Page 76 of Tactically Acquired

My ears perked up at the name.Zoe.There was an awesome director named Zoe that I was desperate to meet, but what were the chances? Highly unlikely. But it was a nice dream.

“The last thing we need is for the two of them to meet,” Baldy pointed out.

I found that highly offensive, but more because of the implication in his voice than anything else. “Stay. Go. Does it really matter?” I muttered.

“Only if you want to stay alive,” Baldy snapped.

“I could have my boss on the phone in two minutes and he’d tell me to bring them both back to Reed Security,” Craig argued.

“If he was going to do that, you would have called him already,” Rae retorted. “Besides, we need to be sure we can safely transport them.”

“It’s safest here,” Baldy repeated.

“Moving is staying alive. You know that,” Thumper added.

I shoved back from my seat, already sick of this conversation. “And while this is all terribly exciting, I think I’ll turn in for the night.”

Spencer’s worried gaze caught mine and he stood, grabbing my hand as I walked out of the room. I purposely ignored Baldy’s watchful eyes, knowing he was probably trying to read my mind.

“Hey, what’s going on?” Spencer asked as I reached the bedroom I was staying in.

“Nothing. I’m just tired.”

His eyes roamed over my face and his fingers came up to brush the hair skimming my cheek. “You don’t look so good.”

“Well, I did have a concussion,” I smirked, trying to lighten the mood and failing. That wasn’t really an argument that would help my situation.

“What do you need?”

“Sleep. I just need some sleep,” I sighed, falling forward to rest my head against his chest. “This was not the vacation I had planned.”

“You mean you didn’t intend for us to be kidnapped multiple times and nearly killed? That’s a shame.”

I chuckled against his chest, wrapping my arms around his body as he held me tighter. “I’m sure if you had planned a vacation, we’d be having a spa day right now.”

“You know how I love a good body wrap.”

“You do,” I grinned. Stepping back, I hid how much my head was pounding and smiled up at him.

“Get some sleep.”

“Yes, sir.” As I turned to enter the bedroom, he grabbed me by the arm, staring at me worriedly. “You’d let me know if something was wrong, right?”

“Of course,” I smiled.

But he could see the lie on my face because he’d known me for so long. I never admitted when I was sick, hurt, or couldn’t handle something. That just wasn’t me. I hated to be wrong and I never backed down from a challenge. Maybe that made me the most stubborn person on the planet, but it was who I was and how I’d gotten this far in my career.

But Spencer knew me better than anyone.

I shut the door behind me and leaned back against it, closing my eyes with a sigh. The darkness instantly cut the pain in two, making my head hurt a lot less than before. I tore off my shirt and pants, getting as comfortable as possible before I snuggled under the covers. The bed was so warm and cozy, and laying down eased the ache in my body.

But before I could fall asleep, light filtered in and the bed dipped, disturbing my peace.

“What?” I whined, refusing to look at whoever was in here.

“Let me guess, you’re in pain,” Baldy rumbled.

“I am not,” I huffed, refusing to admit anything.

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