"Okay, let me hear your thoughts on the intel and how to proceed." Josh asked from the driver's seat. They'd just gotten back on the highway and their bellies were full.

Jax offered her ideas first. "I think we need to rent a car when we get there and split up a bit. We'll be wired and miked so we can talk to each other. But we need to check out the restaurant and see what kind of operation it is. We need to stake out Mags’s house and the surrounding areas. Wyatt's our sharpshooter and so am I. We can be up in the hills watching for activity, taking pictures, and video. Once we know what's going on at both places, we can decide how to proceed."

"Okay. Next?"

Ford added his thoughts. "I agree with Jax on some points. I'm a specialist in ferreting out where hiding places and lairs are. Dodge is great at asking the right questions. Being a detective for many years he's learned how to separate the bullshit from facts. I think Dodge and Jax go into the restaurant and act like a couple vacationing in the area. Observe what's going on in there and report back. In the meantime, the rest of us can be close by getting intel from them as they see it. Who's there? What's happening, etc. They can either text us or tell us through their microphones and we can deploy from there when we have something. I've done this kind of thing a hundred times before. That restaurant is key. My guess, Mags goes in everyday and she either has people come to her or she's in the back on the phone barking out orders. But there's a reason she has a restaurant in a little town that couldn't keep a bank open and she's making money at it. I'd say people come in, order a glass of tea, hand off information and leave."

Josh responded, "I agree with you, Ford." He turned off the highway onto a county road and continued on, though at a slower pace. "Wyatt or Dodge anything to add?"

Wyatt spoke up. "I agree with Ford's assessment of the situation and think the plan is solid."

His turn. "I like Ford's plan as well. Being from the south I can tell you I also think she's likely running a protection business which tells me there's drugs or guns in the area, too. Those smaller towns are notorious for criminal activity. They're off the radar largely, and overlooked."

"Sounds good. That's how we'll proceed then."

He saw Josh's eyes flick to the backseat in the rearview mirror and land on Jax's. She smiled, "I'm good bro."

Just hearing that made his stomach settle a little. Then the thought that he'd been worried about her reaction kind of pissed him off. The object of this whole mission was to be successful, not spare Jax's feelings. The fact that she handled them going with a plan that was not hers spoke volumes for the kind of team player she was. That was probably why he felt better. This was their first test as a team and he was competitive enough to want it to work out.

Ford twisted in his seat and looked at him. "For Adam."

Swallowing the large lump that instantly formed in his throat he nodded once. "For Adam." But the words came out more like a whisper. They'd said this before every bounty they went out to hunt and before any mission that seemed dangerous. His son, Adam. It got him every time.

He lay his head back against the seat and the SUV grew quiet. When he opened his eyes again, it was an hour later. Josh was the only person awake and as Dodge slowly rose up he noticed Jax's head lay against his shoulder. He looked down on her shiny dark hair. Her full eyelashes rested on her clear, olive cheeks and looked so soft, like feathers, he had to resist touching them. Her hair smelled like a spa, clean and fresh and relaxing. Her arms were crossed over her belly and her lips looked soft and were slightly parted. He stopped moving so he didn't wake her. He could sit in the same position for hours, that's what his years in the Army and then on the force taught him. Sometimes you had to sit still to stay concealed.

He looked up to see out the windshield and the landscape only to catch Josh looking at him in the mirror. His expression was unreadable, just like Jax's and that unnerved him. He settled for a brief nod, then turned his head and looked out his window. His thoughts were jumbled at the moment and he needed to clear his head. He probably should have found some little hottie before he left and had a little fun, like the waitress at the Copper Cup who always flirted with him. All this was with Jax was simply that he'd been celibate for a few weeks now, for no reason other than he'd been busy. Clearly that was starting to get to him. Having sex with Jax was off the board, you don't eat where you shit, so to speak. It would be impossible to work together if they let things go too far.

Maybe Ford's plan wasn't so great after all. Acting like they were a couple could lead them down a path from which they couldn't return.

Josh slowed the SUV and turned down another road, then pulled into a gas station. "I've got to piss." He said quietly.

Wyatt woke up and stretched. "Me, too." He replied and opened his door. That woke Ford and then Jax, who looked up at him and mumbled, "Sorry." Then sat up straight. She scooted out after Wyatt and walked toward the convenience store and disappeared inside.

"You okay?"

He looked up to see Ford looking back at him. "Yeah. Long ride."

Ford grinned before exiting the vehicle and walking toward the convenience store, too. That left Dodge sitting here in the Beast. He didn't have keys to the SUV so he didn't want to walk away from it and leave it unlocked and he didn't want to lock it in case Josh didn't have the keys. He got out and stretched while he waited for someone to come back.

Josh was the first to arrive back. "I'll move the Beast to a pump and fill it up. Go on and relieve yourself, Dodge."

Nodding, he walked into the store, a little stiffer than he was when they first embarked on their journey and a lot more confused about his situation and these feelings that keep flooding over him. He was like a fifteen-year-old girl for fuck's sake.

As he left the store, Ford stood on the sidewalk waiting for him. "You alright, man?"

He looked at his friend. Those dark eyes held concern. "Yeah. A lot of new things happening in a short amount of time, man. Just trying to get my bearings."

Ford nodded and they began walking to the Beast. "Mind if I take shotgun for a while? I'd like to mess with the computers and familiarize myself with them."

"Not at all."

The Beast was almost full, the crew stood outside, everyone waiting to get in until they were ready to leave. Say what you like, six hours is a long time to sit in any vehicle. They were all in their forties, at least all of the men except Josh. Jax and Josh, if he remembered correctly from their intros was 36 or so. Still, old enough to begin feeling some of these missions.

"All set." Josh called as he hung the gas nozzle back onto the pump. He pulled the receipt from the dispenser and hopped up into the SUV.

Dodge jumped into the front seat without looking back. Not a word was said.