Chapter Five
“You can ask me, youknow,” Marshal said.
Ava turned to look at the man she was staying with.She pulled down her sunglasses, as he’d insisted they go out by his pool and bask in the last of the day’s sunlight.She didn’t have the head to argue with him, so that was exactly what they did.She looked at him and frowned.
“If I’ve heard from our boy Knox.”
“I know you haven’t,” she said.“Trust me, our boy Knox will turn up when he’s dealt with the threat.”
She pushed her glasses back up and laid down on the sun lounger.Knox had insisted on taking her to a safe house.She figured he had another place in the middle of nowhere that she didn’t know about, or hidden in some mountains.Instead, he’d brought her to Marshal’s place.
This was not a safe place, at least not to her.It felt like the epitome of a nightmare.Marshal hadn’t left the house since Knox had left her.She’d begged her boss not to leave her.She was not going to cause trouble, but he’d cupped her face and told her she was staying here.There was no time for him to ask, not that he would.This was a direct order, and she had no choice.
“So, I saw you and Knox shared a look, does that mean you guys are taking it to the next level?”Marshal asked.
“Are you always this way?”Ava asked.
“What way?”
“Friendly?Somewhat intrusive?”
He shrugged.“Some people might think so.I like to think I’m ...helpful.”
“How is your divorce going?”Ava asked.
“Oh, that is going swimmingly.Who would have thought your wife trying to plot your murder and hiring men to do the killing would help in divorce proceedings?”He let out a little smile and leaned back.“I’m finally at peace, and besides, I don’t know exactly how the divorce is going, just that my lawyers are handling absolutely everything, and I don’t need to worry.”He sighed.
Ava glanced down at her watch to see it was after four.Her cell phone remained silent.She wasn’t quite sure what was driving her crazy more—spending time with Marshal, or Knox’s silence.She was not going to bug him.He’d taken care of whoever had invaded his home, but it had concerned him enough to get her the hell out of there.She just couldn’t believe she was in Marshal’s mansion.
In the last two days, she’d come to learn that he’d removed every person who was close to his wife.Anyone she hired was fired.His home was somewhat barren.Ava had started to clean up for him, because sitting around all day by the pool was simply not fun.
So, after another ten minutes, she excused herself, made her way up the long garden path, and went into the kitchen.She pushed her glasses into her hair and got to work on making dinner.He’d also ditched the cook, which wasn’t a problem.She had taught herself to cook a long time ago.
Of course, she got the sense that Marshal was lonely.The moment he opened the front door to her and Knox, he’d thrown his arms around the two of them and given them giant hugs.It had felt like he missed them.If Knox had any doubt who had sent that bounty hunter, they were wiped out by how welcoming Marshal had been.
All the pictures had been removed from the walls, and Marshal was attempting to replace them.However, artwork was not something Marshal was passionate about.
“What’s for dinner?”Marshal asked, stepping into the kitchen.
She’d tried to get some peace and quiet, and he was intent on following her.
“Spicy marinated chicken, and pasta salad.”
She had already prepared the pasta salad earlier, and it was currently in the fridge, getting all juicy and flavorful.The griddled pan was on, and the chicken cutlets were in a spicy rub she’d concocted, that included chipotle chili powder.She loved things spicy.Marshal didn’t seem to mind.It seemed, since they had left him, he’d been surviving on takeout.
Depending on how long Knox was going to take, she was tempted to do some meal prep for Marshal, so he was able to take care of himself.She hated seeing him like this.With the griddle pan hot, she put the chicken on top and stepped back.
“Sounds good,” Marshal said.“You know, before I came to live with you and Knox, I had convinced myself I was a vegetarian.”
This made her frown.“You never said anything about being vegetarian.”
