Page 16 of Covert Operation
“Oh.” Elise glances my way, taking her eyes off the windshield for way too long. “I assumed she was who you’d been riding in with.”
Freaking crap on a cracker. “Umm. I just get a ride in with whoever.”
I guess that’s Zeke’s new name. Whoever.
“That is one of the perks of living like we do.” Elise finally puts her attention back where it’s supposed to be, just in time to fly through a light that’s so yellow it’s red. “There’s always someone going somewhere.”
“True.” Unfortunately, some people are going farther away than others. “Is Abe in town?”
“Abe is always in town.” She grins as we take another turn and my stomach comes flying back from where we left it, only to sail right past me in the other direction. “I guess if there’s one good thing about the breach at headquarters, it’s that Rogue stays in Fairbanks pretty much all the time now.”
“That is good.” I guess. Jamison and Abe and the rest of the guys on Rogue are all coupled up and many of them have kids, so I can see how it would be nice for them to be at home as often as possible.
But that means Shadow and Stealth are the ones going out all the time, and for some reason that annoys me.
“You want to stop and get some breakfast on the way in?” She wiggles her brows at me. “Get a couple of those blended coffee drinks with a million calories?”
Actually... “That does sound pretty good.” I’m just starting to dig in my purse, looking for my wallet, when Elise takes a hard left into the drive-thru of one of the cute coffee shops I’ve wanted to visit, but never quite worked up the nerve. My whole upper half leans to the right, pressing against the inside of the door as she swings into the line and pulls up to order.
“You want a ham and cheese croissant too?” Elise asks, then answers for me, “Yeah. You want a croissant too.”
She turns to the microphone and requests two sandwiches and two blended, iced mochas, then plows up to the window. I finally manage to get my credit card free and hurry to pass it over.
Elise frowns down at the offered piece of plastic. “What’s that for?” She holds her phone out to the guy at the window and he scans it before passing us our food.
“I was going to pay since you’re driving me into the office.” I don’t know how to rectify this situation any other way. “It’s the least I can do.”
“The least you can do is shut up and eat your breakfast.” Elise drops one of the croissants into my lap then passes over a giant, whipped cream topped, behemoth of a coffee. “You’ve been saving my ass helping me out, and I know Pierce doesn’t have you on the payroll yet, so I’m paying you in sugar and caffeine.”
I take a sip of the chilly beverage. It’s sweet and chocolaty and creamy and amazing. “Seems like a fair deal.”
Elise gives me a grin as she rolls her window up, pulls away, and takes a bite of her sandwich. All at the same time. Using her knee to steer. “Good, because I need lots of help.”
My life flashes before my eyes as we pull out into traffic, barely squeezing between a pickup and a minivan. “I believe it.”
I wonder if she’ll let me help her learn how to not almost die every time she gets behind the wheel.
“You know,” Elise swallows down her mouthful and then takes a deep draw from her coffee, “I bet we could get you on the payrollif you wanted.” Her eyes roll my way. “I know you don’t need the money, but you really should get paid for the work you do.”
I don’t totally hate the idea, but I’m not sure how capable I am of committing to something consistent just yet. “Can I think about it?”
“That’s part of the reason I brought it up.” She changes lanes so fast I nearly crap my pants. “Pierce has a bad habit of just deciding people work for him, and I want you to be ready in case that happens. That way he doesn’t catch you by surprise and you end up agreeing to something you’re not sure of.”
That’s really nice of her, but I’m not sure of anything. My life. My plans. Myself. It’s all up in the air, and I’m scrambling to get to a place where I can do my best to catch it when it falls.
“And don’t be afraid to tell him to pound sand.” She gives me a wink. “I think he kinda likes when that happens.” Elise pulls up to the heavy gate blocking the drive to headquarters. “And if you don’t want to tell him, let me do it. I don’t have any problem telling him to get stuffed.”
A little of the tension winding my insides loosens. “Thanks.”
“I’m happy to tell anyone to suck it, for that matter. Just hit me up.” She rolls down the window and smiles at Abe as he strides up to the car. “Hey.”
“I was starting to worry.” Abe’s voice is deep and gravely, rumbling low as he leans into the car. His eyes widen when he sees me in the passenger seat. “You’ve got company.”
“Savannah needed a ride in.” She lifts her drink, pressing the straw to Abe’s lips. “And I convinced her to be my excuse to stop for coffee.”
Abe takes a sip, wincing as he swallows it down. “That’s not coffee. That’s a milkshake.”
Elise grins as she takes a sip of her own. “Maybe, but it’s glorious.”