Page 27 of Whirlwind

I put my hand in his and hope I’m not blushing. “All good things, I hope.”

“Ryker would never say anything bad about you.”

If I wasn’t blushing before, I am now. Apparently, my professor likes to talk about me when I’m not around. It’s kind of sweet—but it doesn’t stop me from thinking about our relationship that’s gone south in less than twenty-four hours.

Hawk drops my hand with a smirk and continues, “The only person he ever says anything bad about is Joey.”

“Hey!” Joey whines. “What did I ever do to him?”

The group collectively chuckles like they have some inside joke, and Ezra steps forward. His smile is charismatic, and he’s taller than Diego by a few inches, making him the tallest in the group. His complexion is a light brown, his short, deep auburn-colored hair is curly, and his beard is trimmed close to show off the diamond planes of his face.

“Nice to meet you, Finley. I’m Ezra.”

“Nice to meet you, too.” I stare into friendly brown eyes that are a similar shade to mine and shake his hand. A second later, he steps back, and Ryker approaches the group with a bag in his hand, moving next to Joey.

“Well, if it isn’t the man with nine lives,” Ezra says, skin wrinkling near the corners of his eyes.

I shove my hands into my jean pockets. I knew his team was aware of what happened last night—Ezra was the one who called first responders to come help us after Ryker went radio silent. We’d spent over an hour recounting what happened and getting checked out by the EMTs before a tow truck came to take away my car. I figured they’d bring it up, and I should be happy we’re getting it out of the way now so we can focus on today’s chase.

“We weren’t even close to dying,” Ryker says confidently, so confidently it makes me almost believe him. But I know he’s lying through his teeth to make his team feel better, putting on the cool and collected “Twister Tamer” persona.

“You’re a lucky bastard, you know that?” Hawk returns.

Ryker waves him off, but then Hawk hugs him, followed by Ezra. Joey and I watch as they pat him on the back and Ryker continues to act as if it’s no big deal. I don’t know whether to be pissed or grateful.

“You’re lucky you found that ditch,” Ezra adds.

“I’m lucky Finley is a good driver and kept a level head.”

Everyone turns to stare at me, and I shift on my feet at the attention. I make eye contact with Ryker as memories of the moment before we ran from my car flood back to me along with everything else that followed. It’s the last thing I want to be remembering right now.

“You both rode that beast out in a ditch? You didn’t tell me that!” Joey says in awe. “Shit!”

I break my gaze from Ryker and shrug. “You didn’t ask.”

The group of men all laugh at my retort, cutting the air of seriousness.

“You’re going to fit right in, Finley,” Ezra says.

The faraway sound of thunder rumbles, and the five of us look out to the building storm cell in the distance. The sky here is green yet calm, but I can see plumes of ominous dark-gray clouds and a wall of rain where the cell is located.

“I’m going to get my gear ready,” Joey says, walking off to the back of the truck.

“How’s everything looking, Hawk?” Ryker asks.

“No tornadoes on the ground yet.” He waves for us to follow him to Thor, where he has a computer open and resting on the top of it. He pulls it off and hands it to Ryker. My professor watches it for a minute then studies the sky.

“Storm is going through the motions,” Ezra adds while doing something on his phone. “I posted the cell’s location before you got here to social media, and we’re already getting responses and good pictures from the area. Looks like we’ve got a mesocyclone initiating to the north.”

Ryker observes the image then looks back at the radar before gesturing for me to study it. “What cluster do you think we should head toward, Ms. Buckley?”

I don’t miss how Hawk and Ezra seem surprised that he’s referred to me formally, but I shake it off, not wanting to make it obvious that something has happened between the two of us—or that I’m feeling nervous. I don’t want them to doubt me or why I’m here.

I look at the radar before I step away from the group and tilt my head up at the sky, closing my eyes. I sense the men’s collective stare on my back, watching me. I inhale a breath, not only to calm myself but also to tap into my gut, something I should’ve done yesterday instead of jumping right into the chase with Ryker like an eager schoolgirl. While I don’t have some magic storm barometer, sometimes if you stop and listen, Mother Nature will give you instructions.

I open my eyes and feel the wind on my face, the air almost muggier and hotter to the north. After another breath, I turnand face the group, confidently putting my shoulders back. “I think we should go to the north.”

A small smile that makes my stomach flip tugs at Ryker’s lips, and both Hawk and Ezra look impressed.

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