"You're a fucking asshole."

"I know."

"I had everything under control, your dad said that I was doing things the way he would have."

"I know." Aiden winced as he took a deep breath.

"You're a fucking asshole."

"You said that already."

"You were such a huge asshole I had to say it twice." She couldn't stay mad at him. He looked so damn pitiful. She walked over until she stood in front of him.

"Does it hurt?" She pointed to his side.

"Not as much as my damn shin."

"You deserved that."

"I guess I did." Aiden cupped her face with both of his hands, pride shining in his eyes.

"Gavriel called me every type of idiot and told me to beg for forgiveness on my hands and knees if need be. He said that you had singlehandedly doubled our resources. He showed me what you did on your laptop. By hacking into the city's cameras we can monitor the city streets and send reinforcements the second one of the trainee units got into trouble. This allows us to put all seasoned warriors in the field without splitting our resources between the city and the perimeter." He kissed her gently.

"Please forgive me. I love you and your antics. The thought of life without you scares the hell out of me." He placed small kisses all over her face. Careful of his injury she wrapped her arms around him, he held her close.

"Forgiven, though gifts of chocolate later won't go unappreciated."

"Duly noted." When he leaned forward and captured her lips, she felt it all the way to the center of her being. He made her soul sing. She squeezed him tight and he grunted.

"Oh my gosh, sorry!" She stepped back and he fought to catch his breath.

"Let's head back to the others." Aiden took her hand.

When they walked back into command central Adelaide looked relieved.

"I am forgiven." Aiden announced to the room.

"Good, because we were about to kick you out of Alpha and put her in charge." Colton teased.

"Does this mean you'll show me how to use grenades?" Meryn asked.

Colton paled. "Maybe not."

Aiden laughed then groaned.

"You should be in bed." Adam admonished.

"I'm fine. Meryn has set up everything so that I can keep track of everything from here." Aiden eased down next to Gavriel and watched the cameras.

"Your brother is an idiot." Gavriel pointed to the laptop. Meryn looked over Aiden's shoulder and saw that Adair was in front of one of the cameras in the city with a trainee unit. He was twerking against a light pole. Aiden laughed and moaned, caught his breath and kept laughing holding his side. Meryn was laughing when a huge yawn overtook her.

Aiden pushed her towards the door. "Head to the barracks, get some rest and feed Jaws. I'll be there soon."

Meryn hesitated. "Are you sure?"

He just looked at her.

Meryn pecked him on the cheek. "Okay, okay, I guess I'll let you be in charge for a while." He swatted her on the butt.

"Hey, not in front of your family! They don't need to know how much of a sexual deviant you really are." She rubbed her bottom. Aiden's mouth dropped and he began to blush. Darian and Colton started to crack up.

"Wait until I get you alone." Aiden muttered.

"Promises, promises." She winked and turned to the door.

Colton threw a set of keys at Ryuu. "Just follow the road, it's the huge house on the right. Can't miss it."

Ryuu bowed. "My thanks."

Once they were in the SUV Meryn closed her eyes. It had been a draining day. She never wanted to get news that Aiden was injured again. A few minutes later they were pulling up to the barracks. As she hopped out she got the evil eye from Ryuu. He didn't like that she didn't wait for him either. She stuck her tongue out at him. He unlocked the door and walked in, she was right behind him. All she wanted was to feed Jaws and go to bed. Before she was even in the house enough to shut the door Ryuu stopped directly in front of her.

"What?"

He held up a hand to silence her. He turned facing her, looking for something. Suddenly he brought two fingers up to his lips and produced a high pitched whistle. Meryn watched in horror as a man shaped object appeared behind Ryuu, she opened her mouth to warn him when he was struck from behind. A tiny light flew from her shoulder and out the door. She felt a spurt of hope when she realized that Felix had gone for help.

She turned for the door and was grabbed by the hair and thrown to the floor. "No!" She kicked at the slightly amorphous hands and managed to get to her feet as she unholstered the gun and gripped it tightly.

"What good is a gun if you can't see what you are trying to shoot?" A voice mocked. Meryn turned her head slightly so that she wasn't staring right at him. He didn't know that he was visible. She had to wait until he stopped circling her to get a good shot.

"Why are you doing this?" The longer she kept him talking the better the chances Ryuu would wake up to help.

"Just following orders."

"Whose orders?"

"Uh uh uh. No more talking. I've been looking forward to being with you for almost a week, you smell so delicious." The rusty voice taunted. He stopped his circling and stood in front of her. Smiling she brought the gun up and began shooting. She didn't stop until she ran out of bullets yet he was still moving towards her.