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“Yeah, something like that,” Matt said.

As if summoned, Sean stomped through the brush, stopping short when he caught sight of the two of them. The sight of him twisted in Aidan’s stomach, even though he knew his reaction was irrational and stupid. Sean might not have been the most pleasant person to deal with initially, but he wasn’t Jason.

The resemblance was uncanny, at least at first glance. Sean had the same pitch-black hair and bright, flashing green eyes that called to mind a polished jewel. He even had the same bulky frame, which Sean used with surprising grace, even if he did tend to stomp whenever his temper flared. The similarities stopped there, and Aidan had to admit Sean was better-looking. There was a strong cut to his jaw, enough to make him handsome but not square and blocky, though Aidan had to admit the almost constantly furrowed brow detracted from Sean’s looks a little.

“What are you doing here?” Sean asked brusquely.

“Last I checked, you told me to come here for team training,” Aidan said dryly.

“I meant this early,” Sean said, not sounding apologetic.

Aidan cocked his head. “I am a prompt person. I didn’t want you to think I’d miss this for the world.”

“Why would you when you’re supposed to be on this team?” Sean asked.

Aidan was tempted to dig in a little harder and ask how the meeting with General Winter went but held his tongue. Sean wasn’t the first snarly person Aidan had dealt with, but something about his dismissive attitude toward him dug deep into Aidan’s nerves. It wasn’t enough for him to lose his temper, but he found he couldn’t help trying to poke at the man a little, if only to ease his frustration.

“Sparring again?” came a deep voice as Ricardo appeared to melt out of the forest.

Aidan chuckled. “That’s a pretty neat trick for such a big guy. We heard Sean coming from a mile off.”

Ricardo eyed him, a ghost of a smirk on his face. “Years of sneaking out of the house as a teenager.”

“Ooh, a delinquent, I like it,” Aidan said, giving Ricardo a wink.

For a moment, Aidan thought the shadow of a smile might become real before even that hint of amusement disappeared from the man’s face. Aidan watched as Ricardo moved his attention back to Sean, and he wondered if the big man had forgotten how to be amused or if he was attempting to show solidarity with Sean.

Nick appeared. “Sparring?”

Sean sighed. “Yes, sparring. Our last CQC training ended prematurely, so here we are.”

Aidan once again had to stop himself from speaking and reminding Sean it had ended early because Sean had got pissed off.

“And I want to see what our newest member is capable of,” Sean continued.

Aidan leaned back, not bothering to hide his amusement. “Really? You want me to fight?”

“If I’m going to know what you’re capable of, then yes, and we’re going to start with CQC. And you’re going to start by fighting me.”

Ricardo tilted his head. “Really?”

“I need to know, and what better way than to have him go up against me?”

“And the fact that you’re the best hand-to-hand fighter we have on the team?”

Aidan could see Sean struggling to find a response, either because he wasn’t sure himself or he didn’t want to admit in front of everyone what his real motivation was. In truth, Aidan couldn’t argue with his logic, even if it hid a desire for Sean to smack Aidan around a little.

If the guy wanted to work out some of his aggravations, Aidan would be more than willing to give him the opportunity. Whether or not it would work out the way Sean thought, well, that was something else entirely.

Aidan shrugged, pushing himself up and dusting his hands off. “Alright, fine.”

“New guy is confident,” Nick noted.

“Just happy to be here and doing something,” Aidan said.

Sean stepped forward, over the edge of the circle, and into the makeshift ring. “Good.”

“Any rules, restrictions, rituals, little dances I should know?” Aidan asked as he too, stepped forward.