Page 17 of Gwen's Delta
“Nah, I’m good.”
“I figured. I’m headed to the weight room. Something tells me I might need it.”
Zip stopped and stared at him. “One of your usual feelings?”
Merlin’s premonitions had kept their asses out of the fire more than once. After the first few times, they’d stopped giving him shit about it and went along with his instincts. When he’d told Gwen it was how he’d earned his nickname, it had been the truth.
“Yeah, it is.”
“When are you going to share it with the team?”
“At the briefing later.”
Zip kept pace with Merlin as they headed back to the locker room.
“Maybe you should stay and work on your endurance with that leg?” Merlin suggested.
“Nah, I’m good. No worries.”
“I never said you weren’t good. Although I’m sure Destiny would be the one to ask.” Merlin hoped his remark would make Zip laugh. He didn’t like anyone to remind him of his injury. Merlin got that, but the niggling worry about their upcoming mission wouldn’t leave him alone. He needed to make sure the entire team was ready for whatever was coming their way.
“You going to hang around after the briefing?” Zip asked.
“Not today. I’m meeting Gwen for lunch.” Damn. He hadn’t wanted to share that piece of information.
“No shit?” Zip looked as surprised as he sounded.
“Don’t sound so surprised. I go out with women.” Merlin sighed. After he grabbed a towel, he headed toward the weight room, hoping to ditch Zip and clear his head before the briefing.
“Where are you taking her? Somewhere in Lancelot?” Zip asked as he followed along.
“No, she’s coming to Killeen. But that’s all you’re getting out of me.”
“We’ll see,” Zip said with a chuckle.
Did they think he never went out on dates? Just because he didn’t talk about it didn’t mean he didn’t appreciate women.
But after seeing Zip and Woof with their women, it had opened a hole of despair Merlin had kept locked up. He’d seen too many of his buddies not come home and the devastation their families experienced. He didn’t want to do that to a woman he loved, and that meant staying single until he retired from active duty.
* * *
After getting cleaned up and dressed in their uniforms, Zip and Merlin grabbed some coffee and headed into the briefing room. They were the first ones there, and it would give them time to finish their coffee. Usually, Merlin was the first one in, and he’d have enjoyed his coffee in silence. But Zip was still trying to pry information about his lunch with Gwen.
When the rest of the team walked in, Merlin breathed a sigh of relief. Now, Zip would shut up. The team was quieter than usual, not that it surprised him. Sunday was usually a day off even if they weren’t on leave.
A few moments later, their CO entered the room, carrying his laptop and more folders. A civilian followed him in, one Merlin didn’t recognize. They rarely had outsiders at their briefings, mostly because knowing they were Delta Force was top secret. From the raised eyebrows around the table, the rest of the team was just as surprised.
They stood and saluted.
“At ease, gentlemen,” Turano said as he stood at the head of the table. “Let me introduce you to Bruce Sand. He’s with the CIA and will be your POC for this mission.”
Only Merlin’s experience at hiding his emotions kept the surprise off his face. Sand didn’t look like a field agent—more like a pencil pusher. Not that there was anything wrong with that as long as he didn’t get his team killed. He didn’t like the vibe he was getting from Sand, and it set off his internal alarms.
“Sand?” Turano said as he pulled out a chair and sat down.
“Thank you, Commander. I’ve heard a lot about Delta Team 3. According to your commander, you never fail. That’s good. We’ll need all of your skills on this mission.”
Maybe not a pencil pusher—more like a would-be politician from the load of shit he shoveled. Only the look on Turano’s face kept Merlin quiet. This asshat rubbed him the wrong way.
