The storm moved off, leaving the rain tapping quietly above them as their breathing slowed back to normal. While his breath might have returned to its regular rhythm, he knew he would never be the same.
“I want you,” she said so quietly he wasn’t sure he’d heard her.
For a moment, he misunderstood and thought she wanted him again physically. He didn’t want to disappoint her, but he could barely move, let alone perform again.
But she swallowed and started over. “I want you to come with me,” she clarified as she raised her head from his chest and looked at him steadily.
His eyes widened in surprise. He’d actually convinced her to believe in him. To let someone help her.
He tried to rein in his smile, but the triumphant feeling that overcame him was too much to hold in.
“Promise me you won’t get yourself killed,” she said, her eyes serious.
He remembered how many times his mother had made this same request of his father when he went off to work. At a loss for how to answer, he stole his father’s reply. “I promise to do my best.”
He had no doubt his father played it safe. With a wife and five sons at home, he wouldn’t have taken risks. But the job was dangerous and there were no guarantees.
Colton’s poor mother had to sit back and watch as one by one, her sons had followed in their father’s footsteps. That last time, Colton was guilty of giving her a quick hug and telling her he would be careful. The promise was as natural and easygoing as hello and goodbye. And just as meaningless.
Because Colton hadn’t come back.
He hadn’t lied. He had been careful. He’d played his part well, and stayed close to Viktor’s inner circle without calling attention to himself. He’d been a shadow.
Until Viktor figured it out.
Colton had been following the entourage through a marina. Nothing out of the ordinary about that. Viktor moved a lot of things by boat. But there was no boat docked. While Colton found that odd, it wasn’t unheard of to arrive early before a boat came in. Especially if the Coast Guard or the police were nearby.
Viktor had simply stopped walking and turned to Weller with a nod.
“Get rid of our problem,” he’d said, or something to that effect. Weller had pulled out a gun and pointed it at Colton.
Colton jumped up, sweaty and choking for breath. Since they’d fallen asleep on the sofa, Angel was jarred awake, as well.
“You okay?” she asked, rubbing his back as he sat on the edge of the couch.
To tell her that their plans had brought back bad memories would make her second-guess her decision to let him come with her to face the killer. He couldn’t give her a reason to change her mind.
“I’m great.” He stood and reached for her hand. “Let’s go to bed.”
“I’ll just stay here. I probably won’t sleep much longer.”
“I said let’s go to bed. I didn’t mean to sleep.”
“Oh.” She smiled and took his hand.
Chapter Ninety-Two
After another round of too-hot sex, Angel had taken her place in the living room, searching for information in every corner of the internet.
She’d received another email from Redgamer3 after no word for weeks.
You’re not even trying anymore.
I’m ready to get this over with.
See you soon.
Again with the three line messages. It was like a haiku with the wrong number of syllables. The guy probably thought it was clever. Angel just found it annoying.
When he’d told her he was watching her, she hadn’t been sure, but now it was clear he wasn’t, or he would have known she had been indisposed for the last few days trekking across Oregon with a sprained ankle.
But now he seemed to want to move things forward. And she was ready.
She frowned at her ankle. The one she had propped up to reduce the swelling. Okay, almost ready.
At about ten o’clock the next night, while Colton was folding his laundry at the other end of the sofa, she finally got a break when she logged into Noah’s email and saw an email from Redgamer3.
“Hot damn!” she shouted and clapped her hands in glee.
“What is it?” Colton asked.
“Redgamer3 responded to Noah. They’re setting up a meeting. He’s making Noah pay him at the drop instead of waiting for Noah to cash out.”
“Does Noah have the money?” Colton wrinkled his nose. It made him look younger. Like the boy next door instead of the sexy DEA agent.
“No. But in his reply he said he does, so Jim is going to meet him.” She paused for a moment before deciding to share the rest.
“You’re frowning. What’s the problem? Isn’t that what you wanted to happen?”
She let out a slow breath. “Redgamer3 emailed me, too. He said he would see me soon. He knows I’m watching. He’s expecting me to show up at their meeting. It doesn’t make any sense.”
This bastard had bested her and gotten away with murder. He had the ability to cover himself so well she wouldn’t have seen the details of the drop. But he was luring her into the meet.
Why?
“Is it okay if I just wait for you to explain yourself?” Colton asked, shaking out a T-shirt and folding it precisely. What an excellent husband he would make someday.
For someone else.
“Redgamer3, or Jim—or whoever he or she is—is smarter than this. They planned this whole thing seamlessly. They drugged my toothpaste, for Christ’s sake. They have to know Noah doesn’t have the funds. Why would they agree to meet him and send me an invitation to come, too?”
“Maybe they want to kill him. To shut him up so someone else will buy it. With Noah out of the way, there won’t be anyone to threaten his potential buyers.”
Colton had come to the same conclusion she’d just reached, but that didn’t explain why Redgamer3 would involve her.
But Colton wasn’t finished. “And he’s made sure you’re there so he can set you up to take the fall for Noah’s death, as well.”
She swallowed. She hadn’t pieced that part together yet, but it made sense. She nodded slowly as she played the idea through her deputy marshal filter. “Yeah.”
Colton cleared his throat. “He could be setting it up as a deal gone bad. With you and Noah there together, he could kill you both, making it look like you killed Noah and he shot you as you were getting away. It would wrap things up nicely, and he would be completely in the clear.”
Oh God, he was right. It all made terrible sense now.
“We have to protect Noah,” she said reluctantly.
Protect the asshole who had hired someone to kill his own brother. She almost wished she could close the email and pretend she hadn’t read it.
But she couldn’t.
Colton rubbed his palms together, no doubt in anticipation for the coming action and excitement, and said, “I guess it’s time to make a plan.”
Angel was glad to have the chance to do something. But she didn’t feel excited. She wanted it to be over with so she could get on with her life.
A life she dearly wished she could spend with Colton.
But she couldn’t do that, either.
Chapter Ninety-Three
Thankfully, the meeting had been set up for next week, which would give Angel’s ankle time to heal.
She’d been good about keeping it propped up and not using it. Which seemed to be working. The nasty purple had faded into a yellow-green color. And it looked like an ankle once again. It didn’t hurt when she put weight on it anymore, but running was still a bad word.
“I’m going shopping,” Colton announced after lunch. She knew he didn’t mean for groceries. “If you’re good, I’ll get you something extra special.” Colton grinned as he leaned in to kiss her.
“I’m never good.”
“Which makes you amazing.” He pulled her close for a kiss, and soon his hands moved to her hips. She expected him to take them to the bedroom, but instead, he u
sed his grip to push her back. “We’ll continue this when I get back.” He gave her an evil grin and left.
Well, hell.
If this was his new plan to keep her from leaving, it was working. Although, of course, she wasn’t with him just for the amazing sex. It was the man himself she wanted most of all.
She shook her head and let Pudge out before going back to her computer. A few minutes later, the back door opened and Pudge came running over to her.
“How did you do that?” she asked the dog, worried she’d been drugged again.
“Oh, hello,” a woman said from the kitchen. “I didn’t realize anyone was here. I saw Duncan leave a little while ago. I just wanted to put some apple dumplings in Duncan’s refrigerator. Don’t mind me.”
Don’t mind me? That would be easier to do if Angel weren’t a fugitive and the woman weren’t looking right at her.
“I’m Deb. From next door. You must be Duncan’s girlfriend.”
“Uh, yes. I’m Cassie Benton, Duncan’s ex— Er, girlfriend. It’s nice to meet you. I’ve heard many good things about the apple dumplings.” Angel wanted to turn the frantic smile on her face down to a normal level, but she had a gun sitting out on the coffee table and no way to move it without calling attention to it.
The woman simply smiled and turned to shove a foil-covered tray into the refrigerator. Angel made her move. With a quick motion, she tucked the gun under the sofa cushion.
“Is Duncan teaching you to shoot, too?”
“Um. Yes.” Her pride twisted a bit just to say it. She was a much better shot than Colton. Even he had said so. Which didn’t matter at the moment. She needed to relax and try not to look like the girl plastered on every TV screen across the land.
“Kenny has been going on and on about it. It was good of Duncan to spend some time with him. I think it made an impression. The boy might actually turn out okay. And if he does, he has Duncan to thank for it.”
“Yes.” That was easy to agree with, since it was true.
“A single woman needs to be able to protect herself,” Deb said airily.
“Yes. Definitely.”
“I used to watch those crime dramas on television, and the horrible stories would worry me into a panic. Now I don’t even watch the news. It’s better not to know.”
Oh, thank God.
“You’re right about that.” Angel relaxed, hoping the woman hadn’t seen her face anywhere else. Colton told her she’d been on the front of one of those gossip magazines at the grocery store last week.
“Should I leave one of these out for you? I don’t have to tell Duncan how many there were originally.” The older woman winked, and Angel smiled.
The woman didn’t watch the news, so she probably hadn’t seen her photo. Besides, who would jump to such an outlandish conclusion when they first met someone? Especially if the person didn’t put you in mind of a killer.
“He won’t mind sharing his dumplings. He’s great that way,” Angel said as she stepped closer to take in the delicious scents.
“Yes, he’s one of the good ones. And so handsome. I’m pointing that out in case you haven’t noticed.”
“Oh, I’ve noticed.”
Many, many times. It would be hard not to. For months after she left the first time, she’d catch herself thinking about the muscles of his back bunching under her palms, or the way the sun glinted off the gold strands in his light brown hair, or those eyes. Serious as an ocean storm and the same color.
“That’s good. Because Mrs. Sutherland—at the end of the block—has also noticed him, and she’s going through a divorce. I’ve heard talk that she’s set her sights on our Duncan.”
Our Duncan?
“Okay. Thanks for the heads up.” End of the block. Got it.
“The women all plant themselves at their front windows every morning when he goes for a run.”
Seriously? “I bet.”
“They’re all pretty disappointed he’s missed his runs lately.”
“Maybe I should charge admission,” Angel joked. She couldn’t wait to tease Colton about this. He was absolutely going to die of embarrassment.
“You would be a wealthy woman.” Deb bent to pet Pudge. “I’ll spread word that he has someone living with him. That should give him some room to breathe. For a few days, anyway.”
“Wow. Not much excitement around here, eh?”
“You have no idea.
Angel suddenly understood why he was so bored.
They laughed together, and she realized this woman reminded her of her mother, and how funny she had once been. The pain took Angel’s breath for a moment. She hadn’t remembered that. When she thought of her mother, she only saw the sadness and worry that had plagued her last years as her son had plunged farther into the abyss.
Normally, she saw her mother the way she’d last seen her—staring lifeless toward the door as her oldest child continued stabbing her while dripping with her blood.
Tears sprang to Angel’s eyes, but she blinked them into submission and pasted a wobbly smile on her face.
Justin had warned her she couldn’t have this. That she couldn’t have friends who made apple dumplings. She couldn’t have innocent chitchat and jokes.
She couldn’t have a future with a man who filled her heart with love and happiness.
“Take care of our boys,” Deb said as she moved toward the door. “And Pudge, you take care of Cassie.”
Angel twitched at her real name. It made her feel small and vulnerable. But…not necessarily in a bad way.
Pudge’s only reply was to paw at the woman’s leg, begging for her to pet him again.
“It was nice to meet you,” Deb said cheerily. “I’m sure we’ll have time to talk more at another time, but I have a doctor’s appointment I need to get to.”
“Sure. Thanks for the apple dumplings. You’ve made Colton’s day. Mine, too.”
When the woman was gone, Angel slumped onto the sofa and let her head fall to her knees. She focused on her breathing so everything else could spin away.
She had a mission to plan. She couldn’t be distracted by how much she wished she could set up a time to have tea with the neighbor lady.
But she couldn’t have that.
Not as long as a killer was still on the loose.
Not as long as her job still took precedence.
Not as long as her past still haunted her.
Chapter Ninety-Four
Angel was ready.
Scratch that—they were ready. Because she had a partner for this job. Possibly the most important job of her life.
Over the past few days, she’d tried again and again to talk Colton out of coming with her. But he was unshakable. It didn’t help that she understood. If their roles were reversed, she wouldn’t have backed down, either.
It was almost fun seeing how much he enjoyed being a part of the plan. He seemed to come alive. Colton had all their supplies packed, and with her help he’d even used Google Maps to route their trip.
“Deb next door is going to watch Pudge and pick up my mail,” he said while standing in the kitchen going over their gear. “Am I forgetting anything?”
To anyone else, it might have looked like they were planning a different kind of trip. But instead of packing beach towels, they were checking rounds of ammo.
She smiled at his honest-to-God list of things he was checking off. Take out the trash was right after pack bulletproof vests. Each had a little checkmark next to it.
She shook her head indulgently. “I think you’ve covered everything.”
“When I was a DEA agent, I didn’t have a home and a pet to be responsible for,” he said, a tad defensively. “Which isn’t a bad thing. I’m still one hundred percent in the game. Now that I know my dog is taken care of.”
As often as Colton complained about his mundane life, she could see how much he valued it. She had to admit, she enjoyed the quiet home life as well. It was something she’d wanted for a long time, b
ut every time she’d considered leaving Task Force Phoenix, another job would come up that needed her skillset.
She could never turn her back on Thorne when he needed her. Not after what he’d done to give her a decent life. At twenty, she’d been heading down a bad path. She’d been in jail for a month, with almost two years of her sentence left to go. She’d made a lot of mistakes and gotten mixed up with the wrong crowd. But Thorne had given her another chance, and had offered her a home, of sorts. She would never be able to repay him for that.
The last thing to go in the truck was a big bag of snacks. Just like a real road trip. Colton had selected her favorites, and she was touched. They had a long drive ahead of them.
As he checked the back door again and turned off the lights, she swallowed. This wasn’t a vacation. This was a mission.
A dangerous mission.
To kill or be killed.
Chapter Ninety-Five
After an hour on the road, Colton was still surprised he’d been allowed to come along. Over the last week, Angel had made a few attempts to change the plan, but he’d won every argument.
Not that it was much of an argument. He could see the struggle behind her blue eyes. She wanted him with her. She just didn’t want him in danger. But she couldn’t have one without the other.
In the end, he’d made the decision for her. He just hoped it didn’t end in disaster for either of them.
He knew she was a trained U.S. Deputy Marshal. He knew she could put down a man twice her size. He knew she was a good shot. He was proof that it didn’t matter how big you were when the other person had a gun.
But his heart knew how much he loved her, and how badly he would break if something happened to her.
He reached across the console and took her hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze. He would keep her safe, even if he had to die doing it.
“Thank you for coming with me,” Angel said, her voice so low he thought he might have imagined it.
He had no choice but to take his eyes off the road to check to see if she was joking, or if he was having auditory hallucinations. Maybe his body wasn’t processing all the adrenaline properly.
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