“So I guess I can’t quit, huh?” She grinned, sitting behind her desk glancing from Brock to Galvez.
Both men shook their heads.
“You’re stuck.” Brock’s eyes flashed black. “With me.”
“Wheeler says you’re it and he’s not looking for someone else.” Galvez smiled. She’d recently started to speak to him more often, with less hostility. Their conversations mainly centered on Roxy, cases and her family, but it was better than the antagonism they had before. He admitted he’d been frustrated at her attitude toward him and with himself for not knowing about her sooner.
“Besides, we just got a new recruit.” Brock winked and passed her a file.
“Really? Who is it?” She asked, opening the folder to a photo of a woman. Clearly Latin with her brown hair tied back and her hazel eyes staring straight at the camera, unsmiling.
“Katrina Mejia,” Galvez replied. “She’ll be good for this team.”
She eyed the description of her new team member, something clearly missing from her file. “Doesn’t say what her ability is.”
“She’d like to discuss that with you herself,” Galvez said, shrugging as if he didn’t understand what the big deal was. He stood to go. “Call me if you need anything.”
Her cell phone rang as Galvez walked out of her office, which left her alone with Brock. She hit the speaker button and waited.
“Hello, Ramirez.”
“Hey, Boss lady. So glad you’re staying on board,” he said with an urgency not familiar with his voice.
“Thank you, but I have a feeling that’s not why you called me.”
She leaned in her seat and took a moment to just watch her man. He was so frickin hot her body heated with just a smile from him.
“So, here’s the thing,” Ramirez said without his usual humor. “I want to know why Jane’s file begins on the day she joined the academy.”
Cyn grinned. He was finally paying attention. “Sorry, that’s classified.”
“Since when is someone’s file classified?” he growled.
Uh-oh. Someone had his tail in a knot. “I can’t help you if you want to talk about Donovan, Ramirez.”
He growled again, and she heard something break. “This is crazy. How is it that she has no family history? Nothing. How the hell am I supposed to find her?”
“Ramirez, I’m sorry. I can’t tell you where Donovan is.” She smiled at Brock’s lifting of his brows. “But I can tell you that if you happen to be looking for her, the information on where to find it is right in that ‘fake’ file.”
Silence. Then. “Shit! I didn’t even think of it. Thank you, Boss.” Ramirez’s voice returned to humorous. She kind of enjoyed that side of the shifter. It made their job not so…harsh. A bit of humor wouldn’t hurt. “There’s one more thing,” he said as she was about to hang up.
“What’s that, Ramirez?”
“Brock. He’s different now.”
“Oh?” She watched Brock across from her, his gaze piercing and hot.
“He isn’t withdrawn or looking like he’s missing half of himself anymore,” Ramirez said, the sound of things being tossed in the background. “I can see he’s happy. You did that. I just wanted to say thank you. I like this version of him better.”
She didn’t realize how much of an impact she’d had on Brock’s life. “That’s really nice to hear, Ramirez.”
“It’s cool. Thanks for the advice on Jane,” he said and hung up.
He shouldn’t thank her yet. He still had to deal with Donovan and whatever mood he found her in. That would be interesting. Very interesting to hear about.
“Want to go for lunch?” Brock asked.
She nodded and stood. “Is this my employee asking, or my fiancé?”
“I do not mix business with pleasure. It’s the fiancé asking. Though the employee has the hots for you too.”
She laughed and grabbed his hand to follow him out of the office. Who said you could run from love? She must have been deluded to think she’d be able to stay away from him. Or that he’d let her. It took her ten years to finally realize: If you run from love, you’re asking for a chase.