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Anna’s lips managed to spread even wider as her face turned toward him. “Singing my praises again, hm?”
He grunted.
He may have spoken highly of her once or twice in the three days they’d been at the camp. Hayden couldn’t help himself—she was rather spectacular, and that deserved praise.
“The districts are huge, so we can easily slip inside and scope things out. This will be my third time sending Liam and Rachel in, but new eyes definitely don’t hurt.”
Hayden eyed Liam and Rachel. Liam was young, with a lean build and a playful demeanor. He didn’t look like a soldier of any kind, which was probably the reason he was sent in over someone like Austin or Mason, both of whom had been weathered by life. Rachel was fit, her skin dotted with freckles and her features plain. Just like Liam, she made sense. Nothing about her drew attention, which was exactly what they’d want.
Anna, on the other hand… she drew attention everywhere she went. Though, maybe that was a personal affliction of his and not a generality. He tried to look at her from an outside perspective, one that didn’t know what she looked like first thing in the morning (perfect), or how her eyes lit up when she bit into something tasty, or the way her nostrils flared when he said something that pissed her off. He looked at her light blonde hair that fell in choppy, uneven layers. Green eyes with long lashes. Bitable lips. A soft figure that felt heavenly against his own. Yeah, this wasn’t working.
“I’ll need a hat to cover up the choppy hair on the off chance someone recognizes me from Alan’s guard.” Her hand gestured toward the blonde strands that fell over her face, setting her apart from most women under UNR control. The strands Hayden had grown to love. “Other than that, I should be good.” She grinned wide, but her body felt tense beside him. She was worried about this?
“I’ll go, too.” Anna clearly wanted to go, but if she was worried, he’d be there to have her back. She didn’t have to face anything alone.
Everyone around him was silent for just a few seconds, but they were long, long seconds. Clearly, he’d made an error.
“Well,” Anna began, breaking the silence, “your scars kinda make you stand out. Probably best for you to sit this one out.”
The scars. Of course. Never mind the fact that he’d probably grown up with some of the higher-ranking officers in this very district and they’d definitely recognize him, scars or not.
“Whatever’s best,” he quickly offered.
Usually, he would have thought about those obvious details long before he spoke up and offered himself. Actually, he was pretty sure he’d pointed out that very problem to Anna before they’d unwillingly joined up with Mason and his group. Hayden was losing his touch. Even worse, he found himself… concerned at the thought that Anna might be bothered by his scars. She’d never seemed to be. Actually, she was the only woman he’d ever met that seemed to not even notice them.
Of course he couldn’t rush into enemy territory with an obvious marker like facial scars. He’d tell the same to someone with a visible tattoo, or a unique hair color. It was scouting one-oh-one.
And yet he still found himself worried over Anna’s opinion of him. That was a big, big problem. He had a job to do, and while he wasn’t exactly against entanglements, he was absolutely against any that made it difficult to keep his mask in place. Any that distracted him from the bigger picture: save innocent lives, eliminate the UNR. Right the wrongs. That had to be his focus. Not anything, or anyone else.
“You cool with me flying solo on this one?” Anna’s eyes were on him, pulling him back down to the earth. The fact that she was asking him at all? That was a massive victory. Still, the worry over his earlier lapse in judgment swam around the back of his mind.
“Of course.” He gave her hip another squeeze. “You’re more than capable of scouting out the district.”
She smacked her lips. “So much flattery.”
He simply grunted again. If opening his mouth was going to cause problems, he’d go with his usual tactic: keep it shut.
“I was planning on sending them in today. Does that work for you?”
“Absolutely,” Anna grinned before Hayden could come up with a reason it needed to be tomorrow. Truthfully, he just wanted more time with her. Another problem he’d have to address.
Mason turned to him, as if knowing. “That work for you, boss?”
As much as he’d have liked to argue, there was nothing to say that wouldn’t dig him deeper into the dirt. “Of course.”
“Great. Let’s get you three geared up.”
? ♥ ?
Liam and Rachel were decent company. Liam was young, but smart. He definitely knew what he was doing when it came to these scouting missions. Rachel was tougher than she looked, and apparently, had a fair bit of weapons experience. Not that that experience would help her much here—they each had two knives, and nothing else.
Or, well, they were supposed to have two knives and nothing else.
Hayden had insisted that Anna take a small handgun with her, which she’d tucked into her belt. Winter was the best time of year to fight with the Resistance—heavy coats and lots of layers meant it was very easy to conceal weapons.
Weapons they weren’t supposed to have, in case any of them were patted down by an officer. It wasn’t so common of a practice that they had to forego all weapons, but it happened enough to be a concern.
Hayden insisted, though, so she’d taken his offering with little argument. If anyone decided to pat her down, they’d have to catch her first.
