“My room. I’ll come for you.”
SEVEN
Ash remained in the war room watching the screens until the team rolled through the gates of the mansion. At the first thump of boots, he swung to the door.
It had been a long time since he felt this flutter of nerves. It had also been a long time since he’d led a task force.
The last thing he expected was to get thrown into another leadership role, especially after what happened on the last. Con placed him in charge because he needed to put aside what happened in the past. He trusted him to carry them into the future, which left Ash with a weight in his chest.
Chickie walked through the door first, dust still clinging to his shoulders from breaching the door. Mason followed, then Steele, Sinner, Dante wearing a shit-eating grin, and finally Con.
As soon as they were all accounted for, some of the worry Ash had been carrying flowed away.
No one limped. No one bled. No one had the hollow look of a near-miss.
Ash met them halfway across the room, clasping forearms and clapping backs.
Con stepped forward last, looking over Ash the same way Ash looked over all of them—like he was checking for the wounds that came with making hard choices.
Ash gripped his commanding officer’s hand, and they yanked each other close to bump shoulders.
“All secure on base?”
“Nothing to report.”
Con studied him for a heavy beat. “You good?”
“Solid,” he responded without hesitation. “The only thing that could have gone better would be if you walked into that office and Cipher was sitting there.”
“Only a matter of timing now.” Con peeled off his comms like the rest of the team.
“I feel it in my bones. We’re closing in.”
Con’s expression was distant as he eyed him. “I trust your instincts. Don’t second-guess them.”
The words hit with a force he didn’t expect. He knew his strengths and his weaknesses too. And it had been a hell of a long time since he felt sure of himself.
Not the surface kind of sure. Or the kind he projected so his team didn’t see the cracks, but the bone-deep certainty that if he gave an order, it was the right one.
A set of footsteps passed outside the room, light and sure. He automatically turned his head, looking for Ellory.
But it was Sophie who burst in, the small crease on her forehead smoothing as soon as she set eyes on Con. Ash stepped back, giving her room to rush into Con’s arms.
He’d witnessed countless reunions between the women of Charlie team and his brothers-in-arms. But this time, it hit different.
Maybe because, for the first time, he understood what it meant to have someone waiting.
Somewhere in the mansion, Ellory was waiting for him. He didn’t know what to do with that.
He kept his head in the debrief. Did his job. But the moment it was done, his mind went straight back to her—the way her breath hitched when he’d stepped into her space, the pulse jumping at the base of her throat.
He’d seen hunger in her eyes.
And when she’d grabbed his arm before he could walk away…Christ, he almost lost it then and there.
Even though he burned to go to her, he wrapped up with Con, confirming a time for a full breakdown once Wyoming’s intel merged with New York’s. Before he walked away, he exchanged a few words with Dante about the data pull.
As he stepped into the hallway, anticipation replaced the adrenaline in his veins. Ellory wasn’t waiting for him here, but he knew where to find her.
