She shook her head and stopped pacing — despite her mood, she threw the pillow at him, laughing lightly, hitting the magazine and knocking it out of his hands. As he pretended to be hurt, she mocked him,“Serves you right, douche. Why do you keep hanging out in my room anyway? You’ve got one of those plush upper floor suites that come with golden iPads all to yourself. Yet you keep hanging out down here with the scrubs …”

He sprang out of the sofa, as if uncoiling directly from a supine position, and stood up in one swift move. He handed her the pillow with a fond smile. “I hang out with you even if we spend hours training together because you picked me to be your partner right off of the bat for all our training exercises, while those homophobes in our so-called team never did. They’re plain-looking and boring anyway. Until you joined, I’ve told you that I’d always had to pair up with whatever instructor was available.”

Rian accepted the pillow and hugged it to her chest again. Her smile was sincerely “Yeah you told me. And I was just being smart. You were the best shot, fastest runner, and quickest puzzle solver in the group. So, of course I picked you!”

He shook his head, standing in front of her, arms akimbo. “My boyfriend swears you’re the only reason that I’m still out here, involved in this whole crazy deal, you know …”

Rian threw him a playful punch. It landed harmlessly on a muscled shoulder. “A good thing, too, because… well, obviously, I’d rather have a 200 lb 6 foot two man with zero percent body fat and packed with muscle next to me when the shit hits the fan … than not.”

He picked up a glass bottle of mineral water from the coffee table they were standing over, twisted the cap off, and handed it to her. She accepted the water bottle. She was surprised to see a serious gleam shine from his eyes. Even his mouth was pursed. “You know why I’ve been sticking close to you, right?”

She swallowed the water in her mouth and wiped her lips with the back of a hand. She nodded slowly. “I think so. Mike must have told you about Jade …”