“Sure.”
“And impossible.”
“Interesting how none of those things stopped you from sleeping with him.”
Stina dragged in a deep breath, fighting for solid ground when so far, everything Jolie said felt right.
“Maybe it could be more if I ever saw the version of Rome that you told me about. I get the grumpy authoritarian Rome.”
Jolie laughed. “I think you definitely bring out a different side of him. The problem is Rome doesn’t really see a future.”
Stina frowned and set her water bottle on the floor beside the bench. “What does that mean?”
“It means he’s Blackout.” Jolie shrugged like that explained everything.
It didn’t. At least not to her.
Seeing the confusion on her face, Jolie continued. “These guys live differently. Duty comes first. When they join Blackout, they accept that they can’t have girlfriends, wives, families.”
Stina stared at her. “What about you and Archer?”
“From what he’s told me, some of the other teams have broken those rules and managed to get away with it, so he was willing to try.”
She ingested that for a moment.
Jolie went on, “They spend every minute running toward things normal people spend their lives trying to avoid. They don’t make plans because they’ve learned life can change in a second.”
Stina stared across the gym. The explanation settled heavily in her chest because, if she was honest, she wasn’t sure how there could be a future for them either.
Not when she didn’t know how long she’d be staying here.
Not when her entire life existed somewhere above her while she hid beneath a ski resort.
Not when somebody wanted her dead.
Before she could unravel the messy thoughts, the gym door opened.
Both of them looked up. One of the guys stepped inside carrying a tablet. “I’m looking for Rome.”
Stina’s stomach tingled. “He’s not in here.”
Jolie looked at him. “Not here, Odin.”
O’s gaze shifted to her. “Nice try.”
“Opie?”
His expression didn’t change.
Stina laughed.
Jolie had already explained the ongoing mystery surrounding O’s real name. Apparently nobody knew it. Or if they did, they guarded it better than government secrets.
“Worth a shot.” Jolie shrugged.
He glanced between them.
Stina straightened. “What’s wrong?”