Page 35 of Recon Rendezvous

Her soft lilt calling my name, pulls me back from my wayward thoughts, and I obediently step in beside her. Guiding her to the elevator, it arrives quickly, and we ascend.

Turning to me again, she questions, “Are you finally going to tell me what’s going on?”

Smiling softly, I shake my head and hold up the bag. “Soon, babycakes. But first we have to get you naked.”

Naked. Changed. Same thing.London steps out of the restroom in the black jeans, black fitted long-sleeve tee, and thelace up black boots and I flashback to when I first saw her on St. Paddy’s Day.

“I don’t know if I should be impressed or concerned that you know what size I wear. Especially the shoes. That’s creepy.”

I shrug. “What can I say? It’s a gift.”

“And your poor assistant. How many times has she had to go out and buy clothes for the unfortunate women you’ve coerced into spending time with you?”

“You’re the first and only. You looked like you needed…” I clear my throat, nodding toward the door. “Let’s go. I have a few people for you to meet.” I’ve also removed my suit and changed into dark jeans and long-sleeved navy henley.

Stepping into the bright room, I spot our hosts as London’s eyes scan the open space. “Doug. Jason. Thanks so much for having us. I really appreciate it. This lovely lady is London Cameron.”

Shaking hands, Doug smiles before saying, “Well, when you call and request to rent out the entire facility for a few hours, there’s no way we wouldn’t accommodate you.”

Jason laughs. “Don’t let him fool you. We don’t open today until early evening, so it really was no problem.”

Laughing, I shove Doug in the shoulder. “Asshole. I’m happy to pay whatever because I’m sure people had to come into work to open everything early and prepare for us. I want to take care of your team.”

As we continue to speak, London’s gaze is riveted to me, and I can’t read her expression to grasp how she’s feeling. But as the guys point us toward our first stop, my excitement takes over, my blood pumping, and I rub my hands together.

“Are you ready for this, babycakes?”

“Ax throwing?! Are you sure you trust me?”

“Absolutely. I’m confident that you’re going to be picturing someone else’s face when you stare at that bullseye.”

“That was amazing,” she squeals. “I’m kind of a bad ass.”

I chuckle. “You were impressive. It's a little scary actually.”

She grasps onto my arm and giggles.Fucking gigglesas she looks up at me with those bright eyes and my resolve melts away like butter on a griddle.This.I want to see her like this every single day.

“Xander, thank you so much. I didn’t know how stressed I was. Some murdery fun was just what I needed.”

My chest puffs out a bit at her words and at her caressing hand up and down my arm. I give my bicep a little flex so she knows what’s up.

“You're welcome, babycakes. Did you slay your dragons?”

She sighs, her smile softer now. “Not quite, but close.”

“Well, hopefully our next little adventure will grant you the opportunity.”

She smiles up at me again and gives me another squeeze as warmth flows through me. I don't recall when it happened, but our hands are clasped. As she talks a mile a minute about how she absolutely loves surprises, I listen with a smile and savor this new feeling.

This is exactly what I wanted for her today. Seeing that pain on her face, those tears on her cheeks, practically broke me. I don't enjoy seeing anyone cry, that's not the kind of person I am. But seeing her in pain was too fucking much. So maybe we both needed this today. Heading down to the next level, she squeals when she sees the sign above the glass door.

“A rage room!?”

“Oh yeah. I think you have some aggression hiding within you. Today is the day to let that shit loose and fuck some shit up. What do you say?”

“Yes!” She bounces on her toes. “Let's do this!”

We listen to the spiel of the staffers and pull on our safety equipment. London's gone quiet as she adjusts her gloves as we enter the room. Doug and Jason pulled through. The nondescript space is packed with goods. A table along one bare wall is covered in stacks of miscellaneous items and random electronics are scattered around the room just waiting for us to absolutely destroy them. London lets out a deep breath, pulling my attention back to her.

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