Derek shoved an extra mag into his duffle and zipped it closed. He turned to face Coop, who was currently standing at the foot of Charlie’s bed with his hands on his hips.
Walking over to the closet to grab his boots, he muttered, “Duly noted.”
Struggling to keep his voice down, Coop looked at the closed door and back to him. “Seriously, D. This is nuts.”
“No, nuts would be to sittin’ on my ass waitin’ for his next move.”
Derek sat on the edge of the bed and started putting his boots on. He understood his teammate’s concern, but he had this under control.
“What are you gonna do?” the guy kept on. “Fly to New York and beat the hell out of the guy? You don’t even know for sure it’s Porter.”
Sliding on a boot, Derek began tightening its lace. “It’s him.”
Coop shook his head. “Then, let me come with you. At least that way you’ll have backup if you need it.”
“Thanks, but I need you here.” He finished tying the last boot and sat up straight. “I need to know Charlie’s protected.”
“Mac’s here. She can handle it.”
“Not good enough.” He stood and reached for his bag. “I won’t take any chances where she’s concerned.”
“No,” Coop quipped. “You’ll just lie to her about where you’re going.”
Derek dropped the bag and was in Coop’s face in three long strides.
Doing his best not to shout, he hissed, “This asshole beat the shit out of her for years, Sean.Years.”
“I know, but—”
“No.” He shook his head. “You don’t. You weren’t the one who went into that hotel room. You didn’t see her lying on the floor, bloodied and bruised, shirt torn all to hell. You want to know why Porter did that to her? Because she had coffee with me. In public, in the middle of the fuckin’ day.”
“I’m sorry.” Coop’s empathetic eyes stared back at his. “I-I didn’t realize...”
Derek took a few breaths to calm down before he spoke again. He’d spent the entire day trying to come up with a way to end Porter’s terrorizing hold on Charlie once and for all. This was the only way he could think of to do it.
“I promised her it would be the last time he ever laid a hand on her. I’m keepin’ that promise, Sean.” He turned and went back for his bag. “I appreciate the offer to ride along, but this is somethin’ I have to do alone.”
Resigned, the other man said, “Fine. Just tell me you’re not planning to shoot the bastard.”
One corner of Derek’s mouth curved upward. “I’m not plannin’ to shoot the bastard. Not that he doesn’t deserve it.”
“Good.” Coop waited a beat before adding, “Seriously, though. Watch your back. From what Charlie said, that detective from last night is lookin’ at you for the other stuff. Which, by the way, is total bullshit.”
“I’m not worried. They’ve found no evidence that I’ve done anything, and they won’t because I haven’t. It’ll work itself out.” He glanced at his watch. “Shit. I gotta go.”
Coop shook his hand. “Stay safe, man.”
“Always.”
The two men exited the room, making their way to the kitchen where Charlie and Mac were talking while Charlie stood at the stove making dinner. The way her eyes lit up when she saw him made Derek feel like the luckiest sonofabitch in the world.
She spotted the bag in his hand. “You’re leaving already?”
“Think of it this way. Sooner I leave, the sooner I can come back home.”
Charlie walked around the edge of the bar, the concern she felt for him pouring out from her dark eyes.
“I can’t believe Jake is sending you on an op after everything that’s happened.”
