handed her a glass of wine. Well, it wasn't a real glass but a little plastic cup. It went with the little picnic he must have set up while she was hiding from him in the tunnel. Dani glanced at the blanket, now spread out and covered with various foods. Nothing heavy, but Ty had managed to bring down a few cheeses, some bread, some fruit, and a few of what Dani suspected were lobster rolls, though it had been years since she'd had one.
“Wow,” she said, taking the cup from Ty's outstretched hand. He was sitting with his back against the cliff wall, legs outstretched and ankles crossed.
“It's just dinner, Dani,” Ty said when she didn't move to sit. “Everyone has to eat some time. And drink. I assume one glass won't get you any demerits with Drew?” he teased.
It was so obviously not ‘just dinner’ that Dani took a long moment to search Ty's face. He didn't seem concerned with her scrutiny. He sat back, closed his eyes against the fading light, and enjoyed a sip of wine. He didn't look like he had any plans other than to sit and enjoy the coming evening and the food. He didn't look like he expected anything else from her other than to join him. So, she brushed herself off, sat, and took a sip of her own wine. Unlike the military, the CIA was way more lax in its drinking policy. In fact, whatever an agent needed to do to get the job done was actively encouraged—not always beneficial to the agent, but encouraged nonetheless.
They ate in companionable silence for a while, until Dani's guilt got to her.
“I apologize for the attitude earlier,” she said.
Ty glanced at her and shrugged. “Apology accepted. Why does Drew think I can kick his ass?”
Dani laughed. “He thinks you want to kick his ass. I'm the one who thinks you could.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence, but those tall wiry guys are quicker than they look.”
“Yeah,” Dani gave him a rueful grin. “Tell me about it.”
Ty shook his head. “You've sparred with him haven't you?” He didn't wait for her to answer. “Of course you have. Have you ever won?”
“Yeah, but it took me a while to get there,” she grinned.
“So what did he say to piss you off earlier?” Ty asked.
Dani's first reaction was to answer the question with a glib ‘nothing’ but she bit her tongue and took a few deep breaths before deciding how to answer. That she was going to answer at all surprised her, but her conversation with Drew earlier, and the subsequent revelations about herself were lurking in her mind. Nausea roiled in her stomach. Fear. Fear of maybe offering a little bit more of herself. She took another breath and looked at Ty. And even more powerful than her fear was her desire to overcome it. Maybe it was a control issue, or maybe it was Ty. Either way, she answered.
“He figured out something had happened between the two of us. He was concerned.”
Ty's eyebrows shot up. “Don't tell me he thought you might let it compromise the investigation?”
Dani shrugged, still not comfortable having this conversation, but wanting to have it anyway. “Something like that.”
Ty's eyes narrowed. “Something like that?” he repeated and then paused in thought. “I can't believe he would think you would let anything interfere with an investigation. I've known you less than twenty-four hours and even I know you wouldn't do that. Wait,” he paused. And then his eyes narrowed. “Is he afraid I'm going to do something to screw it up?” he asked in dawning recognition.
Dani glanced up and shook her head. “I don't know what brought it on. I have some ideas but I'm just…” she paused, thinking. There was more than one reason Drew might be concerned, although, at this point, she was pretty sure it was because he was worried she would hurt Ty and Ty would retaliate by becoming difficult. By now she knew this wasn't a fair assessment of Ty so she didn't want to share it with him.
“He's like a big brother to me. And kind of like a father figure, too. I'm sure he has his reasons, and I'm sure none of them are based on his professional knowledge of you or me,” she said.
“Father figure?” A hint of a teasing grin curled his mouth. “He's what, three years older than you?”
Dani, thankful to him for not pursuing the personal conversation, gave him a