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She rolled her eyes at his bossiness as she hesitantly tasted the chili She’d grown up with the food Versions of it were a street staple in the areas around CommTECH It was considered too lower class for most of the residents in the Territories, but to her the food ht, closing her eyes at the bite of rich pepper and cuarlic

When she opened her eyes, everyone was staring at her, and she felt her cheeks heat

“Good chili, huh?” Striker sounded hoarse

“Better than meal replacement bars”

He snorted his agree dirt is better than meal replacement bars”

He reached for his fork, and his arle He was far too close Their shoulders rubbed, their thighs pressed together—it was intensely distracting, and she couldn’t afford to be distracted in a rooers

She shuffled her chair away fro in his conversation with the rabbed the seat of her chair and yanked her back—even closer than before She scowled up at hi hot chili in his lap As though reading herhiain She’d never met someone with his sense of huet the jokes

“You need to watch that one,” ayour demise”

Friday turned her frown on the blond stranger

His eyes crinkled with aainst all of us”

There was nothing to say to that—he was coht

When they were finished, the oing back to whatever they did in their cave Instead, they helped thes of coffee and sat back down All eyes on her

She elbowed Striker and whispered, “What have I done now?”

“Nothin’ Chère, unless you count those wicked thoughts you’ve been having about the two of us” Of course he hts were sexual instead of her trying to come up ays to maim him

“I don’t like being the center of attention” Itas she didn’t knohere she was, or where she’d run to, there wasn’t much point