Hadley glanced at her hands before lifting her gaze again. “I was thinking the same thing.”
“He’s got to know the police are looking for him. Coming out from the woods was a huge risk. And you’re not part of this. You’ve got nothing to do with whatever he’s trying to accomplish.”
“I don’t know.” She’d thought about that also, but she didn’t have any answers. “Maybe he’s been behind everything. The break-in. The canceled appointments. The investigation into my license.”
“Your license?” He cast her a confused look.
She shook her head as she realized she hadn’t talked to him about that yet. “That’s right. I was going to tell you earlier but didn’t have the chance. Everything has been a blur.”
She explained the phone call from Ethan, leaving out any details about her prior relationship to Ethan. They didn’t seem important right now.
Max’s grip on the steering wheel seemed to tighten even more.
“Someone wants to destroy you, Hadley,” he finally murmured.
“I know. I just don’t know why.”
The road curved as they neared Refuge Cove, the familiar stretch of trees closing in around them. The gate came into view ahead, the property beyond it quiet and dark.
Max had suggested Hadley stay here tonight, and she’d readily agreed. There was no way she wanted to go back to her apartment. She couldn’t face the blood on her carpet and bedspread. The memories. The fear.
She could borrow anything she needed from Naomi—at least for one night.
Max slowed the truck and keyed in the code.
Hadley looked at the house as they pulled through, relief and unease settling side by side in her chest.
CHAPTER 28
After everyoneelse at Refuge Cove had turned in for the night, Max found himself alone in the living room with Hadley.
The fire crackled softly in the stone hearth, the only steady sound in the room. The glow cast shifting light across the walls, warming the space in a way the rest of the day hadn’t managed to do.
Hadley sat beside him on the couch, a blanket draped loosely over her lap. Her arm was bandaged and her movements a little slower than usual, but she didn’t complain.
She wasn’t a complainer, and he appreciated that about her. But he wouldn’t blame her if she did. She had every reason to grumble.
Max reached for her hand, and her fingers curled around his. His thumb brushed across her knuckles as he studied the fire. The contact grounded him and kept his mind circling back to everything that had happened.
None of it made sense.
And underneath all that sat something else he hadn’t dealt with yet.
Kendra.
His jaw tightened as he thought about her. He needed to talk to her and let her know he was now seeing Hadley.
It was the right thing to do. But he dreaded the emotional fallout.
She’d probably cry. Ask what was wrong with her. Why she couldn’t be the one.
Before he could follow that thought any further, Hadley cleared her throat. “There’s something I should probably tell you.”
Max didn’t let go of her hand, though an edge of tension tugged at him. “Okay.”
She hesitated as if choosing where to begin. “In case you didn’t know, I was married before I came here. For five years. His name’s Ethan, and he’s also a vet.”
Max listened, his attention fully on her now.
