Page 31 of Honor Code

Wasn't it enough that she was the smartest woman he knew? Did she have to be the sexiest too? Bending over like that in her skin-tight leggings, her perfectly formed butt sticking up into the air...

Fuck.

He'd had a hard time keeping it together. Hell, an entire insurgency could have boarded the rig and he wouldn't have noticed. That's how distracting she was.

Phoenix shifted his weight, trying to focus on his patrol duties. But his mind kept drifting back to Ellie. Quite the contradiction too. On the one hand she was focused and dedicated, working tirelessly to prove herself in this job. On the other, she was a free spirit, dancing around the helipad, her hair blowing loosely in the breeze.

She protected herself by being reserved, quiet, and burying herself in her work, but when he'd surprised her that first morning, she'd turned into a hellcat, spitting fire at him and glaring through terrified tiger's eyes.

She was both fire and ice, confident and fearful. Which meant he wanted to protect her and rip her clothes off in the same goddamned breath.

He knew now that her crazed effort to fight back that first morning was because of her ex, the scumbag who had held her hostage. After yesterday’s panic attack, he'd realized the depth of her fear, but he knew that hiding away from it didn't help.

Wasn’t he a good one to talk? He was hiding too. Not from fear, but from facing up to what he'd done. Seemed they each had a cross to bear.

Still, she'd obviously taken self-defense classes because she'd fought back admirably. In most cases, she'd have gotten away. He wasn't most cases.

Then there was the imagined threat. He still didn't know if he was being paranoid, or if she really had been a target up there on the deck near the railing.

There was no doubt the bolts had been removed. He and Boomer had poured over the security camera footage on the deck, but annoyingly it didn't pick up that section. Could the saboteur have known? Was that why that area had been chosen? In which case, whomever was responsible must have been familiar with the angle of the security cameras. Only someone with access would be. Boomer was going to talk to the other guys and put together a list.

At least the helipad was covered. He'd made sure of that. While Ellie went through her morning routines, the beady eye attached to the top of the crane was recording her every move. And the moves of anyone else who might be out there. The feed wasn't manned at all times, but it could be played back if necessary. He hoped it would never come to that.

Phoenix watched her from the shadows. In his dark attire, with wide steel structures between him and the helipad, he was practically invisible. Ellie, however, was standing on the highest point of the rig, bathed in gentle sunbeams. He watched as her hair caught the light, turning it a deep golden brown. Her skin seemed to shimmer in the incandescent glow as she turned and stared out to sea. What was she thinking?

About him?

His ego hoped she was, but a more sensible side prayed she wasn't. He was not the type of man she needed, especially not after her last experience. She needed a nice calm scientist or tech geek to discuss clever things with. Non-dangerous arms to hold her as she fell asleep at night. Someone placid and boring. Someone safe.

The thought made him physically ill.

At some point over the last few days, he'd begun to think of her as his. And that was a very, very bad idea. He couldn't allow himself to get attached, not with his track record, not with the demons of his past still haunting him. She deserved better than a broken man like him.

But God, he wanted her. Wanted to taste her lips, feel her soft skin underneath his rough hands. He imagined pulling her close, his hands roaming her curves as she melted into his embrace.

No. He shook his head, trying to dispel the fantasy. He had to focus on protecting her, on keeping her safe from whoever was targeting her out here—if anyone was targeting her. That was his job, his mission. He couldn't let his attraction get in the way.

Phoenix tore his gaze from Ellie and resumed his patrol. He had a job to do, and his feelings couldn’t enter into it. She was his to protect, even if she could never truly be his.

“What are you looking so gloomy about?” Boomer said, surprising him. He’d been so distracted he hadn’t heard his colleague approach. That was a first.

“Nothing. Just mulling over the loose railing.”

“That’s what I wanted to tell you,” Boomer said. “Blake in the security room called me over the radio. The only people who have access to the surveillance cameras are us four operatives, Billy, the Ops Manager, and Henderson, the boss. Nobody else is allowed in.”

“So, it had to be one of those people?” Phoenix said, frowning. “I can’t see Billy sabotaging the railing and then falling over it, can you?”

Boomer shook his head. “Not unless he wanted to play the hero to impress Ellie.”

Hmm… that could be. “Pretty extreme lengths to go to impress a girl. I can think of easier ways.”

“Yeah.” Boomer shrugged it off.

“What about Henderson?” Phoenix asked. “Could he have done it?”

“I mean, he could have, but why would he want to sabotage his own project? He’s got a lot riding on this. Like his career.”

Phoenix sighed. “Yeah, it’s not likely to be him either.”

---