Page 37 of A Simple Mistake
Encore Job
Jack’sphoneplayedtheopening bars of “Tinnie Run” and Jack groped for it, keen to silence the pipe and fiddle before they woke Gareth.His sleep-fogged mind struggled to identify the caller until he remembered changing Aidan’s ringtone after seeing him in Highland dress.“Phone calls at 3:00 a.m.are the pits,” he rasped into the receiver.
The other end of his phone stayed silent.
“Phone calls at 3:00 a.m.are the pits,” he said again, a little more coherent this time.
“Good thing it’s 3:17, then,” Aidan sniped from the tiny speaker.“We got ourselves a new client and you need to get your arse to Tokyo.”
“Now?”
“Yes, now.And yes, Tokyo as in Japan,” Aidan answered the next question before Jack could ask it.
“Skylar’s been in Japan for two months now.Can’t he deal with it?”Judging by his frequent texts, Skylar felt he’d landed the jackpot working with Tempest, despite Japan’s muggy summer heat.
“Wake the fuck up, Horwood.Who do you think asked me for help?”
“Can’t you send Gallant?”Jack was whining openly now, hiding the fact that he was out of bed and headed for the dressing room that held his clothes and luggage.
“Skylar needs a hacker, not a burglar.And stop fucking stalling.You’re worse than a four-year-old.”
“You should have brought me coffee.I’m more cooperative when I’ve had coffee.”
“Wake up Flynn and ask him to give you some.”
“Great idea.But I thought you wanted me at the airport.”
“Horwood…” the threat in Aidan’s voice made Jack grin, but before he could think of ways to rile the other further, Gareth took the phone from his hand.
“He’s half asleep and an arse.Ignore him,” Gareth told Aidan, then proceeded to ask all the questions Jack hadn’t bothered with.“You have time for a shower and a cup of coffee,” he said when he ended the call.“Pack for a fortnight.Bring your tools.Don’t forget your passport.Taxi’s gonna be at the door in thirty and Conrad will meet you in the Mezzanine restaurant in Terminal 5.He’ll feed you breakfast and tell you what you need to know.You can pass out again when you’re on the plane.“
“You’re so fucking funny, Flynn.Remind me of the last time I slept on a plane?”
Jack turned away, knowing Gareth had no ammunition to answer his challenge.When they’d served together, Jack had struggled to sleep at all, and a plane would have been the last place where he’d try.And the flights between London and Kiruna—the only flights they’d taken together as a couple—had only lasted three hours.
“Did Conrad say anything more constructive?”
“No.”Gareth wrapped his arms around Jack’s waist and pulled him backwards into a brief hug.“Only that Skylar has need of your skills.Oh, and something about blasted blackmailers.”
“Blackmail?Someone has dirt on Skylar or on Skylar’s rock star?”
“No idea.”Gareth’s voice rumbled in his ear.“And you’re stalling.”
“True.”
“Why?I thought you’d jump at the chance to fly to Japan.”
“You’d think so, wouldn’t you?”Jack scrubbed his palms over his face and up into his hair until he could grab hold of the strands and yank.The sting woke him a bit more, and he sighed in relief.His favourite remedy for myriad ills still worked now that his hair was long enough once more.“I’m not sure what bugs me most.That it’s three in the morning and Conrad is stingy with the details, that I’m walking into this blind and not knowing what’s expected of me, or that we can’t all go together.”
“Not a lot on your mind, then.”
Gareth tightened his arms and Jack let himself lean.He breathed deep and slow, not surprised to feel Gareth’s fingertips soothe along the lower edge of his ribs, helping him let go.Out of all the points he’d listed, the last one bugged him the most.
He loved what he’d never even imagined: an ordinary family life most people took for granted.“It’s been a few years since I was last in Japan, and Conrad is leaving me no time to make a decent shopping list!”he mock-growled, knowing Gareth would catch his drift.
They’d learned to talk, not just share information, had almost stopped second-guessing each other, and only rarely jumped to conclusions.In the months since they’d moved into their house, they’d found middle ground between their work and their personal lives, between protecting Nico and Daniel and giving them room to grow.Their relationship was solid and gave them both what they needed—and Jack hated stepping away from it for even a short time.
“Stop whining.”
