Page 49 of Tattletale

“What’d she say?”

“Yes.”

Linc is quiet as he finishes his coffee. “Then I’m happy for you, man.” He sets his cup down on the counter and pats my shoulder twice. “I really mean that.”

I draw in a deep breath. “Thanks. Only problem is, after everything I told Vesper, I don’t know where we stand now. I doubt she’ll marry me if she can’t even stand to look at me. Last night she—”

Callen busts through the door, interrupting me. Immediately, his eyes fixate on the espresso machine. “What the actual fuck is that?”

“New coffee maker,” Linc says.

“Why does it look like a spaceship?” Callen asks, rubbing his scruff. He’s pretty unkempt as well. His hair is disheveled, and his dress shirt is wrinkly. Also, we were supposed to be here at six thirty. Callen, in all his golden-boy glory, is always five minutes early. Today, he’s nearly ten minutes late.

“What’s wrong with you?” Linc asks Callen, clearly just as surprised by Callen’s current state.

“Was up all night. Have you ever been tasked with rerouting an Air Force One? Do you know what kind of pressure that entails? I’ve been running interference all night. Even with Vesper’s connections, Secret Service wanted to do a fucking cavity search just for me asking.”

“Why the hell does Vesper have you messing with presidential flights?” Linc asks.

“Hell if I know. I take orders just like you, Linc,” Callen grumbles, pushing past us to get to the espresso machine. He instinctively knows how to work it.

“That was a swift fall from the top, hm?” Linc asks mockingly. “You’re a peasant like the rest of us now.” Linc loves to give Callen shit for the brief moment in time when Callen ran PALADIN for the FBI.

“Eh, you guys never listened to me anyway. Can’t beat ’em, join ’em.” He configures his drink on the touchscreen and sets a mug underneath the nozzle. Turning to face us, he crosses his arms to mirror our position. “So what are we talking about?”

“Apparently, we’re having girl talk,” Linc explains. He smirks in my direction. “Lance was just telling me how he struck out with Cricket last night.”

Callen laughs. “That was bound to happen.” He taps my shoulder with his fist. “And to clarify—I mean the striking-out part.”

“First of all,” I say, “fuck you both. Second of all, I didn’t strike out. And third, fuck you both again. I’m in pain here.”

“Like a-burning-sensation-when-you-pee kind of pain?” Callen asks.

“Jackass,” I murmur. “You guys are the shittiest friends.”

“Okay, okay—we’ll be serious. What happened?” Callen holds out his palms as an apology.

“She…” Now that the spotlight’s on, I actually don’t know how to explain this. “Well, to start, she was recovering from a bad trip after the superhero pill—”

Callen interrupts me with a groan. “I told you guys to quit taking that shit unnecessarily. It’s like LSD, meth, and speed mixed together, and ten times more intense. Emergencies only when you’re immobilized from the pain—”

“Already gave the lecture,” Linc says, holding up his hand. “What happened, Lance?”

“It was innocent, you know? I was taking care of her until she was back in her right mind. Then she basically ripped my dick out, had her way with me, and then ditched my ass. I don’t know how else to say it… She used me, then left me naked on the bed. I couldn’t do anything but watch her leave.”

Callen raises one brow. “You couldn’t do anything? Like she tied you up?”

“No.” I sigh. “You should’ve seen how she left. She couldn’t even look at me. It’s like she hates me. There was no way I could follow last night. But I’m not in the wrong here. Cricket was testing every limit. What would happen if Vesper gave the kill order for violating the rules? It’d divide PALADIN. I wouldn’t hunt Cricket down even if Vesper said I had to. Would you?” I ask Linc. He’s normally the reaper who puts down our rebellious dogs.

Linc looks away, refusing to answer.Exactly.Of course, he wouldn’t. Our obedience and allegiance to Vesper is what keeps PALADIN intact. I was protecting our family as much as I was protecting Cricket.

“You should’ve followed her,” Callen says. He ignores the loud beep, indicating his drink is done.

“And piss her off even more?” I scoff. “Not smart. Cricket’s mood swings tend to get violent.”

“Hear me out,” Callen continues. “I loved my ex-wife while we were together.”

Linc scoffs loudly. “The woman you have in your phone as ‘Succubus’?”

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