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“You’d better not try to snatch this one. Sullocks have nasty teeth and claws.”
“Whatever you say. We’ll do this your way. Get it right this time.”
“You’re really going to play by the rules? You’re not going to get bored if we wait here another five hours until the trap goes off?”
“How could I be bored when I’ve got you by my side?” He flashed her a smile that sent a tingle from her hair to the tips of her toes.
She shivered then looked away. He was always flirting. It didn’t mean anything. Now wasn’t the time to crush on her gorgeous, muscled, sexy as all stars partner. They had a mission to focus on, and it involved capturing one dangerous sullock. If they got this wrong, they’d both be dead.
***
“We need to move east. Make sure we stay downwind. Sullocks have enhanced scent receptors.” Striker had been tracking this sneaky son of a sullock with Wren for two hours, and he was restless.
Libran was full of small caves and rocky inlets, so there were plenty of hiding places. Searching each one for an elusive sullock would be no fun, even though he was with Wren.
“What’s it doing?” Irritation traced through her voice. “It’s not behaving like a normal sullock. They don’t roam around like this. Whenever there’s food within sniffing distance, they take it. And if they don’t eat it straight away, they store it somewhere. Then they either guard it or sleep. Its behavior is erratic.”
“Could it be sick?” Striker said.
“It’s possible. It’s unusual for a sullock to be so active during the day. They come out for short periods for food or water but retreat into their den until night. If this one is sick, it may not be a useful specimen.” Her gentle sigh told Striker all he needed. She had to take a time out.
“We should take a break. We can monitor its movements on the scanner while we eat.”
“No! We keep going. It’ll soon tire.”
“Five minutes.”
“Nope. Let’s catch this sullock and figure out what’s wrong with it. Then we rest.” Wren strode ahead of him.
He quickly caught up as they reached a narrow passageway.
“Single file from now on.” Wren looked around then marched straight in.
He grinned as he watched her butt wriggling through the narrow gap. How anyone made these black jumpsuits look hot, he’d never figure it out, but she always did. She filled a jumpsuit to perfection, with curves in all the places he liked.
“What are you waiting for? Stop staring and move.” She glanced back at him.
“Just admiring the view.” He squeezed through the narrow passageway and out the other side, deliberately closing the gap between them. Striker couldn’t explain it, but he kept finding reasons to be close to her. She was a magnet, drawing him nearer. He had to get over this obsession. It was most likely because she was out of reach. Wasn’t there some saying about always wanting something you couldn’t have? He wanted Wren in his bed, but she was way too good for him.
And she’d made it clear she never wanted anything to do with him. He’d never get her naked and screaming his name. Although he’d had enough fantasies about it that he almost believed it had happened. If it did, the reality would be way better than he could dream.
She elbowed him in the ribs and moved the scanner so he could see it. “What do you think?”
He stared at the screen. “Where’s it gone?”
“It’s either got a den deep underground, or we still have faulty equipment. Our scanners only penetrate so far underground. This rock is making it hard to see. The chemicals inside could be messing with the equipment.”
“Wren, Striker, can you hear me?” Cleo came over the shared comms link.
“We’re here,” Striker said. “Is everything okay?”
“We could have a problem. We’ve detected a ship approaching the planet.”
Striker’s spine straightened. “Who’s flying in for a party?”
“They’ve masked their signal. That’s never a good sign. It’s a small ship, maybe a dozen crew, but it’s weaponized. And their shields are up. They’re getting ready to set down,” Cleo said.
“How far away are they?” Wren said.
