Page 7 of More Than A Feeling

My team came together once a month in our offices in DC for three to four days so we could go through project plans and connect; otherwise, we worked from home.

Our secure offices were no joke. Mine could not be opened without a thumbprint, retina scan, and a code that changedconstantly and which I received on my secure phone. The same was true for my computer.

I had a Creole cottage and the entire second floor had been converted into my office. I didn't allow anyone to go up there, not that I had many people visiting me. My bedroom and bath were downstairs, as was the open-plan kitchen, dining, and living area. I wasn't much of a cook, and it suited me fine to have a small kitchen. If I could heat food and make coffee, I was set.

"Sorry it's over, Wraith. Your beau looks fucking hot," Viper said. She was, as always, eating yogurt with her feet up on the table.

I'd told my team about Callum, and they'd done a thorough background check on him. We did that for each other. Viper worked out of her ranch in Texas, where she lived with her husband, a former Navy SEAL, and two kids. She was the best-adjusted of all of us, what with kids and all.

"So, is he fuckin' your sister now?" Orion wondered.

He was ex-military and was handy when we had to deploy and test the systems we created in a real-world conflict area.

"I don't think so." But fuck if I knew. From all I could see, they were close, and when she saidjump, he askedhow high. "She's his brother's wife…so…."

"Brother's dead, ain't he?" This was from Rune, who slept around a lot but was still a dedicated father to his twin girls.

He always encouraged me to get my freak on. A fat lot of good it did me. My first one-night stand turned into an eight-month stand and gave me a broken heart.

"If I was him, I'd fucking hate the bitch for what she did to my brother," Viper remarked.

The thing with working with people like Viper, Rune, and Orion was that there were no secrets between us. They knew exactly what my parents were worth, what Seamus had been doing, and what and who Sabine did. They knew everything.

"He doesn't know what she did to his brother," Orion pointed out. "Wraith, why won’t you just tell him?"

"Because she promised the dead guy," Viper snapped. "And when you make promises to dead people, you keep them. Sorry, Wraith, but your sister is a right-on bitch."

I sighed. "Can we get back to Iron Veil?"

Everyone grunted assent. We were tasked with developing a cutting-edge, autonomous security system designed to protect critical infrastructure in battle. The first one we were working on would be tested in an active war zone.

The project was cumbersome, difficult, and time-consuming. We worked all hours of the day and night, and my team had been nice enough to give me some time off to move and be in a relationship, but I was glad to be back with them. Active war zones of the real kind were so much safer than the emotional ones I'd been in lately.

"Alright, boss," Orion said, "we've got some code here that's completely screwed. I think it needs a little Wraith Voodoo."

I grinned and let my fingers fly over the keyboard, leaving behind heartache and Callum Gallagher and did my patriotic duty.

Chapter 4

Callum

It had been a shock to see Brian almost strike Fleur.

I'd wanted to run to her, hold her close, protect her. But I'd done what I knew I had to. I took care of Brian. He was my family. Not Fleur.

Brian had been a father to Seamus and was one to me now, yet I'd never seen him this angry. I knew that Fleur had pushed his buttons—but it didn't matter, did it? If he'd hit her, I would've lost all respect for him and broken ties with himafterI broke his hand. I didn't abide by physical violence against women.

"What the fuck was that, Brian?" I demanded as I followed him to his car from Fleur's place.

"She asked me to get out," he retorted.

That wasn't the answer I expected. I thought Fleur must've said and done something far more serious than asking her father to leave her home to warrant his anger.

"And?"

"And? Nothing. She wanted me to get out because she had a meeting. How dare she talk to me like that?"

I frowned. "I'm not understanding this, Brian."

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