He was the motherfucking baby tiger Aunt Cherry had warned me about all those years ago, and I’d let myself get mauled.
14
CHAMP
I got the call from Hux while I was in the middle of the Spanish Inquisition with my mother. She’d already asked me twenty questions about Quinn, including how we’d met (certainly not a cheap pickup at a bar), what he did for a living (besides stealing people’s T-shirts and dogs), and what my intentions were (to escape her clutches as soon as humanly possible).
“I have to admit to liking him more than I expected,” she admitted in a softer voice. “He’s obviously brilliant at his job. He appears quite dedicated.”
Something about this statement got my back up. “He doesn’t appear that way, he is that way. He genuinely cares about his clients.”
“Hmm.” She tapped one manicured finger to her lips. “You know, Percy, I do think Quinn suits you better than your last boyfriend did. Though I still think you could have tried harder with poor Vincent, of course.”
I stared at her, wondering how I could possibly murder her for being oblivious to what had actually gone down between “poor” Vince and me. Thankfully, that’s when my phone buzzed with Hux’s call.
“I’m going to speak with Quinn,” she decided. “Get to know him a bit better. See you later, darling.”
The urge to follow her and protect Quinn from her machinations was strong, but I knew Hux would only be calling for something important. Besides, Quinn Taffet was a spitfire who could hold his own against any Nashville socialite, even my mother.
“Champion,” I snapped after accepting the call.
“Did it occur to any of us that the target would be wide open for the taking tonight, boss?”
It took me a minute to understand what he was saying. My eyes jumped around the large event facility and landed on Marissa talking excitedly with Levi and Parrish Partridge, Tommy Drakes accepting a fresh cocktail from the cash bar, and his wife, Carlotta, holding court at one of the nearby tables full of society-type ladies I didn’t recognize.
That left no one at the farmhouse except the perimeter guards, and they all knew me since I’d been living there. Hux could loop the camera feed inside the house and we’d be all set… as long as Tommy and Levi didn’t walk in on us snooping and decide to take a closer look at the security tapes.
“Get over here and pick us up,” I said before pulling my phone down to tap in a group text. How could I have missed this opportunity?
You were too busy drooling over a sexy man in a tux and trying to make sure his event went smoothly.
I bit back a curse and texted the team to meet out front. On my way out the door, I ran into Carter’s cousin.
“Kev, can you do me a favor and find Quinn for me? Tell him I had to go, but I’m leaving the key to my truck in the wheel well for him.”
Kev’s eyes widened when he saw Riggs and Elvo rush past me toward the door. “What’s going on?”
“We have a lead on a situation and need to get out there right away. Can you please make sure Quinn gets the message?”
Kev nodded absently. His eyes moved past me to the open door, where Hux was waiting in the van.
“Thanks.” I clapped a hand on his shoulder before following Riggs and Elvo.
“Carter’s going to kill me,” Riggs mumbled after Hux pulled away from the curb.
“Surely he understands the mission comes first.” I yanked my bow tie off, unbuttoned the collar of my shirt, and removed my jacket.
There was silence for a beat before Riggs said, “I hate to tell you this, boss, but the mission absolutely does not come first for me anymore. Not by a long shot.”
I turned to stare at him. “Excuse me?”
His face relaxed into his usual mischievous grin. “Just wait till you fall in love, Champ. There’s life outside of work, believe it or not.”
I frowned. “Of course there’s life outside of work. I’ve never denied that.”
For some reason, my brain unhelpfully flashed up an image of Quinn in his tux. Maybe if we made this quick, we’d finish in time for me to sneak back into the ball before it was over. I had plans tonight, and they involved removing that tuxedo from his body piece by piece.
“I’m just saying that accomplishing our mission is a lot more important—” I stopped.
I’d been about to say it was more important than Carter’s feelings, but was that true? Our mission right then was to save a gaming software company from a public relations disaster. Hardly a life-and-death situation.
Back in the military, I’d trained myself to compartmentalize and put the mission first. Vince’s bullshit had just reinforced that. But it had become so ingrained, I’d never stopped to consider the cost.