Code Name Shadow

Chapter 7

Brielle

Gemma and I hung out together for the rest of the evening, laughing and chatting about anything and everything. She was so fun to be around, and the time flew by as I talked to her.

I hadn't even realized what time it was when Beckett came up behind me and put his hand on my shoulder. I turned around to face him. "Ready to head out?" he asked.

"Sure," I said. "Just give me one second, I have to use the bathroom before we leave." He nodded at me and I turned and walked into the house. The bathroom was down a long hallway to the right of the kitchen. I pulled my phone out as I walked, checking to make sure I didn't miss any messages while I'd been out. I wasn't paying enough attention to my surroundings, though, and the second I turned the corner I crashed into something hard.

Stumbling backwards, I felt an arm reach around my waist to steady me. "Whoa," a deep voice chuckled. "You okay?"

I look up, and to my horror, it's Cody standing in front of me. I can feel my face burning red with embarrassment. "Yeah, I'm good. I'm so sorry, I wasn't paying attention, that's completely my fault."

"No worries. How'd you enjoy the rest of the party? You and Gemma seemed to hit it off pretty well." He smiles down at me, and I smile back.

"Yeah, she's great! Thank you for introducing us, I can already tell we're going to be good friends."

"Good, I'm glad." It's quiet for a minute, both of us just standing there, looking at each other. Eventually I clear my throat and break the silence.

"I should really get a move on before Beckett gets on my case about making him wait." I laugh. He smiles back at me.

"No problem, I don't blame you. That guy has about as much patience as a hand grenade."

I laugh, knowing how right he is. Beckett is a great guy, but he has a very short temper and hates to be kept waiting.

"I'll see you around, Brielle."

"Yeah, see you." Smiling to myself, I make my way to the bathroom. Once I'm finished, I head out to the backyard where Beckett is still waiting for me.

"All set now?" he asks when he sees me.

"Yup, let's head out."

We walk back through the house and out to the driveway. I open the car door and settle myself into the passenger seat, leaning my head back against the headrest.

"You good?" Beckett asks as he gets in.

"Yeah, I'm good. Just tired." I answer with my eyes closed. And I meant it. As much as I worried about coming to this party, I really enjoyed it. I made a friend, and all of Beckett's teammates seemed really nice. But, we were there for quite a while and my social battery was drained. All I wanted now was to go home and get into bed.

As much as I wasn't really in the mood to talk, there was a burning question I had to ask Beckett.

"So..." I start. "Wellsy huh?" I smirk as I see him look at me out of the corner of his eye.

"Shut the fuck up," he groans.

"What? I just think it's funny. Very creative." I laugh.

"Our last name kind of set it up perfectly, okay? I didn't pick it. Cohen called me that one day it it just kind of stuck."

"You don't have to get so defensive, I like it. It's just...when I pictured your SWAT team giving each other nicknames, I thought they would be something more intimidating, you know, like Hellfire or something."

The drive home wasn't long, and it went by mostly in silence. The second I walked through the front door and into my room, I collapsed onto my bed. Sleep found me in a matter of minutes, and I didn't wake up once throughout the night.

Cody 

I can't help watching as Brielle and Beckett leave the house.

She looked absolutely stunning tonight, the color of her dress complementing her eyes perfectly. It took everything in me not to ditch my team and talk to her for the entire night, but I knew I couldn't do that. I had to hold myself back. She was my best friend's sister, after all, and I didn't want to ruin anything.

I sigh and make my way over to the drink station to get a refill. I had gulped down half of my drink when I felt a hand on my shoulder, and as I turned around I saw that it was Cohen.

"What's up man?" I ask, smiling at him. He smirked back at me, but it wasn't the kind of smirk that meant he was happy to talk to me – it was the kind that said 'I can see right through you.'

"So," he starts. "What's the story with you and Wellsy's sister?"

I look down at my drink, the smile falling off my face. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Oh really? So, you weren't staring at her across the backyard all night until you grew the balls to go talk to her?" I glare at him, which only makes his grin wider.

"No. I wasn't."

"Interesting, because you see, I saw you go over to her and start talking. And then, when you dropped her with Gemma and she thought you left, you actually stayed right there, just hidden, watching her. And smiling."

I let out a heavy sigh and run a hand through my hair. He caught me. Knowing he won, I finally relent. "Fine, alright, you got me. I was keeping an eye on her. That's all though, nothing happened between us."

He laughs and claps me on the shoulder at my confession. "Listen man, that's great, I'm happy for you. She seems great, and I have no intention of ruining that for you. I won't say shit to Wellsy, but know that if you do intend to act on your feelings, you should let him no. Nothing good ever comes out of hiding that kind of shit."

I nod my head. I know he's right, but the thing is, I don't even really know how I feel about her yet. I mean, obviously she's gorgeous and funny and smart as hell, but did I really want to pursue something? Beckett is my best friend, he has been ever since we served together, and I really don't want to overstep or mess anything up. Still though, I can't seem to get her off my mind.

"You're right, I know. I gotta get my shit together and figure things out before I do anything." I say.

He nods back at me. "I've got your back brother, whatever you decide to do."

We move on to small talk after that, talking about sports and work and anything else we can think of. Soon enough, we say our goodbyes as Cohen decides he's leaving for the night.

Five minutes later, I'm following his lead. I say goodbye to the team members that are still there before heading into the house to grab my jacket. Putting it on, I head out to my car and start my drive home.

The drive isn't far, and soon enough I'm in my house and heading to my bed. There will be plenty of things I have to think through tomorrow, but tonight, I don't have the brain power to do it. I need to clear my head, and the best way to do that right now is to sleep and reset myself.

As soon as my head hits the pillow, I do just that.