Page 35 of Alpha Awakened
“Corporate America will do anything to make a buck,” Hazard said with a shrug. He dropped the cigarette butt in a wet muddy patch on the ground and stubbed it out beneath his boot. “Smoking is a bad habit and I should quit.”
“You won’t.”
“Nah. It feels too good.”
“You often do things that are bad for you?” Ice asked.
“As long as it gives me satisfaction,” he answered with a playful smirk.
Ice leaned his head back against the tree. The new position made it seem as if he was looking down his nose at Hazard and his dark gaze felt oddly heavy as it landed on him.
“I imagine you get into a lot of trouble like that,” he said in a low voice.
Hazard blinked. Those intense eyes, the voice that had dropped to become even deeper and rougher than usual. His breath was suddenly coming a little short in his chest and heat bloomed behind his navel. Fuck. Why did he always react to the captain like this? He cleared his throat before he spoke, but his voice still came out too husky for normal conversation.
“Sometimes. But I like trouble.”
Fucking hell. That didn’t sound normal at all. It didn’t even sound like his usual playful flirting. It sounded seductive. Like he wanted to seduce the captain. Which he was starting to realize he did want to do, but fuck he didn’t want to blast it out while they were still in the field. Actually, he didn’t want it known regardless of where they were.
He expected Ice to stalk away or tell him to shut up. But he did neither. They went silent, locked together in eye contact that seemed to tug at something in his chest. They were in the middle of a forest, chill wind blowing around them, and yet somehow the space between them felt tense and hot. A thought teased at the back of Hazard’s mind. If he took a step forward, what would happen?
Before he could say anything else — as if he even knewwhatto say — thechop-chop-chopof an incoming helicopter intruded, popping the strange bubble of intimacy around them.
“Choppers here,” Ice said unnecessarily.
Hazard’s response was equally as unnecessary. “Yes, it is.”
The helo settled in the clearing to their left, blades kicking up loose grass and dirt. The tension broken, Hazard ducked hishead and jogged over to it. The rear door opened and he moved inside, Ice right behind him.
Hazard strapped into his seat and settled back for the return trip to base, instinctively knowing that Ice was ready for quiet. He leaned his head against the head rest and let his mind drift. The mission had been a success. And Icehadtalked more than usual, his voice easily switching between crisp when giving orders and husky with humor when responding to Hazard’s nonsense. He’d heard that dry huff of a laugh several times tonight and he liked it. Maybe a little too much.
After their talk that had gone on into the early hours of the morning, the mood between them had changed. And when they’d been assigned this mission together with just the two of them Ice hadn’t protested. Instead, he’d sat down with Hazard to go over plans, and actually listened to his input. They weren’t going to be braiding each other’s hair anytime soon, especially since he didn’t have any and he had no idea what was on Ice’s head beneath that balaclava, but they were developing a working relationship that had the potential to become something great.
And beneath that working relationship, his attraction to the captain continued to simmer. But other than his playful teasing and flirting, he didn’t let it show. Or at least, he usually didn’t. As far as he knew, Ice had no idea he was genuinely attracted to him. He certainly never planned to say anything. Not only was it inappropriate since Ice was his superior officer, but he had a feeling that Ice would slam the metaphorical door on their budding friendship and he’d be right back where he started — being coldly ignored except for the occasional grunt of acknowledgement.
But it would be fine. He simply had to let the attraction run its course and eventually it would fade. Maybe another alpha would come along — one who wasn’t his teammateandhis superior — and he’d forget all about Captain Anderson withhis pretty dark eyes, broad shoulders, and dry, husky laugh. Wherever this alpha was, they needed to show up soon, before he fell much deeper under Ice’s spell.
* * *
It was nearing six in the morning when they landed on base. Ortiz was waiting for them on the tarmac.
“Welcome back!” she shouted over the noise of the helicopter powering down.
Hazard handed over the briefcase to Ortiz as he greeted her. “Morning, Major. Mission was a success.”
“Good work,” she said as she accepted the case. “The two of you have today off. Debriefing tomorrow at oh-eight-hundred. Be sure to go by medical if you need to.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
The major left to take the briefcase up to HQ.
Neither of them had sustained any injuries so after caging their weapons, they walked to their barracks together. There was a light on inside. It shone through the window, seeming to beckon them home. At the front door, they took their boots off and left them outside so as not to track the mud and gunk inside their living quarters.
“Looking forward to a hot shower,” Hazard tiredly said as he crossed the common room on quiet, socked feet.
“You should be. You stink.”
“Hey, didn’t anybody ever tell you it’s not polite to tell an omega they stink?” Hazard playfully protested. “We’re too fragile for that kind of raw criticism.”