Page 15 of Handling Haven

Frisco had a bunch of them, but none were appropriate at the moment. They had nothing to do with the mission and everything to do with the beautiful spy at the front of the room. The spy he still hadn’t been able to see completely.Several men raised their hands, and Haven answered their inquiries as best she could. There were quite a few holes in the mission, as it stood now, but hopefully they’d be filled in as more intel came in and the meeting between Mr. Smith and Preston Ward was scheduled.

When there were no more questions, the colonel addressed his men. “Another briefing will take place tomorrow at 0800. Captain Bryson will be the lead on this detail. First Sergeant Ingram, where are you?”

Surprised at being singled out, Frisco jumped to his feet and stood at attention. “Here, sir.”

“Stay behind and see me. The rest of you are dismissed.”

As the teams filed out the two available doors, Frisco weaved his way through the small crowd. When he finally reached the front of the room, the colonel was talking to Haven. His cock twitched at the sight of her.Damn it, not now!

Dressed in a professional, black pant suit, with a royal blue blouse, Haven had her hair up in a ponytail, just like the last two times he’d seen her. He yearned to pull on the elastic band, setting the strands free so he could run his fingers through them. In practically every fantasy he’d had, her hairwas down, framing her face, as it had been during that fateful mission.

Her gaze met his, and he could tell she was just as surprised as he was the colonel had requested to see him. A slight blush stained her cheeks, causing his ire from the other day to lessen under his reemerging lust for her.

Standing nearby, Ghost loudly cleared his throat, catching Frisco’s attention with the clear but unspoken reprimand. Giving himself a mental shake, he stood at attention and addressed the colonel. “Sorry, sir. You wanted to see me?”

“At ease, Frisco.” The use of the moniker, instead of his rank and last name, had indicated this was going to be a casual conversation. Frisco relaxed as the colonel continued. “I understand you and Agent Caldwell met in Mumbai.”

Uh-oh.

CHAPTER 12

Haven’s stomachstarted doing backflips. She’d already known the colonel was going to assign one of his men as a go-between for her and his teams, but with approximately thirty soldiers in the room, she’d figured she had around a 3.3% chance of being paired with Frisco. Maybe she should go buy a lottery ticket.

It was clear Frisco knew his supervisor’s intent as he responded, “Yes, sir, we did.” There was no need to explain further since the man was undoubtedly aware of everything that’d happened during and immediately after that mission—but did that include the death wish Haven had asked for?

“Good. Since you’ll be on light duty for a few more weeks, I’m assigning you to Agent Caldwell.Make sure she has access to anything she needs from us. From what she’s told me, it’s easier to work out of her house where she has secure access to her agency.” He turned to Haven. “Agent Caldwell, thank you for opening your home to us. If you need anything, just let Frisco know, and we’ll take care of it.”

“Thank you, Colonel. I appreciate that.” Haven’s smile was forced, but either the colonel didn’t notice or was polite enough to ignore it.

“If you’ll excuse me, I have another meeting on my agenda.”

“Certainly.”

As the older man left the room, Ghost held out his hand to Haven. “We haven’t had the pleasure yet, ma’am. I’m Captain Bryson, but you can call me Keane or Ghost, preferably the latter.”

Laughing, Haven shook his hand. “Ghost it is, as long as you don’t call me ma’am. Haven will do.”

“Okay, Haven, if you need anything and Frisco is off duty, you can call me anytime, and I’ll get it done.”

He handed her a small card with his name and cell number on it. She slid it into a pouch attached to the right arm of the chair. “Thank you.”

Turning, he addressed Frisco. “Let me know if you need anything delivered to Haven’s house—maps, comms, whatever.”

“I will.”

Whatever unspoken message the two men had as their eyes met, Haven couldn’t decipher. She had no idea if Frisco’s superior knew the details of his visit to her in the rehab hospital or their run-in at physical therapy a few days ago. After Ghost left them alone, silence filled the air. It took a moment for Haven to get the courage to look Frisco in the eye. “It seems I keep apologizing to you, but I’m sorry about the other day.” When he didn’t say anything, she continued. “I—you just caught me off guard ... I ... do you mind sitting for a minute so I don’t get a crick in my neck? There must be a height requirement for Deltas; you all seem awfully tall.”

Her attempt at easing the tension between them didn’t seem to work, but at least he did take a seat in the front row. He crossed his arms and waited for her to resume the apology he rightfully deserved.

“Thanks. Listen, I had no idea you were going to be assigned to me and I can’t figure out any way to change it. You have to follow orders, and if I request someone else, it will probably be an issue with your superiors too, and I don’t want that to happen. So,I’m willing to work with you—hell, I’m willing to be friends with you—but that’s as far as it can go, Frisco. I’m dealing with way too much to even consider dating someone. I don’t evenknowhow to date someone who’s not a target or a cover—it’s been far too long. Can we just be—friends?”

She prayed he hadn’t heard that her question was filled with a combination of desperation and hope. She’d been thinking about him non-stop the past few days and couldn’t deny she was attracted to him. But it also went beyond that. She’d had fun joking around and conversing with him the other day, even if most of it was work related. Maybe her loneliness was getting to her. Avery, Kenny, Carter, and Jordyn were the only people she talked to nowadays. When she’d been a field operative, her covers and traveling had required her to talk to all sorts of people, even though she would classify herself as a loner. Acquaintances were fine. The occasional one-night or two-night stand? Those were okay too. But anything beyond that, she’d rather be alone.

She hadn’t always been that way—she’d had plenty of friends in high school and college. When her mom and sister were alive, they were always laughing and talking about allsorts of things. Window shopping was a favorite pastime for the three women. They loved going into boutiques and trying on all the clothes they couldn’t afford. It was ironic Haven now owned clothes from the hottest designers in the world. She’d needed them for her cover, and the US government had paid for them. Not that she’d been wearing many of them anymore. There were boxes of high-fashion dresses, shoes, outfits, and accessories in the garage of her new home. Everything, except for the furniture, had been packed up from her apartments in Los Angeles, New York, Washington D.C., and London and shipped to her. She still hadn’t gone through any of the boxes.

It surprised her she now hated the silence and alone time she’d craved these past thirteen years since she’d become a field operative for the most secret agency in the United States. She wouldn’t admit it, but she liked when Avery insisted on making conversation with her. She found herself looking forward to Kenny’s phone calls to check on her. She’d also grown closer to Jordyn and Carter. They tried to stop in whenever they could, and called when they couldn’t. But then, at night, after Avery and Roxie returned to the guest house, the deafening silence was starting to drive Haven crazy.She’d like to have people she could call friends again—she’d been without them for far too long—and she’d like to start with Frisco. Maybe someday, when she was finally able to do without the damn wheelchair, they could explore a romantic relationship.

Frisco took a deep breath and let it out. “Friends, huh? I think I can handle that.” A smile spread across his handsome face. “This doesn’t mean I’m not going to try and convince you we can be more—after all, I’m a guy, and you’re an incredibly beautiful woman I’m attracted to—but I promise not to push. If I overstep my bounds and make you uncomfortable, just tell me, and I’ll back off. Deal?”

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