Page 14 of Protected By West (San Antonio S.W.A.T. #1)

TRACY

When she got back to her house in San Antonio, her stomach was full, and she barely got to her bed before collapsing and hugging a pillow to her chest. "That last pulled pork sandwich was too much.

" She groaned but the thought brought up an image of Weston at the barbecue restaurant in Frederickson.

The food there was superior to what they'd gotten at Buckee's.

Well, it had gone cold before she'd eaten it. ..

Her phone which she'd dropped onto her bedspread pinged with an incoming message.

With a sigh, she reached out and turned it over so she could open it with facial recognition.

It opened a moment later and she saw the text message on the screen

SMEXY: Did you get back home safely?

Suddenly, she wasn't so exhausted any more.

TRACY: Just

TRACY: What are you up to?

SMEXY: Got another member of the team this afternoon. Going to see another candidate tonight.

TRACY: Where?

She was going to leave it at that and then changed her mind. It wasn't all that late, and she was curious.

TRACY: Maybe I can see you after

The three little dots started and stopped a few times.

Before she had time to really overthink it, another message popped up.

SMEXY: Longhorn Gentleman's Club

Her jaw dropped.

Why would he be going to a gentleman's club to meet someone for his SWAT team?

Tracy rolled over on her stomach and wondered what she should reply with.

There was a lot in her head, but no real idea of what to answer back.

Thank goodness, Weston sent another message.

SMEXY: It's a funny story or likely it will be. Can I call you after?

Well, she lifted a brow at the thought, it would be an interesting story.

Smiling to herself she typed her response.

TRACY: Sure. I'll try to stay awake... just for the story.

Maybe it was wishful thinking, but she imagined him smiling at the message.

They'd only known each other for a couple of days, but she had a feeling that he'd know that she was joking.

Hopefully.

SMEXY: Just for the story?

SMEXY: It's just been a day and already you're tired of me.

TRACY: Ha ha. Hardly.

TRACY: But I guess my attempt of keeping you on your toes fell flat on its face.

SMEXY: Oh, you keep me on my toes, gorgeous. It just looks a little odd in cowboy boots.

She read his message and smiled even more.

Now she was hardly tired at all.

Sitting up, she dangled her legs off the edge of the bed, wondering what to do with her sudden burst of energy, but before she moved, her phone pinged again, and she smiled.

Tracy realized that she probably should figure out how to change the sounds on her phone.

The ringtone and text chime she had for Jaime was done by Jaime.

If they had time on Monday, she was going to have to ask Jaime how to change things on her phone for Weston.

What?

She had no idea, but something recognizable.

PING

Oh, yeah. She had another message.

Lifting the phone up she saw it was another message from Weston, but her phone had gone to sleep.

It woke up a moment later and she could see the message easily.

SMEXY: You pictured that in your head. Right?

Tracy shook her head, and she knew she was smiling like crazy.

Lifting up her phone, she typed in a message.

TRACY: Totally.

Smiling even brighter she typed another message.

TRACY: Feeling like I want to see the real thing.

Oh boy.

She shook her head wondering how needy that sounded... err, read in his head.

SMEXY: The club? Or me?

She knew she'd opened the door to this. And as crazy as it felt and sounded in her head, she was having fun.

TRACY: Not so excited about the first. Definitely the second.

The three dots started again and then her phone made that noise again.

PING

SMEXY: I'll explain more when I call.

SMEXY: What are you doing on Saturday?

Tracy closed her eyes and felt her heart kick a little in her chest.

Crazy and true.

TRACY: Nothing... yet. What do you have in mind?

SMEXY: A little fun at the lake. You can meet my team. We'll have some free time to ourselves, too.

TRACY started to type a message, but another one came in first.

SMEXY: Have to go. The others are here. Talk to you after.

Tracy decided to change the message she'd been typing, finally sending it.

TRACY: I guess I should say HAVE FUN, but I'm not sure I'd mean it. :P Stay Safe? Yeah, that's more like it. Talk to you later!

Shutting her phone off for the moment, Tracy headed for the bathroom to take a shower and make some coffee. She was definitely going to be up for that call.

WEST

Weston put his phone into his back pocket and looked up as Fox drove up and took the space beside his Chevy.

Duval, Dally, and Oxy had stayed with the Chevy while Weston was texting, but now that Fox was there, they were just waiting for State Trooper Bonner to arrive.

The door to Fox's Tahoe opened and Fox stepped out, stretching his legs.

West smiled at the other man, hoping to distract him from the pain he must be feeling. "How was the training?"

Fox leaned back against the side of his Tahoe and looked up at the sky. "It's daunting."

Weston let his friend think on it for a moment, keeping an eye out for the last member of their team.

"There's so many variables in this kind of thing.

Even when we practice negotiations it's just another officer playing the role.

What is it going to be like to do it with a suspect who has a knife to someone's throat?

Or has an automatic weapon pointed at a schoolroom full of children?

" He lowered his gaze, and Weston saw the concern his friend was feeling.

"I just got a clean bill of health from the department doctors to return to active duty, but I'm not sure I'll ever be able to take up the physical demands of the team, West."

Fox dragged a hand down his face, ruffling the hair at his temples but smoothing down his beard.

"You're still looking for officers on the SWAT team, are you sure you don't want to pull someone else, and I can get a job at headquarters."

The parking lot outside of Longhorn Gentleman's Club was on the dark side, but the lights that were there had a more than adequate light to show him the expression on Fox's face.

Older than the rest of the team, Fox had experience in and around San Antonio that made him invaluable on the team, but he was also someone who had a keen understanding of people.

He'd always been credited for helping to ease tensions in tense situations.

And when it came to understanding the interactions between people, Fox had always been more observant than others.

West was sure he'd be a star on the SWAT team, he just had to get Fox to believe it, too.

But the other Ranger was a man of action, and he'd likely have to be thrown into the deep end of the pool to realize that he could swim.

"Hey, boss!"

They all turned toward the shouted greeting, and West lifted a hand to greet the two men walking toward him.

Trooper Bonner was there, still in his full uniform even though he'd been clocked out for more than a few hours.

With the way he held himself and the proud lift of his chin, West knew that James was a man who took his job seriously.

Along with all of the other records and evaluations, he knew he'd made the right choice.

Myles Harrison was grinning at him and stepped forward with a broad grin. "Boss. I found the stiff here," he jerked a thumb at Bonner, "walking across the parking lot. Is he one of us or are you going to kick his ass for coming to a strip club in uniform?"

Dally laughed. "You weren't with us earlier. We met Bonner here at a traffic stop dealing with the worst kind of Karen ."

Myles lifted a brow at that. "What's the worst kind?"

Oxy chuckled. "The Texas kind."

Duval's laugh was more of a snort. "Here in Texas they're the worst. Biggest attitude by far."

Myles gave Trooper Bonner a measuring look. "Traffic stop? We'll see how you do on the team."

West watched to see what kind of reaction that Bonner would have to the other man's words. He wasn't looking for someone who'd add to the tension.

Bonner kept an even expression. "It's a new team. I'm sure there's going to be a few rough spots. I'll bet you'll be okay." Weston thought he saw just a hint of a smile on Bonner's face but then it faded away as if it wasn't there at all. "Eventually."

Fox clapped a hand down on Myles' shoulder. "Did you forget you were coming to meet the team?"

Myles gave the group a cursory look and shrugged. "I was working with the horses and had to replace some of the wood in the corral. I made it here, didn't I?"

Weston sighed. "At least dust yourself off and let's get inside. Any later and we might miss the chance to talk to Deputy Morgan."

Myles took the cowboy hat in his hand and dashed it against his jeans, knocking loose what dust might still be clinging to him and used this hand to shake his shirt to remove the rest. "Good enough?"

Weston lifted a brow at that. Myles was a good Ranger. No, he's great at the job and no one can best him in speed, even in full gear.

"This isn't our usual locale. So, I'm going to excuse you today, but come Monday when we start training, everyone is going to be in the same trench with each other. I don't need any attitudes."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Even Myles, who looked like he might have a mouthful of dirt, but he wasn't commenting. That was good.

If he had a budding attitude Weston was sure he could fix it.

It wouldn't be easy, but neither was finding precious stones in the dirt. It took work.

And work was something that Weston had always been driven to do.

"Okay. Let's head inside. I've got a call to make later tonight."

Everyone turned to walk toward the door, but Fox seemed to hang back and fell into step beside him.

"You've got a call to make later?"

Weston turned his head to look at one of his oldest friends and saw the hint of a smile in his usually placid expression. "You heard me."

Fox nodded slowly as the neon sign in the front window of the Longhorn grew closer. "Just wondering if something happened while I was away at my training and you," he slid a sidelong look at Weston, "had that financial services thing in Frederickson."

At the mention of the town, Weston felt his lips thin a little, almost into a smile.

This wasn't the time to admit anything about what happened while he was at the conference.

"Oh."

Weston turned to look at Fox. "What's with the 'oh'?"

Fox smiled at him. That sly, knowing look that had been part of the reason he got the name in their time with the Rangers. "When do I get to meet her?"

Weston swallowed and felt his neck heat a little.

Yeah, Fox knew people.

At this point, he should probably stop trying to hide things.

Then again...

He looked at Fox and shrugged. "I'm planning a little get together at my house on Saturday. You free to come?"

Fox lifted his chin at the ground in front of them. "The team invited?"

Weston nodded. "Team building in the way of smoked meat and beers. I'll see if she can come to meet all of you guys."

Fox didn't have much of a reaction physically. All he said was, "One step short of meeting the family. This is big. A lot must have happened while you were gone."

The others had stopped at the door up ahead and while Weston slowed his steps, letting his mind mull over Fox's words, he had to agree.

A lot did happen.

And Weston was determined to make it even better.