Dammit. Exactly what he thought should happen. He got it and had no problem with that. It was just that he wanted to protect Emma. Not that he didn’t trust a trained deputy. Hunter and Cici were out on a charter with his boat right now. They knew the risk involved, which was why Tomie would be with them, so he guessed this afternoon’s charter and those over the next couple of days would be no different, risk-wise.
“Okay. Makes sense.”
“It’s settled then. Emma will go to the safe house, Cap will continue with business as usual, and we’ve already got protection on Jonathan at the hospital. We’ll check on his status after his surgery. We’ll see if we can’t draw out the remaining Colombian,” Styles recapped.
Mertz pulled his cell phone from his pocket and tapped the screen. “I’m letting Markie know to bring Emma back in so we can talk to her.”
Within seconds, Markie entered the room with Emma in tow. Emma held a cup of coffee in one hand and her handbag in the other. She set the coffee on the table and the bag on the floor, then took the seat next to him. The warmth of her body seeped into his arm. Her fresh scent reminded him of morning after a spring rain and wafted in the air. Dammit, he should be the one protecting her.
“Emma, we feel it’s in your best interest if we place you in a safe house for a while in case the surviving Colombian comes looking for the drugs,” Styles said.
Or, after you, Cap thought.
The recognition in Emma’s gaze sharpened, showing that she fully knew what Styles meant, though he’d tried to soften it by focusing on the bag rather than her.
After a beat, she zoned in on him.
“It’s for the best. You need to be under protection,” Cap assured her.
She turned her head and focused on the chief who sat across from her.
“What does that mean exactly?”
“We’ll put out a press release that you’ve gone missing. See if we can’t keep the Colombian interested in sticking around to recover the drugs.”
Her eyes went wide, and she snapped her head in Cap’s direction.
“I’m bait?”
His chest squeezed so tightly he could hardly stand the pressure. Her dark eyes bore into him as she waited for a response. There was no way he’d lie to her.
“Yes.”
When her body shivered, he fought the urge to reach out and pull her close, not wanting the others in the room to know how he felt.
“The Sheriff’s Department has a safe house about a twenty-minute drive from here. We’ll assign a deputy to stay at the cabin with you.” Styles said.
Her gaze flew to him.
“Where will you be?”
The ache in his chest deepened.
“I have charters. I will need to keep them up and also see if I can draw him out, too.”
She stared at him and those ebony irises pleaded with him not to leave her. Not being with her was the last thing he wanted, but police business wasn’t his anymore. For the first time since he left the force, he regretted his decision. He was good at policing and should have stayed. That was the only way he could help people like her, not charter fishing. Nerves rattled his extremities, reminding him of why he’d left the force.
“I just want to go home,” she said.
“That’s too dangerous,” Cap said.
“I don’t care.”
“Well, I do.”
She turned her head to the chief. “I’m not going to the safe house unless Cap comes with me.”
“Cap needs to be visible…”
