“You’re in trouble,” she says calmly.
Wyatt’s eyes narrow. “Why?”
“Because she’s wearing your shirt,” Maddie says, like she’s delivering a weather report, “and she looks like she wants to bite you.”
I choke. “I do not.”
Maddie’s gaze slides to mine. “You do.”
Wyatt’s mouth twitches like he’s fighting a smile. “She needed clothes.”
“Uh-huh,” Maddie says. “And the mail-order bride ad?”
My pulse spikes. I glare at Wyatt. “You didn’t tell them?”
“I didn’t tell anyone,” Wyatt says.
Ethan’s eyes sharpen. “Mail-order bride ad?”
Wyatt’s gaze stays steady. “Drop it.”
Ethan’s jaw flexes. Then he nods once like a man who understands when something is a security issue.
Maddie, however, is not a man.
She looks at me. “You okay?”
I force my chin up. “Define okay.”
Maddie’s eyes soften just a fraction. “Got it.”
Ethan turns toward the window, scanning the treeline. “Wyatt. Can I see around the property line?”
Wyatt nods, already moving. “Yeah.”
They head outside together, leaving Maddie in the cabin with me.
Maddie looks me up and down again, then sighs. “You’re really doing this.”
“I’m not doing anything,” I snap. “I’m just—temporarily… here.”
“Temporarily,” Maddie repeats, gaze sliding toward the door Wyatt exited through. “Sure.”
I open my mouth to argue.
A crunch of boots on snow outside.
Then Ethan’s voice—tight, alert.
“Wyatt.”
My stomach drops.
Wyatt’s voice answers, instantly sharp. “What?”
Ethan says, “These prints aren’t yours. And they’re not Ellie’s.”
My blood turns cold.
