Page 60

“He’d be justified.”
“Perhaps. But if he did that to every OZ operative who’s screwed up, there would be no OZ.”
That was true. And she knew that Ash was a fair man. Maybe one of the biggest reasons she dreaded telling him was the disappointment she knew she’d cause him. But she had learned her lesson, and she would take her medicine, no matter how bitter the pill.
The phone in her pocket jingled. Ash was calling on her phone. She answered and saw his handsome face on the screen. He had strong features and steely eyes, but they’d only ever looked at her with kindness. Today was no different.
“Jazz, you’re looking better. There’s color in your face.”
“I’m getting stronger, Ash. Xavier is taking good care of me.” Remembering what had happened a couple hours ago brought an unexpected heat to her cheeks. If Ash looked closely, he’d see the deep red blush she wasn’t able to hide. She glanced over at Xavier, and the grin on his face made her blush even more. The man was enjoying her embarrassment.
“That’s good. Now, you have something you need to tell me?”
Settling into the chair Xavier had been sitting in earlier, Jazz started with the shooting. What she had seen, what she had done, and why—all the way up to when she’d been abducted. Ash didn’t speak or ask questions. He just let her get it out. Once she finished, she held her breath, waiting for his judgment.
“Did he recognize you?” Ash asked.
“I think so…maybe. It’s hard to say. He looked at me for a second, but that doesn’t mean anything really.”
“This definitely gives us another avenue to pursue.”
“Yeah,” she said softly. She knew that avenue had been delayed by weeks because of her.
“Jazz, let me ask you something. What did you think would happen if you had told us what you saw?”
“I didn’t know, Ash. I…I panicked. The last thing I wanted was for Brody and the team to get into a shootout. I thought if I found him first, I could talk him into coming in on his own.”
“That was damn dangerous, Jazz. But you already know that.”
“I know…and I’m very sorry. I broke a ton of OZ rules.”
“Rules that are there to protect you.”
“Yes.”
“Don’t do it again, Jazz. You need to remember that blood doesn’t define family. It’s people who love and protect you and always have your back, no matter what. That’s what you’ve got in Option Zero.”
“I know that, Ash. Again, I’m sorry.”
“Let’s move past this. Feel better soon so you can get back to work and we can all figure this out together.”
“Thanks, boss. I will.”
The screen went blank, and Jazz let loose a huge breath, unaware until then that she’d been holding it in.
“See? That wasn’t so bad.”
“Still, I’d rather face down a pack of hyenas than do that again.”
Laughing, he held out his hand. “You against a pack of hyenas? My money’s on you.”
Taking his hand, she allowed him to pull her into his arms. And when his mouth touched hers, she forgot everything except the joy of being here with him.
Raising his head, he captured her gaze. “About this morning…”
There was that dratted blush again. She’d blushed more in the last few hours than she had in ten years.
Instead of laughing at her embarrassment, Xavier gave her a look of serious concern. “Are you okay? I didn’t hurt you?”