The guys were just as muscled and larger than life as she recalled from their briefing in the war room. But the serious expressions and lines of concern on their faces had been replaced by smiles. Jokes and teasing volleyed around the room, with all of them joining in.
All except for Angelo Ash. The resident stick-in-the-mud.
He wasn’t talking to the others. Wasn’t smiling as he bit off a bite of boring pepperoni and chewed it like it tasted like shredded corporate documents instead of wood-fired heaven.
What he lacked in personality, he made up for in looks. When her stare roamed to his chest, she swallowed wrong and almost choked.
Quickly, she jerked her gaze away. It landed on his arm, and she almost did the nose trick.
His arm was flexed, which meant his biceps bulged in bodybuilder perfection.
Those things are about to rip through his shirt.
But he probably has BO!
She tore her stare away from him and focused on the couple seated beside him. The tech guru of the team, Dante, was leaning close to a stunning blonde, speaking in quiet tones. Suddenly, the blonde looked up into Dante’s eyes and a ray of happiness lit her whole face in a private moment of such intimacy that Ellory looked away.
She stole a peek at Ash’s face…only to find those dark eyes on her.
She turned to Opal again. “If I stay on this base very long, you’re not going to fit me through the door. The pizza issogood.”
Sinner threw her a crooked smile that was, odds were, how he got his nickname. “Plenty more where that came from.”
She spoke to them both for a moment, aware of just how happy Opal was compared to when Ellory first met her on a different op.
Sinner suddenly cleared his throat loud enough to silence the room. “Maybe we should all remember our manners and introduce ourselves to Ellory.”
All eyes snapped to her. She wiped the grease off her fingers and gave them all her attention as one by one, they went around the table introducing themselves. She memorized each by connecting their name with their face.
Opposite her sat a ruggedly handsome guy named Henner—nickname Chickie. And the woman with a beautiful sheet of silky black hair next to him was May.
When they reached the last person—of course it was Ash—he only gave her a silent nod.
Ellory cradled her second slice of pizza. “I’m glad you made use of the pizza oven on this property.” She took a bite and chewed. “I don’t suppose you’ve found the casino.”
Not a single eye blinked. Nobody moved.
Finally, Sophie set her napkin on the table. “How do you know about the casino, Ellory?”
She pushed her glasses up her nose. “I helped acquire this mansion. It was a tax seizure from a big drug lord…and well, IamThe Accountant.”
Con shook his head. “The longer I’m in Blackout, the more I see how small the world is.” He looked at Opal and Sinner.Obviously there was a story there and Ellory couldn’t wait to hear it.
She felt that prickle skittering across her skin and caught Ash staring at her again. She needed to break the connection or she’d forget all about his hairy ass and body odor.
“Then have you found the sex dungeon in the attic yet?”
Exclamations erupted around the table.
“What?”
“No way.”
“I know someone who could use a good paddling!”
Ellory scooted to the edge of her seat and crossed her legs, amused by the team’s reactions. Bulging biceps flashed past her vision as Ash pushed away from the table.
She tried not to track how his body rolled when he strode to the trash can and dropped his paper plate in.
