The Mercenary Next Door (Rogues and Rescuers #2) - Lucy Leroux Page 0,48
army or worked in construction. After taking inspecting it closely, he realized the dilapidation was only surface deep. But despite the relatively low price, it was still too expensive for him and Ethan.
His friend had already gotten a loan to cover his portion. Thanks to his exemplary service record and personal contacts, it was a good one. But Mason didn’t want to force Ethan to shoulder more of the responsibility than he had to. So they’d brought in a third investor. Donovan Carter was a friend of Ethan’s, and he had more money than he knew what to do with. Donovan agreed to invest on the condition he could have a unit in the building.
This was right when Ian Quinn approached him about continuing as a trainer on a more permanent basis.
“This is going to sound weird,” his boss said. “But you being laid-up and taking over training at the facility was a blessing in disguise. We didn’t think the recruits would be ready for fieldwork for at least seven or eight months, and you got them ready in less than six.”
“Really?” Mason replied skeptically. “I thought that was slow.”
“Only because we held you back. Caution is the better part of valor in this line of work. But we got to see you in a different leadership role than we originally intended. And frankly, we can continue to use you.”
Quinn leaned in, his hands templed under his chin. “We want to open our first East Coast office in the next few months. We’re searching for properties now, something close enough to D.C. to be able to coordinate with our government partners more easily.”
“And so we can shop our services more efficiently to them too,” Mason said, getting the gist.
“Precisely.” Quinn beamed at Mason like a schoolteacher who wanted to slap a sticker on his chest. “Now we’ve got another two teams to fill, including a smaller six-man unit for specialized ops. We’re going to want to have some of our senior personnel at the other office from day one.”
Mason frowned. “Are you going to reshuffle the teams?”
“We are,” Quinn confirmed. “But only for the people who aren’t tied to the area. That means Santos is out. His wife’s job isn’t mobile. But you, on the other hand…”
“I have no family here,” Mason finished.
A flash of dark creamy skin made him drift for a moment. Stop that. He hadn’t spoken to Laila in months.
“The move will be voluntary. Again—only those who can go will. And, in the meantime, we want you to keep leading your team. However, once we find the right location, things will move very quickly. Given your family background in construction, we’d like you to head this thing up with us. You’re going to be our fulcrum—the point on which everything rests. Are you up for it?”
Mason opened his mouth, hesitating long enough to make Quinn raise a brow. “I’m not wrong? You’re up for a move, right? Unless there’s something I don’t know about.”
“No,” Mason said after a beat. “I have nothing keeping me in L.A.”
So that was how Mason started dividing his time between the two coasts. He ended up on another property hunt, helping scout locations for Auric’s new base with the same specialized commercial real estate agent.
Isla, the agent, was in her early thirties and single. When his bosses signed on the dotted line, she wanted to celebrate with him…in bed.
“Come on, soldier man,” she purred in his ear in the garage of her company’s estate office. “I want that cock in my mouth right now.”
Her words were like a splash of cold water. There was nothing she could have said to turn him off faster. To add insult to injury, her perfume suddenly made his throat close up.
I must be allergic to it. That was the only possible reason his skin was crawling.
“Maybe next time,” he told her, backing away and trying not to look as if he was running to his car. “I just remembered a previous appointment.”
He drove away, wondering what the hell was wrong with him. I’m sweating. Mason struggled out of his jacket at a red light, throwing it behind him and turning the dial to blast the AC.
It wasn’t the first time Mason had turned down an offer he would have normally jumped at. And it wasn’t about Laila. She was in the past—he wouldn’t think about her anymore other than to wish her well.
He’d accepted a long time ago that she had moved on.