“I have it,” he explained, causing her to sigh in relief. “So, tell me what happened after you threw the Bible at him.”
“I ran into the bathroom and locked the door.”
Tony laughed. “Honey, I’ve never seen anyone more cut out for this kind of thing than you. Quick thinking got you into the bathroom and away from those men.”
“Yes, but for the past five minutes I’ve been a total basket case.” She sat up and moved away from him.
Tony grinned at her. “At least you waited until after you were safe to fall apart. You handled it like a real pro.”
“I don’t want to be a pro,” Libby protested tiredly. “I just want to go home.”
Tony looked at her sharply, wondering if he had overestimated her inner strength. God knew, she’d been through hell the past couple of days. “We could turn around right now, go back to Kansas City. We could hand the necklace to the first cop we see and hope it gets to where it can do no harm.” He kept his voice carefully neutral.
She hesitated a moment, her forehead wrinkling as she thought. “No, we can’t do that,” she finally answered firmly, a hint of renewed strength back in her voice. “We’ve come too far to turn back now. Besides, these people are really making me mad.” She looked up at him, an impish gleam to her bright blue eyes. “I say we continue on, with one little condition…”
“What’s that?”
“That for the rest of the adventure, no matter how long it takes, no matter how many days pass, you never eat breakfast again. Your breakfasts are definitely hazardous to my health.”
Tony laughed and pulled her back firmly against his side. “That’s a promise,” he murmured into her hair, knowing that the most difficult thing he would ever have to do in his life would be to let this woman go…but that was exactly what he’d have to do.
