When Travis only continued to stare at him like he was a pain in his backside, Brantley continued.“They worked all night to put together a timeline that’ll allow us to start pursuing leads.”
Travis continued to stare at him, eyes cold.
“When they were going through Holt’s notes, they found something.Something that … well, it sounds insane.So insane that I confronted Holt and Simon about it this morning.They assure me it’s real.”
Frowning, Travis leaned in.“What the hell are you tellin’ me this for?”
Taking a deep breath in, Brantley willed the words to come out and sound reasonably sane.“I know you’re not gonna believe this any more than I do, but…”
He swallowed past the desert that had taken up residence in his throat.
“Goddammit, Brant—”
“They’ve uncovered evidence—” Brantley tried to dislodge the glitch by shaking his head, still holding Travis’s stare.“I honestly don’t know how to say it.”
“Just spit it out so we can move on with our lives.”
“That’s the thing.I don’t think we can.”
Travis’s glare turned arctic.“Tell.Me.”
It would have been easier to walk away, to tell Travis he was wrong, that there was nothing to tell him.He wanted to.In fact, he wanted to race back home, jump into bed, pull the covers over his head as his inner seven-year-old was telling him to do, and pretend this never happened.
But before he could come up with reasons for bowing out, the words tumbled right out, spilling into the space between them.“They’ve uncovered evidence that leads them to believe Kylie’s alive.”
He held his breath and waited for Travis’s reaction.
It didn’t come.
And it still didn’t come.
Jesus Christ.Maybe he hadn’t said the words aloud.
“Travis?”
The man’s eyes remained glued to his face.His mouth twitched, but no words came out.
Brantley was waiting for him to throw a punch, to land one right to his jaw.He would’ve deserved it.
But that wasn’t what Travis did.
Oh, no.What happened next was much worse.
Travis’s eyes narrowed, his initial reaction disappearing as though the words hadn’t just struck a nerve.“I want to see the evidence.”
Brantley nodded.What else could he do?
Fifteen minutes later, Brantley was typing in his code to unlock the barn while Travis stood directly behind him.They’d driven separately, but Travis had ridden his bumper like the two vehicles were insects getting ready to mate.At one point, he thought about throwing the truck inneutralto see if Travis would push him home.
Opening the door, Brantley tried to brace for the difficult part.His shoulders tensed, his stomach cramped, but at least his brain was no longer on the fritz.His gaze instantly sought his husband.He found Reese perched on the corner of a desk, his expression concerned.Just seeing the man gave him some semblance of relief, which allowed him to shore up his nerves.
Once Travis was inside, Brantley led with introductions.“I’m not sure who you’ve met and who you haven’t,” he told Travis as they moved closer to the group.“This is Archer Halligan and Atticus James.I’m pretty sure you know Simon and Holt.”
Travis nodded at all four men, not bothering with greetings or handshakes.“I want to see this evidence.”
Holt’s eyes snapped to Brantley, and he mouthed,You told him?
“Hey, you’re the one who came up with it.It’s only fair to bring him in.”
