Even now, his cock stirred at the thought of tearing the feisty redhead’s clothes off and burying himself deep inside her. He clenched his jaw and tried to concentrate on the briefing.
“They’re wounded and desperate,” Cornelius replied with a slight shrug. “We don’t know what they might do. All it takes is one big mistake, and they’ve got themselves a hybrid to torture.”
“Oh, come on.” CJ looked at Cornelius like the man had lost his mind. “They know we’re here, but instead of attacking us, they send some woman after Maximus?
Tiberius offered a small grin. “It doesn’t sound like this woman knows anything about the Phoenix Corps, but it does sound like she might have stumbled onto something interesting.”
“We stick to the plan,” Maximus said, cutting through the air with his hand. “You three will follow us but keep your distance. It’ll allow us to check out the area without raising her suspicions and provides plausible cover if someone shows up. Once we have a better idea of where something important might be, we can sweep the area with drones with a better chance of finding the Corps before they find us.”
Cornelius folded his arms. “And what if you run into the Corps?”
“That’s why you three are coming and bringing guns with you. We’ve hit them enough by now that they know we still travel in packs, just like they trained us. Taking a couple of us down wouldn’t make sense. If they’re there, I think they’ll try and keep a low profile and try to figure out where the rest of the hybrids are.”
“There are a lot of assumptions in that plan,” Cornelius said. “Not all of them well supported.”
“There are a lot of assumptions in everybody’s plans.” Maximus inclined his head toward the door. “Let’s arm up and get going. Remember, keep your distance. I don’t want to see you unless I’m surrounded and have already been shot.”
Tiberius grinned. “We’ll try and not mess up your date.”
* * *
Maximus appreciated Selena’s practicality, including her backpack, boots, khaki pants, shirt, and wide-brimmed hat. There was nothing sexy or stylish about it. She looked like a reject from a jungle-adventure film, but substance over style was attractive in a woman. He’d been half-convinced she would be running around the forest in heels and was pleasantly surprised to find the opposite.
Their cars receded in the distance at the end of the road. The trees had grown denser, along with the chirp of birds and the rustle of the underbrush. A myriad of scents tickled Maximus’s nose from the sweetness of nearby berries to a faint ammonia scent that might mark something small and furry in need of a bath.
He continued walking beside Selena, trying to concentrate. All the smells combined with dozens of distinct sounds, quiet and loud, his sensitive ears picking up everything. Life filled the rainforest, but he cared more about the kind of life that carried a gun.
Selena laughed, earning a look from Maximus. She’d been quiet for the last fifteen minutes, and he couldn’t think of anything to say. After what had happened last night, he needed to keep his mind focused on the hunt for the Phoenix Corps.
“What’s so funny?” he asked.
“I concentrated so much on finding the perfect location for the commercial,” Selena said, “but I didn’t put as much thought into getting there. It doesn’t look that bad when you’re looking at it online, but it’s going to be a bear getting the equipment in here without actual roads or decent paths. I wonder if Bill would change his mind if I told him that.”
“Do you think he would?”
Selena shook her head with a broad smile. “That auteur asshole? What does he care? He’s not going to be the one carrying the equipment. Everyone must suffer for his art with a capital A.”
She pulled a water bottle out of a pouch in her backpack and took a drink.
“If you thought it was going to be so easy,” Maximus began, “why did you bring a backpack?”
“I wasn’t sure if you’d show up,” Selena said. “And I had this weird fear I’d go walking and end up spraining my ankle in the middle of nowhere. A beautiful place to die, but I’d prefer not to die yet.”
Maximus reached into his pocket. “We’re not that far. There has to be phone coverage here.” He pulled out his cell phone. Zero bars. “Or maybe not.”
That might impact any missions, and it was good to know. They had more satellite phones back at their temporary base of operations, and Tiberius was carrying one.
Selena chuckled. “I used to think I had good instincts.” She tapped her forehead. “That’s why I trusted my instincts to bring the backpack and supplies.”
“You used to think you had good instincts?”
“Yes.”
“And you don’t now?”
Selena nodded. “I’m alone in the forest with a man I’ve just met who may or may not be a mobster. It’s crazy when you think of it that way.”
Maximus laughed, the sound easing some residual tension. “I’m not a mobster.”
“Probably.” Selena winked. “You’ve had plenty of time to whack me. Do mobsters still say that? You know what? Don’t answer that.” She rubbed the back of her neck and gave a sheepish grin. “I’m sorry about last night, by the way. I let things get out of hand, but I shouldn’t have been yelling at you for that. It was my fault.”
“It’s okay.” Maximus waved a hand. “I think we both let things get out of hand.”
“I’d tell your boss not to bother building anything out here.” Selena motioned around. “It’s beautiful, but it’s not convenient. Rich people like convenience, right?”
“Some people like to be away from others. I could see living out in a place like this, miles and miles away from
