Page 68 of S.O.S. Perk

Once that settled in her brain—but before she could inch more than a few more steps forward—the barn door opened and Perk walked out. No. Scratch that. Heranout.

When Perk was practically nose to nose with Sloane, he threw his arms around her, picked her up, and spun her around while kissing the stuffing out of her. It took Sloane a few secondsfor her blindsided-body to catch up, but once it did, she wrapped her legs around Perk and was kissing him back with everything she had.

“Uh, hem.” A voice behind Perk eventually coughed, and Sloane wrenched her face away, blinking.

“Perk,” she hissed. “People.”

He laughed and dropped a peck onto her nose. “It’s just one of the guys. And FYI, I’ve told them all we’re dating.” He shrugged. “I didn’t think I needed to wait since they have eyes and they’ve seen what’s going on. Don’t worry. They won’t blow my cover.” He suddenly looked conflicted, perhaps thinking that Sloane might have liked to get a say in how and when things were revealed.

“Uh… That’s okay, isn’t it?” he asked sheepishly.

Sloane snorted. “No worries. I think we’ve already made it clear to those who were at the Bureau the other night that we’re…together. Which means everyone in my office now knows because guys are the worst gossips. I’m assuming it’s likewise spread to all your teammates, so…”

“So, we’re good?” Perk grinned.

Before she could answer, their lookie-loo spoke up again.

“Yeah. You’re good.”

Sloane peeked over Perk’s shoulder.

Del stood there with a shit-eating grin on his face.

“Nice to see you, Agent Vessers,” he smirked.

“Sloane. And it’s nice to see you, too, Del, in a civilian setting,” she managed, sliding her legs down over Perk’s hips to eventually stand on her own two feet. “I’m not going to hear the end of this, am I?” she asked tartly.

“Nope. Your aloof agent persona is now a thing of the past. You’re currently one of us. Welcome aboard.”

“You think if you include me in your numbers, I’ll get all softened up and won’t mop the floors with everyone inside?” she blustered, following his lead of comradery.

Del threw back his head and laughed. “Youthinkyou’re going to beat us all into the mats,” he taunted. “But think again. We’ve already got pools going, twenty bucks a pop, and I hate to say it, but you’re near the bottom of the pack.”

“Who’s got worse odds than me?” she questioned astutely.

“Perk,” Del grinned. “We figure he’ll be too distracted by you to perform up to his normal standards.”

Sloane threw Del a look that said, “oh, please”, before laying her money where her mouth was. “Put me down for a Jackson on myself to come in first, and another twenty for Perk following at a close second.”

“You sure you’re ready to lose all that money?” Del raised a brow that wiggled amusedly.

Sloane shrugged. “You thinkyouare?”

Del rubbed his hands together. “Oh, this is going to be good.” He turned on his heel and hurried back inside, purportedly to let everyone know about the upped stakes.

“You’re certain about this?” Perk asked, looking at her askance.

She went up on tiptoe and kissed the underside of his chin. “I’ll be fine. Just make sure you hold up your end of the deal.”

“I’ll do my best,” he chuckled, then laying a warm palm on the back of her neck, they strolled into the barn.

Sloane’s first thought was…Wow.

Although the interior smelled a little like fresh hay, that’s where her preconceived notions of barns blew apart. The space was huge, looking more like a professional gymnasium than a place for animals to sleep. The walls, by the looks, were all insulated and soundproofed. The highly polished wooden floors were covered with mats. And at the center of the large space,a sparring ring had been delineated with boundary lines and ropes. The only homage to being an actual barn was the high, lofted ceiling which arched overhead, supported by enormous beams.

“Where are the horses?” she asked no one in particular.

“In the back half,” Wiley supplied, coming up to…

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