Page 33 of Rupture

“And that was for you to decide?” His scent of clean soap invaded her brain, while frustration licked at the frayed edges of her nerves.

“Yes, actually, it was,” she snapped back, tilting her chin up to meet his gaze. “I’m here as a scientist, not to air my family’s dirty laundry.” She looked away from him, her neck and ears suddenly impossibly hot. “Besides. It changes nothing.” It was an effort to remain composed. Inside, she was a maelstrom of emotion and his questions were hitting on tender points she’d protected for years.

“It changeseverything,” Finn growled.

She shook her head. “The OSC asked me here because I am an engineer, because my skills are crucial to this mission. Not because of my sister.”

“So it’s just a coincidence your sister is the lead scientist of whatever experiment they were cooking up down here?”

Rose swallowed and shook her head. “I don’t know. Maybe. Yes. No. I have no fucking idea, all right?” She hated swearing at him, but his questions needled at her patience, already worn thin by the dive.

Fury radiated off him like a living thing, forcing her to retreat until the base of her spine hit the solid counter behind her. He followed, until they stood toe-to-toe, the sliver of air between them electric. There was nowhere else for her to go.

“What else are you not telling us?” His hands slammed down on the counter, caging her in. The sudden proximity sent a jolt through her body, equal parts fear and exhilaration.

She met his gaze, refusing to back down. “I don’t like what you’re implying.”

He leaned in, drawing her attention to the play of muscles visible at his open neckline. “I’ll rephrase that. What else have youneglectedto mention?” His voice lowered to a dangerous whisper, his breath hot against her cheek.

She slapped a hand against his chest, meaning to push him away. Instead, she stalled, scorched by the heat radiating through his shirt. His heart thudded beneath her fingers, matching the frantic rhythm of her own. The man was infuriating. How did he get so easily under her skin?

“She might be my sister, but I haven’t spoken to her in over seven years. You want to know why? Because she sold out her own sister to advance her career.”

Finn’s eyes widened. His anger wavered, giving way to a different intensity. “Then why are you protecting her?”

Rose curled her fingers into the fabric of his shirt. “I’m not—” Scant inches separated them. “I’m not protecting her.”

“There has to be more.”

She released her hold on his shirt. He still blocked her exit. “Maybe Margaret thought it would be good for the lead to see a familiar face in such difficult circumstances.” Herbreath hitched. The closeness of his body was maddening, clouding her thoughts with unwelcome attraction.

“We didn’t even know if we would find survivors.” His eyes narrowed.

“Enough!” Rose exploded, her control shattering. “Are you trying to piss me off? I just wanted to know that my sister was safe, you arrogant bastard!” Her hands clenched into fists at her sides, itching to strike out at him.

She bit back the rest of her words, unwilling to reveal that Margaret had threatened her with her job and forced her on this damn mission. But the reasons for her being here remained frustratingly opaque and instead of finding answers, she was drowning in a sea of questions, each more troubling than the last.

“What was your sister working on?”

“I don’t know. I’ve told you, we’re not in contact.”

“You don’t know?” His eyebrows jogged up.

“No, and this repetition is getting old. I don’t need to know what the research was or what’s on the hard drives to bring them to the surface. That’s not my job.”

Finn’s gaze dropped to her lips.

A sensation she couldn’t name burst to life low in her belly.

Without warning, his hands left the counter and gripped her waist firmly, sending shockwaves through her system. “Why did Margaret choose you for this mission? There are countless engineers she could have asked. Some even more skilled. So why you?”

The insult stung. “Fuck you.” She shoved hard against his chest.Enough.She was out of here.

But Finn didn’t budge, instead catching her wrist in his free hand. Her heart raced, torn between the urge to kneehim in the groin and the traitorous desire to close the remaining distance between them.

“You know nothing about me.” She was hyper-aware of every point of contact between them—his fingers on her wrist, her palm against his chest, the heated air between their faces. “Let me go. I’m as much in the dark as you are. You’re seeing shadows where there aren’t any. We found the crew, didn’t we? Now we just need to fix the shuttle, grab the lab data, and get everyone topside for treatment. Mission accomplished.”

Her pulse hammered, a toxic blend of fury and attraction coursing through her. She teetered on a knife’s edge—one move away from either punching him or crushing her mouth against his. “Now. Let. Me. Go.”

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