Rhys by Adrienne Bell

distractions to a minimum, but now Tessa knew that was only half true. It wasn’t just the press he was trying to avoid. It was any number of government and defense organizations as well.
    But there was bound to be some kind of trail. It might be buried deep in the SciGen archives, but it was out there. And Charlie seemed to be the type that didn’t give up easily.
    Tessa grimaced as she struggled to turn her aching body toward Charlie.
    “You have to promise me that you won’t keep looking,” Tessa said, grasping the other woman’s hand.
    Charlie’s eyes widened at the sudden move, but she didn’t pull away. “Why?”
    “Because it’s dangerous. Very dangerous,” Tessa said. “I can’t explain why. You just have to believe me.”
    Concern showed in Charlie’s eyes. Compassion, too. But no fear.
    Damn it . Why didn’t any of these people have the sense to be afraid.
    “I do believe you,” Charlie said. She paused before lifting her eyes to Tessa’s. “But my boss won’t. Until he knows more, Carter will keep asking me to find out everything I can about your work.”
    Tessa closed her eyes and drew in a deep breath. That was what she was afraid of. She pulled back her hands, and groaned as she rose to her feet.
    “Then, I guess I’m just going to have to go out there and explain it to the Captain myself.”
    “Now, that’s an idea I can get behind.” Charlie stood up, a wide, mischievous smile spreading across her face. “But I’m thinking that we might want to wash your hair and get you into a pair of pants before we launch Operation Stern Talking To.”
    Tessa glanced down at her bare and bruised legs. “Yeah, you’re probably right.”
    “I usually am,” Charlie said with a wink.
     
     
    ***
     
     
    The last twenty minutes had gone by painfully slow for Rhys. He’d spent the first part answering seemingly endless questions about what he’d been doing out at Boyd’s house to his boss, and the second half watching Carter Macmillan silently pace back and forth in front of the empty fireplace as he mused over Rhys’ answers.
    Nothing new there. Rhys knew how Carter worked. Just like he knew Carter wasn’t all that happy with him at the moment.
    It was nothing personal. Carter was just protective. It might have been years since he’d been Rhys’ CO, but Rhys knew Carter still thought of everyone on his team as his men .
    It was part of the reason the old unit was still so loyal to the man. Every one of them knew they had brothers they could lean on.
    And right now, Rhys knew he needed them. Not for himself, but for Tessa. She was going to need the full power of Macmillan Security behind her if she had any hope of surviving this fight.
    After a few more laps in front of the mantle, Carter stopped and crossed his arms. “So, Anders Boyd,” he said with a sigh. “The man is one hell of an enemy.”
    Jake, who looked like he’d been about to doze off in the leather chair next to Rhys, popped his head up. “We’ve fought bigger.”
    Carter’s jaw tightened. “And destroyed half of downtown Sacramento in the process.”
    “I still say one floor of a single office building is surprisingly little collateral damage,” Jake said, dismissively waving his hand.
    Carter ignored Jake’s wisecrack, and focused his gaze on Rhys. “If we’re going to pursue this, we’re going to need more information about what Boyd was trying to get out of Dr. Rosenthal.”
    Rhys’ shoulders tightened. “Have Charlie do her thing.”
    “She already tried,” Carter said. “Whatever Boyd is hiding, he’s buried it deep. Charlie could barely find anything.”
    “So, have her dig deeper,” he said plainly.
    Carter’s eyes narrowed as his head tilted to the side. Rhys understood his confusion. Carter wasn’t used to being told no…especially by Rhys.
    He’d never refused a mission that Carter had given him—never. Of course, he’d never disagreed with one until now.
    But there was no way that he was