A groan rumbled from deep inside his chest. A sexy sound that made her want to watch him. His shoulders stiffened and his hands tightened on the backs of her thighs. The pleasure hit him and shook through his whole body. When he finally collapsed on top of her, she wrapped her legs and arms around him and held on.
Minutes passed, maybe more. Without moving, she closed her eyes and let the heat from his body seep into hers. His body grew heavy and her stomach rumbled.
That last issue needed to be addressed. She couldn’t ignore that sound for very long. After that workout, she needed food. “Connor.”
“Yeah?” He mumbled the question into her hair.
The hot puffs of air against her skin tempted her to put food off for just a little longer. “I am so hungry.”
He laughed as he lifted off her and rolled to the side. “Lucky for you there’s food just a few steps away.”
“Good. I need my strength.”
He flipped over to his back and lay there in a sexy sprawl with his eyes closed. “I’m hoping that means we’re doing this again tonight. Maybe a few times.”
She sat up and rested a hand on his very impressive chest. “Definitely, but I meant for tomorrow.”
He opened one eye and looked up at her. “What happens tomorrow?”
She traced a circle on his bare, damp skin, prolonging the inevitable. “I tell Evan to go home.”
Both of Connor’s eyes opened now. “I really want to celebrate that idea, but you weren’t wrong earlier. He is the expert. Asshole or not, he knows what he’s doing.”
Wow. That probably took a lot for him to admit. She could almost hear him grit his teeth in resignation.
“He can be less of a jerk while doing it.” Maddie didn’t actually have any proof of that. Evan had always been heavy-handed. But she could hope.
Connor must have sensed her doubts because he smiled. “Is he actually capable of that?”
“He will listen or he’s gone.” And she meant that. Whatever it took, danger or no, it was time for her life to move forward.
Chapter 22
Maddie met Evan for coffee the next morning. She’d rather be home with Connor, relaxing in bed and eating leftover noodles, but she didn’t have that choice. She had no interest in refereeing a battle between Evan and Connor, so the male posturing nonsense needed to stop. The biggest perpetrator was in front of her.
They sat away from the window because that’s what Evan always did. He found a corner and faced out to the room with his back protected by a wall. She doubted he realized he did it. The move probably was a habit by now but it was one of those things she could count on. For instance, the fact that half the room stared at them but pretended not to. They likely thought she was cheating on Connor with a man they didn’t know . . . as if that would ever happen.
She ignored the interested looks and the older ladies who ran the yarn shop. They sat at the table two down and literally leaned in.
Let them listen.
Her focus stayed on the man in front of her to whom she owed so much but still couldn’t stand most days. “We need to come to an understanding.”
Evan leaned back in his chair and let out a long this-is-boring breath. “I agree, but the terms are clear.”
Not to her. Not to Connor or Ben or anyone who knew about her past. “I’m no longer in the program.”
“That’s your choice and a bad one.”
The same refrain. He jumped over her feelings and the limits of his job, which brought the question that had been pricking the back of her mind right to the front. “Once I’m out, I’m out. That’s how the program works.”
“Not necessarily.”
“Is it standard procedure for you to leave the office and try to convince someone to get back in?”
“My boss gave me a few days to come here and talk some sense into you.” He took a sip of coffee. “Since I have other work and other people under my protection who aren’t running from my help, I’m hoping I won’t need the full five days I was given to get you back in the program.”
He always did that. Zoomed in on her weakness—other people. Fed her guilt and used it against her.
Not this time.
“Ned, Grant, and Allison—everyone involved in the incident in the past—are dead.” She stumbled over the word. She knew she always would. “The people in prison who were messed up with Ned and Grant and their bribery schemes are in prison because of evidence the FBI uncovered, not because of me. None of them should be looking to me for revenge.”
“Yet you’re being threatened.” He leaned forward, balancing his elbows on the table and closing the distance between them as he kept his voice low, just above a whisper. “You left that part out.”
“Someone found me and is trying to scare me. Someone wants to make sure I never forget what happened, as if I could.”
“I missed the note that explained all that. Do you have it?” His voice dripped with sarcasm.
“I can’t do this anymore. I don’t want to live in the shadows and peek out now and then. Panic about everything and everyone.” She’d said the same words in different ways so many times. Thought them. Wrote them. Signed paperwork forfeiting WITSEC protection. Still, no one listened. Certainly not Evan.
He didn’t know what it was like. None of them did. Safety stayed foremost in her mind. She lived and breathed it. Panic and danger followed her, suffocated her. All those years of pretending to be this new person, being cut off from everything she’d ever known and the people she loved—her mother, friends—took a toll. She morphed from human to shell, never getting close to anyone. Never trusting a person or a thing she heard.
They told her she would adjust. She’d make new friends and create a new life. Maybe that worked for other people, but not her. She entered the program alone and she knew if she didn’t get out, she would die alone. That simple fact combined with Ned’s death in prison made her leave.
“Please tell me this is not because you found a boyfriend. Like, he wants you to go to business dinners and join the country club or some dumb shit, so you have to take the risk for him.”
It struck her that Evan didn’t think very much of her. He saw her as weak and easy to lead around. That she could ignore. Targeting Connor she wouldn’t. “Don’t take shots at him.”
“I’ve read his file. He can handle it. Or he could until recently.” Evan shook his head. “The family is very worried about him.”
He’d tried that tactic before and it hadn’t worked. She didn’t know why he thought it would now. “Connor has nothing to do with this.”
“He makes you reckless.”
She tightened her grip on her coffee mug. “He makes me strong.”
“You’re a survivor without him.”
But he didn’t believe that. Connor was the one who did. “That’s exactly what he says about me.”
Evan made a low harsh sound before sitting back in his chair again. “This is ridiculous. If you weren’t so busy thinking about getting under him, you’d be more concerned with your own safety.”
Anger spiked inside of her. It hit her with a shot of heat and spiraled through every vein. “Watch it, Evan. That tough talk might work with other people you handle. Not me.”
Their voices must have risen because a few diners sitting close by didn’t pretend to be busy with their breakfasts. They actually stared openly now. One of the older yarn store ladies frowned at Evan. Looked like she might smack him with a spoon.
The mood in the dining room shifted. Curious whispers took on a more pointed feel. Evan lowered his voice again. “Look, you’re right. I’ve overstepped, maybe gone off when I should have stayed silent, but all of this is because I’m concerned.”
Those few words were as close as she would ever get to an apology. “I get that, but Connor is off-limits.”
“He’s got a pristine reputation. If he knew what you did—”
“He does.”
That seemed to stop Evan for a secon
d. He sat there, scowling but not talking. “Okay, but do you really know him?”
He pummeled her with every argument. Hit her from every angle. None of it would work.
“I will. But from him, not you.” Because that was the point of being whole again. She got to live her life, and that included making mistakes and going into free fall over a guy she barely knew.
“What if we confirm the PI was here for you? And we both know we will.” All of the anger had left his voice. He sounded reasonable and concerned now. Genuine in his need to get through to her. “Chances are he’s working for someone from your past. Someone who wanted to track you down and kill you.”
“Why would that be the case?”
“Does that matter?” He pushed his coffee mug out of the way and leaned in closer, dropping his voice so low that she had to strain to hear him. “The bottom line is you’re in trouble and because he’s sleeping with you, Connor is a target, too. Can his family really survive losing another child in a violent and unexpected way?”
This time the guilt slammed into her. Evan finally drilled down and hit on the one thing guaranteed to make her rethink everything.
“You made your point.” She closed her eyes for a second before facing him again.
“Answer my question.”
She thought about Alexis and Connor’s parents. About how Hansen had fallen into an angry spiral after losing his sister. So much pain and none of it their fault. She would not be the reason they experienced more. “If all of what you think is true and Owen Pritchard was hunting me down so that someone else can literally stalk me . . .” She swallowed hard and said the one thought she couldn’t kick out of her head. “I’ll reassess my decision on the program.”
Evan nodded. “Then you should start packing.”
Connor tagged along with Ben to Stark’s Marina. He didn’t really give Ben a choice about taking him since the idea of sitting in on Maddie and Evan’s conversation was out of the question. Maddie never would have agreed.
The plan was to be there if Dom needed a reminder of their previous conversation about the man and the water taxi. Ben seemed to think Dom might suffer from convenient amnesia in an attempt to avoid questioning. No doubt that Ben’s job really sucked.
They got out of the car and didn’t say much. Sipped on the coffees in their hands and listened to the thud of their footsteps as they walked to the pier.
A few cars lined the parking lot and boats bobbed in the water. The clanking of metal and splashing water sounded all around them. It was almost as strong as the stark smell of water and fish. The fishery business was alive and well here. Connor could see the last of the boats taking off, heading to more open water.
Ben broke the silence. “You okay?”
“Ever notice you spend a lot of time worrying about me?” That fact worked on Connor’s nerves. He hated being the one people worried about. He’d never lived his life that way. He stepped in, he handled whatever needed to be handled, but for the last few months, and for almost every minute since he stepped on Whitaker, people had been looking out for him. Never mind that he could take care of himself.
Ben laughed. “You are a full-time job.”
“I’m the easy Rye brother.”
“So you keep saying.”
Connor stopped and wasn’t surprised when Ben did, too. One thing Connor wanted to be clear about before much more time passed. “That Evan guy . . .”
“I’m not a fan either, but don’t miss the main point.”
“Which is?”
Ben walked over to the trash can and threw his empty cup away. Drew out his answer by waving to a family walking their dog and to a group of men who looked like they were playing cards on crates stacked on the pier.
He finally turned his attention to Connor. “Evan is a pain in the ass but his only job is to keep her safe.”
Dom appeared out of nowhere and walked right between them, breaking their conversation. “Ben.” He nodded, then looked at Connor. “And you. You’re back.”
As charming and welcoming as the last time. Connor lived all of his life in and around cities. People walked past each other, not seeing anything. Here everyone had something to say all the time, relevant or not. “We had such a nice talk when we tried before.”
Dom snorted. “If you say so.”
“I need to ask a few questions,” Ben said.
“Uh-huh.” Dom used his chin to gesture toward Connor. “Why is he here?”
Before he could answer, Ben did it for him. “Woman trouble.”
“Ah, I get it.” Dom whistled as a look of sympathy briefly crossed his face. “They worm their way in and mess things up.”
Ben joined in the commiserating. “Amen to that.”
“Go ahead. Be quick with your questions. I’ve got business.”
“The man you told Maddie about, the one you brought to the island and think is still here. Is this him?” Ben showed Dom a photo.
Connor didn’t look because of the blood and death thing. He’d seen enough of that person on his property.
Dom shoved the photo away. “That guy’s dead.”
“That’s the problem, yes.”
Dom looked at Connor. “He’s the one you found?”
The Whitaker gossip seemed to be moving at its usual high-speed pace. “Yes.”
Dom sighed before plucking the photo out of Ben’s fingers and studying it. “Shit, yeah. That’s him.”
“You’re sure?” Ben tucked the photo back in his shirt pocket. He didn’t wear a uniform. Only the badge on his jacket indicated who and what he was on Whitaker.
“I said I was.”
Ben didn’t get sidetracked by Dom’s gruff response. He pushed on, doing his job. “Do you have any records about his trips? Credit card receipts. A log. Anything?”
“He paid cash.” Dom shot Connor a frown that said this is your fault. “I checked after you came snooping around.”
“Did he give you a name?” Ben asked.
“Why would I need a name with a cash transaction?”
Connor lost his patience. He had no idea how Ben held on to his. “Are you trying to make this discussion difficult?”
Dom let out a long sigh. “There’s not much to tell. This guy and the woman came on the island and didn’t leave.”
What the hell? “Woman?”
The question didn’t stop Dom. He kept telling his story as if he hadn’t added a new piece of information. “I don’t know anything about them or where they’ve been or who stabbed him, but maybe Connor here isn’t the only one having woman trouble.”
“What woman?” Ben asked.
“The one with him.”
Connor started to think the good people of Whitaker got together and planned how to be obtuse. They were very skilled at it. “You didn’t tell us about a woman when we talked to you before.”
“You didn’t specifically ask about her.”
He sounded so rational that Connor wasn’t sure what to say in response. Conversations were an endless game here. He blamed the isolation and boredom because just when he thought he knew the answer, the objective changed and he had to switch strategy. “You’ve got to be kidding.”
Ben’s usual neutral expression slipped. “Dom, what the hell?”
“I didn’t know this guy.” Dom threw his arm out in Connor’s general direction. “Hell, I barely know Maddie.”
That wasn’t right. Connor remembered Maddie talking about visiting Dom. “She comes here all the time and asks you questions.”
“She bugs me, but we never talk for more than ten minutes. Even then, she’s focused on one topic only.” Dom made a grumbling noise. “Why should I go talking about people’s private stuff with her or with you?”
Connor gave up trying to explain. “So you lied to us.”
“No,” Dom said. “I was careful about what I shared. That’s what smart people do.”
Connor took a step in Dom’s direction. He had no idea what he was going t
o do, but Ben’s arm held him back.
“What did she look like?” Ben asked.
“A woman.” When they both stared at him, Dom continued. “Look, I don’t have a memory for details unless it’s stuff I care about. I didn’t care about this couple or people in general.”
Connor refused to let that be the end of the conversation. “Try.”
“She was younger than him. More attractive than him. All I remember is thinking they didn’t match as a couple.”
“I’m going to need you to come in and give a better description.”
“That’s a waste of time.”
“That’s what you get for lying to Connor and Maddie.” Ben started to walk away. “I need you in by the end of the day.”
“This is why I don’t get involved.”
Ben ignored the comment and so did Connor. He’d had enough of Dom and the quirky Whitaker types for the day.
He waited until they neared the parking lot and moved out of earshot. Where Dom’s grumbling wasn’t quite so close or so loud. “Now what?”
“I check the open properties, looking for a woman.”
That didn’t sound like a real plan to Connor. More like a hope. “But what woman? How does she fit in?”
Ben shook his head. “I have no damn idea.”
Chapter 23
It was early afternoon before Maddie saw Connor again. They’d met back at home with a kiss but nothing else. Once she heard the story about the woman, and Dom keeping secrets for stupid reasons, she couldn’t think of anything else. But she had a plan.
Now to convince Connor to help her.
She waited until he walked into her kitchen and got a glass out of the cabinet. He poured a glass of water while she watched. When he offered her one, she declined. She couldn’t afford to get sidetracked right now.
“It will be faster if we help him.” As she talked, he eyed her over the rim of his glass but didn’t say anything. She took that as a sign to keep pitching. “We can search some of the places this woman might hide.”
The Secret She Keeps Page 16