“I’m not going to hug you, so get that out of your head.”
“Damn it.” Jug sighed. “I haven’t had a hug in a long time.”
April
Talon was reviewing intel reports when Riley's text came in, and he abandoned the mission briefing without a second thought.
Riley: Random question: What's your favorite color?
She did this sometimes, asked him things that seemed insignificant but somehow revealed everything. He found himself looking forward to these moments, these glimpses into how her mind worked.
Talon: Blue. Ocean blue. You?
Ocean blue like her eyes when she'd looked at him with such trust during the rescue. Like the calm she'd found at the beach. Like the peace he felt when he thought about her.
Riley: Green. Forest green.
Talon: Why green?
Riley: It means life. Growth. Hope.
Of course, it did. Riley would choose a color thatrepresented everything positive about moving forward, about healing, about the future.
Talon: I like that.
Riley: What does blue mean to you?
Talon: Peace. Depth. Endless possibility.
Like the future he was starting to imagine with her in it. Like the conversations they could have, the places they could go, the life they could build together if he ever took the chance.
Talon satin the tiny Alaskan airport, surrounded by his team and trying not to think about how isolated this place was. The mission had gone well, but the remoteness was getting to him in a way it usually didn't.
Talon: Stuck in a tiny airport in Alaska. Population: My team and one very bored security guard.
He needed connection, needed her voice in his head.
Riley: Sounds lonely.
Talon: Not really. I have good company.
Riley: The security guard or your team?
Neither.
You. Always you.
Talon: No, you. These conversations keep me sane.
It was more honest than he'd meant to be, but it was true. She kept him centered, reminded him who he was underneath the tactical gear and the mission objectives.
Riley: Yes. Yes, they do for me, too.
Talon: Good to know I'm not the only one.
Good to know he mattered to her the way she’d come to matter to him. Good to know he wasn’t imagining the connection between them, wasn’t projecting his own feelings onto her responses.
May
