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“And I’ll have pancakes and sausage.”
“Coming right up,” Beth said and turned to place their orders.
Tanner leaned forward, forearms pressed against the table, icy blue eyes twinkling. “So, what’s up with your new neighbor? You ask her out yet?”
Ryland finished swallowing his sip of coffee as an image of Harper jumped to his mind. He could feel his pulse speed up as he pictured the petite blonde hair with aqua eyes the color of the Caribbean Sea. She was the first woman to catch his attention in a long time, and his dick wasn’t letting him forget it.
“Not yet,” Ryland admitted, moving his silverware around. Truth be told, Harper made him nervous. Normally, if he saw a woman he liked, he’d approach her, no problem. But his new neighbor was different and he didn’t want to screw it up.
“What’re you waiting for? A written invitation?”
“I’m waiting for the right moment.”
“What if that never comes?
“Then I guess we never go out.”
Tanner snorted. “Just bang her and get it over with.”
“Great advice. Thanks,” Ryland said dryly and rolled his cobalt blue eyes.
“No problem. That’s what I’m here for.”
Beth arrived with their breakfast quickly and they thanked her as she set the heaping plates of food in front of them.
“Where do you think we’re headed next week?” Tanner asked in a low voice the moment she walked away.
“No clue, but I’m sure we’ll find out soon enough.” They had a meeting later that afternoon about their next job. The team always met at the same building, which had no address and didn’t show up on GPS, in the same unmarked office on the third floor. It was all kept under the radar and Ryland thought it was a bit too mysterious and dramatic. But, hey, they paid him to follow orders, not ask questions.
Ryland took a big bite of his omelet and nearly groaned. In all his 28 years, he’d never found a better bacon omelet than the one served at Sunrise.
Tanner swallowed down some pancakes and eyed Ryland over his fork. “You ever have second thoughts about what we do?” he asked quietly, blue eyes serious.
“Are you asking me if I lose sleep over taking out bad guys? Negative.”
“Yeah, me neither.”
They grinned at each other. From the moment they met, it was like they recognized they were kindred spirits. Both former Navy SEALs, both loved the ocean and surfing, both the youngest on the team at twenty-eight and both enjoyed the single life, occasionally adding a beach bunny on their arm. They always seemed to be on the same page, totally in sync, and Ryland hadn’t had an instant friend like Tanner since he met his buddy Jason on the first day of first grade. But ever since Jason got married and moved north, they didn’t have quite as much in common anymore.
The best meal of the day devoured, Ryland drove Tanner back to his apartment. Tanner hopped out, removed his surfboard and slapped a hand against the side of the Jeep. “I’ll see you later.”
“Yeah, see ya at command central.”
Ryland headed back to his apartment complex. It wasn’t a big place, but he was a simple guy and didn’t need anything fancy. Especially since he traveled so much and didn’t spend a lot of time at home, anyway. It was near the ocean and made the time he spent there worth the lack of square footage.
After pulling into his parking spot, Ryland turned the Jeep off, grabbed his board, placed it under his arm, and walked over to his mailbox. He hadn’t checked it in a few days, and he didn’t usually get much more than credit card offers with insanely high interest rates.They should save their postage,he thought, because Ryland didn’t need a credit card. He made good money working for The Agency and paid cash for everything. His bank account was healthy and he didn’t lose any sleep over what he did to earn that money.
“Hi.” A feminine voice behind him caught his attention and Ryland turned as the object of his fantasies moved closer.
Harper Grant.Small, blonde and with a mouth made for kissing. And every single time Ryland was close enough to see the light dusting of freckles across her nose, he wanted to kiss each one.
He swallowed and couldn’t stop the goofy grin that curved his lips up. “Hey, Harper.”Just be cool,the little voice in his head instructed. What was it about her that made him lose his mind a little?
“How are you?”
“Good.” His normal cool wavered.Shit. Say something…anything…
She nodded to his board. “Catch any waves?”
