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“Staring?”
“At me. We’re tracking this creature. You won’t see it if you’re looking at me.”
His hand curled back around his gun. As hard as he tried, he couldn’t stop watching Daisy’s every movement, or tracking the tilt of her full mouth when she smiled. He was so attuned to her. Even when she was in the next room, he knew she was there. And that floral scent she trailed everywhere she went haunted him. One night, he’d spent an hour tracking that damned scent around the Apocalypse like a fool.
“Well?” Daisy ground her boots into the dirt.
“I’m checking you’re operating at maximum efficiency.”
“Maximum efficiency? What am I, some frigging robot?”
He gritted his teeth and yanked his gaze away from her. That was how he felt most days, like he was operating on basic, essential commands. And when he wasn’t with Daisy, his thoughts were consumed with violence. If he wasn’t thinking about that, his mind was empty. There was nothing there. The memory banks had been blown to shit.
“Hand me the scanner,” Daisy said.
He passed it to her, making sure their fingers didn’t touch. The gloves he wore most of the time help minimize contact. But those accidental brushes of skin on skin would leave him shuddering for hours. He was supposed to be a star damned invincible killer, but he felt vulnerable around Daisy. And that scared the hell out of him.
“Take the eye scopes. You always say I miss things because of my feeble vision. See if you can spot this elusive beast.” The side of her thumb brushed his cheek as she held out the eye scopes. It was one of the few parts of him not covered by the all-terrain body armor he wore.
Rexx bit the side of his tongue and closed his eyes until the shudder left him. He grabbed the eye scopes and glared through them.
“What’s with you today?” Daisy said.
“Nothing.”
“You can tell me if I’ve annoyed you. No one likes the silent treatment. Although I should be used to it by now. You’ve been my partner long enough for me to know you’ll never break out into song.”
“I don’t sing. Ever.”
“Ain’t that the truth. But you’re not exactly chatty today.”
“And when have I ever been chatty?”
Her low chuckle sent a tremor through him. “That was the wrong word. I thought you’d be excited about this mission. Red backs are one of my favorite creatures. I’ve written several papers about them.”
“I know. They were hunted almost to extinction because their blood was thought to have healing properties.” He snorted his disbelief. Some idiots would believe anything.
“That’s right. Did you read one of my papers?”
He’d read everything Daisy had ever written. From her first blog post, through to her latest book detailing the myths and legends surrounding rare Earth creatures. “I read the mission brief.”
“Oh, of course. You know, these buzzard-like creatures remind me of Earth’s dinosaurs. Imagine coming up against a gathering of red backs. You wouldn’t stand a chance.”
“I would. But it’s a good job we’re only tracking one. If there was a crowd of these scaly goons, I’d abort the mission.”
“Spoilsport. Hey! I’ve got movement on the scanner.”
Rexx's muscles tensed. Finally, some action. “Which quadrant?”
“Southeast. Can you see anything?”
He trained the eye scopes to the southeast quadrant. “Confirmed sighting. It’s small. Most likely a female.”
“Then let’s go get her.” Daisy placed the scanner in her backpack.
Rexx reached to adjust the strap that had twisted on her shoulder, but drew back before making contact.
“You ready?” Her smile lit a fire inside him. She made him want to be the Apexian warrior everyone remembered. When they weren’t together, his world felt like it was splintering. He still hadn’t figured out how the hell one tiny, headstrong female made him feel this way.
