eve and Davis had fallen asleep.
Each in their own corner, they shared the faux-fur blanket covering their legs. On the floor beside them, snout on his paws, Jeff snored, a low rumble escaping with every rise and fall of his big chest. The scene reminded Adam of a holiday postcard.
Peaceful and perfect.
