Moretti walked away, mumbling something about how Mac was too much like her father. When he was gone, Coop was alone in the room with nothing to do but think about how the hell he was going to get out of this.
So far, the only person he’d seen was Moretti, but he knew there were at least two other men in the building. He’d heard them all talking outside the closed door earlier.
After trying—and failing—to come up with a realistic escape plan, Coop’s thoughts turned to Mac and what her uncle had said about her.
The son of a bitch was wrong. She wasn’t a fucking fool. And her reasons did matter.
The why always matters.
Coop had been replaying his last conversation with her, over and over again. Ever since he left that damn hospital, and when he wasn’t getting the shit knocked out of him here, he’d been kicking his own ass for pushing her away like he had.
Mac wasn’t like other women he’d dated. She was strong, brilliant, and complicated. Her past was about as fucked as a person’s could be, and she didn’t know shit about letting people get close to her.
But she was learning.
He’d witnessed it first-hand this past week on the farm. She’d laughed more than he’d ever seen her, and though she hadn’t actually said the words out loud, Mac had loved more than ever, too.
And like a dumbass, it hadn’t been enough.
He’d gone off half-cocked, rushing into a proposal she wasn’t ready for. When she’d tried telling him that, he’d let his stubborn-ass pride get in the way.
Rather than listening to what Mac was saying, or at least giving her the time she needed to get used to the idea, Coop got pissed. Demanded she tell him why, and when she couldn’t, he’d left her standing in that parking lot, hurt and alone.
Despite all that, she’d still agreed to come here. Was willing to risk her life to save his, no matter the pain he’d caused her mere hours before.
Actions spoke louder than fucking words, and everything Mac had done from the moment Moretti’s plan was put into place proved she loved him.
Beyond a shadow of a doubt, Coop knew that, now. To his soul heknewit.
He only prayed that same love didn’t end up getting her killed.
* * *
“I don’t like this.”
Mac looked over at Grant, who was standing with his feet shoulder width apart, arms crossed in front of his broad chest. She, Trevor, Derek, and Grant were all gathered in Trevor’s office at R.I.S.C.’s downtown headquarters, discussing the plan for Coop’s rescue.
“I don’t either,” Mac responded. “But it’s what has to happen.”
“Not like this, it doesn’t.” The big guy shook his head, his deep voice rolling through the room. “There has to be another way.”
“Yeah,” Derek agreed from his spot next to Grant. “Like somethin’ that doesn’t involve sendin’ you in there by yourself.”
Reflexively, Mac wanted to balk at the overbearing, big-brother routine. It was all she’d heard for the past thirty minutes, and it was wearing on her last nerve.
It didn’t help that she was surrounded by three of the most bull-headed, alpha-male-minded men she’d ever known.
Not that her team didn’t respect her, because they did. As both a woman and an operator.
But when it came down to it, Mac was like their little sister. The guys all tried not to let on, but she knew how they felt about her.
Though she’d never admit it to any of them, she secretly loved them all the more for it.
Except this wasn’t the time to smother her with their primal, protective instincts. Now was when they needed to trust her to do her job and get Coop to safety.
“Look, guys. I get that you’re worried, and I appreciate your concern. If there was another way to do this, I’d be more than happy to give it a try. But we’re out of time.” Mac sighed. “Sean’sout of time.”
Trevor’s lips pressed into a thin line, but he nodded. “She’s right. I don’t like it, and Coop’s probably going to kick all our asses for letting her do this, but she’s right.”
