Page 51 of Surge

“We get to have something besides turkey sandwiches?” Zim quipped.

“Hey,” Delaney laughed. “A lot of blood, sweat, and tears went into those sandwiches.”

“Tasted like it too,” Zim teased back.

They pulled up in front of a food truck, and ten minutes later they had chicken satays. The deep, rich spices filled the SUV. Back at the safe house, Caldwell dropped the order on the kitchen table while Zim pulled down plates and sodas from the fridge.

Garrett was starving and wanted to enjoy his satays instead of his anger. “Delaney.”

She looked over.

He tipped his head toward the living room. “We need to talk.”

She nodded, grabbed a Dr. Pepper from the table, and went into the living room ahead of him.

Zim put a hand on his shoulder and jerked his head to the living room. “You like her, Boss?”

Garrett squared his shoulders. “No. Teammates.”

“Why? Yeah, a team player, tons of dog skills. But she’s a looker, and you two talk a lot. And she’s so?—”

“Fearless?”

Zim grinned. “See? Perfect for you, Master Chief.”

Garrett narrowed his eyes. “Mission focus, Petty Officer.” He headed out of the kitchen and joined Delaney on the couch. But they sat there like strangers in an elevator.

She toyed with her watch. “Guess this is ‘later.’ About following the semi—I wasn’t trying to go rogue—I just didn’t see how we wouldn’t lose the trucks if I didn’t. I was going to come back in when I heard them mention Hakim, then start to leave. I couldn’t waste time.”

Good start. He raised an eyebrow. “Why didn’t you let me know on comms?”

“I tried but the piece was damaged. So I sent a text—but I wasn’t sure that went through. Which I guess worked well, since Rashid and Tariq would’ve recognized you too easily, so I just rode it out. Figured it was best to?—”

“Communication is vital. That was my decision to make—you’re not an operator with the full breadth of intel at your disposal.”

She swallowed. “You’re right.”

Her concession startled him. “Bet that hurt.”

Her lips quirked. “More than you’ll ever know.” She shrugged. “Look, it all happened so fast and I just reacted. Did the best with the limited skills I had.”

“I hear you. Makes sense.”

Again her lips quirked. “Bet that hurt.”

He wanted to scowl, but a smile hit his face instead. She wasso . . . bold. Yeah, bold. Not many women were like that.

Trust her.

He sat next to her on the couch. “I was angry that you left the team. Worried for your safety. But you didn’t let that stash just vanish. Now we know what we’re looking for and we have a starting point—the container yard. Good job, Delaney.” He gave her a small smile. If the guys hadn’t been right there in the kitchen, he’d probably have hugged her.

Smiling back, she tilted her head up at him, her ponytail swishing against his arm. Their gazes locked. Holy guacamole. He was having feelings.

Surge jumped onto the couch and jammed himself between them. His tongue withdrew into his snout, and those knowing eyes hit Garrett, as if to say, “I got eyes on you, slick.”

He’d almost kissed her!

Laughing, Delaney shook her head. “Off, Surge.”

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