He was so incredibly blasé; he either really didn’t care, or he was an incredible actor.Mason studied him, looking for any crack in his armor but not finding one.Maybe he really didn’t care what the team thought of him.He was calm, collected, and confident, even if no one trusted him.That, or he didn’t care because he was ballsy enough to fool all of them.
Brenda would probably say that he had a fat dick spirit.
Goddammit, he really hoped that would get out of his head, eventually.
“I’d like to help you integrate with the team, if that’s something you’d be open to.”It was his job, after all, even if he didn’t fully trust Zeus yet, either.But he needed to try to make sure they were working well as a team.There was wariness in Zeus’ eyes, but maybe something else, too.Hope?Desire for connection?Or maybe Mason was projecting because he wanted there to be something he could do to help.
Before Zeus could answer, Mason’s phone started blaring.Loud.Not the bakery alarm.
Audrey’s panic button.
He was on his feet, phone in his hand, screen on before he could blink.
She was at the bakery.Behind it, maybe.
“What?”Zeus was already up and bouncing on the balls of his feet, ready to meet whatever the threat was.
“Bakery.”
That was the only word Mason could get out before he ran.
Flat-out ran, heart in his throat, terror ripping through him because he couldn’t imagine what might have caused her to push it.
Audrey
I’m going to die, I’m going to die, I’m going to die.
“This is a stick-up,” the man snarled, brandishing his gun at her.“Gimme all your money.”
“I don’t have any!”Her voice came out in a squeak as she stared at the gun, unable to look at anything else, even though her brain was telling her she needed to try to look at him.Even though his hat was pulled low over his head and he was wearing sunglasses and a scarf.She should try to get some kind of identifying features in case she lived through this.
God, she hoped that pressing the little button in her apron had worked.There wasn’t any kind of notification that, yes, someone was on the way to help.
“You run a bakery!You have to have money!”
“It’s all inside!”Tears welled up.Oh God, she was going to die.He wouldn’t let her go into the bakery to get money, even though she would.“I can… I can…”
She couldn’t think of what she could do.
“Hey!What’s going on there?”Someone shouted from the end of the alley.A man.It was a familiar man’s voice.
It took her frantic brain a moment for her to place it, and Audrey watched, dumbfounded, as the bad guy turned and pointed the gun at Cash, who was now rushing down the alley, heedless of the danger.He ran straight at the guy and grabbed his wrist, shoving the gun up in the air.Her mouth dropped open as they danced around, ending with Cash between her and the gunman as they grappled over the weapon.
Behind her, the back door to the bakery slammed open.
“Audrey!”
“Mason!”His name burst from her lips with pure relief as she turned toward him.
The gunman let Cash have the weapon and took off sprinting down the alley toward the street.Two men, who had come out of the bakery right behind Mason, took off running after him.Bald with facial hair—Zeus, from Lincoln’s team.Full head of hair and a large, fluffy beard—Aiden, from Harris’ team.She barely had enough time to recognize them as they went flying past her before Mason was pulling her into his arms.
“Hey!I’m the one who saved her!Audrey, I saved you!”The whine in Cash’s voice sounded like a child as he complained.
Astonished—because she couldn’t believe Cash had gone running toward an actual gun—Audrey turned in Mason’s arms, still clinging to him as her racing pulse finally started to slow.
“Oh my God, Audrey, are you okay?”Alexis had reached their side, her eyes wider than Audrey had ever seen, her normally tanned skin looking abnormally pale as she looked Audrey over.She was gripping a hand mixer, batter slowly dripping onto the ground at her side, though she didn’t seem to notice.“The guys just went running through the bakery, they barely paused, and then they came out here and— What happened?”
“That’s what I’d like to know,” Mason said grimly, holding tightly to Audrey and looking at Cash rather than her or Alexis.When Audrey lifted her arms to hug him, she realized she was still holding the bag of trash and finally dropped it to the ground.
