Page 14 of No Going Back

Tyler was ahead, it took him four more shots to win the game. “Told ya I’d be on my game this time.”

“Glad to see it.”

Tyler didn’t miss the double meaning in his words.

“Liam, you want a game?” Dex asked.

“No, I think I’m going to head out. I’m about done.”

“Yeah, I should probably head home, too. What about you, Ty?”

“Can I catch a ride with you to my place? I came with Donnie, but he appears to be busy, and Steve already left.” Dex and Liam turned to what Tyler had seen — Donnie chatting up a blonde.

Dex chuckled. “Yeah, course, no problem.”

The guys said their goodbyes and left. The sun was setting, giving some relief to the San Diego heat as they walked to Dex’s truck and got in.

“Can I ask you something?” Tyler glanced over at Dex as he drove out of the parking lot.

“Sure.” Dex kept his eyes on the road.

“Does Sam know I was... er... distracted.” The last thing he wanted to do was get on Sam’s radar.

“I haven’t said anything to him, but he has eyes like the rest of us.”

“But he hasn’t said anything to you?”

Dex slowed the truck, pulled over, then turned to face him.

“Ty, if Sam had an issue, you’d know about it. I pulled you on it, to make sure you fix it before it gets to a stage where Sam will be up my ass about it. Why is it bothering you now?”

“You’ve never had to call me on being distracted before.”

“Because it’s never happened before.”

“Are you still good with me being on the team?”

There was no way he was going to do anything that would risk his position in Onyx. The team meant everything to him, but those old feelings of insecurity were beginning to nag at him. Nothing ever lasted.

“Jeez, Ty, yes. I just sensed something was off and I was right. You still did your job. I trust you to sort yourself out. Listen, if you need some personal time, then tell me. It’s not a big deal.” Dex started driving again. “This thing with Mira was more serious than you made out, wasn’t it?”

Tyler stared at the road ahead. “It was and it wasn’t. I was telling the truth that we’re not dating, but we’ve spent a lot of time chatting, texting.” He drew the line at telling him about the sexting. “I guess it meant more to me than I realized.”

“But you ended it?”

“Yeah. It was the right thing to do. I’ll schedule an appointment with Claire, make sure my focus is on point for the next op.”

If seeing the team psychologist would prove to his team leader he was committed to Onyx, then he’d do it. Not losing Raven was all that mattered.

***

MIRA POURED HER FOURTH coffee of the day and leaned against the counter in the intel office. Nyx and Raven might be on down time, but the intel team were still working hard. While Kelly led the team, they worked closely together and generally designated the workload between them and assigned tasks to the juniors. Mira had worked for Sam longer than Kelly, but she respected the hell out of her. Not only for her service in the Navy, her excellent record as an intelligence officer, but also the way she had handled herself after her ordeal at the hands of terrorists.

Mira had never worked in the field. As a CIA analyst, she had always been behind a desk, getting the information to the agents. She couldn’t imagine being held captive and tortured. Kelly’s resilience was an inspiration. Kelly valued her input, her CIA knowledge and contacts, and treated her as an equal. They had gone from colleagues to friends in a very short time.

“Hey, did you have any luck on the money trail?” Kelly asked looking up.

“No, nothing yet. Aziz is good at covering his tracks.” Mira pushed off the counter and sat down next to Kelly.

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