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She jolted to her feet. A wave of dizziness slammed her, keeping her rooted in place.
Mustang looked up from a paper in his hand. “Graham?” His voice sounded with concern.
“Get Sparrow in here. Now!”
The contents of her stomach, all that good food that Slade brought her—to take care of her—felt as if it would come back up. She braced a hand on the desk and leaned forward, breathing through the harsh moment.
Suddenly, an arm banded around her. Not a strong, rock-hard one. Not Slade’s.
A feminine voice soothed, “Breathe through it, Lena. I’ll get you some water.” Gia’s arm released her and the woman’s footsteps left the room. Heavy boots thumped on the floor and she knew Mustang had returned with Sparrow.
She forced herself to straighten and swung to face her commanding officer.
He looked at her face, which was probably green, and locked on to the laptop screen.
“They’ve got photos of everyone on Charlie, plus Mustang, Frost and me from our trip to Mexico.” She gulped again, nostrils flaring.
Gia returned and thrust a bottle of water into her hand. Lena took it with a tight nod and swallowed small sips while Sparrow took over at the laptop.
“This isn’t good,” Sparrow gritted out. “Get the intel team—Gunny, Kit and Eden too. Gia, you and Indika see what you can scrape up to help.”
“You got it, love.” Gia studied Lena’s face for a moment before giving her a pat on the arm and bustling out.
Lena’s mind blipped over the matter they were dealing with and snagged on another. Gia was far along in her pregnancy and she was still a valuable asset to the Blackout team. That meant there was some hope for Lena, didn’t it?
A minute later, the room crowded with people. Most of the team gathered to dig through the papers and search for anything more that cited Blackout as the Black Bloods’ or the arms dealer’s next target.
Lena got caught up in her duty again, but not so much that she didn’t realize one important person in her life was not present in this room. Slade.
She felt his absence as keenly as if a portion of her had been carved out. Shame flooded her for all the terrible things she’d probably said to him that couldn’t be taken back. Now she understood why he’d made that call in Bosnia, because the minute she saw his face in that video, she remembered why she’dneededto go to Mexico.
They would move mountains in order to save each other.
She loved him. She wanted to have this baby with him even if it meant compromising and giving things up.
While they all scrambled to find more on what Trey and the Black Bloods who remained in hiding had planned for them, Lena alternately threw herself into her work and tossed looks at the door in hopes of finding Slade standing there watching her.
Hours passed. Lena’s eyes were beginning to blur. “All these papers are starting to look the same. I could use a break. Sparrow?” She looked to him for the order.
“Take a couple hours. You’ve been at it all night, Graham. Mustang, you too. We need you both at your best.”
The muscles along her spine screamed from the tension she’d been holding this entire time. When she stood and stretched, she moaned softly. She wasn’t even heavily with child and already her back hurt.
For some reason, that made her smile inside.
As she left the room, Mustang fell into step beside her. Then he stopped. She glanced up to see what had his attention.
Slade stood in the corridor, hands in his pockets, his hair mussed. He looked as if he’d been lounging in some chair all night waiting for her.
Lena’s stomach wobbled on a surge of excitement. Her steps slowed.
Mustang continued on. When he passed Slade, he remarked, “Operation: Win Lena Back is looking hopeful.”
She blinked.
Slade didn’t respond to Mustang’s comment but as soon as the man ran down the flight of stairs, Slade came toward Lena.
Even tired and rumpled, his appearance sent her body into overdrive. The pull of fabric across his chest, biceps and thighs as he moved had her insides clutching with desire.
