Page 33 of Snow

For the life of him, he couldn’t figure out what it was about that woman that kept snagging his attention. He had spent years training himself to focus on the mission and tune out distractions. Yet she was a distraction that seemed to grow more noticeable the harder he tried to ignore her.

Suddenly, a sharp smack landed on the back of his head.

“What the fuck,” Snow barked as he turned to find Nails staring at him, looking amused.

“Did you hear a damn word I just said?”

“What?” Snow asked, rubbing the back of his head.

Nails let out an exaggerated sigh. “I said Joker found a pool hall a few miles from the hotel. We’re going to head over after we get settled in. Are you in?”

“Yeah. I’m in.”

“Good. And try actually listening next time. You’re starting to look like one of those idiots in a Hallmark movie.”

Snow flipped him off.

Nails just grinned and walked away laughing.

Snow shook his head and grabbed his gear bag from the table. Truthfully, a few hours shooting pool with the guys sounded exactly like what he needed. Anything to distract him from the dark-haired attorney who seemed determined to take up far more space in his thoughts than a woman he had known for less than a day had any right to.

The moment Snow stepped outside, his gaze landed on the black sedan waiting at the curb, and through the passenger window, he immediately spotted Nova. She was bent over as if she were looking at something on the floor, but then she raised her head and looked out the window. Their eyes met through the glass, and he wanted to look away, but for reasons he couldn’t explain, he couldn’t seem to break the connection. It was like she had a spell over him.

She was the first to look away, and Snow told himself that should have been the end of it. But then she shook her head and appeared to mutter something to herself, leaving Snow to wonder what exactly had been going through her mind.

A moment later, the car pulled away. Snow watched it go before finally tearing his gaze away and reminding himself that he had far more important things to focus on.

“You do know that you’re staring again,” Nails said, trying not to laugh.

“I’m not staring,” Snow said, sounding defensive.

“Dude, your eyes were following her like a heat-seeking missile,” Joker commented, drawing laughs from the others.

“He’s not lying. I’ve seen you track terrorists with less focus than you’re tracking that woman,” Bear teased.

Aussie nodded in agreement. “They aren’t wrong, man. Your eyes followed her around like a Roomba.”

“Hopefully, she likes long walks on oil rigs,” Playboy piped in.

Snow almost laughed at that one.

Duke shook his head, laughing. “Trust me, man. That’s exactly how it starts. First, you’re staring. Next thing you know, you’re helping her pick out throw pillows.”

Snow smirked. Then he looked at Jay Bird. “Is there anything you would like to add?”

Jay Bird gave him a casual shrug. “I mean, if you looked at me the way you look at her, I would be deeply uncomfortable.”

“Jesus Christ,” Snow said, shaking his head. “You all are idiots.”

They started walking toward the SUVs.

“I think the girls back home would like Nova,” Joker said, drawing comments from the others.

“Are you all done yet?” Snow asked, finally giving in and laughing.

“Not even close,” Nails said as he climbed into the backseat. “It’s okay to admit that you like her.”

“I don’t like her. Not like that.”