There was no getting around it this time. The play was set. Tom was with Vulture Team, and Sasha on Cobra. She was the only one who spoke Mandarin, it had to be done. They were collecting their guns, loading ammunition in tense silence. Mike had worked with him long enough to know that something was wrong. Or rather, someone.
"Don't worry, I'll watch her back."
Tom froze and glanced sideways from his peripheral. The names of the dead and the failures that haunted weighing heavy and unspoken. He would not add her to that list. A small nod let Mike know he'd been heard and he let the subject drop quickly.
Five minutes till go time.
Tom couldn't help it, he walked into the room, and she was right there, quietly collecting her dive gear. Beautiful. Strong. He couldn't lose her. Could barely even sit with the thought or the concept.
The hairs on the back of her neck stood. Senses telling her that the eyes she felt on her belonged to him. She stopped what she was doing and looked up, taken aback by the expression he wore.
He wasn't even trying to hide it anymore. He was just standing there, stuck. Staring at her with a subtle reverence that made her heart leap through her vest—momentarily Sasha wondered if something had gone wrong. Approached him with a curious but soft look. Saw him inhale as she drew closer, something troubled cast over his handsome features.
Tom's eyes caressed her features as if committing details to memory. "Keep your head down."
Sasha heard it for what it was, a plea as much as an instruction. Ah. There were those butterflies again—he was worried about her. She softened and tried to reassure him without crossing a line. The very unspoken one. Something that wouldn't communicate more than they were ready for yet.
Made a promise to him instead. "On a swivel."
A fondness swept his eyes, a micro-expression of everything he couldn't say, the hint of affection that curled his lip—it was there for just a moment before he got control of himself again. Forced himself to walk away. They had a mission to complete.
Mission always came first.