Page 15 of Fired at the Heart

Breathe, Avery. Fucking breathe.

But with every inhale, Raphael’s scent fills my lungs, flooding my senses with memories I’ve tried so hard to bury. Memories of stolen moments, of whispered confessions, of a future that never was.

No. I won’t let him do this to me. Not again.

I turn my head away, focusing instead on the map spread out on the table, on the mission I’m contractually obligated to see through.

In my line of work, only my word matters, and unlike some people, I won’t break my promises. And I sure as shit won’t take this machination to shove us back together without a fight.

“Aaiden. A word?” As I rise from my chair, the scrape of metal on concrete echoes like a gunshot in the tense stillness of the room.

Raphael’s stare lingers on me as I move away from the table, but I don’t acknowledge him. I can’t. Not when every fiber of my being screams at me to get the hell out of here, to put as much distance between us as possible.

I stalk toward the door, my boots tapping lightly, each step a bid to stay in control. To not let this—lethim—unravel me.

Aaiden follows, his expression unreadable. He’s always been a master at keeping his emotions in check, at playing his cards close to his chest. It’s one of the things I respect about him, even as it frustrates the hell out of me.

We move out into the hallway, the door clicking shut behind us.

I whirl to face Aaiden, my jaw clenched so tight it aches. “What the hell are you thinking, putting Raphael on my team? After everything that’s happened?”

Aaiden keeps his calm mask in place. “He’s the best person for the job. You know that.”

“The best person? Are you fucking kidding me?” I shake my head in disbelief. “He’s a liability. A fuckinglawyer.”

And a weakness I can’t afford.

“Look, I get it. You two have history.” Aaiden sighs, running a hand through his hair. “This isn’t about your relationship issues, though. It’s about taking down these bastards who hurt us.”

“Fine, but I don’t trust him.” I stab a finger back at the door. “Team me with Caleb.”

Aaiden’s brows shoot up. “Are you telling me to pair my brother with your current Alpha? That’s a blood bath waiting to happen.”

I open my mouth, then snap it closed. He’s not wrong. Those two on the same team, with bullets flying, is just asking for one of them to get caught in “friendly fire”, and only I get the privilege of ending Raphael’s life. “Then put me with Damien and Ezra.”

Aaiden sighs as if I’m being unreasonable. “The teams are set up to align with people’s skills. I need Damien guarding Ezra’s back while Sebastian walks him through how to access the intel on the company servers. They’re going on the least deadly of the missions. I need Caleb paired with someone who doesn’t care about killing a lot of people.”

“Idon’t care about killing a lot of people.”

He huffs with annoyance. “And I needyouhitting the targets with slaves. Without Jade, you’re our only Omega trained for this kind of operation, and there are going to be some very scared and traumatized people who are afraid of Alphas at your locations. We can’t waste time trying to coax these people into trusting us. We need to hit hard and move fast. We won’t have time for earning trust.”

I draw in a deep, shuddering breath. Even if I hate it, his logic is sound.

“Fine,” I grit out. “But if Raphael fucks this up, if he puts any of my people in danger, it’s coming back on you.”

Aaiden’s expression turns grave. “Understood.”

We stand there for a moment, the silence stretching between us, and then Aaiden claps me on the shoulder. “For what it’s worth, he misses you.”

I shrug off his touch. “I don’t care.”

“If you say so.” He turns back to the door. “If that’s all, we have a meeting to finish.”

* * *

Two hours later, empty takeout containers cover the table, and the remnants of coffee sizzle on the hotplate in the corner of the room.

Cassian stands at a secondary table with Caleb and Milo, while Rico coordinates with Damien and Ezra in another room where Aaiden runs them through their plan. Which leaves me alone with Raphael and Sebastian.

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