Maddy was nodding before he finished. “That’s right. And I could really do without you—” She stopped so suddenly she was surprised her vocal cords didn’t leave skid marks on her throat. “I’m sorry.” She did a double take. “Did you just say you think I’m right?”
“Let Miss Maddy go with y’all,” Sally Mae piped up. “If it was me out there with those men”—her voice hitched, but her chin was held high—“I wouldn’t be fixin’ to trust anyone but her to come and get me.”
Maddy sent her a grateful smile before turning back to Bran. She didn’t have to sayWell, what do you have to say to that?She made sure her eyebrows did the talking for her.
With a curse, Bran turned to Mason. “You really think this is a good idea?”
Mason shrugged. “None of this is good.” The man had a way of making the obvious sound strangely discerning. “But I think it’ll bebetterwith someone who knows the grounds. Besides, if those guys are still hoping to hold her for ransom, they’re not likely to take any potshots in her direction.”
“Good. Yes.” Maddy nodded. “I hadn’t thought of that. I can totally be your shield. She fisted her hands on her hips and turned to Bran. “Looks like you’re outvoted.”
A muscle was twitching beside his lips. “This isn’t a democracy.”
“Oh, come on!” She’d tried the honey. It hadn’t worked. So bring on the vinegar. “Don’t be such a pigheaded…uh…pig.”Great. Brilliant, Maddy.“Unless you can come up with two reasons why I shouldn’t come along, I’m comin’. No matter what you say.”
“You don’t know how to fight.” He lifted a finger. “You don’t have a weapon.” Up went a second finger.
“Nametenreasons,” she challenged, pretty sure steam was pouring from her nose.
“Fine,” he agreed after a long, tense standoff where they waged a bloody battle with only their eyes. “You can come.” Maddy beat back the urge to hollerVictory is mine!“But you do exactly as I say when I say it.”
“Roger that.” She realized she’d mimicked his standard comeback when he narrowed his eyes. “Um…what I meant was ten-four.” She had to curl her fingers around the hems of her shorts to keep from saluting.
“Christ, this is gonna come back to bite me on the ass,” he muttered before turning to Mason. “You want me to lead the way?”
“Now where’s the fun in that?” Mason said, and Maddy knew from the emails she’d exchanged with Bran that the phrase was their old SEAL Team motto.
“Then be my guest.” Bran motioned toward the door before turning back to Maddy. “You stick to my six like a bad rash, you hear me?”
“You got it.” She threaded her fingers through his belt loop when he followed Mason out the door. With a “six” as fine as Bran’s, sticking to it wasn’t a hardship.
* * *
7:41 p.m.…
“Well, here’s another fine mess we’ve gotten ourselves into,” Bran whispered to Mason, trying to forget that Maddy’s little fingers were still twisted around his belt loop. Her knuckles had brushed against his lower back with each step they’d taken to their current position, which was hiding behind a bramble bush a few yards from the spot where the body of that teeth-sucking shit-for-brains lay cooling on the sand.
The imposing redbrick walls of Fort Jefferson filled their vision. Ninety percent of Bran was already second-guessing bringing Maddy along. It was the ninety percent that, in the cold light of the moon, considered her a liability, not to mention a goddamned distraction. As for the remaining ten percent? Well,thatpart of him growled with feral approval every time she as much as breathed. So just for the record, that ten percent part of him was a complete and utter imbecile.
“This sucks,” Mason muttered, scanning the bridge over the seawater moat.
“Roger that.” The heat of the night pressed down on Bran’s shoulders like a pair of strong hands, making him feel like he was carrying more of a load than just his weapon. He gritted his teeth when Maddy pushed up on tiptoe behind him to see over his shoulder. Her warm breath fanned his ear and raised the hairs along the back of his neck. He swatted at his ear and turned to scowl at her.
“I can’t see,” she whispered. “You’re blockin’ my view.”
And because he didn’t want her to know how shaken he was by her nearness, by her touch, he decided to play it cool. Play it smart. Give her exactly what she’d come to expect from him. “Babe”—he turned and flashed her an exaggerated wink—“Iamthe view.”
Even in the low glow of the spotlights on the seawall and the occasional flash of the lighthouse, he could see her roll her eyes and fight a grin. “Andthere’sthe Bran I’ve come to know and love. Hi there. I’ve been missin’ you tonight.”
Hearing the wordloveon her lips in reference to him had him swallowing hard and searching frantically for some pithy reply. He couldn’t come up with one, so he went with the decidedlyunpithy reply of a silent scowl.
Maddy considered him for a second before shaking her head and releasing his belt buckle. He heaved a sigh of relief when her knuckles were no longer pressing against his back. “He always like this?” she whispered to Mason.
“Like what?” Mason asked.
“Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.”
“Pretty much.”
