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Had Gunner said the same thing to me, I would’ve been pissed. That Doc had received a brief before me, regardless of the mission, didn’t surprise me at all.
I sent a message to Nem.Heard you had success with the jack-offs.
Ha, ha, and yes. Are you in town?
Just arrived at the hotel.
In London. Time to meet later?
Yes.I stared at my phone, waiting for a response. When it didn’t come right away, I took the elevator up to my floor. I was almost to my room when my cell vibrated again. This time with a call from her.
“Hey,” I said.
“I figured it would be easier to determine when and where to meet via a phone call instead of a text.”
“Sure.”
“Ares, is this a bad time?”
“What? No. It’s fine. I’m just dropping my stuff in the room, then we have a meeting.”
“I can also send you a brief on our developments if you’d prefer. In fact, why don’t I just do that? You’ve been traveling—”
“No!” I practically shouted and shook my head. What was wrong with me? I was a fucking former CIA operative, had briefed heads of state, senators, congressmen, and I couldn’t string a coherent thought together. “It’ll save time if you can answer any questions I have.”
“If you’re sure. Oh, right, hang on. I’ve got to run. Having lunch with Wren. Message me whenever you’re finished, and we’ll meet. Toodles.”
I stared at the phone after the call ended.Toodles?
I had a little less than an hour before the briefing. I ordered room service since I’d slept on the plane and hadn’t eaten, then took a shower. I was just getting out when I heard a knock.
“Leave it outside the door,” I hollered, trying to figure out where the hell I’d dropped my jeans.
I found them lying on the floor near the end of the bed and pulled them on. As I did, there was another knock. “Fuck,” I muttered. Didn’t hotels just add a service charge now for a tip? Was it really necessary I sign for it?
I yanked the door open, not attempting to hide my annoyance, and came face-to-face with Iris.
I stuck my head out the door and looked up and down the hallway. “What are you doing here?”
“I heard you were back in town—”
I grabbed her arm and pulled her inside the room, hoping no one on this floor had seen her waiting outside.
“Wait here,” I seethed as I watched her eyes roam from my face, down my torso to the top button of my jeans I’d left undone. I grabbed my shirt and pulled it over my head. “What are you doing here?” I asked again.
“I already told you. I heard you were back in town, and I thought…you know.”
When she walked over and brushed my soaking wet hair out of my eyes, I realized I hadn’t even towel-dried it. I took an abrupt step back, stalked into the bathroom, closed the door, and picked up the towel I’d left on the floor. At least doing so bought me a minute to figure out what to say to Iris to make sure she understood, once and for all, I wasn’t interested.
“Ares?”
“Be out in a sec.” When I exited the bathroom, I didn’t see her right away. However, before I could breathe a sigh of relief that she’d left, I realized she was sitting on the bed, about to remove her shoes.
I walked over, grabbed her arm, and pulled her to her feet. “Look, I’ve got a briefing to prepare for, so you need to leave. And, Iris, I don’t know how you found out what room I was in, but you can’t do this. What happened between us before won’t be happening again.” As I led her to the door, I couldn’t help but think about Nem and the man she’d said she shagged. He’d left, and that was the end of the story. Was I doing the same thing to Iris?
“Look, I’m sorry. I just…I’m here for a mission, a very important one, and I can’t do this. Okay?”
She studied me. “There’s someone else, isn’t there?”
