Page 93 of Unseen Danger
Except for the weird feeling she hadn’t been able to shake since the first time she’d thought of Branson that morning, about two minutes after she woke up. It was almost like she missed him. The gigantic, muscular bodyguard. The man who’d rescued her singlehandedly.
“I know that smile.” Sof’s voice drew Nevaeh’s attention reluctantly away from the handsome face and the soft blue eyes that had darkened just before they’d lowered to her lips. Like he was going to kiss her.
“What exactly were you and your bodyguard doing before we showed up?” Sof grinned from the armchair near Bris, who sat on the other end of the love seat with Cora wearing a matching grin.
A flush crawled into Nevaeh’s cheeks. But thank goodness nobody would see it. No way was she going to share she’d thrown herself at him or that he hadn’t seemed to mind a bit. That she’d wanted to stay in his arms forever and then some. That she kind of wished he’d kissed her. “He was making sure I wasn’t hurt.”
Sof and Bris laughed, Jazz joining in with a chuckle from her seat on the sofa next to Nevaeh, her hand stroking Gaston’s furry ear.
The big Newfie had somehow claimed the end cushion before anyone had managed to sit there. He’d turned around at some point to rest his head on Jazz’s lap, the rest of his body sprawled to the end of the sofa.
Flash didn’t seem to mind the claim on his partner. He looked pretty content lying on the floor between the coffee table and Jazz’s feet.
“Just how did he do that?” Sof snickered.
“Really, ladies.” Cora’s pale cheeks showed every bit of her blush. “I’m sure he was a perfect gentleman.”
“Oh, of course he was.” Bris sent Nevaeh a grin. “But you can’t expect us to resist the chance to rib Nev. After all, this is the first time she’s fallen for a guy since I’ve known her.”
“I haven’t fallen for him.” Nevaeh floundered to find some argument that could deny the truth her heart had been confirming all morning.
“Oh?” Bris’s teasing twinkle sparkled in her eyes. “Then I suppose there’s some other explanation for why you two were holding hands when we came to your rescue?”
Nevaeh swallowed. They’d seen? She’d let go of his hand right away when she’d reached them. Apparently not soon enough.
“You forget, Bris.” Jazz gave the brunette a glance with a deadpan tone. “He beat us. He came to her rescue first.”
“Oh, I see.” Bris gave an exaggerated nod. “So we would’ve gotten all that affection if we’d been first.”
“Of course.” Sof’s serious expression broke with her laughter.
Alvarez popped up from his lying position in front of Nevaeh, giving her a perfect excuse to look at him instead of trying unsuccessfully to convince the girls of something they all knew wasn’t true. She’d expected Alvarez to join Raksa and Toby in the open area beyond Phoenix’s armchair like he usually did, but he stuck to her like glue today. Her brave boy. She’d missed him, too.
She scratched behind his ear in his favorite itchy spot as he sat beside her knee. They both would need a little recovery time from the events of yesterday.
Phoenix and Dag entered the breakroom, and the usual momentary hush fell over the jokesters.
But eagerness pressed words against Nevaeh’s closed lips. She’d been planning an argument all morning to convince Phoenix to let her go on patrol at D-Chop’s estate tonight. She’d get to see Branson that way. But springing it on the boss probably wouldn’t get the answer she wanted. Phoenix would likely say Nevaeh needed more recovery time.
The boss sat in the armchair, Dag looking just as ready and alert as his partner as he lay on the floor beside her. Phoenix lifted her wrist to check her watch. “We’ll have a debrief in two minutes, provided our guest is here.”
Nevaeh looked at the other girls, but they watched Phoenix with confused expressions, too. Well, except Sof, who Nevaeh suspected was never surprised or confused and Cora, who probably knew what the boss was talking about.
Nevaeh landed her gaze on Jazz. But Jazz just shrugged and shook her head.
A buzzer sounded, making Nevaeh start.
Her nerves must not have gotten the message they could chill now. Though she’d probably only heard the buzzer one other time in all the years of team meetings in the breakroom. “Isn’t that the front door?”
Cora nodded and glanced at the open screen of her notebook computer that sat on the coffee table. Probably checking the security camera feed. “Mr. Aaberg is here.”
Nevaeh’s heart dropped into her stomach. Branson? Here?
“Bring him in.”
Cora hurried from the breakroom as heat coursed through Nevaeh’s veins, and her pulse raced.
Phoenix stood and walked around the love seat toward the open door, Dag keeping pace at her side. “I’ve invited Aaberg to share intel concerning his client.” She paused and angled toward the team. “We’re going to find the culprit behind the kidnapping and end the threat to Nevaeh. Aaberg can help us do that faster with the information he has.”