Page 64 of Hollow State

"I'll work on it." He winked. He totally understood where Wynn was coming from. If it wasn’t for this damn meeting and what he intended to say, he probably wouldn't be acting so strange.

Not to mention, ever since they’d landed in this bunker, it had been a constant battle of keeping people healthy and alive.

"What's going on?" Wynn asked as they turned the corner toward the war room.

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't play dumb with me." She stopped and put both hands on the cane. "I know you. You've been somewhere else since we got out of bed. Talk to me."

Darwin ran his fingers through his hair. This was the part of being in a relationship that had come hard to him. He'd been good at leaving things like this alone during his marriage, and Sarah had let him. When he’d wanted to avoid talking about work-related things, he found all the excuses in the world.

But he couldn't do that with Wynn, and that's what made this morning so hard. There was a fine line between being in a relationship and being on the same team.

"I'm tired," he said.

"That's not an acceptable answer."

"And I'm not talking about exhaustion." He took her hand and kissed it. "I'm tired of running. I'm tired of Finch picking the day and the place, and the rest of us finding out afterward." He let out a breath. "I've got a plan. And I don't know how anybody in that room is going to take it. Including you."

"Excuse me?" Wynn lowered her chin. "How long have you had it?"

"Since last night."

She leaned into the cane. "You got into bed with me and you didn't say one word about it? To say that I'm angry and hurt would be an understatement."

"I don't blame you."

"Then why didn't you say something?"

"Because it isn't a medical problem, or something the two of us can hash out in the privacy of our room," he said. "If it were a compound, or a protocol, or something I was just turning over to see if it had any merit, I'd have had you up half the night with it. I've done it a dozen times, and you know it."

"So, what makes this different?"

"This is a mission." He took off his glasses and cleaned them. "And a mission doesn't get hammered out in a bedroom. Neve and Coulter don't do that behind a closed door. They do it in the war room with all of us, or as many of us present as possible. If I bring it in there with you already on my side, it stops being something the team decides."

"That's fair." Wynn chewed on her lower lip as she shifted her gaze toward the war room door. "But next time, you don't get to pull away from me. You tell me you're not ready to talk about it. Because when you go somewhere in your head and won't tell me where, I don't sit there thinking about Finch. I sit there wondering if something’s already changed. If you woke up in my room and wished you hadn't asked which door I wanted."

Darwin took her face in both hands. "I love you. I couldn't possibly do this without you, and I'm sorry I didn't let you in on what I was thinking. I’ll do better." He kissed her, but it wasn't the kind of kiss that was meant for bunker hallways. It was tender. Deep. Passionate.

Somebody cleared their throat. "You two are making a habit of this," Gideon said. "And the rest of us are getting tired of looking at it."

Darwin lifted his head.

Gideon laughed and pointed the corner of his laptop at them. "Scout's going on a supply run this afternoon." He shrugged. "In case you need… protection."

"Mind your own business."

"I'd love to." Gideon pushed the door open with his shoulder. "But you keep making out in the hallway."

"Making out?" Darwin chuckled. "Like we've never caught you and Zadie necking on the sofa."

"He's a fourteen-year-old boy stuck in a man's body." Wynn followed Gideon into the war room. "Then again, so are all men."

"I take offense to that comment."

"No, you don't." She glanced over her shoulder and smiled.

While it melted his heart, it didn't cut through his nerves. What he was about to propose could change everything—especially for him and Wynn.