Page 11 of Collision of Winters (Hillcroft Group #4)

Wade Winters

I didn’t know if I was simply tired or if all these new revelations had turned over a new leaf, but I ended up telling Kayden pretty much everything.

While he scrolled through Hillcroft’s website and got the gist of what we did at the agency, I admitted to him that Chris was an operator there.

Quin used to be one, before he’d retired to the seventh floor and showed up for work in a suit every morning.

I couldn’t describe how frustrated I was, both with myself and with Kayden.

One part of me grew angrier and angrier, because how had I not seen this?

Someone who lacked passions could still be a passionate person, and that was how I’d describe him. He may have lacked direction in life, but he was still a young man who went all in, whether it was a new hobby or, as evidence showed, hiding his vulnerability.

His facade of indifference had just never made sense to me.

Why hadn’t I pushed for answers? For the truth .

“There’s more,” I admitted. “Chris is currently on an assignment in South America to take care of a problem.”

Kayden’s head snapped up, phone forgotten.

“He’s fine ,” I stressed. “I’m in constant contact with Quinlan. Chris is safe. But whoever came for him knows about you too. We think you were spotted together over the holidays.”

I was an asshole for dumping all this in one big pile of shit in Kayden’s lap, but the levees had clearly broken. I was over it. I had too many impressions, too much to process, and… From the kink—God, so much kink—to his confessed desire to work in logistics.

We had logistics officers at Hillcroft. Kayden could thrive there. He’d be away from danger, and he’d love his job.

I’d never heard him say he was good at something before.

And now that I had… All bets were off. I didn’t know they would be, but here I was, ready to include him in everything. Anything to make him happy.

Kayden just stared at me, shell-shocked, and I couldn’t blame him.

“I’m sorry for springing this on you,” I said. “It’s incredibly selfish of me—not to mention tactless. But I’m tired of the secrecy in our family. It’s just now dawning on me how it’s been keeping us apart.”

He swallowed and wet his bottom lip nervously. “How can you be sure he’s safe? Why am I a target? Did I do something wrong? If Chris hurts himself because of me, I’ll?—”

“This has nothing to do with you, blue,” I was quick to say.

“Our operators spend their careers in unsafe environments, and Chris specializes in organized crime. It goes without saying that he’s pissed off some people over the years, and this time, the trouble came home with him.

They managed to find out who he is, and you happened to be with him when they did.

Chris would’ve flown down there with or without you involved. ”

My God, I should’ve told him all this once Chris was on his way home.

I was a fucking moron.

Kayden couldn’t hide his anxiety. “You can’t know for sure he’s safe,” he said shakily. “You said you were gonna be safe too, and then you almost got blown to pieces.”

When we returned to DC, I was going to let Quin and Chris take a swing at me.

I didn’t lose my goddamn composure like this. Could I blame Kayden? It’d been an utter mindfuck of a day so far.

“This isn’t close combat,” I explained patiently.

“Chris and his backup are taking every precaution available, and they will handle the problem from a safe distance.” Or thereabouts.

I’d spilled enough. I wasn’t going to go into detail about our drone defense.

“My guess is that we’ll hear from Quin tomorrow about the whole thing being over. ”

Kayden swallowed again, and he dropped his gaze to the phone on the table.

“Did you bring me here to keep me safe?” he asked quietly.

“Partly.” I nodded. “The other reason is still very much legitimate. Chris and I have been planning an intervention since you were incarcerated.”

He looked over at me. “What about Yaya? Is she safe?”

I inclined my head. “We asked her to visit friends in Boston just in case.”

He nodded in acknowledgment and pulled up his leg, then wrapped his arms around it. “So all these years, Chris has been risking his life…”

I hated watching him try to make himself as small as possible, and I could no longer stay on my section of the couch. I got up and went over to sit next to him instead.

“He’s supposed to be a mall cop, Wade.”

I smiled sympathetically and wrapped an arm around his shoulders.

I remembered the day Chris had shared that first lie with Kayden. He’d literally called himself a glorified mall cop.

“That wouldn’t have made him very happy,” I murmured. “When we get home, I’ll show you around the agency. We have trainee programs for logistics officers and coordinators, you know.”

He looked up at me, surprised. “You do? What do they do?”

I smiled at the curiosity and enthusiasm in his eyes.

As inappropriate as it was for me to think so, he was so goddamn beautiful. And adorable and?—

Get a grip.

I suppressed a sigh and scratched my forehead.

“It depends on the level. We have senior officers who deploy with our operators, but you need military experience for that, not to mention a supportive family willing to let you take on higher risks, which you don’t have.

” I took a great deal of pleasure in that cute grin of his.

“Then there are our junior officers,” I went on.

“They work domestically for the most part. They put together itineraries, routes, and schedules. Depending on the assignment, they also transport equipment or operators to various destinations.”

The more I talked, the greater Kayden’s excitement became. This was something he wanted badly.

“The trainee program for a junior officer is roughly six months,” I said. “You’ll essentially shadow officers to learn the ropes, and then Danny—whom you met at Quin’s—will be in charge of final testing. He’s the head of our trainees and recruits.”

“I remember that! He said he was like a principal, which finally makes sense.”

I chuckled. Poor boy. How had he not once Googled Hillcroft? We had educational programs and training for government officials too.

“He might be the best operator we’ve ever had,” I mentioned. “He and Emerson both, I should say.”

“Let’s not forget they’re hot as fuck too,” he added frankly. “Emerson is a total GILF.”

I lifted my eyebrows. “What does the G stand for?”

“Grandfather I’d like to?—”

“Okay, I get it.” I straightened and withdrew my arm.

I didn’t need to know what kind of men he went for.

Or who he defined as a grandfather. Emerson might have some twenty years on me, but he was a great friend of mine, and I didn’t want to reflect on why I got along best with the seniors of Hillcroft.

“He only comes in part time as a consultant these days, and I’ll talk to him about a program for you.

He can probably handle the interviews too. ”

That one made him nervous. “Interviews? What if I fail?”

Hm. That attitude needed to take a hike. If he went on assignments with a default mode of possibly failing, he might do just that.

“I suggest you start thinking about what you’ll do when you succeed instead,” I told him pointedly.

To which he became sheepish. “The interviews are extensive and cover everything from your mind-set to what kinds of vehicles you want to operate. We have a garage and training facility outside the city—it’s where most of the officers spend their days coordinating assignments. ”

He glanced away and pinched his lips together, and his eyes flickered a little as he thought about what I’d said.

There was a lot to process after my word vomit, for which I was still embarrassed.

It was so unlike me.

On the flipside, we’d left the topic of BDSM, and I was damn grateful.

“Let’s go, girl,” I said, squinting for the snow. At this point, I wasn’t sure it was coming from above. The howling winds sent it flying in every direction, yet not as harshly as earlier. I’d reopened the shutters.

The other three dogs waited for us on the porch, while Cat was running off some steam.

I shuddered violently and headed up the porch, kicking snow off my boots with each step. I was done. The dogs were good for the night, and I’d fetched the soft cheese for Kayden from my car.

Cat finally joined me, and I opened the door and stepped inside.

What the fuck?

Kayden was—why was he… Why the fuck was he standing in the kitchen and washing himself?

“Halt,” I told the dogs. I had to get the worst of the snow off their paws.

I also had to look away from Kayden and his impish grin.

“Beggars can’t be choosers! How’s the storm?”

Raging .

I reached for the rag I used for the dogs and flicked Kayden another glance. “Whiteout conditions…” Those briefs sat way too tight on him. So much exposed skin. Most of his body. And it was glistening in the firelight from the washcloth he was dragging across his abs.

Get it together.

I clenched my jaw and refocused on the dogs, starting with Tundra. He was the most impatient.

“I thought you were gonna get started on dinner,” I said.

“I did. I set it up by the fireplace.”

Oh. I looked over there, and he was right. He’d prepared the sausage, the hot dog buns, and the condiments.

I took Cat last, and then I was done. I warned Prince to back off from the hot dogs before they settled nearby. After removing my coat, I grabbed the pack with soft cheese and held it behind my back.

“If I say La Vache …”

Kayden’s eyes lit up like a Christmas tree. “ Qui rit ! Did you really?”

I smiled, unable to help it, and held out the box of cheese. The Laughing Cow—his absolute favorite.

“I was prepared with bribes in case the situation called for it,” I admitted. “We’ll call this a reward instead.”

“I love rewards.” He hurriedly finished with the washcloth, then dropped it in his basin of water. “What other bribes are you hiding?”

Wouldn’t he like to know?

“That’s for me to know.”