Joey blew out a breath. “After a day of watching you run your lab and field phone calls, I agree you can handle the pressure. But this could be a setup. And if I put too much surveillance equipment in place, they’re going to quickly realize that Stefanie Ryland isn’t just a talented scientist, she’s also collaborating with the CIA. Then you’re at risk.”
“You’re buttering me up.” Stefanie eyed him. “I’m not that important. I didn’t even know what was going on until last weekend. And do you really think they’d make their big move in an office building in San Francisco? Wouldn’t they at least trick us into coming into international waters or something? After all, we are the marine corps.”
Joey snorted. “That is such a bad joke. And Nash is so incredibly proud of it. He dropped it into conversation one more time after you left.”
Stefanie grinned and for that moment, her time with the CIA officer felt easy. That was…unusual. “What if we set up in the conference room with the glass door? You could pass by occasionally and see that I have things in hand. And you could have recording devices in the room so you could listen in.” Joey looked towards her gun safe. “I saw that.” She eyed him. “Are you worried I’d go in armed or that I wouldn’t go in armed?”
“I’m not sure.” Joey sighed and poked at his lasagna. “Listen, it’s one thing when I put myself at risk, but I’ve been trained for it. You have no idea what these guys really want. Or who they really are.”
Stefanie narrowed her eyes. “You haven’t been trained in marine biology. Or oceanography. Or on our prototypes. You know nothing about this company. It needs to be me. You’ll blow our cover in a heartbeat. And come on, what are the odds these guys work for Dmitri? Cole is always busy. That’s hardly news.” Joey rubbed the back of his neck. He finished his food and rose to clean up their mess. He reached for her food and she put a hand over it. “You don’t need to do that. I’ll handle it.” Joey kept his palm out. She sighed. “Yes, I heard that. I may have some trouble accepting help.”
“And needing to be in charge of everything?”
“Says the pot to the kettle.” Stefanie handed over her dinner mess. “Also, I think you mean to say I am an excellent leader. Thank you. I appreciate the compliment.”
Joey laughed and put away the dishes. He leaned against the counter. “You’re a good egg, Stefanie Ryland. Let’s get you some practice on the gun range tonight. Then, once you’re good and tired, I’m going to try to convince you again that putting me in the room is a good idea.”
Stefanie saw a playful sparkle in his eyes and almost lost her breath. A tough guy who took himself too seriously was merely a pain in her backside. But a tough guy who appreciated the challenge was something else entirely. He was neatly ducking all of her assumptions. “Alright, give it your best. I just don’t want to see you sulk when you lose.”
“I don’t sulk.” Joey crossed his arms.
Stefanie gathered her bag and retrieved her weapon from the cabinet. “Hm. That’s not what I recall of your first night here.”
“I wasn’t sulking. I was concerned for your safety.” Joey lifted an eyebrow. “Because of my excellent leadership skills.” He winked and she did an excellent job pretending not to be affected.
They continued to banter on their way out to the car and Stefanie felt her shoulders relax a little. Forming a team was something she’d done dozens of times; these were just different circumstances. They were just having to work together more quickly than she expected, and she wasn’t driving the metaphorical bus. She’d show Joey she knew what she was doing. Then, once the tough guy was reassured that he wasn’t sending in an incompetent pseudo-agent, he’d let her drive.
She slid into the driver’s seat and he joined her in the passenger’s seat. He looked around the vehicle and Stefanie looked at him before turning the key. “Coming to conclusions based on my car?”
“I have no idea what you mean.” Joey gave her a look of wide-eyed innocence.
“It’s a little messier than usual.” Stefanie shook her head and pulled out of the driveway, managing not to look around too much. Still, she spotted a protein bar wrapper in the cup holder and a sweatshirt in the back seat.
“That definitely wasn’t what I was thinking. I’m impressed you keep it so clean. I thought I was the only one that was that fastidious with my car.”
“Wow.” Stefanie drew out the word. “Fastidious is a pretty big word for a guy who is trying to pass himself off as a regular Joe…y.”
“Just a regular guy in consulting. Very boring. I travel a lot.” Joey reclined his seat a little.
“Do you have somewhere in mind or should I just take you to where I normally go?” Stefanie paused to look at him before turning onto the main road.
Joey showed her a map app on his phone. “I think we should go at least an hour out of town. I don’t want to run into any of your coworkers.”
“At the gun range?” Stefanie eyed him incredulously.
“Well, if any of them are working for Dmitri, it would only take running into the wrong one.”
Stefanie tapped the steering wheel. “Are you worried about them seeing you at my house?”
“Not really.” Joey shrugged. “We’re going to have to form a believable friendship. If anyone asks, you’re mentoring me.”
Stefanie cleared her throat. “Do you mean mentoring you or,” she lowered her voice, “mentoring you? Because I definitely don’t need the reputation that comes with the second one.”
Joey coughed to cover a laugh. “The first one. I also don’t need to explain why neither of us could control
