“Skye! What the hell is the matter with you?” Brooks demanded.
Skye gave him a hard look. “Last time I checked we were all cofounders and as far as I’m concerned this is officially a job. Plus…we all love Hadley too. Which means we all get to help with this and it’s probably better if someone who isn’t crazy emotional helps make decisions right now. And by someone, I mean you.”
The two of them stared at each other in silence, as if they were having a telepathic conversation. Finally Brooks took Skye by the elbow and stepped into the attached laundry room, shutting the door behind them.
Which left Axel alone with Hadley. And she was still holding his hand. Seeming to realize that, she dropped it as if he was on fire and looked down at her lap.
The tension stretched between them, making him sick. He wished that he’d just come clean with her immediately. He wouldn’t have gotten to know her if he had, but then maybe this wouldn’t hurt so much either. Because the thought of walking away from her cut deep. “I’ll go with you to the ranch if you want,” he said quietly.
Her head popped up, her eyes widening slightly. “You don’t have to do that. You’ve done more than enough for a stranger. And thank you for keeping me safe.” Her cheeks flushed slightly and she looked away again, this time at a spot over his shoulder.
“I know I don’t have to. I want to.” He kept his voice low, wishing he could say everything he wanted to. That he’d started to fall hard for her, that he’d never meant to hurt her, that he’d do anything to keep her safe.
A few moments later, the other two stepped out of the laundry room, Skye looking pleased with herself and Brooks looking a little like he wanted to rip Axel’s head off.
“If you want to join our crew for this job, we can use you.” Brooks’s expression was dark. “And the only reason I’m agreeing to this is because I’ve looked at your file and you’re not a complete asshole. I know how you got started, and I can at least guess the rest of the details. Plus I know the rest of your background as well. You’re not useless, and if you’d wanted to hurt or kidnap Hadley, you could have done it already. But you’re on a short leash.”
Axel simply nodded. He was a year older than Brooks, and while they hadn’t worked any missions together, he knew the other man’s reputation in the Marine Corps. And they’d both been honor grads—different graduation years.
“It’s up to Hadley,” Axel said quietly. “But yes, I want to be involved. I want to completely neutralize the threat to her. No matter what happens, I’ll hand over all the information I have.”
Hadley was silent for a long moment and just when he was convinced she was going to tell him to get the hell out, she gave him a surprisingly soft smile. “You can come to the ranch.”
Tension eased from his shoulders but he simply nodded. He wasn’t sure what to make of her wanting him there. It could mean absolutely nothing other than she simply wanted the extra protection. But the stupid part of him wished she wasn’t completely disgusted by him and wanted him in her life. Maybe even wanted to finish what they’d started at the condo.
A man could hope.
Chapter 11
—Badass with a big heart.—
“So…how are you dealing with all this?” Skye asked quietly.
“You don’t need to handle me with kid gloves.” Hadley turned to stare at the window, watching the countryside pass in a blur of shapes, unsure how to answer that question. Because she had no idea how she was handling anything. It was a lot to process and she was slightly horrified with herself for not being more horrified about what Axel did for a living. Of course she wanted to talk to him more about it—in private—but wondered if he’d even tell her.
“I’m not trying to. But you just had a lot laid on you. Like the fact that the guy you may or may not be sleeping with is a hired killer. And that someone put out a contract to kidnap you. And you were attacked at school. That’s a lot for anyone with training to deal with, let alone a civilian. It would be normal if you decided to freak out.”
She softly snorted. “I’m not going to lose it.” Not yet anyway. She might have a breakdown later when she was alone, but that wasn’t normally how she handled things. She’d grown up keeping her feelings private, not letting anyone know her business. It was one attribute she’d gotten from her mom.
“Well I’m here if you need to talk.”
“Will you share that file you have on Axel with me?” Because she wanted to know more about him.
“Sure, but he’ll probably tell you anything you want to know.”
“Yeah right,” she muttered.
“Nah, he will. I can tell and I’m good at reading people.” She said it so matter-of-factly.
Hmm. That gave her something to think about. “So why did you ask him to come to the ranch?” Because Brooks definitely didn’t want him here but Skye hadn’t seemed to care at all what her brother thought. The only reason Brooks had probably acquiesced was because he wanted to keep an eye on him and Darcy was at a condo instead of the main house. Her brother could be fiercely possessive of his fiancée—another reason she adored him.
“You want the truth?” Skye asked.
“Uh, yeah.”
“Because he looks at you the way my husband looks at me. The way Brooks looks at Darcy. And the way Mercer looks at Mary Grace. He’s not going to hurt you. And if we all get pulled in different directions with this whole operation, I like knowing that we have someone who will protect you with their life. Don’t get me wrong, we would too, but he’s not going to let you out of his sight. Not for anything. It’s a logical decision to bring him in on this. Brooks is just being a protective older brother.”
Wow. Okay, more stuff to digest. So much stuff. “Despite everything…I still kind of like Axel.”
Skye nodded once. “I understand that. I know what he does for a living but…I’m definitely not judging.”
Hadley started to respond when she saw a bundle of fur on the side of the road. “Stop!”
Instead of stopping immediately, Skye glanced in the rearview mirror, where Brooks and Axel were following them. She turned on her emergency blinkers and slowed before pulling onto the curb of the two-lane highway. They’d be at the ranch in about ten minutes and it was late enough that there weren’t many people on the road.
“What’s wrong?”
“I think I saw a dog back there. Or maybe a cat.” Hadley was already unbuckling her seat belt, but Skye put a hand over hers.
“You stay put,” the other woman said, pulling out her phone. She quickly texted Brooks, using voice to text.
A moment later Skye’s phone buzzed. “Brooks is going to check it out. If it’s an injured animal, we’ll bring it back to the ranch.”
All of her instincts told her to get out and help the animal, whatever it was. “I can go look—”
“Nope.” Skye shook her head once for emphasis. “Look, if we’re going to keep you safe, you have to listen to us. That means if we tell you to duck or get inside or whatever, you have to listen without asking questions.” She glanced in the side mirrors, then the rearview.
Hadley knew that she was right because of this particular situation, but it was something she’d have to get used to. At least for the time being. “Okay.”
Skye looked at her phone again after it buzzed. “It’s a dog. They’ve got it.”
“Is it injured? If so, what type of injuries? Do we need to take it to a vet?” There was a lot she could do on her own, but if it needed surgery they needed to get it help now.
Skye blinked once as she kicked the vehicle into gear. “That’s literally the gist of what I know. It’s a dog.”
Rolling her eyes, Hadley pulled out her own phone. She thought about calling Axel, but in the end decided to simply text her brother with questions. She didn’t have the energy to talk anymore, not to anyone.