Where for the first time, she hesitated. That in itself pissed her off. So a year ago shed nearly died out in the field. She hadnt. And she wasnt going to this time, either. Shrugging off her nerves, Abby looked around and caught the long, assessing look Hawk shot her as he pulled on a flak vest. He was sharp, shed give him that. Clearly, he sensed her hesitation, but hell if shed let him see her sweat. She lifted her chin and sat down.
But if she was a good actress, then he was a great actor, because she had no idea what he was thinking behind that perpetually cynical gaze.
And she didnt care. She was here for the job. She would remain in the van, in charge of communications, while the team made their way to the farmhouse, and then to the barn a half mile beyond that, where theyd execute the raid.
There, Watkins said to Hawk as he finished wiring him.
Hawk shrugged back into his shirt. You fix the problem from the other day? he asked.
Abbys eyes had wandered again to Hawks body-bad eyes-but her ears pricked. Problem?
Bad wire. Watkins lifted a shoulder. Happens.
It shouldnt, she said. Make sure it doesnt.
Watkins nodded.
Hawk let his T-shirt fall over his abs, hiding the wires as his gaze again met hers. One eyebrow arched in the silent question: Were you staring at me?
No. No, she wasnt. To prove it, she turned to her own equipment, trying not to remember the last time shed been wired before a raid. Elliot Gaines, the head honcho, had done her up himself.
Of course hed had a personal interest. Theyd had a burgeoning friendship, at least on her part. For his part, he clearly wished for more, far more. In any case, he couldnt have known how bad it would all go
And it had gone extremely bad. One minute shed been listening to Gainess quiet, authoritative voice in her ear, telling her she was doing great, just to hold her position while his team to the west handled it, and then the next, thered been a 12-gauge shotgun to her temple and shed been taken hostage.
Now, a year later, in another time and place, someone murmured something in a low voice that she couldnt quite catch, and several of the men behind her laughed softly.
Releasing tension, she knew, most likely with an off-color joke that she didnt want to hear. Living as a woman in a mans world was nothing new, but she had to admit, tonight, it was grating on her nerves.
Granted, her nerves were already scraped raw just by being here, but that was no ones fault but her own. Gaines had transferred her at her request after a leave of absence. Shed wanted to prove to herself that she could still do her job, that she hadnt let the incident take anything from her.
But with damp palms and butterflies bouncing in her gut, she wondered if maybe she had more to overcome than shed thought.
Hey.
With a start, Abby turned toward Hawk. He was geared up and ready to face the night, looking big, bad, tough and prepared for anything. She bet he didnt have any butterflies.
The others were engaged in conversation, but Hawk stood close, looking at her as if he could see her anxiety. Ready?
That he could see her nervousness meant she didnt have it nearly as together as shed like. Of course Im ready.
Of course, he repeated, but didnt move. Listen, I know youre going to bite my head off for this, but Im getting a weird vibe from you here, and-
I said I was fine. She swiveled back to her computer to prove it.
All right, then. She could feel him watching her very closely. Youre fine. Im fine. Were all fine.
She heard him turn to follow the others out the door, and glanced back to watch the long-limbed ease that didnt do a thing to hide the latent power just beneath the surface. Or the irritation.
Abby let out a rough breath. Damn it. He might be a hell of a charmer, but he was also a hell of an agent, and truth be told, she admired his work ethic even more than she secretly admired his body. And she wanted him to be able to admire her work ethic. Hawk.
He looked back, his broad shoulders blocking the night from view, but not the chill that danced in on an icy wind. Yeah?
Watch yourself.
A hint of a self-deprecating smile crossed his lips. Thought you were doing that for me.
She felt the heat rise to her face, but hed caught her fair and square. His smile came slow and sure, and far too sexy for her comfort.
As he left, she let out a slow breath and fanned her face.
DAMN, ITS BUTT-ASS COLD out here.
At Logans statement of the obvious, Hawk blew out a breath, which changed into a puff of fog before being whipped away by the cutting wind. The two of them lay on their bellies on the battered roof of the barn that had been pinpointed as a bomb-processing plant.
And yeah, it was butt-ass cold up here, but he was more focused on the fact that he was thirty feet above the ground without a safety rope, with the wind threatening to take him to the land of Oz.
Christ, he really hated heights.
Logan lowered his binoculars to blow on his hands. Maybe we could do this thing before we freeze to the roof like a pair of Popsicles.
Like Hawk, Logan was built with the capacity to do whatever, whenever. Tough as nails. Physically honed. Trained to be a weapon all on his own, with or without the aid of bullets. But he enjoyed complaining. Always had, and Hawk should know-theyd been together since theyd been eighteen and in boot camp. Theyd gone from bunkmates to brothers and knew each other like no one else.
To get here, theyd drugged a pack of rottweilers, disabled the alarm on the farmhouse and stealthily made their way through the woods to the barn. The place was a nice setup for criminal activity. Surrounded by the sharp, jagged peaks of the Bighorn Mountains, there were also rolling hills and a maze of lakes and streams, all of which were nothing but an inky black silhouette in the dark night. No neighboring ranches, no neighboring anything except maybe bears and bison and coyotes.
And the many cars and trucks parked behind the farmhouse.
Odd. It would seem that there was a large group of people here somewhere, and yet there hadnt been a soul in the house or in any of the small storage sheds behind it.
Which left the huge barn.
An icy gust hit Hawk in the face, burning his skin. He had to admit, things had definitely gone from interesting to tricky, because now the metal tiles beneath them were icing over. Any movement could be detrimental to their health, because slipping off here meant a thirty-foot fall to the frozen earth below.
Thanks to his goggles, Hawk had a crystal-clear view of the ground, and the distance to it made him want to puke. Theyd been in far worse circumstances, he reminded himself, where his fear of heights had been the least of his worries. He and Logan had done some pretty ugly shit involving some pretty ugly people. On more than one occasion, theyd managed to stay alive on instinct alone, in parts of the world that didnt even warrant being on the map.
So all in all, things had improved.
Hope it doesnt rain, because this babyll turn right into a giant metal slide. Logan said this calmly, because he, damn him, did not have a height issue. Like the one at the carnival-
Logan?
Yeah?
Shut up.
He laughed softly.
The temperature had indeed dropped to two degrees above freezing their balls off, and with that wind icing up their organs, Hawk wanted to get a move on. But they were stuck up here until they got the signal from communications, which happened to be Abby and crew parked in a van on the main road half a mile south of here. We need to move closer, he said to her via his mic, over a noisy gust that whipped dust from the roof and into his face.
Remain in position, she ordered, her voice breaking with static, but still sounding soft, warmand sexy as hell.
At least in Hawks opinion.
Just listening to her made him react like Pavlovs dog. Only he wasnt drooling. Nope, listening to her elicited visions of wild up-against-the-wall sex, which caused a much more base reaction than slobber. Remaining in position isnt going to work, he told her.
Soon as I hear from Watkins and Thomas, she said, the static increasing, well move.
We. As in not her. He knew she used to be a great field agent, and yeah, so hed read her files. But all her cases had ended abruptly a year ago, and no amount of digging could produce a reason. Then, after a six-month leave, shed transferred from Seattle to Cheyenne, where Hawk had done his best to ignore his inexplicable attraction to her, because that had seemed to work for her.
But now he wondered, how was it shed gotten so comfortable behind the safety net? Why had she given up being in the trenches with the rest of them for a computer screen?
Watkins and Thomas are making their way to the east and west doors beneath you, she added, referring to Logans and Hawks counterparts on the ground. Wait for my cue.
Uh-huh. Easy for her to say. She sat out of the slicing wind in that van, and Hawk would bet money she had the motor running and the heater on full blast.
Shed changed on the plane, out of her skirt, the one that had messed with his mind every time it clung to her thighs, which was only with every single movement she made. But her cargo pants and long-sleeved ATF button-down clung to her, too. Hell, she could wear a potato sack and do something to him.
Logan shifted. Probably trying not to freeze to the roof. Hawk did the same, but for different reasons entirely.
Nearly there, Thomas said into their earpieces. Hearing noises from inside, a steady pinging.
Affirmative, Watkins said. The windows are blacked out, going in southwest door-Jesus. Its full of ammo and workstations. Definitely bomb-making going on here, guys, but theres no one in sight. He let out a low whistle. Seriously, theres enough blow in here to make Las Vegas prime beachfront property.
Suspects? Abby asked.
None.
That cant be, she murmured.
Hawk had to agree with her. Something was off, and not just because theyd managed to get onto the premises and up here, past the alarm and a pack of hungry rottweilers without being detected. But now theyd found the proof, right beneath their noses? It was all too easy. He flicked off his mic and looked at Logan.