“Interesting idea for another time,” he said. “But right now, you need to change.” Using his teeth, he broke the tag off a colorful sarong-like dress and shoved it at her, then quickly shed his own wet clothes. Paying no attention to his nakedness, he ripped off the tags on a pair of khaki shorts and a T-shirt that featured a beer bottle sitting under a palm tree and declared “I Heart Key West, Florida” in green letters.
“C’mon, Libs. Hurry.” With that, he dressed and left the fitting room with the price tags in hand. She peeked out, saw him snag a baseball cap and a big floppy hat, his eyes always scanning the windows at the front of the shop, studying the passing crowd on Duval Street. He set the ball cap on his head and smiled charmingly at the cashier as he paid. When he returned a few minutes later, he carried a plastic bag labeled with the shop’s name and started stuffing his wet clothes into it.
“Libby, move. Let’s go.”
She changed into the dress and donned the floppy hat he handed her, then stuffed her own wadded clothes into the bag. “Now what?”
“We’re James and Liza Wilson, honeymooners out for a night on Duval Street. Nothing more.”
“But what about K-Bar? If he—”
“I’m about 98.9 percent sure we lost him before we ditched the car, but we’re gonna stay out, mix in with the crowd for a bit, take a cab to the other side of the island, then hoof it to Seth’s. It’s going to be a long night.”
Numbly, she nodded.
He caught her head in his hands, made her meet his gaze. “I know this place better than I know D.C. He doesn’t. We have the advantage.”
“I just want to go back to the pool and the cat and your laundry all over the floor. I want to be safe.”
“I know.” With more tenderness than she thought he possessed, he brushed his lips across her forehead. “I know, babe. And we will, but I have to make sure the house stays safe first, okay?” His hands dropped to her shoulders, rubbed. “You can do this, Libby. You’re a strong, smart, independent woman.”
“I don’t feel like it. I’m scared.” It seemed like she’d been scared forever, ever since she received the first doll, but this was the first time she’d allowed herself to admit it to anyone. “I really am. Terrified.”
“It’s foolish not to be.”
“You’re not.”
“Like hell I’m not.” He dazzled her with one of his grins. “I’m just damn good at playing pretend. Now let me see the blushing bride, Liza Wilson. What does she do?”
Libby drew in a breath, straightened her shoulders. “Teacher,” she decided.
“Yeah? What grade?”
“Kindergarten.”
“Sounds like a headache.”
“No, it’s fun. She loves—No, wait.” Cursing under her breath, she corrected herself with as much conviction in her tone as she could muster, “I love it.”
“Perfect,” Jude said. “And what about James?”
“He’s….” She thought about it, then smiled evilly up at him. “An accountant.”
“Now that’s just cruel. And c’mon, who would believe I spend my days crunching numbers?” With a hand on her lower back, he guided her out of the dressing room. He waved at the cashier as they exited the store. “What about a shark wrangler?”
Okay. Time to get into character for real. Forcing herself not to study every face in the crowd, she slid and arm around his waist. “My dear husband, the only shark you can wrangle is the plastic one in our pool.”
“Hey.” He stopped, whirled her around, and fitted her against his body. “I wrangled you, didn’t I?” As his lips dipped down to brush hers, he added in a whisper, “You’re talking way too loud and sound like you’re reciting a script. Just relax, babe. Pretend we don’t have anyone after us, and I’m someone you actually love.”
Her stomach sank into her toes. Someone she loved. Oh, yeah, like that was going to be hard, considering the only man she’d ever loved besides her father stood in front of her with his arms tightly around her and concern in his pale blue eyes.
“Okay.” She swallowed down the lump rising in her throat and offered a weak smile. “I can do that. I’ll just picture Robert Downey Jr.”
And like that the worry vanished and his eyes narrowed as a scowl creased his forehead. “You love Robert Downey Jr.?”
“Who doesn’t?”
Grumbling under his breath, Jude clasped her hand and guided her into the nighttime party crowd on Duval Street.
Chapter Twenty
Jude waited until Libby excused herself to bed before making the call to his brothers. Even after he peeked in on her and found her curled on her side in the big bed, sound asleep, he still puttered around for another half hour before grabbing his cell phone and stepping out onto the patio. Part of that hesitation was because he didn’t want to scare her more by talking about the nitty-gritty of the mission in front of her. Mostly, he was just putting it off because he knew Reece was going to hit the roof.
Fun, fun.