Fixing Justice by Suzanne Halliday

this isn’t Drae’s area of expertise. Besides, we need him to keep the owner calm and working with, instead of against us. We can manage any problems by video messenger.”
    Dammit, Alex had been talking but she wasn’t listening. Wait! What did he just say? Was what okay with her? Something wasn’t right. “I’m sorry. What did you say, Alex?” Tori asked. Tension filled the air as she gulped in a shaky breath while Draegyn’s steely-eyed calm held her in place like a tractor beam.
    She jumped when Alex slapped his hand on the console. “Are you two even listening? This is important people!” he griped.
    Breathless, she tried to form a coherent reply, but Draegyn was making it difficult to concentrate. Removing her glasses with a sigh, Tori tried to play it cool. “I’ll do whatever you ask, Alex. Just tell me what’s needed,” she declared, fixing her boss with a clear gaze and a tilted chin while ignoring the other man.
    Rising from his seat Alex moved to the desk area to grab a folder. “Here. You’ll need this. It’s an overview of the whole system. I’ll walk you through each phase.”
    She took the folder while confusion etched her brow. “What?”
    An exasperated Alex looked like he was going to lose it. “You’re going to Las Vegas, Tori. With Drae. Tomorrow .”
    As Alex’s words registered, it was impossible for her to determine which of them was the most surprised or who bellowed the loudest as they shouted, “No!” in perfect unison. Drae jumped from where he’d been lounging seconds before as Tori waved her hands furiously in denial. As if on cue, they wheezed an emphatic, “No!” for a second time within a second of one another. Alex’s eyebrow rose clear to his hairline at their odd behavior.
    It was Draegyn who stepped into the breach, turning a stern and unwavering look at his friend. “Absolutely not, Alex.”
    “Stand down, man. This isn’t a request, it’s an order.”
    “You aren’t the commanding officer now!” Draegyn growled, earning a surprised flinch from Victoria.
    Alex nodded slightly, acknowledging the truth in his words. “You are correct. We are equals in all things Justice. But this is not negotiable. I can’t go and you know why. You don’t have the expertise for the hands-on part but Tori does. I don’t see what the problem is.” Narrowing his eyes, he looked sharply at each of them.
    Drae shrugged. “I’m busy,” was all he could think of to say. Victoria didn’t help things when she blurted out almost the exact same words.
    “Okay,” Alex barked. “I don’t know what the hell is going on with you two, but whatever it is, get the fuck over it!” From the corner of his eye, Drae saw Victoria swallow hard at the unexpected outburst.
    This is ridiculous , he thought. Why would a Justice assignment with the little brown mouse make him react so harshly? Was it because he was careful to never mix business with pleasure and the distinction was gradually being obscured with Victoria?
    At first, he hadn’t thought of her as particularly sexy or even remotely attractive, certainly not in the mold of his usual type, but he had to admit that his growing reaction to her was throwing a monkey wrench into things. He shouldn’t want her but he did.
    Drae thought of himself as an intelligent, levelheaded guy. Drama was not in his wheelhouse. Pulling it together, he squared his shoulders. “Map this out for me, Alex. And speak English if you don’t mind. None of that tech-talk shit.” Moving closer to Victoria who stood frozen in place, he spared her tense face a fleeting glance. “No surprises, I’m not in the mood. Just give it to me straight.”
    Tori was silent as dread seeped into her nervous system one slow drip at a time. Alex and Draegyn arguing over her head made her feel like she was standing on the tracks as a freight train came barreling toward her at supersonic speed. No matter what the outcome, some sort of collision was about to happen.