Page 72

“Fine. Then let’s get started,” Aidan said, fighting to keep his voice even.

Sean smirked. “Fine, Matt, suit up, you’re with him first.

Aidan bent over,catching his breath as he and Ricardo reached the end of the Gauntlet together. His body was straining, screaming at the exertion he’d put it through. The few days of hard exercise had been enough to work him hard, but the addition of equipment strapped to his back and being forced to run through it all again three times like that was enough to put a considerable strain on his body.

“Tell me again, why I have to put up with this?” Aidan asked Ricardo through panted breaths.

To his credit, Ricardo looked pained, even as he chose to say nothing. Aidan was grateful to the bigger man, who had chosen to take on a larger share of the equipment while Sean wasn’t looking. It had meant less of an intensive run on Aidan’s part, but after the two before, the third, even with a lighter load, was not much easier on him.

And now he had one more to go.

Ricardo eyed Sean as the team leader appeared, muttering to Aidan, “Good luck.”

Aidan snorted. “Thanks.”

“You’re doing good,” Ricardo said as he walked off, eyeing Sean as they passed one another.

Aidan watched Ricardo as he walked toward the rest of the team, barely noticing Sean shuffled up beside him. It was the first time he’d heard any of the team say something encouraging to him. Not that they’d been dismissive or rude, but none of them had gone out of their way to show support. Aidan had seen enough of the team dynamic to know that if Ricardo was showing support, even quietly, Aidan could probably count on the rest or hoped he could.

God, since when did getting accepted matter so much?

Sean kept his gaze on the course before them. “Ready?”

“Do you even care?” Aidan asked.

Sean glanced at him, a flicker of some unreadable emotion passing over his bright eyes. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

“Take it how you want,” Aidan said.

Sean glanced at him, brow furrowed, and Aidan hated himself when he realized how breathtaking the man’s gaze could be. Filled with some unknown emotion, Sean’s eyes were bright and drew him in. It filled Aidan with as much desire to know the man beneath it all as it did loathing for the person he was dealing with. With a snort, he shoved the thoughts aside, focusing on the task at hand.

“You have one more run to go,” Sean said, drawing his weapon forward.

It was an odd statement, and Aidan couldn’t help but glance at the other man in wonder. Was Sean trying to make him feel better, or was he trying to drive home his belief that Aidan should be able to continue? To his growing frustration, Aidan couldn’t read what was going on in Sean’s mind and was left confused.

Sean looked at the stretch of barriers in front of them, eyes focused on the board that ticked down the time. “Get ready.”

It was oddly comforting having someone who, despite their earlier animosity, was prepared to look past it to ensure they were prepared for the challenges ahead. Sean’s face showed none of the irritation and anger he normally reserved for looking at Aidan. Instead, his eyes were focused on the clock above, his mind racing as he fought to think of what was to come, what they would need to go through together.

The buzzer sounded, and they were off, sprinting toward the first set of obstacles. Aidan, already familiar with the course, threw himself down, avoiding the barbed wire. Sean was rightbehind him, diving to the ground as they crawled through the mud. Elbow over elbow, they pushed through the sticky mess, coming out on the other side at almost the same time.

“Pick it up,” Sean huffed as they approached the wall.

“Easy to say from the man sitting on the sidelines for the past two hours,” Aidan shot back.

They leaped toward the wall waiting for them, scrambling up the footholds. Aidan’s movements were sloppy and frantic as he tried to keep up with Sean. Near the top of the fifteen-foot wall, Sean scrabbled as he lost his footing, almost falling back to the bottom. Annoyed, Aidan shot an arm out, barely holding himself with the other, and shoved the man up over the lip.

“Looks like you need to worry about yourself,” Aidan grunted, heaving himself over the top.

“Fuck you,” Sean growled.

“I like my men with a good personality,” Aidan said, catching himself before he plummeted to the ground on the other side.

“Surprised you have standards at all,” Sean grunted, lowering himself to the ground.

“Confusing me with yourself again? Not a good trait for a team leader.”

The words fell from his mouth far more easily than his breath. The previous three runs through the course had worn his body down and made it hard to push through the hurt. However, his will didn’t stop him from pushing onward, and he reached the next set of hurdles with a burning need to succeed searing his mind.