Page 55 of Only the Wicked
“I slept with Hudson.”
Silence.
“Sydney? You there?”
“I’m sorry, what? You—with Hudson? Our Hudson? Boss Hudson?”
“Yeah, that Hudson.”
“Jesus, Quinn. When?”
“Before I knew who he was. I got into town a night earlier than everyone. So did Hudson.”
“And you stayed at the same hotel?” I ask, putting the pieces together.
“Met at the airport bar before our flight. I missed my connection?—”
“Wait, back up. You met Hudson at an airport bar?”
“Yeah and ended up getting booked on his flight when mine got delayed.”
“And so, like now, what… Are you two?”
“Absolutely not. When I discovered he’s my boss, we had all the appropriate conversations and agreed, you know, I mean, it was never supposed to be anything. It’s just?—”
Now it’s my turn to laugh. “You didn’t think a guy headed to the Highlands might be on the same project you’re on? Given we hadn’t met any team members?”
“Hey, we both lied about why we were going there.”
“Of course you did.”
“So, now that you know my dirty little secret, you can stop thinking I’m judging you at every turn. If you fall for him?—”
“Whoa, hold up. I’m not falling for anyone. This is work, Quinn.”
“I didn’t say you were. I said if.”
I release a long, pointed sigh.
“You don’t need to feel guilty. If it was Jake or Noah, you think they’d be feeling guilty? It wouldn’t even be mentioned.”
“You’re right about that.” If there’s any field that’s filled with sexist BS, it’s intelligence work.
“Do you like him? I mean, you’re not repulsed by him, right?”
“I genuinely like him.” That’s what I told Caroline earlier and now here I am telling Quinn, a colleague I barely know.
“If you didn’t, he’d pick up on that and you wouldn’t have done more than dinner last night. It’s spycraft basics. It’s the secret of every undercover agent. The good news here is you won’t need to lead him away in handcuffs. Even if we discover he’s breaking ten thousand laws, we aren’t the law. We’ll hand evidence over and a different crew will take charge. He’ll never suspect you played a role in his getting caught.”
“I don’t think he’s breaking any laws.”
“Really?”
I narrow my eyes at the speaker, not that she can see me, but her response was way too high pitched.
“Just keep us in the loop,” she says. “We’re nearby if needed. Send me deets on D.C.”
“Quinn?”
