Socket blinked and didn’t respond at first. “Peter. I’m sorry? What am I supposed to say to that?”

  “I think he confused me for you.” Peter pressed on. “Doesn’t that upset you? What he wants from you?”

  Socket shook his head. “You’ve got it all wrong. It’s not like that. Valor and I.” He turned away, his cheeks turning pink.

  Holy hell. “You feel the same, about him.” The thought of wanting Michaels, actually desiring his touch, had Peter’s skin crawling. He wanted to scrape his nails over his body to get that sensation off of him. “You have to know what kind of man he is.”

  For a moment it was like he was warning his past self. Peter dropped the keycard and seized Socket by the shoulders, shaking him slightly. “In my universe, Michaels is ruthless and selfish and doesn’t give a damn about who he hurts.”

  “That’s not Valor.” Socket’s voice was soft as he reached up to grasp Peter’s hands and pulled them from his shoulders. “I get that you think you’re trying to help, Peter, but I know what I’m doing.”

  “Go ahead. Treat me like a child, but you’ll see…” Peter stopped, right on the edge of letting his rage spill out. He swallowed it down. The goal was to make Socket doubt Valor, not push the two of them more tightly together.

  Fuck, but he needed to get out of here before everything closed in on him. Peter turned and walked away from Socket. He might have just blown the entire mission right there, but he couldn’t bring himself to care.

  Just what the hell was he supposed to do with that? Socket paced the length of the control room, and got annoyed when he reached the wall and had to turn around again. He should have known. Valor himself had said that he’d only showed up in Socket’s rooms that night because of Peter. What, Valor couldn’t have the hotter, buffer version of Socket so he went for the sure thing?

  No. Valor hadn’t known of Socket’s feelings. He wouldn’t be that cruel, to have known and yet still brought his girlfriends around Socket. Stopping his pacing, Socket leaned on the back of his chair. Peter’s words had been like a punch to the gut, the kind of thing you’d say to somebody with the intention of hurting them. Peter had seemed to honestly think he was helping in some way. What the hell had Valor’s counterpart done over there?

  It didn’t matter. Like he’d told Peter, Valor wasn’t his double. But it still didn’t do a lot toward helping Socket figure out what the hell was up with him and Valor. Maybe he should just ask Val. They never had problems talking before, but now that Socket had finally gotten what he wanted, he couldn’t just say what was on his mind.

  “Incoming transmission from earpiece designate: Liberty. Will you answer?”

  He looked up as the screens flashed to life, showing Liberty standing atop a skyscraper. She must have gotten his package. Good. Socket dropped into his chair and touched the panel, telling the computer to patch it through. He could see her, but she couldn’t see him.

  “Hello, Liberty. My name is Socket, and I’ve a proposition to offer you.”

  “Oh, for fuck’s sake. I don’t have time for this.”

  He held back a laugh. The last thing he wanted to do was like her. She was going to be a formidable addition to their team, but she was still the girl everyone thought was banging Valor. “Tsk. Does the media know that America’s sweetheart has such a potty mouth?”

  She twisted her mouth into a smile. “You’d better not be asking for a favor.”

  This time he did laugh. “I’d like to invite you to join The Division.”

  Liberty touched the earpiece. “That team thing Valor has going on?”

  “Yes.” Valor had been the front man for The Division since the beginning. Socket thought Valor and Liberty were friends, but it seemed like Valor hadn’t told her about Socket running the support behind the team. “The attacks are only increasing, and we could use someone with your abilities on our side.”

  “Is Valor there with you?”

  “Well, he’s not in the room with me, but,” Socket pulled up Valor’s location on another screen, showing him in the kitchen with Doc and Mace. “He’s in the building, so to speak. I can patch him into our conversation if you don’t believe I speak for him.”

  “No thanks. I’ll just see for myself.”

  Before he could process that, there was a flash of light. Socket whirled around, shocked to see Liberty standing behind him in the control room. She crossed her arms over her chest as she gave the room a once over. “Nice rig. Do you patch into security cameras or satellites?” She nodded towards his display.

  “Both,” he answered. “You can teleport.”

  “It’s not common knowledge. Gives the bad guys a bit of a shock when I just show up.”

  “Clearly, you can’t run anywhere in those boots.” The golden heels were totally impractical. He hoped she was willing to trade in her flashy costume for a much plainer jumpsuit.

  She gave him a look. “Most men don’t notice the boots. Their eyes don’t move past my chest.”

  “Do I earn points for that, or not?” Unlike Valor, Socket had never been interested in women. He’d always preferred a well-muscled body to soft curves.

  “I’m not keeping score.” Liberty smirked at him. If he didn’t know better, Socket might even think she was flirting with him. “Now, you’re going to have to do a much better job at getting me to join your little superhero group. How about a tour of your super-secret hideout? And, I really hope you’ve got a better idea on how to fight these portal things.”

  Socket really didn’t expect to like her this much. He led her out of the control room, proud to show off the rest of the base. “I might.”

  Chapter 10

  Military-for-hire groups are nothing new. However, for the first time we see the rise of a super-powered mercenary group operating now in Eastern Europe. They call themselves The Jackals. So far the identities of the members of the faction remain unknown, but they’ve displayed some impressive powers—including pyrokinesis, telekinesis, and invulnerability.

  Some would call them super villains. We can label people with powers as heroes or villains, but it doesn’t answer the bigger questions. As it stands now, we are at the mercy of heroes to protect us. Are we content with that? These people have immense powers, without any checks or balances to contain them.

  The Jackals are only the first of their kind. They’ve realized they can make a lot of money with their powers. It’s only a matter of time before others do the same.

  —Editorial, Hutton News Service

  Valor drew back the curtain to take a quick glance at the reporters waiting on the other side. He saw Holly Hutton’s distinctive red hair and murmured into his earpiece, “Plucky girl reporter at six o’clock.”

  Liberty had only agreed to join The Division yesterday. By this morning, Socket had this whole press conference set up. Pretty good for a guy who didn’t think he was very good with the media.

  Valor still thought the public should know about the man who was truly behind The Division. Socket’s accomplishments should be appreciated. But he understood why Socket needed to remain in the shadows, just as Socket must understand why Valor needed to keep their relationship secret, especially if Valor kept up his role as The Division’s front man.

  “Mmm. I see her.” Socket was tapped into the security cameras here, too. Valor didn’t think a system existed that he couldn’t crack. “I hope this is big enough to get her off my ass.”

  “You still haven’t decided what to do about her?” Valor let the curtain fall back into place. It was nearly show time.

  “I’m watching her and her computer. And I circulated her picture around the office with a note that anyone who speaks to her will be fired without notice.”

  “You’re a harsh boss.” Valor nodded to the others as they gathered around him. It was time. “Let’s go, guys. Liberty, you’re with me.”

  They walked out onto the stage to cheers and a flurry of questions. Valor held up his hands and it quieted enough for him to read the statement that Socket had spent all night writing—and he should know, having watched from his side of the bed waiting for Socket to finish.

  “Ladies and Gentlemen of the press.” Valor grinned at them, putting on his best smile. He restrained himself from flashing the “V” salute. This wasn’t about him, but the team. “Thank you for coming today.” They weren’t in the BarTec building, no matter how inconvenient that was, but Socket had to keep Holly Hutton guessing the truth somehow and if that meant renting space to throw her off the trail, then so be it.

  “Over the past few weeks the interdimensional attacks have increased.” Valor didn’t mention the Crawler—so far they were still keeping it secret. There would be mass panic if that got out. “And it was decided that The Division needed to expand to meet that threat.” He also didn’t mention Jester leaving in a huff. The purpose here was to drum up good publicity. “So it is my pleasure to announce and welcome Mistress Liberty as the newest member of The Division.”

  He stepped aside to allow Liberty to take his place in front of the microphone. She’d traded her flashy costume for a black Division jumpsuit, but she still wore the golden mask that was her trademark, along with a pair of platform heels. Valor only knew about the boots because Socket would not stop bitching about them. He thought Socket might like Liberty despite himself, so he had to find something to complain about.

  “I’m thrilled to be joining such an esteemed group of heroes.” Liberty smiled for the cameras. “We’ll take a few questions now.”

  “If we’re not interrupted by an emergency,” Valor joked beside her, pleased when most of the reporters laughed.

  They answered the expected queries, about how Liberty was chosen and what this meant for the city she normally worked out of. Then the reporter from the entertainment network raised her hand. “Tell us the truth, Valor. You got Liberty to join the team so the two of you would be able to work closely.”

  Valor grinned. “I work closely with all members of my team.”

  “Level with us, any truth to the rumors about the two of you? Are you a couple?”

  He put his arm around Liberty’s shoulders, feeling her stiffen beneath his touch. “A gentleman never kisses and tells.”

  This would have made Slugger happy. The man always taught Valor to put on a show—to give the people what they wanted, even if it wasn’t real. Valor had been following that advice his own career and it hadn’t steered him wrong.

  “Yes, Miss Hutton, is it?” He couldn’t ignore her frantically waving hand any longer.

  “I see that you have a PR firm running this press conference. Who signed the checks that paid them?”

  Socket’s voice crowed in Valor’s ear, “She’s not going to find a damn thing. This PR firm has nothing to do with BarTec, and I created a dummy company to fund it.”

  Valor couldn’t answer Socket, and struggled to hold in the laugh that threatened. He had to address Hutton’s question. “Honestly, Miss Hutton, what does it matter? Isn’t the important thing that we keep this planet safe?”

  “Actually, Mr. Valor.” She raised her eyebrows. “It is important. Who are you loyal to? This is the first time that a group of such powerful heroes has banded together and honestly, this country would be up the creek if you all turned on us.”

  The other reporters started to shout. Someone called out: “There’s a difference between heroes and villains!”

  “Yeah, the headlines,” Socket muttered in Valor’s earpiece.

  Valor could see things were rapidly getting out of hand. They wanted to avoid these questions, so he signaled to the PR staff member waiting in the corner of the stage.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, I’m afraid that’s all the time we have today.” The staffer tried to calm the crowd.

  “I think Valor should answer the question!”

  “We’re here today to discuss Mistress Liberty joining the team, not to answer off-topic tangents.”

  Valor figured he could let Hutton and the staffer go at it a few more times, but he decided to take matters in his own hands. He turned, grasped Liberty by her shoulders, and planted a kiss on her surprised lips, just below that golden mask. Luckily they didn’t bump noses or something equally embarrassing.

  He could hear the gasps from the crowd as the reporters started shouting more questions, this time having nothing to do with the funding of The Division. She pulled away with a little smile, but murmured under her breath, “You are dead. So dead.”

  Valor moved to face the throng once more.

  “What the hell was that?” Liberty hissed at Valor as they left the stage, filing into the little holding area behind it.

  He looked around and saw the equally confused looks from the rest of his teammates. Socket was silent in his ear. “Not here.” Not when there was a chance one of the reporters could still be listening in. He wouldn’t put it past Holly Hutton to be eavesdropping in the hopes of catching something, anything about the money behind The Division.

  “Fine.” She grabbed his arm, drawing him close and for a moment he thought Liberty was going to kiss him. Instead there was a flash of light, and Valor stumbled, shocked to find himself on the helicopter pad of the BarTec building.

  “You might have mentioned you could do that.” He reached a shaky hand up to his ear and pulled out the earpiece, turning it off with a click. That wouldn’t stop Socket if he really wanted to listen in.

  “Socket knows.” She shook her head. “You have a hell of a lot of nerve.”

  “Hey, I was just trying to distract them from the money issue. We’ve been dealing with those questions for a while now.” He raised his hands, trying to fend her off.

  Liberty poked his chest. “Bullshit. You started playing up the love interest stuff way before that. What if I had a boyfriend or a husband who was watching horrified from home? How do I explain that?”

  “Um.” He started to feel a little uncertain. “You’ve never complained before when the press started linking us. You thought it was funny!”

  “It was funny when it was so obvious it wasn’t true. Now you’ve just gone and given them that!” Liberty stabbed him harder with her finger. “I don’t appreciate being used as your beard, Valor.”

  There was no way she could possibly know. Valor went stiff, and even though they were on the roof, he felt closed in, like he couldn’t get enough air. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “I mean anyone with eyes can see you’re head over heels for Socket.”

  “You’re delusional.” He had to deny it. There was no way he could admit to having a relationship with Socket.

  She stepped back and gave him a look. Then the eyes behind her mask softened and he didn’t know what to think. “Oh, honey, I really hope you’re not in denial about him.”

  Valor wasn’t listening. He mentally reviewed every interaction with Socket in front of Liberty, wondering just what it was that had given him away. Had he touched Socket too much? That had always been part of their friendship, even before they’d become lovers. There wasn’t anything wrong with throwing an arm around a buddy or slapping him on the shoulder, was there? Maybe it was the eye contact. Did he look at Socket just a little too long?

  “I don’t know what you mean.”

  “Okay, fine. We’ll play it your way. I’m not going to force you to admit anything.” Liberty rose several inches off of the ground. “But if you ever kiss me again without asking first we’re going to have issues, you hear me, Val?”

  “Yeah.” He watched as she rose into the sky and took off toward the ocean. It didn’t seem fair that she could fly and teleport too.

  Valor ran his fingers through his hair, messing up the perfect coif that he’d had done for the cameras. What the hell was he going to tell Socket?

  Socket hit replay one more time, his fingers pressing hard on the touchboard. The first time he’d watched “the kiss,” Socket’s stomach had churned and he nearly lost the coffee he’d been guzzling during the press conference. Upon his second and third viewing, he noticed how stiff Liberty was, and how Valor’s cheeks had gone beet red beneath his mask. It wasn’t until he watched it the fourth time that Socket could laugh at the entire thing.

  Only Valor would think it was a good idea to cover up one scandal with another. Of course, he was still stuck on being a media darling—the hero all the magazines wanted on their covers and the one all the kids tweeted about. Kissing Liberty would cement that reputation and only increase his popularity. The more that happened, the less Valor would want to come out as bi.

  Really, what business of it was theirs? Who cared who Valor slept with, as long as he was putting the bad guys away? Socket wiped the video from the screen. At least he knew whose bed Valor would be in tonight. That was something none of these reporter idiots would ever understand. They were welcome to their gossip and speculation.

  He heard the door slide open behind him. Socket didn’t have to turn around to know it was Valor, and not just because Valor was the only one the door would unlock for without Socket giving the order. “So, nice diversion on the money question there.”

  “Socket, I’m sorry.”

  Valor sounded wrecked. Socket swiveled around in his chair. He expected a joke, since that’s how they always dealt with their issues, ever since high school. Valor stood against the opposite wall with his arms crossed over his chest, as if hoping the wall would just swallow him up. His obvious guilt did a lot to mend the worry at the back of Socket’s mind. Of course Valor cared about him, despite his nightly disappearing acts.

  Socket licked his lips, appreciating the figure Valor cut in his costume—all perfect lines of solid, hard muscle. He didn’t have a problem letting Valor off the hook for this. “Honestly, I wish I’d thought of it. That’s one way to get them to stop connecting The Division to BarTec.”