Against The Grain (THIRDS 5)

He was so going to regret this. “Fine. But you owe me. Big time.”

“You got it.” Sloane held a hand up in promise.

“What’s up with your boy, anyway? He’s been really pissy lately. Angry.”

Sloane let out a sigh. He checked the bay to make sure no one was close enough to hear. A few agents had wandered back in, but they were staying as far away from Ash as possible. No doubt Herrera was off telling anyone who would listen how Ash had gone down.

“He’s really worried about what’s going on with me. I know he’s pretending everything’s okay, but it’s just to keep me from worrying. It’s got him on edge. And then there’s that whole other mess. You know.”

Ash nodded. Sloane was referring to what they’d been told by Shultzon. After Sloane had returned from his therapy session, Dex and Ash had sat down with him and told him what they’d learned. Sloane was adamant Austen wasn’t involved, or if he was, he didn’t know what he was involved in. Dex had dropped it quick. Ash guessed he didn’t want to add to Sloane’s concerns, especially not without proof. Sloane said he’d think about it, but since they had nothing to go on other than Shultzon’s suspicions, there wasn’t much—if anything—they could do. Sloane said he’d contacted Austen but as yet hadn’t heard back. None of them had brought it up.

“It’s been a while since we’ve been on a date, so I’m going to take Dex to Jersey this weekend, watch a movie and get some dinner. Try and get his mind off everything. I think working a case might do him good. He gets restless when he’s not keeping busy.” Sloane stood and gave Ash’s shoulder a squeeze. “Thanks for doing this for me, man. I’m going to submit the request to Sparks. Make it official.”

“Sure. Could you put one in for Cael? Work your magic to get it approved?”

“You got it. See you later.”

Sloane was off, and Ash remained seated on the bench. He leaned back against the wall, thinking of his next move. It was certain Sparks would approve Sloane’s request for Ash to train the brothers in an official capacity. He also knew she would allow it because it was him. Ash’s experience and track record meant he held a certain amount of sway, and rather than sending Dex or Cael offsite to train or arranging a THIRDS training specialist, Ash would be permitted to carry out the training as he saw fit. That’s if he could convince Cael to continue training with him. His methods might have been unorthodox, but he got results. He’d managed to get Cael really pissed, and that’s what the young agent needed for combat. He wasn’t lacking in ferocity; he simply needed to learn to reach deep down and draw from it.

Ash stood with a groan. Time to work on his groveling.

Chapter 6

THAT JERK!

Cael climbed into their black Suburban and slammed the passenger side door shut. He was so mad it took him over half a dozen tries before he could click his seat belt into place. All he could think about was Ash yelling at him to get angry. Then he thought about Ash writhing on the floor in pain. Poor Ash. Unbelievable! “No,” he scolded himself. “You are not allowed to feel guilty after what he did. Nope. No. Noooo.”

Rosa eyed him worriedly. “You okay, gatito?”

“Ugh!” Cael let out a frustrated grunt. “Ash Keeler is the most frustrating, infuriating, jerkface jerk ever!”

“Wow.” Rosa stared at him. “A jerkface and a jerk. Must have been bad.”

Cael felt his cheeks growing warm from his little outburst. “Just start the car.” He folded his arms over his chest, refusing to give it another thought. He was not going to feel guilty. Ash had asked for it. Literally. He’d asked Cael to get mad and attack him. So he did. He’d given Ash exactly what he’d asked for.

“What did jerkface do?” Rosa asked as she turned on the ignition and pulled out of their designated parking spot. Cael ignored the amusement in her tone.

“He’s training me in CQC.”

“Oh?”

Rosa drove out of the subbasement at the rear of the building where the THIRDS garage housed all their tactical vehicles and out onto the street. They were heading to NY Presbyterian Hospital. Their first case since returning to duty. Why did it have to be that hospital, of all places? Like they hadn’t been there enough recently.

“And it’s not going well?”

“I punched him in the balls,” Cael muttered, feeling embarrassed now that he’d said it out loud.

Rosa let out a bark of laughter. “I’m sorry.” She tried to keep herself from laughing but was failing miserably. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to laugh.”

“Liar. You’d do the same if you had the chance.”

“You bet I would. Don’t think I haven’t tried. Fucker’s too fast.”

“Wasn’t fast enough this time around,” Cael said with a snort.

Rosa laughed as they drove, their siren and flashing lights announcing their presence and demanding traffic get out of their way as Rosa maneuvered through New York City’s busy streets. Cael couldn’t help thinking about his training. Ash had said and done what he had to get him angry. Cael knew that. He thought about Ash’s crude remark about what “she said,” and his frown deepened. It was stupid, but it had really gotten under Cael’s skin. It made him think about the women Ash had been with. Why was it so easy for Ash to be with them? All Cael wanted was to understand. Was that too much to ask? Dex had a point. Why was it a big deal for Ash? Images of him on Ash’s lap Thanksgiving night made him want to crawl under a rock and never come out. God, what an idiot he’d been. He’d even taken off his shirt, dry humping Ash like some wolf Therian in heat. It was pathetic. And then to make things worse, Ash had shot him down.

“Gatito? Cael.”