A map flashed on the screen, a glowing dot appearing.
Tane nodded.
“Okay, everyone knows their jobs.” Holmes scanned the room. “There’s a lot riding on this mission.” He gave a faint smile. “And I know the berserkers will make a mess and make the Gizzida sorry they tangled with us.”
“Hell yeah!” Hemi shouted.
“Hey, that’s our battle cry,” Shaw from Hell Squad said. “Get your own.”
Arden looked at Dom.
He shot her a molten glare before he turned and stalked out. Her chest hitched.
“Uh-oh,” Indy murmured. “Trouble in paradise.”
Arden sighed. “I have to go on this mission, Indy.”
“I know. He knows, too, but these alpha males have this built-in need to keep their women safe.” Indy smiled. “Some latent caveman gene. He’ll come around.”
Arden swallowed. She hoped so.
Dom was barely able to control his anger. He pulled his knives out of his locker, shoving them into the sheaths on his belt.
He’d already been forced to take Arden out in the field once. He did not want to do it again.
All around him in the locker room, his squad was getting ready for the mission. Dom was already in his armor, but the others were in various states of undress.
Nearby, Levi was still naked and taking his time. The man took forever to get dressed. Hemi was still shirtless, joking around with Ash and trying to break the tension in the room.
Suddenly, the door opened, and Arden stepped inside.
Dom stiffened. Her gaze skated around the room, danced over Levi and Hemi, before zooming straight to Dom. Her cheeks were pink.
He strode toward her, grabbed her arm, and yanked her out of the room.
“I’m sorry you’re angry,” she said.
In the hall, Dom let her go and dragged in a breath.
“The last mission went fine,” she said. “You and the squad protected me—”
“Since then I’ve had my cock inside you. I don’t want my woman anywhere near the Gizzida, let alone this bomb.”
His tone was sharper than his blades.
Arden licked her lips. “I’d love to hide, Dom. A part of me would love to let everyone else do the dirty work, the scary work. But if those bombs go off, they kill us all. I want to fight. I want to fight for my dead husband, for my children—” Her chest hitched.
And just like that, Dom’s anger broke. He hated seeing her pain and wanted to soothe her. He yanked her in close, pulling her hard against his chest in a tight hug.
Her arms wrapped around him, holding on.
“I want to do it for them, but I also want to do it for us. I want more time with you, Dom.”
Damn. She knew exactly how to batter down every one of his defenses. “Arden…”
She looked up at him. “So, I’m your woman?”
“Si.”
She smiled. “Good. And that means you’re my man.”
He yanked her up on her toes, pressing his mouth to hers. He thrust his tongue inside, kissing her deeply.
When they broke apart, she touched her fingers to her swollen lips. “You make me so dizzy.”
“And you touch places inside me that no one has ever touched before.”
Warmth moved over her face. “Dom.”
He released a breath. “We have a mission to get ready for.”
She nodded, setting her shoulders back. “I need to get into my armor and get the combat drone from Noah.”
Dom fiddled with the silk of her hair. “I’ll see you at the Hawk.”
He stood in the corridor and watched her walk away. Whatever he had to do, he’d keep her safe. He’d open a vein for her, kill for her, die for her.
He finished getting prepped, and soon was standing with his squad beside the Hawk. Levi and Ash started loading up the berserkers’ heavily armored motorcycles into the back of the Hawk.
Selena arrived next. The slender woman was in armor, her silver-white hair braided.
Dom glanced at Tane. His leader was silent, but a muscle was ticking in the man’s jaw.
“You follow my orders,” Tane barked at Selena.
Her chin lifted. “I’ll do what the mission requires.”
Tane’s eyes narrowed and Dom bit his tongue. It hadn’t escaped any of them that the woman hadn’t exactly agreed to obey.
Then Arden appeared. As she walked into the hangar, her gaze met Dom’s. She smiled at him. She held the large combat drone in one hand and he moved over to take it from her. The damn thing was heavy.
“Ready?” he asked.
“I’m ready.”
“All right.” Tane’s deep voice reverberated around them. “Let’s go destroy a bomb.”
Chapter Twelve
Arden’s belly was jumping all over the place, like it was filled with twisting snakes.
She sat in the Hawk, trying to keep her breathing steady. A jumble of voices murmured around her and Dom was a solid presence sitting beside her. She was glad he was with her.
She knew just how important—and dangerous—this mission was.
After some time, the quadcopter began to descend, and she knew that they were at the drop site.
The berserkers all rose, looking calm and focused. She scanned them one by one. So tough, so lethal. Each of them, regardless of their past lives, had been on so many missions like this, ready to fight, defend, and protect.
Tane, his dreadlocks pulled back at the base of his neck, opened the side door. His dark gaze caught hers, his face so emotionless. He gave her a brief nod.
Then Dom’s fingers curled around her arm. She looked at him and saw the same steady determination.
These men wouldn’t let fear stop them. They’d fight—for her, for the others at the Enclave, for a chance at life.
And Arden would do the same.
She let Dom help her up and reached down to grab the combat drone off an empty seat. Outside, she gazed at all the trees, pulling in the green scent of the forest. A wide, muddy track speared away to the north. A second Hawk swept into view above them, its illusion system flickering off to reveal its dull, gray body. She spotted
