Hello My Angel - Sue Brown Page 0,36

out. “I’m the only one here who hasn’t.”

Josh was aware of Cal’s intense gaze on him. He knew he’d upset Cal by not trusting him immediately. Trust worked both ways. Josh hated the secrets. He thought of Gil’s brother, Landry. He’d been blindsided by Landry’s betrayal. They all had. Gil more than most.

“What are you doing for the agency?” Josh demanded.

“I can’t tell you,” Cal said, his expression resolute.

“I have to trust you’re not selling us out to psycho-bitch?”

“It’s your choice.” Cal crossed his arms and stared at Josh, like he expected Josh to give him an answer now.

Did he not understand what just happened?

“I need coffee,” Josh muttered and headed to the small kitchen.

No one suggested Josh made them a drink. They weren’t that foolish. As he disappeared out of the conference room, he heard Dave say, “You should have told us.”

Josh paused just outside the door to listen to Cal’s reply.

“I couldn’t,” Cal said.

“You really should have,” Rick said. “Now you’ve got to clear up this mess.”

“I don’t have time to pamper Josh’s feelings.”

Josh ground his teeth together. He didn’t need his feelings pampered. Who did Cal think he was? He stamped into the kitchen and selected the strongest coffee pod they had. He was waiting for the noisy machine to finish when he heard footsteps. He’d hoped it would be Cal, but he knew from the tread it was Gil. He didn’t turn around.

“On a scale of one to Dominic just how angry are you?” Gil asked.

“I’m not angry.”

“Liar.”

“I’m not,” Josh insisted. “I’m annoyed, upset….”

“Betrayed,” Gil added.

“Betrayed,” Josh agreed. He took his cup and inhaled the aroma of java. “Dan once told me he knew he would always take second place to the agency, no matter what Jesse said. He just had to accept that second place was good enough.”

“Except he never accepted it,” Gil rumbled. “He always hated coming second place to Jesse’s job.”

“I didn’t know you knew Dan that well.”

Gil brushed past Josh to make his own drink. “I don’t. I just know their situation.”

“I’m starting to feel like Dan,” Josh admitted.

“You’ve felt like Dan for a long time, Princess. Well before we left Seattle to find Michaels.”

Josh gave him a bleak look. “I don’t want to be a Dan.”

“Do you have a choice?”

Gil always knew how to get to the heart of the matter, even if he used an ax to get to it.

“I can always leave,” Josh said.

“And go where?”

“You’re not going anywhere,” Cal said.

Even when Josh was thinking of walking away from Cal, his heart still did that stupid skip/jump at the sight of him. But being Josh, he opened his mouth to argue.

“Get down,” Cal bellowed and leapt for Josh, shoving him to the ground and protecting him with his body.

Chapter 10

Pop! Pop!

Shattering glass overhead. Josh felt a sting on his face. He hissed. Cal tucked him further under him, his weight both reassuring and suffocating.

Josh was suddenly taken back to the moment Sir Gideon was assassinated.

“Down! Down!” Gil bellowed, crawling to the door. “Get down. Stay away from the windows.”

More pops, more shattering glass. Josh prayed to Farrah that the guys had reacted in time to Gil’s shout.

Josh thought he was going to suffocate under Cal’s heavy weight, but it was clear Cal wasn’t going anywhere until the shooting stopped. Everything went quiet. The only thing Josh could hear was Cal’s heavy breathing in his ear.

“Are you hit?” he whispered.

“No, but I’m covered in glass.”

Josh remembered the shrapnel in Cal’s neck from the car bomb in their first case and shivered.

Cal brushed Josh’s ear with his mouth. “I’m okay. I’m not hurt. I just need to get rid of the glass.”

“Can we sit up?”

“Not yet.” Cal raised his head. “Gil, is everyone okay?”

There was a long silence and Josh started to panic.

At last Gil spoke. “They’re all fine. I can’t say the same for the room.”

“I’ve called the police,” Dave called out.

“Stay down until the police clear the area. She might try a second time,” Cal said.

They stayed where they were for a long time, waiting for the sirens and flashing lights. At one point, Josh laughed quietly.

“What’s so funny?” Cal murmured.

“I was about to walk away from you.”

Cal shivered atop him. “I know. I was so scared I was going to lose you.”

“I love you, but—”

“No buts. I’m not letting you go. When we can sit up without getting our heads blown off, we’ll talk.”

“You have too many secrets, Charlie.”

“I’m a spook. Secrets are my trade.”

“I know,” Josh said,