The Diehard Warrior

by Youngblood, Jennifer

  A server approached with a plate of food. She placed it in front of Addie, but her eyes remained trained on Maddox. “Hey,” she said, interest lighting her features.

  Oh, no. Not her too! “Hey, how ya doing?” Maddox said with a curt nod. What was it about the women in this town? They acted like they’d never seen a man before. If only Addie were one-tenth as enamored with him. Even when they were together, she’d played it cool, always making him work for her affection. As frustrating as it was, he liked that about her.

  “Can I get you something to eat?” the server asked.

  A wicked idea took root in his mind. “Just an extra plate.” He looked at Addie. “I’ll share with her.”

  Her eyebrow lifted. “Oh, no you won’t.”

  “Come on, Addie,” he drawled, laying his Southern accent on thick. “It’ll be like old times.” He reached over and grabbed one of her fries and plopped it into his mouth.

  “Fine,” she relented, rolling her eyes.

  “One extra plate coming right up. What would you like to drink?”

  “Club soda with lime.”

  “You got it,” the server clipped, walking away.

  “My name’s Madison, by the way.”

  “You said that already,” Addie said dryly. “But in your defense, it must’ve flown right out of your head.” She wrinkled her nose, a cheeky smile curving her lips. “All that air.”

  Maddox coughed to cover his startled laugh. He put a hand over his mouth, feeling like a louse, especially when he saw Madison’s downcast expression.

  She managed to hitch the corners of her smile up quickly though. “You should come over and let me introduce you to my friends. I’m sure they’d love to meet you,” she chirped. He followed Madison’s look and saw the women at the table. They flashed gargantuan smiles and waved. He nodded and waved back. Awkward.

  Madison stood and tugged on his arm. “Come on.”

  This was getting out of control fast—a runaway train with no brakes, headed for a cliff.

  “Thanks, but I came here to speak to Addie.”

  Madison’s lips turned down into a pout. “That’s too bad.”

  It was fun watching the triumphant expression on Addie’s face.

  “Nice meeting you, Madison,” he said, signaling that their conversation was over.

  She touched her hair, uncertainty creeping into her eyes. “Would you like my number?”

  His lips turned down. “I’m afraid not. My girlfriend wouldn’t like that very much.” He glanced at Addie as he spoke and saw a flicker of surprise before a curtain veiled her eyes.

  Madison’s smile faltered. “Who’s your girlfriend?” Her hand went to her hip. “Addie?” She asked the question like it left a nasty taste in her mouth.

  A beat stretched long and tense as Maddox looked across the table at Addie. Her expression was unreadable. “No,” he finally said. “That ship has sailed.” The finality of the words clunked against his insides like nails in a coffin. “Her name is Felicity.”

  Madison flicked her hair. “Too bad. If you ever change your mind, look me up.” Her gaze lingered on him long enough to make him feel uncomfortable.

  “Sure thing.” He offered a polite smile.

  She turned on her heel and sauntered back to the table across the room.

  Addie took a large bite of her sandwich. She chewed and washed it down with a drink of water. “It looks like you made quite an impression on Madison Wells. Congratulations. She’s been chasing Corbin for years. Now that she realizes he’s taken, she’s setting her sights a little lower.”

  “Ouch. You know how to hit a man where it hurts, don’t you?” A grin slid over his lips. “Admit it. You were jealous.”

  Color seeped into Addie’s cheeks, making her look adorable. “Was not!”

  He laughed. “You were and you know it.”

  Her eyes flashed. “You wish.”

  Well, he couldn’t argue with that. Addie’s feistiness was one of the things he loved most about her. He winced inwardly at the word love. Somehow, he was going to have to find a way to rid her from his system.

  The server returned with the club soda and extra plate. “If you need anything else, let me know.”

  Maddox smiled. “Thanks.”

  Addie kept eating. He motioned at the food. “Are you gonna share, or what?”

  She pursed her lips. “I suppose.” He slid the empty plate towards her. She reached for a handful of fries and plopped them on his plate. Then, she placed half a sandwich beside the fries—the half she’d eaten from.

  He laughed in surprise. “Seriously?”

  Her eyes met his in defiance. “Seriously. You charge in here unannounced and interrupt my lunch.” She shoved the plate in his direction. “Beggars can’t be choosy.”

  Man, Addie had moxie. Never a dull moment with her. “All right. I guess I’ll take what I can get.” He took a bite of the sandwich. It was very good.

  “You never did answer my question.”

  “Huh?” He took a drink of the club soda, appreciating how it burned down his throat.

  She leaned forward. “Why’re you here?”

  He rolled his eyes, growing tired of Addie’s accusatory attitude. “It shouldn’t take a genius to connect the dots. Corbin sent me to protect you.”

  She’d been about to take a bite of a fry. Instead, she threw it down. “Are you kidding me?”

  “Nope.” He put a fry in his mouth and made a point of chewing it slowly. He wasn’t going to let Addie get him riled. He’d promised Corbin he’d help and that’s what he was here to do.

  She scoffed, shaking her head. “This is just like my brother to use Jordan’s death as an opportunity to get us back together.”

  He tensed. “Don’t flatter yourself, darlin’. This has nothing to do with our past relationship. Yes, I was upset when you dumped me, but I moved on.”

  Something indiscernible flashed in her eyes. “With Felicity.”

  He had the urge to laugh uncontrollably. Felicity? Couldn’t he have come up with a better option than her?

  Her eyes widened. “You know why I broke up with you.”

  “Yes, you explained your reasoning very thoroughly.” The hurt and anger rushed back with a vengeance.

  She clutched her napkin. “I thought you were dead.”

  “Sorry to disappoint you.”

  He was surprised to see tears glistening in her eyes. “I went to your funeral. Mourned your death.”

  A gush of tenderness crowded out the anger. This time, he couldn’t stop himself from touching her hand. Electricity zinged through him when their skin connected. He could tell from her startled expression that she felt it too. For a second, he forgot about his own heartache and thought about everything Addie had been through. In her defense, it would be hard to love someone with a dangerous profession. He’d come very close to not coming back from Syria. While he and his fellow SEALs had escaped, they were still living with the emotional scars. Even though he was no longer a SEAL, his profession was still just as dangerous. “I’m sorry for all of the turmoil I’ve put you through.”

  She jerked like she’d not heard him correctly.

  “I mean that.” She’d not moved her hand from underneath his. Warmth from her skin seeped into him and he felt like time had been peeled away, that they’d never been apart. Then in the time it took for him to take his next breath, something changed. She removed her hand and sat back, drawing into herself. What in the heck had just happened? Sometimes, Addie completely mystified him. There was only one way to make this job work. He had to clear the air once and for all, put her at ease about their relationship.

  “Look, you don’t need to worry. I didn’t come here to try and start things up with you.” Liar, his mind screamed. “I came because Corbin said you were in trouble. He couldn’t come, so I took his place.”

  Her lips formed a tight line. “I see.”

  “I’ll always care about you as a friend.” The words
rang false in his own ears. “Like I told Madison, I’m with someone else now.”

  “Felicity.”

  “Yes.” He forced a smile. “So you see, you have nothing to worry about.”

  Her eyes went harder than granite. “That’s good to know.” She scooted back her chair and stood. “You know what? I appreciate you coming, but I don’t need any help.”

  He jumped to his feet. “How can you say that?” He lowered his voice. “You don’t know why someone killed Jordan or why your home was broken into. Corbin’s worried sick about you. Even as we speak, he’s getting his boss to check into the situation.”

  “You mean the billionaire philanthropist Sutton Smith. Who’s also your boss.”

  “Yes.” He didn’t know how much Addie knew about Sutton’s private security company, so he figured it was better to keep the conversation generic.

  She raised her chin. The look in her eyes reminded him of a headstrong horse about to bolt. “I’m sorry you wasted a trip, but I don’t need your help.”

  He caught hold of her arm. “Don’t be ridiculous, Addie. This is a serious situation. From the sound of it, you need all the help you can get.”

  Fire flashed in her eyes. “Not from you.” She jerked her arm out of his grasp. “Go back to your girlfriend,” she muttered as she stomped out.

  Crud! He couldn’t let her go like that. He needed to keep her in his sight at all times. She was the most stubborn, infuriating woman on the planet. He thought she’d be relieved if he told her he had a girlfriend, but she was acting ticked about it, which made no sense. Addie had broken up with him, not the other way around.

  He pulled his wallet from his pocket and slapped down a twenty-dollar bill before rushing after her.

  6

  Addie’s mind was on fire as she drove away from the diner. Too furious to go back to work, she headed for home. When she turned onto the highway leading to the cabin, she reached in her purse for her phone. Holding the steering wheel with one hand, she called Corbin with the other.

  He answered on the first ring. “Hey, sis.”

  “How dare you get Maddox to come here!” she exploded. “You had no right to interfere with my personal relationship.”

  There was a stunned silence on the other end of the line. She clutched the phone tighter. “Are you there?”

  “I’m here,” came his curt reply. “You called me for help, remember?”

  She blew out a breath. “Yeah, that was my first mistake.”

  “Seriously?” Corbin barked out a laugh. “What crawled up your shorts? You need to take it down a few notches, so we can discuss this like adults.”

  A hysterical laugh bubbled in her throat. “You’re telling me to be an adult? Ha! That’s ironic.”

  “What do you mean by that?”

  It was on the tip of Addie’s tongue to unload on Corbin, rehashing events from their past like how when Gram got sick, Corbin left, leaving her holding the bag. She stared at the ribbon of road ahead, tears stinging her eyes as she clutched the steering wheel with both hands, the phone cradled on her shoulder. She and Corbin were in a good place now. She couldn’t keep blaming him for the past. Corbin had done a one-eighty, turned his life around. He was worried sick about his wife and baby. She didn’t need to add stress to the situation.

  Concern sounded in Corbin’s voice. “Are you okay?”

  She gulped, trying to keep a lid on the avalanche of emotion building in her. “I’m sorry. I’m just so frustrated about everything.” Tears spilled down her face.

  “I know. This isn’t something you can handle alone. You need help, which is why I sent Maddox.”

  She gritted her teeth. “Surely there’s someone else who—”

  “I trust Maddox,” he inserted. “Him being there with you is as good as me being there.” He paused. “Look, whatever’s going on between the two of you … well, my advice is to table it until this ordeal is over.”

  “Excellent advice from an outsider looking in.” She barked out a laugh.

  “I don’t exactly qualify as an outsider, sis.”

  She drew in a ragged breath, trying to calm down.

  Corbin switched gears. “I’m glad you called. Sutton’s guys were able to gather some intel on Jordan.”

  Her breath caught as she swallowed. “What?”

  “I was going to wait and tell you and Maddox this at the same time, but I’ll go ahead and tell you now. Jordan was working on a new drug for Alzheimer’s.”

  “PZT.”

  He sounded surprised. “How did you know?”

  “Jordan told me.”

  “Jordan and Piper were joint owners of a company called Therapia.”

  Addie knew all about the company. “Yes, it’s a derivative of the Greek word for cure. Piper’s dad, Hamilton Gentry, is heavily involved in the company as well. Hamilton’s in charge of securing financial backing to fund the research. Shortly after Jordan and Piper got married, they started a research facility in New Jersey.”

  “That’s correct.” Corbin’s voice was factual and to-the-point. “Therapia is in the final phase of their laboratory trials on PZT and is getting ready to submit an application to the FDA.”

  “Yes, I know all that,” she said impatiently.

  “I’m impressed.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Duh. Piper and Jordan are two of my closest friends. I know just about everything about them. Plus, Piper and Hamilton still have their home in Liberty Falls. They travel back and forth. I get together with Piper whenever she’s in town.”

  “Did you know they were having serious marital problems?”

  “What?” Her head began to spin. “That’s not true. They were supposed to leave the day after Jordan was killed for a cruise to the Bahamas. I talk to Piper on a regular basis, the two of them were good.”

  “Not according to Sutton’s investigators.”

  “Then the investigators are wrong,” she nearly shouted.

  Silence.

  “Corbin, are you still there?”

  “I’m here. Look, I’m sure this is hard to process, but you’ve got to remove your personal feelings. According to Sutton’s investigators, Jordan and Piper were on the verge of divorce. Jordan had already spoken to an attorney.”

  Addie felt betrayed and confused. Why would Piper and Jordan not tell her they were having problems? Something Jordan said came rushing back. “You’re the only one I can trust.” Was that Jordan’s way of hinting that things weren’t right between him and Piper?

  Her throat constricted to the size of a straw as she swallowed. “Do you think PZT had something to do with Jordan’s death?”

  “At this point, it’s merely a theory. If PZT really can cure Alzheimer’s…” He let out a low whistle. “Think of the billions upon billions of dollars it would be worth. That’s certainly motive enough for someone to kill.”

  “Yeah, but why kill the developer?”

  He paused. “I don’t know. There are still too many missing pieces to form a clear picture.”

  “Why did someone break into my house? They didn’t even take anything.”

  “You were the last person to see Jordan alive. Maybe someone thinks you know something.”

  “Well, I don’t,” she barked. “All I know is that I’m getting sick and tired of the whole situation.” She swallowed. “I just want this to be over, so I can get on with my life.”

  “Hang in there, sis. I’m working on it from this end. In the meantime, you need to stay close to Maddox so he can keep you safe.”

  She let out a humorless laugh thinking of how she’d sent him packing. “Sorry, bro, but I’m afraid my meeting with Maddox didn’t go so well. He’s probably on his way back to San Diego by now.” With Felicity, she added mentally.

  Short pause. “No, Maddox is too diehard to let a few harsh words stand between him and a mission.”

  Diehard! She rolled the word around in her head a couple of times. Maddox might be a diehard former SEAL, but it
was too bad he wasn’t as diehard when it came to relationships. Fickle was what he was!

  A thick layer of ice encased her heart. This was merely a job to Maddox. He’d made that very clear. When he’d strolled into the diner, she thought she was imagining things—her brain conjuring up her greatest desire. Then he touched her hand, evoking a longing she could hardly contain. For a moment, she’d let her guard down when she saw the tenderness in his eyes, then she thought of Felicity. Her eyes narrowed. Maddox had only been back from Syria a little over a month and he’d already replaced her with another woman. She was unprepared for the hurt that pummeled through her like a battering ram. Fresh tears stung her eyes. He was probably grateful that she’d broken up with him and saved him the trouble of dumping her.

  “Don’t make Maddox’s job harder, sis.” There was a hint of teasing in his voice. “I know it’s hard for you, but can you try to be a little accommodating?”

  She grunted.

  “He’s trying to keep you safe.” Corbin’s voice caught. “With all I’ve got going right now, I need to know that you’re okay.”

  Addie felt like a louse. Corbin had a mountain of his own troubles right now. She was adding to his list. “Okay, I’ll play nice.”

  “That’s good,” he breathed in relief. “After this is over, you and Maddox can go your separate ways.”

  “Yeah.” Her heart felt like lead in her chest. She didn’t want to talk about Maddox anymore. “How’s Delaney doing?”

  “So far so good. We just keep praying for time. It’s like walking a tightrope—making sure Delaney’s health is okay, while trying to keep the baby in her womb long enough to be out of the danger zone.”

  She could hear the strain in his voice. “I’m sorry, bro.”