Matt didn’t think anything of the news. Last-minute jobs were pretty much the norm for R.I.S.C.
“He give you anything?”
“No details. Only that he had a new job and Bravo Team’s up.”
Shortly after its formation, Matt’s team began alternating the bigger jobs with Alpha Team. Since that team got back from an overseas op for Homeland last week, it was their turn.
“Copy that. I’ll see you at eight.”
Shoving his phone back into his pocket, Matt unlocked his truck and climbed inside. By the time he got home and crawled into bed, his mind had returned to the woman at the bar.
Not because he regretted brushing her off but because he didn’t. What the hell was wrong with him? One minute, he’s perfectly fine with no-strings, consensual one-night-stands, and the next…
A different woman’s face filled his mind’s eye. One with long, dark hair and eyes the color of chocolate.Ah, hell no.
Matt threw his covers off and practically jumped out of bed. Storming barefoot across his loft-style bedroom, he made his way down the open staircase and across his condo into the kitchen.
Bottles clanged together as he opened the refrigerator door with more force than necessary. Grabbing a Heineken from the top shelf, he used his free hand to slam the door shut.
Pissed, it took a few seconds of digging noisily through his utensil drawer before he spotted the bottle opener. Popping the top off, Matt tossed the opener and cap onto the marble counter and downed half the beer in one, long gulp.
He didn’t know what the fuck was going on, but if he had to drink himself to sleep in order to quiet the sudden thoughts and memories of that particular mistake, that’s exactly what he would do.
A few hours and several beers later, Matt crawled back into bed. This time when he closed his eyes, the only thing floating through his mind was how quickly eight o’clock was going to be here.
As he lay there, he found himself hoping this new job would be enough to distract him from the painful memories. Memories that—for reasons unbeknownst to him—had suddenly resurfaced.
Never again.
The words that had become his personal mantra whispered through him as Matt drifted off into a deep, drunken sleep.
The next morning, fueled with plenty of ibuprofen and coffee, Matt shuffled into R.I.S.C.’s downtown office. Oftentimes, they’d meet at Jake’s house, which would seem odd if it wasn’t so badass.
Sitting on over a hundred acres of highly-secured land, the place was set up with a fully-functional shooting range—both indoor and outdoor, an outdoor training course, and a private air strip, jet and hangar included. For obvious reasons, Matt and the guys preferred to hold their meetings at the ranch.
Right now, however, wasn’t the best time to invade their boss’s personal space. Jake’s wife, Olivia, was due with their first child in a little under two months. For her sake, Jake wanted to try and keep his house as calm and R.I.S.C.-free as possible until that time comes, which means all scheduled meetings were to be held here, in the public office.
Shoving the door open with his shoulder, Matt balanced the two coffees he’d gotten from across the street before coming over here. After his idiotic decision to drink too damn much last night, he’d woken up knowing it was going to be a two-coffee kind of day.
Entering the conference room at the end of the long hallway, Matt carefully set the two paper cups on the long, oval table before rolling out one of the empty, cushioned chairs. Taking a seat beside Kole, he slid his sunglasses to the top of his head, his eyes instantly squinting against the harsh, neon lights.
“Damn, man. What happened to you?” Zade asked from across the table.
Kole snorted. “Better yet,whohappened to you?”
With a silent flip of the bird, Matt lifted one of the cups to his lips. He then proceeded to suck down as much of the hot, bitter liquid as he could without burning his throat.
“You good to go, Turner?” Gabe asked from the seat next to Zade’s.
“I’m fine. Just had some trouble sleeping.” When Kole opened his mouth to spout off yet another smartass comment, Matt shut him down, fast. “Alone, dickwad. I went home alone.”
“Oh. That’s…different. I don’t quite know how to respond to that.”
Not in the mood for this shit, Matt turned his head and glared at his friend. “Contrary to what you assholes think, I don’t sleep with a different fucking woman every goddamn night.”
A low throat cleared from behind him, and Matt didn’t have to turn around to know Jake had stepped into the room.
Great.
