Talon studied the schematics. "Guard stations here, here, and here," he said, pointing to chokepoints. "How do we bypass them?"
"Ventilation shafts. They connect to the old smuggler routes from before Kelloch consolidated power." I traced the hidden passages with my finger. "Not on any official schematic, but I mapped them."
"Environmental controls?"
"Automated. We can trigger localized power failures to mask our approach." I called up the station's utility grid, showing him the vulnerable nodes. "Give me access to their maintenance network and I can create confusion without triggering full lockdown protocols."
He nodded slowly, recognizing solid planning. But when he looked at me, I saw something else in those red eyes. Something that made my pulse quicken.
"You understand what you're asking," he said, his voice dropping to that low growl that made my skin tighten. "Once we're inside, there's no changing your mind. No backing down if things get complicated."
"I stopped backing down years ago."
"Good." He moved closer, close enough that I had to tilt my head back to maintain eye contact. "Because if you freeze up in there, if you hesitate when it matters, we both die. And I refuse to let that happen."
The promise in his voice sent heat racing down my spine. Not just professional protection, but something far more personal. More possessive.
"I won't freeze." My voice came out breathier than I'd intended. "This is what I've been preparing for."
"We'll see." His hand lifted, fingers brushing the side of my throat where my pulse hammered visibly. "Your heartbeat says otherwise."
The touch sent electricity through my nervous system. "That's not fear."
"No," he agreed, thumb tracing the line of my jaw. "It's not."
For a moment we just stood there, the air between us charged with tension. Every shared glance, every accidental touch, every quiet moment since he'd come aboard—all of it crystallized into this moment of perfect, dangerous possibility.
Then he stepped back, and the spell broke.
"Gear check in thirty minutes," he said, his voice carefully neutral. "We infiltrate at twenty-three hundred."
I nodded, not trusting myself to speak. As he moved toward the gear case he'd brought from The Rustbucket, I caught myself watching the way his muscles shifted under the maintenance coveralls.
"Enjoying the view?" His voice carried dark amusement, though he didn't turn around.
Heat flooded my cheeks. "Just making sure you know which end of the plasma cutter to hold."
"Concerned about my competence?"
"Concerned about your ego." I busied myself with my own equipment, trying to ignore the way he chuckled at mydeflection. "Some men think impressive weaponry compensates for other... deficiencies."
"Is that your professional assessment?"
The conversation was veering into dangerous territory. I met his eyes in the reflection of the gear case's polished surface. "I'm saying I know what I saw in my cabin," I said, my voice low. "And it was... impressive enough."
His reflection smiled, all sharp edges and predatory satisfaction. "Something to keep in mind for later."
Later.The word hung between us, heavy with implication. I turned back to my equipment, trying to ignore the way that simple word had sent heat pooling low in my belly. Focus. The mission came first. Everything else—the tension, the want, the growing certainty that Talon saw me as more than just an asset—all of it would have to wait.
But as I loaded my shock rod and checked the charge on my data pad, I caught myself stealing glances at him. The way his hands moved over his weapons. The controlled violence in every gesture. The absolute certainty that he would tear apart anyone who threatened me.
I was going to have to decide what I wanted more—revenge for my family's death, or a future with the man who'd become my anchor in the storm.
The smart choice would be revenge. Clean, simple, final.
But as Talon's reflection met mine again in the gear case, as I saw something hungry and possessive flicker in those red eyes, I realized I'd stopped making smart choices the moment he’d stormed onto my ship.
The moment I'd let him into my life.
