Chapter Four

Zane'sstomachwokehimacouplehoursaftertheycrashedinthehotel room.Itwasdarkoutside,andhewascontemplating gettingupandyanking Tyoutofbedtogoandfindfoodsincetheyhadskipped dinner. Whenhe heard Tyshiftandmumble, Zane satupwithawince andturned onthelamp between the two beds. He tilted his chin to look at the other man.

Tyrolledontohisback,bodytanglinginthesheetsaroundhim,and hestretched andgrowled andgrumbled noisily.Helookeddifferent asleep: softer, somehow, which Zane supposed made sense. Younger too. He wouldn't havethought itbefore, butitwasprettyclearnowthatTywas younger than he was, and not by just a little.

Tymadeafewmoresleepygrowlingnoisesandstretcheduntilhis muscles shook withthetension. Thenheflopped backdown intothebedand rolled onto his side, snuggling his head against the pillow and finally cracking one eye open. "Hmm?" he hummed questioninglywhen he found Zane looking at him.

"Evening," Zanegreetedquietly,voicestilldarkwithsleep.He yawned andranhishand through hishair.Theshort curls were riotous. "I'm hungry."

"Ugh," Tygroaned sleepily. "God, you're worse thanadate,"he muttered. "I have to feed you too?"

"Hell, wesleeptogether, andyou won't spring fordinner? What kind ofguyareyou?" Zane climbedgingerly outofthebedandflopped hispillow over Ty's face as he walked by to the bathroom.

"Thekindwhosleptthroughthegettinglaidpart!"Tycalledafter himashegrabbed thepillowandimmediately confiscated it,tucking itunder the covers and wrapping around it like a child with a teddy bear.

Zaneleanedoutthedoorafterturning onthelight."Badplanning on your part," he chastised before duckingback inside and pushing the door shut.

Tygavealoud,slightlysqueakyhuffandsnuggledbackdowninto thebed.Themattresswashardasarock,buthe'dhadworse."Youwant room service?" he called.

Stretching carefully, Zanelooked overhisshoulder athisbackinthe mirror."Yeah,that'sfine,"heanswered,raisinghisvoice."I'lleatpretty much anything."

"I'msureyouwill,"Tymutteredgrumpilyfromhiswarmcocoonof pillows.

Zaneturned ontheshower, ready toriskwashing down hisback. The hotwater would feelgood, atleast.Hepushed hisbriefs tothefloor and climbedin,standing facingtheshowerhead(which wasactually tallenough forhimforonce) before turning slightly toseehowitwould feelonhis damaged skin.

Ty climbed out of bed when he heard thewater turn on and hopped to thebathroom door,sticking hisheadinsidethebathroom withwide, disbelievingeyes."You'regonnawetit?"heaskedincredulouslywithout even giving a thought to Zane's privacy.

Jerking hisshoulder outofthewaterandstepping backasthedoor pushed open, Zaneswallowed against thesurprise andtriedtocalmhispulse. "What thehellareyoutalking about? I'm inthedamnshower; it'swetby default."

"It's gonna hurt," Ty protested almost childishly.

Zaneleanedbackandpulled thecurtain asidejustenough tolookat Ty."Well, yeah?"hesaid,facedisplaying patentdisbeliefatTy'sobjections. "Won'thurtworsethanthegettinghurtinthefirstplace,"hesaidashe pointedatTy,catchingthecurtainjustintimeasitfellawayandyankingit shut, blocking the flow of cool air. He feltlike afucking idiot, standing naked in the shower while he held the curtain between the two of them.

Taking anevenbreath, heturnedinplaceimmediately, standing far enough away thatthehotwater justsprayed onhisassandthighs. Then he tooksmallstepsbackward, andasthehotwaterstartedrainingonhislower back he let out a low, unconsciousmoan of pleasure.

"It'sgonna hurt," Tycrooned asheleaned against thedoor, waiting almost gleefully for the howl.

Ignoring him,Zanestepped backward again,inhaling sharplyasthe hotwatersplatteredacrossthecutsandslicesandgouges.Itdidhurt,butit wasallaheated flush thattingled andbuzzed rather than actually causing blindingpain.Hesighedandrelaxedandmovedfurtherbacksothewater sluiced overhisshoulders, andhegroaned athow good itfelt,themélange of little pricklesandbitesof hurtmixingwiththehotrapsthatjarredand soothed his tensed muscles.

"Likepain,huh?"Tylaughedashelistened."I'llleaveyoutoit, then." He snickered as he turned to go.

"Pansyass,"Zanemurmuredwithasmile,justloudenoughtobe heard.

"Masochist,"Ty shot back.

Zane chuckled. "Lightweight."

Tysteppedoutsidethebathroomagainwithoutbotheringtorespond. ThegroanfromZanehadsentanoddjoltthroughhisbody,andhewasn't sure he liked it. He needed ... to shoot something,maybe.

He stalked out into the room to pick up the phone.

Zane took his timeshowering, staying in the hot water until the steam intheroom wasmaking itdifficult tobreathe. Withasigh,hebentoverand turnedoffthewater,pleasedbyhowmucheasierhecouldmovenow.He stepped out of the tub, grabbing a towel to wipe his face, and he flicked on the fan.

IfhecouldgetTytoputmoreofthatsalveonthewounds, hemight just be ready for action again.

Intheouterroom,Tywasonhold,desperatelytryingnottothinkas hewaited. He didn't need tobethinking about Zane Garrett inany form other than as an annoying partner. He glanced up at Zane when the man came out of thebathroomandsnortedheavilythroughhisnoseinannoyance."Whatdo youwanttoeat?"heaskedhim,letting hiseyestakeinZane's tonedmuscles and then turning off that instinctivereaction willfully.

"Youhaven'torderedyet?"Zaneaskedashecameoutfromunder thetowelhehadbeenusingtodryhishair.Another waswrapped around his lean hips.

Ty growled at him.

Zaneignored him."Idon'tcare.Burger, steak, chicken, pizza. Whatever." He shrugged and walked over to his duffel bag and started diggingthroughit.Tyseemedtobebacktohisnormaltwitchyself,he thought, as he dug out clean briefs and a pair of jeans.

"Makeadamndecision," Tyhuffedjustbeforesomeone finally answered his call.

"Bacon cheeseburger, dressed, and fries. And acouple cans of Coke." Zane walked back toward the bathroomwith his clothes and kit.

Tyrepeated theorderintothephone andthenadded hisownorderto it.The man on the other end took the order and politely ended the call,and Ty replaced thereceiverslowlyashelistenedtoZane'smovements. Aftera momentheletoutalong,slowbreathandfloppedbackintohisbed."How's it feeling?" he asked as he squeezed his eyes shut.

"Better," Zanecalledoutbefore making quickuseofhistoothbrush and then looking unsuccessfullyfor his comb. He slid into his clean briefs and pulledonthejeans,buthewasstilldistractedlyfasteningthemupashe padded back outintothemain room andovertohis duffel bag."Willyouput more of that shit on my back?" he asked as he searched.

"You're going to smell like aracehorse," Tyobserved from inside his cocoon.

Zane looked up from digging in his duffel, brow furrowed in confusion.

Tylaughed softlyandburied hisheadunder thepillow again, burrowing tiredly.Zanesmiledathimashelooked himover,lettinghiseyes slideupanddowntheleanbodyjustoncebeforeshakinghisheadand pushing the thoughts away. "Have you seen my damn comb?" he muttered.

"Yes, I've been keeping close tabs onallyour personal items,Special AgentGarrett,"Tyanswered officiously, hisvoicecomicallymuffledbythe pillow.

"Thank you,SpecialAgentGrady,Iappreciate that,"Zaneanswered beforepushingaway theduffelandrunninghis fingersthroughhis hair instead. He glanced back atTyand tiltedhis head. "How can you breathe like that?"

"Like what?" Ty asked from under the pillow. "Breathing and thinking atthesametime,while difficult tomaster,comes prettynatural after you've practiced for a while. I'm sure you'll get the hang of it soon enough."

Zanerolledhiseyes."AtleastIthinkwithmyheadandnotmyass," he muttered as he buttonedhis jeans and zipped up.

"Yourassismorefuntolookat,"Tyshotbackfromunderthe pillow.

Stoppinginplace,Zaneboggledatthepillow."Youdidnotjustsay you've looked at my ass." Dear God. The tease of that was fucking inflammatory.He didn't need this kind of torture.

"You show it often enough," Ty counteredin a sly tone, still muffled.

"Youdon'tmeanthatliterally,"Zanemutteredashestartedstacking folders on the table, trying to make room for food.

Tyfinally pulled hisheadoutfrom under thepillow androseuponto hiselbowsto lookoverhisshoulderat Zane."I meaneverythingI say literally. Literally," he said with wry emphasis.

Zanesighedandrubbedhiseyeswithonehand."Ithinkyoudoit deliberately,"he grumbled. "Say whatever you can think of to drive me up the fuckingwall."AndLord,hisimagination wasnowinoverdrive. Zanemoved hishand,turned, andlooked atTywithnarrowed eyes."AndhowamI showing off my ass, pray tell?"

"You're breathing,"Ty said as he laid his head back down.

Zanesighed, whether inrelieforexasperation, hedidn't wanttohave tofigure out.Tywasjustrazzing him.Acigarette wasstarting tosound appealing, and the knock at the door was a godsend.

Typeered outfrom under hispillowandwatched Zanegotoanswer thedoor."Nowyou'rewondering ifI'mlookingatyourass,aren'tyou?"he teased.

Zane flipped him the bird as he passed by, gun in the other hand.

"Mm-hmm," Ty murmured with a self-satisfiedgrin.

After aminimum of fuss, Zane carried the room service tray back into the room, his gun shoved into theback of his jeans. And damn it,ifTywasn't right,thesmugbastard.Assoonashewalkedpasthim,hewonderedifhe was feeling Ty's eyes on his back or his ass.

"It'snotyou,it'sthefood,"TyofferedasifhewasreadingZane'smind.

"You keep telling yourself that," Zane drawled, uncoveringthe plates.

"Youknowit,"Tydrawledashestretchedagain."Givemefood, bitch," he ordered with relish.

Zanesnorted. "Iought tomake yougetoffyourlazyassandgetit yourself. Butyouwerekindenough tohelpmeout,so..."HecarriedTy's plate and drink over and set them on the nightstandbetween the beds.

"Thankyou,"Tysaidprimlyashesatupandplacedapillowinhis lap to serve as a tray.

Zanesketched abow."Ihopeit'stoyoursatisfaction, YourMajesty," he drawled before going back to his own food and sitting at the table.

"I'm glad to see you're so easy to train," Ty respondedhappily. Raising a brow, Zane chucked a fry at him, hitting him in the chest. "Hey!A little respect for the cleaning ladies, huh?" Ty chided.

Zanegrinnedandthrewanotherone,thistimelandingitonTy's plate.Heheldupbotharmsinatouchdown sign."Youknow,I'mstartingto get this whole bug-the-hell-out-of-somebody thing."

"You're anatural," Tyresponded flatlyashestaredatthevagrant fry in distaste.

Zane sighed and shook his head, going back to his food. Itseemed Ty wouldonlytoleratesomuchofhisownmedicine.Amomentlaterafryhit him inthenoseandbounced offintohislap.Zane'sjawdropped, buthe grinned before plucking the fry up from his thigh and popping it in his mouth.

"Mm-hmm,"Tyhummedagainwithasmirkfromhissideofthe room.

Consideringtheothermanashetookabiteofhisburger,Zane wonderedifthisTywasmorelikehisnormalself.Heseemedyoungerright now, not as jaded. "What's your story?" he asked impulsively.

"Which one?" Ty asked between bites, with a cock of his head.

"Theoneaboutwhyyouhaveachiponyourshoulderthesizeof Manhattan?" Zaneaskedmildly."Aboutwhywhenyousleepyoulookabout fiveyearsyounger thanme,andwhenyou're awake andpissed offyoulook five older."

Tycockedaneyebrow."YouwerewatchingmewhileIslept?"he asked incredulously.

"You watched me," Zane pointed out. "And don't avoid the question."

"Iwasn't," Typrotested inamusement. "That'sjust...reallyfucking weird,man,"heobservedwithasnicker."AndItoldyoumystory.Iwas Marine Force Recon. After the lastmission we were supposed torun went tits up,theydeemedallofusstrickenwithPTSD.Wewerealldischarged with big-ass pensions before wecouldgetupset.Fullhonors. Itwasallcomplete bullshit, andeveryone knewit,butwewerealltiredandslightly traumatized fromthebureaucracy ofitall,"hesaidbitterly. "Theyneededtoplantusall somewhere niceandsafe andkeep usfrom IdleHands Syndrome, know what Imean? Me,IgotsenttoQuantico asa‘civilian aid'sortofthing untilBurns found me and convincedme the Bureau might be entertaining.I was a Marine, initforthelong haul,andImissit.Butthat's lifeandhereIam.No chip," he insisted with a shake of his head.

"Sowhybesuchabullshitartist?Amusement factor?Masktoavoid questions?You're just a prick at heart?" Zane asked after another bite.

"Alloftheabove," Tyanswered readilythrough amouthful offood, grinning and chewing as he watched Zane.

Nodding, Zane took a few more bites. "You know, when I was fucked up,Igotrealfamiliarwithmedicalregulations andtreatmentregimens. Did youknow theywon't clear agents forfield work ifthey're being treated for depressionor mood disorders?"

"Yep," Ty answered succinctly.

"Post-traumaticstressdisorderfallsintothatcategory.Ifitwasin yourfileasareasonfordischarge,you'dhavebeenparkedatadeskand never let out into public," Zane commentedneutrally.

"Yep,"Tyresponded againashelookedupatZaneandsmiled crookedly.

"So, you're lying tome,"Zane said, justasneutrally asbefore. "Any particularreasonyoudon'tcaretoshare?OtherthanthefactthatI'mjust your partner who might have to bail your ass out of somethingsomeday."

"Myfileisclassified for areason," Tyresponded readily, asifhehad knownthecoverstorywouldn'tpassmusterwithZane."Partsofthatstory are true, though," he assured Zane seriously. "And nothing in my past is going tocome upand bite you orme onthe ass," headded with ashake ofhis head. "I'vegotnomysteries. OnlythingI'vegotbackthereissomebrokenhearts and a whole lot of red tape."

Zane studied him for along moment. "All right," he murmured, going back to his fries.

Tywatchedhim,narrowinghiseyes.Finally,hesighedloudlyand lookedaroundtheroom,thenbackatZaneinannoyance. "SpecialAgent Sanchez,"he announcedwith a huff. "He was on my Recon team."

RaisinghiseyestolookatTyagain,Zanethoughthewasbeginning tounderstand. Understand whyTywassodetermined tostayonthiscaseno matterwhatexploded. Andwhyhewassuchanasstokeeppeoplefrom getting tooclose.Itwasasimilardefense mechanism towhathehimself had, albeitforadifferentreason.Tyandhiscompanionshadlivedadangerous life.Theyexpectedtoloseoneanother.Justnottoserialkillers."That's hard," he said quietly.

"What'shardisfiguringouthowsomepunkserialkilledhim.He sleptwithanarsenal underhispillowandoneeyeopen," Tytoldhim seriously. "Andifanyone lookedatthefilescloseenough andsawthatwe were colleaguesbefore the Bureau, they'd yank me off the case," he added.

"That'swhyyouweresurprisedwhenBurnshandedyouthiscase—and why you're so keen to solve it. Beyond keen," Zane said as it all clicked.

"Burnsknowsme,"Tysaidasaformofanswering. "Andheknew Sanchez. Herecruited usoutofthedregsofdeskworkwewerebeingforced to do at Quantico, personally pushed us both into the Academy.He knows I'm notsupposed tobehere. Meaning hewanted mehere forareason. Ijustcan't figure out what the fuck it is, other than to be sneaky."

"Okay, then whystick you with me?I'd been upinCybercrimes over twoyears,mostlyofffieldwork.I'venotbeenoutlikethisinnearlyfour years. Why would he try to weigh you down?"

Tylookedupathimthoughtfullyandtiltedhisheadinquisitively. "Are you going to weigh me down?"

"IknowIwon't.ButBurns,he'stheonethatthrewmyassoutof action, sentme into detox onthreat ofjail.He's not likedmesince. Whygive me this chance?" Zane asked rhetorically.

"Whywouldhecareenoughtoputyouindetoxandthenreinstate you if he didn't like you?" Ty counteredquietly.

Zanedidn't haveananswer forthat.Itwasaquestion he'dasked himself over and over.

Tyjust shrugged ashewatched Zane think itover. "We got one thing in common,though,Garrett,"he finallypointedout."Neitheroneof us belongs here. And they don't expect us to play by no rules anyway."

"Do you ever play by the rules, Special Agent Grady?" Zane asked.

"Can't think of a for-instance,"Ty answered with a flippant shrug.

Zane peered at him for a long moment. "How old are you, anyway?"

Tyraisedhisheadandlookedoverattheotherman."Why?"he asked suspiciously.

"Just wondering. Thought you were about myage orolder until Isaw you sleeping," Zane answered.

Ty frowned at that. "I'm thirty-four,"he answered grudgingly.

Zanenodded slowlyandwentbacktoeatinghisnowlukewarm fries with no comment.He would never have guessed that Ty was that young.

"Why?" Ty prodded.

Shruggingslightly,Zanelookedupathim."Sometimesyoulook older than that. You sure as hell act older than that. Jaded."

Tyblinkedathim,slightlynonplussed, andlookedbackdownathis foodwithapurseofhislips.Zanewatched him,observed him,seeing a glimpseofthemoreorderedanddisciplined manTyhidunderthebrash asshole.Heworeamask,justlikeZanedid.Itwassomehowreassuring.It wasbeginning tobecomeclearthatTyactually expended energytobeas abrasiveashewas.ThecalmerformerMarinethatwasbeginningtoshow through seemed much more natural to him.

"How old are you?" Ty finally asked in return.

Zanesmiled slowly, stillwatching. Tyhadn't looked upathim."You mean you've not checked up on me yet?"

TyslidhiseyessidewaystolookatZaneseriously,therestofhis body unmoving.

Zaneshookhishead,smilepullingathislips."I'mforty-two,"he admitted.

"Yeah,youlookit,"Tydrawledwithagrinthatwasslightlymore teasing than his usual smirk.

Zanesnorted."IsupposeI'vebeenriddenhardandputawayweta few too many times."

Tyrolledhiseyesandpokedathisfood."Whereyoufrom?"he asked without looking up. "I mean, since we're bonding and all."

"Texas. Austin, to be specific."

"I'msorry,"Tyofferedsympathetically, thesmirkplayingathislips again.

"Where are you from, asshole?" Zane retorted.

"Bluefield,WestVirginia,"Tyanswered,lettinghiswordsrollwith his pronouncedaccent.

Zane grinned. "West by-God Virginia,"he said. "Fits you."

Tyglanced upandsmirked again, jabbing athisketchup withafry. "Wild and Wonderful,"he quoted with a barely restrainedsnicker.

"WildandWonderful," Zaneechoedwithashortchuckle."Allthat mountain climbing got you in shape for the Marine Corps."

"More like spelunking, but it's all about rocks in the end." Ty shrugged withasmile."Sonofaminerain'tgotmuchinthewayofcareer options," headded."ItwaseithertheMarinesorgoingintothefamily business."

Zane tilted his head. "Somehow,I don't see you as a coal miner."

Tyglanced backupathimandnarrowed hiseyes.Theurgetotake exception tothestatement wasclearlywrittenonhisface,butfinallyhegave his head a shake and bit the tip off his fry. "Just add dirt," he finally responded withagesturetohimself,eventhoughtheindustryofcoalmining had left Bluefield in the 1960s.

ZanesawthelookonTy'sfacebeforetheothermanshookitoff. "Did you want to be a coal miner?" he asked.

"Nobodywantstobeacoalminer,"Tyansweredevenly.Helooked upatZaneandstudiedhim,pondering therestoftheanswer."Butthen, nobody wants to get shot at,neither," he added thoughtfully. "I wouldn't have been acoal miner. They don't mine coal inBluefield anymore. Butmydaddy mindedtheabandoned mines.Hewasacaretaker aftertheywereshutdown. Meanthewasstillinthosedamnminesallthetime,makingsurenoonegot downthereandlostortrapped. Monitoring collapses. AndIwould havebeen doing ittoo.Oroffinanother town doing therealthing. Ihadtochoose between afearofbullets andafearofsmallspaces," headmitted. "Turns out bullets ain't that scary, after all."

Nodding, Zane finished off his burger. He studied the other man as he chewed, putting together thedetails he'dcrowbarred out.Thelittlebitofhis history made Ty much more human.

Tyreturned hisattention tohisfood, feelingeyesonhimandjust letting Zanestareforawhile."Sowhatelsewasthere,Serpico?" hefinally asked after a tense moment of silence. "Need my blood type? SAT scores?"

Zane's brow wrinkled. "Did you go to college or just join the Marines?"

Thatquestion didrankle, butTyvisiblyrepressed hisinitialreaction. He exhaled loudly and pushed his plate away.

"You did say SAT scores," Zane reminded.

"Iwenttocollege,"Tygritted,acknowledging thathehadindeed opened up that door. "Governmentpaid for it."

Zanenodded slowly, feeling aswellasseeing thetension backinthe other man. "Nothing wrong with that," he said. "You earned it."

Tycuthisgazeuptolook atZanefrom under lowered brows. "You humoring me, Lone Star?"

Zanesethisplateonthetablewitha clunk."Ifyouservedour country inthearmed forces, you deserve it."Hewas deadserious; itshowed clearly in his eyes.

Tyglared atthemanforabriefmoment longer andthen looked back down. "Thirteen ten,"he finally answered with a nod.

Raisingabrow,Zanesatbackwithanod."Well-done," he complimented.

"Bite me," Ty muttered as he poked at his chicken and frowned.

"Nationalaverageiseleven fifty,"Zanesaid,asmallsmilecurling hislips.Toughguyobviouslydidn'ttakecomplimentswell.Itwasalmost endearing.

"Ifinditdisturbing thatyouknowthatoffhand," Tyinformed his partner flatly.

Zane shrugged."Numbers stick with me."

"I find that disturbing too," Ty deadpanned.

"Disturbing,huh? Maybe I'll take that as a compliment."

"Whateverhelpsyourego,"Tymutteredwithashakeofhishead. "How'd you fall into this, anyway?" he asked, ready to change the subject.

Zaneconsidered whattoshare,figuring Tywould raghimabout anything he gave up. "I jumped."

"And then the rope broke?" Ty supplied.

"More like they cut itand letme fall," Zane muttered, turning back to the files and starting to shift them. "I was totally unprepared for the academy."

"Wait wait,letmeguess," Tysaid asheheld outhishand toward Zane."Psychologymajorwitha..."Henarrowedhiseyesandcockedhis head "...political science minor," he guessed.

"Statistics andSpanish. Beforelawschool," Zaneadmitted, not looking over at the other man.

"Don't tellmeyou'realawyer," Tygroaned inresponse. "Iwas starting to almost not hate you."

Zanesnortedandglancedup."No,I'mnotalawyer.Iwassaved from that gruesome fate by an academy recruiter."

"Send that man flowers," Ty ordered.

Zaneactuallylaughed. "Iagree...now.Then? Iwanted toskinhim. Slowly."

"Why? Were youthemascot being tortured inyour academy class?" Ty asked.

Eyes narrowing, Zane's good humor faded. Bad memories did that. "I betyou were topofthe class atclimbing that damn rope," hemuttered crankily. "Forme,itwasonlyfourmonths ofutterhell.ThenIgottogo through it again. How lucky is that?"

Tyfrowned andcocked hishead,looking Zaneover critically."You got recycled?"he asked incredulously.

Zanelookedoverat himandcouldtell rightawaywhyTywas asking."OutofgradschoolIwassix fiveandone seventy.Notascrapof muscle on me."

Ty'seyebrows climbed insurprise, butheshook hisheadand shrugged."Musthavebeenhellonwheelswiththementalpartsofit,"he ventured.

The answer was a wry smile. "Fifteen eighty."

"Whathappened withtheothertwenty, spellyournamewrong?" Ty asked with a teasing smile.

The smile warmed a little. "Thanks,"Zane said deadpan.

"What's theZstandfor?" Tyaskedabruptly. "Zane Z.Garrett," he mused withaslightwince. "Momma didn'tlikeyoumuch,huh?"heinquired in amusement.

"Familyname," Zanesaidwithashrug."Zachary. Nothing really scary. And in Texas, Zane is fairly common." He squinted atTy. "I remember Burns said your name. Something TylerGrady. Aninitialfor your first name. I was too busy being horrified about being paired up with you to catch it."

"Probablybetterforit,"Tytoldhimwithashrug,obviouslyhaving no intentionof answeringor meeting Zane's eyes while he had his mind on it.

Zane raised one eyebrow and considered pushing, but since they were finally actually talking, he didn't want toruin it.So heopted for humor. "You were right about the name."

"OfcourseIwas,"Tyresponded almostimmediately. Helookedup and narrowed his eyes. "Right about what?" he asked.

Zane sighed. "About my name. And the other twenty points?"

Tystaredathimblankly forseveral longmoments. Finally, heclosed hiseyesandshookhishead."YouspelledyournamewrongontheSATs?" he asked in exasperation.

"No," Zanesaid,smiling slightly. "Ileftoutmymiddle initial."His eyes sparkled and he was hard put not to smile.

"Jackass,"Ty muttered under his breath.

Thegrin brokefreeandZanechuckled before leaning back and looking upattheceiling, drawing inanevenbreath andrelaxing. "Itwas embarrassing,"he tacked on, just for effect.

"Yeah, well.I'm sureyou're usedtothat," Tymuttered. "What the hell," headded with asigh. "We can't allbeperfect," heoffered ashelooked backdownathisuneatenfoodindistaste.Hisfootwasbouncingslightlyas hesatcross-leggedonthebed.Hewasbeginningtogetedgyagain.Allthe training in the world couldn't rectify a natural nervous twitch.

Zane sighed quietly andturned back tothefiles. "Long wayfrom perfect," he murmured.

Ty rolled his eyes and banged his head back against the headboard.

"Don'tjarloosethefewyou'vegot,"Zaneadvised,eyesonthe papers he'd pulled out.

"Well, get done with your little pity party, then," Ty huffed.

"Party, great, where's the drinks?" Zane sniped.

"And Iwas almost starting to like you," Ty sighed under his breath as he twisted and swung his legs over the side of the bed.

"God forbid."

Ty noddedand glancedbackdownat his food.He had lost his appetitealongwiththedesiretospendanymoretimewithhisself-pitying partner. "Ineed abreak from thisfucking room," hemuttered ashepushed to stand and stretch.

Zane glanced upfrom where he'dbeen staring blankly atthereports. Tywaspattingdownhisjeansashesearchedforhiswallet.Finally,he locateditandpulleditout,retrieving alittlepieceofpaperandunfolding it with a frown.

Zane didn't sayaword. Hejustmadehimself keep hiseyesonthe paperwork.HerememberedwhenTyhadbeenhandedthatpieceofpaper, and he knew the implications.He fought hard not to be slightly jealous.

Ty reachedfor the phoneand dialed,eyes strayingto Zaneand glinting in the low light. "Want me to see if she has a friend?" he asked with a smirk.

"I'll pass, thanks," Zane murmured,not even looking up.

Tynodded, watching hispartner astheprettylittlestewardess answered herphone. Tydidn'ttakehiseyesoffZaneashesetuptheillicit rendezvousthatheknewwouldridhimofsomeofthefrustrationhisnew partner had been creating.

ThehaironthebackofZane's neckrose.Tywaswatching him. Waitinganotherminute,Zaneturnedhischintolooktowardhim,abrow risinglazily.Hmm.Tyshouldn'tbetheonlyonetoventhisfrustrations.

Maybehe'dgofindsomeonetopassthetimewithtoo,nowthathethought about it.

Tysmirkedas hewatchedZanelookupat him,grinningat the slightlybreathless voiceofthewomanasshesaidgoodbye. Hehungupand looked atZane. "Going to be okay on your own for an hour or two?" he asked rakishly.

"Meandmyrighthandwillbejustpeachy,thanks,"Zanesaiddown at the papers.

"Won't getnosympathy from me,LoneStar,"Tytoldhim asheslid into hisboots. "Iserved mytimewith you," hesaid with ashake ofhishead. "I'll call you if I spot a tail," he added as an afterthought.

"Have a good time," Zane offered sincerely, finally looking up.

Ty just laughed as he walked out the door, waving his cellphone over his shoulder to let Zane know how to contact him as he went.

The other agent watched the door for abitbefore shifting in thechair. Hestoodupandpacedalittlebeforemakingadecision.Hewalkedoverto thedeskanduncovered theareadirectorythehotelprovided ineachroom. Laying it open on the papers, he found a list of bars and nightclubsin the area. There wasevenalittlemapoftheten-block area.Zanedecided hemightas welltakeabreakwhilehecould.Hewalkedovertohisduffelandpulledout achange ofclothes. Aftergetting dressed, hestuckhiswallet intohisback pocket andstrapped onhisholster, though hewinced afewtimes. Thenhe pulledonhisbootsandaheavybutton-up shirttocoverthegun,andhewas ready.

Before hewalked out,heshoved acouple condoms inhishippocket, and the door shut behind him.

Hestood on the busy street corner outside the hotel Special Agents Grady and Garretthadmovedtheiroperationsto.Hehad,ofcourse,beenkeepingtabs ontheirlocation from themoment they'd stepped offtheplane. When they'd declinedtheBureauaccommodations andmovedtoanotherhotelwithout telling anyone, he'dknown hewasintrouble. Itmeant theyeither suspected someone withinsideresources ortheywereoverlyparanoid. Eitherscenario meant more work forhim. Ithadtaken awhile tofind their hotel, but they hadn't been paranoid enough to check in under false names and he had finally tracked them down.

ThenewFBIteam wasanuisance, butsofartheyweren't proving to beasmuch ofathreatashehadexpected. Whenhe'dgottenwordthat Washingtonwassendingacrackteam,ithadverynearlyscaredhim.So muchsothathe'dsetupthecomputer intheFBIarchives forthem and removed vitalbitsofthefilesasbaitbefore theyevenlanded. These two, however, had turned out to be anything but a threat.

Still, it was better to be rid of them sooner rather than later.

Theexploding righehadsetupinthecomputer ofthearchives had workedperfectly.Exactlytoplan.Theonlyproblemwithhisplanstothis point was the fact that Special Agents Grady and Garrett didn't seem to give a shitabout eachotherorabout working witheachother. Theywereboth supposed tohavebeeninthatroom.EvenifGarrett wasmaimed tothepoint theyhad toreplacehim,itstillleftGradyforhimtodealwith,andGradywas thereal threat. Hedidn't follow anyrules, andthat made him hard tokeep ahead of. He had specialized training too. Garrett just seemed to be a pushover trailing along behind him.

Hetookadeepdragofhiscigaretteashewaited.Theyhadtocome up for air soon, and when they did, he would take care of things.