Page 12 of Charged By the Razorbacks

Everything about the space was deliberate—nothing wasted, nothing decorative, everything built for function. She liked it. Didn’t trust it. But she liked it.

“All right,” she said, stepping forward without waiting for them. “Show me what you’re working with.”

Jarek’s grin was audible in his voice. “Bossy.”

She didn’t look back. “Competent,” she corrected.

They moved through the secured level and into the building proper, access points opening ahead of them without pause. Tamsin tracked everything automatically—cameras, angles, personnel movement, the rhythm of the place.

The elevator ride was short. Filled with the kind of silence that wasn’t uncomfortable, just—comfortable.

When the doors opened, Jarek and Aleksy stood back, waiting for her to exit first, so she stepped out. Their floor was different from what she expected. Less clinical and much more lived in

It was still controlled, with visible elements of security throughout their space—but personal in a way the lower floors of the building weren’t.

“The master suite is through that door to the left of the kitchen,” Aleksy pointed out, then turned to face a wide hallway. “Our rooms are down that hall, along with an office and a guest bathroom.”

Interesting. Neither of them had taken the master suite.

Her gaze moved across it slowly as she walked in a little further, taking in the space without hiding that she was doing it. The layout was open, with clean lines and functional comfort. The furniture was massive, not a surprise considering the size of the two men, but comfortable.

Her lips curved slightly.

“Nice,” she said. “You’ve found furniture that not only fits the space, but fits you too. That is surprising.”

Jarek snorted. “We aim to please.”

“Do you?” she murmured, glancing over her shoulder just long enough to let that land before turning away again.

Aleksy didn’t react. Not outwardly. But she felt it, that shift in awareness, and not just through the bond.

Annoying.

Her attention moved back to the space, slower this time. More deliberate. She liked it. More than she should, and that irritated her. She needed to stay focused.

“When do I speak to Elara?” she asked, cutting straight through the quiet.

Aleksy answered. “In the morning.”

She turned slightly.

“Morning,” she repeated. “Define that.”

“We’ve called a meeting,” he said. “Full E.S.E. Elara will be there.”

Tamsin nodded once. That would work. It would be both efficient and direct to brief them all at once. Her kind of approach.

“Good,” she said. “Because what I pulled from that lab—”

She cut herself off. Her fingers flexed once at her side.

“—needs more than one brain to fix.”

Aleksy’s gaze sharpened slightly.

Jarek leaned back against the counter, watching her like she was something he hadn’t quite decided how to handle yet.

“So,” he said, casual on the surface, not even close underneath, “you going to tell us how you’ve been shutting us out?”