Madison liked him okay; she didn’t trust him, though. He had just appearedout of nowhere right after what had happened with Steve Wilson. Rumor had it he had ties to either Houston or Wichita Falls or both.
Everyone in Hope’s kitchen two days ago had made one thing very, very clear: Madison and Hope had to watch themselves very, very carefully right now. If someone learned that those two had been poking around it could be very dangerous right now.
Madison wasn’t going to take any chances.
No one knew if the ambush was intended for her that night—or Dom. She suspected Dom had been the target, considering they’d been in his truck and only those who had been at Hope’s that night had even known she was with him. There was a team processing his truck, still. For some reason, his truck had been towed to the Wichita Falls lab instead of their own. Elliot Marshall had thrown a furious fit to get it back down to Finley Creek. It still hadn’t arrived.
When it did, she wouldn’t be allowed anywhere near it, considering.
“Okay, what can I do to get you both to shut up?” Madison finally asked, after K.J. and Trace had squabbled for at least an hour in the middle of her lab. “I am trying to concentrate here.”
Trace had practically run Miriam out fifteen minutes ago. The way K.J. and Trace had been snapping at each other had been too much for the more sensitive Miriam to handle. Madison would have to check on her later. Something seemed to really be bothering Miriam today.
“Sorry. We are still feeling our way around this partner thing. Good thing it’s only temporary. I didn’t mean to make Little Red mad or anything,” Trace sent Madison a look of false contrition. He really was cute and adorable. And…well, built like the rest of the superhot gods in Major Crimes. She didn’t have a clue how the guys around this place always ended up looking likethis.There had to be something in the water for real. She and Hope were going to have to test it someday. It was the only answer. Maybe they could bottle it, sell it, and become billionaires? “I’ll make it up to her later. Does she like flowers?”
“She likes peace. Miriam is a pacifist. She gets seriously freaked from arguing.”
“And she’s working law enforcement? That won’t last long.” Yep. There was the man-smirk so typical of the guys around this place. Some things were apparently universal. She was onethousand percent convinced most of the guys in Major Crimes—or in the TSP in general—were cavemen at heart. The job just drew thetype.
“She’s very good at what she does, she just wants peace when she does it,” Madison said. It was hard to tell if the man was joking or not. “So…why are you two still in here?”
“We are your guards, sweetie pie, honey bunch.” He was…something. That was for sure. And, yes, maybe she did like him a little. But the class clown act was beyond. He’d drive a normal woman insane, and probably laugh while he was doing it. He just didn’tfeelmalicious to her though. But she knew no one in Major Crimes trusted him one bit. Especially with what was going on now. “I can take you home with me. Guard you there?”
“Not going to happen. And behave.” She was used to mild flirting. Guys who carried a badge liked to flirt at times—she had noticed it many, many times before. Especially with the women in forensics. It was kind of a given and normal, and very rarely did anyone cross the line.
When someone did, it was dealt with.
She studied the man who had invaded her lab.
He was just as tall as Dom, but not quite as broad-shouldered. He looked like he’d belong more at home on a tennis court or something, whereas Dom was built like a boxer of old, as her mother had said before. This guy was definitely attractive, in his own way. There was always a look in his blue eyes as if he was the only one who understood the joke. His hair was a warmer caramel brown, but…he reminded her most of Powell’s older brother Mac. Maybe that was why she did feel comfortable with him in some ways. Even if she didn’t fully trust him one bit.
“If I promise to apologize to Little Red, will you like me just a little?”
“Her name is Miriam,” K.J. said. She was most definitely exasperated. Madison thought her temporary partner did it entirely on purpose.
“I promise to apologize toMiriamthe first chance I get.”
“Good. She’s not having too easy of a time—someone has been harassing her. Now, I am due in a meeting with Major Crimes in fifteen minutes. So, if you’ll excuse me…”
K.J. hesitated. “We really were assigned by the chief to keep watch over you, Mads. Considering…what happened.”
They weren’t releasing exactlyhowDom had escaped his attackers. Just that he had escaped an ambush and had gone into hiding for twenty-four hours. As far as she knew, her man was somewhere in the building, working on files and being perpetually grumpy. And growly. He always growled when he was on the hunt. It was part of the caveman DNA.
Coming up with his list of bad guys and pursuing warrants, last she’d heard.
They’d all decided to keep Madison’s involvement in what happened out of the conversation for now.
Madison hadn’t hadtimeor time alone with him at all, to even begin to discuss just exactly what had happened between them.
She suspected her caveman was hiding from her. Being the big chicken that he was.
Just like she had predicted. Well, she’d give him a few days—he was seriously busy saving their little corner of the world, and all—then he wasn’t getting away.
“I’m good. I’ll stick to the main hallways, always in camera range.” Cameras in the lab didn’t cover everywhere. Nor were they infallible. She and Charlotte and Haldyn had discussed that before, when they had been talking about the bombing that had happened in the lab several years ago. Haldyn had told her specifically Wichita Falls had insisted on saving money—akabeing cheap at the cost of potential lives—when the lab had been rebuilt.
“Nope. Not going to happen. We are going to escort you there ourselves, babe. We just are. Then I will give you over to one Detective Dom Acardi, who rumor has it has a major thing for you. Care to fill me in?” Trace shot her another wicked look. “I am very curious. I love theDays of Our Major Crimes Livesshow. My gram was really big into the soap operas, you know. So many interesting things would happen. Although I never understood how a baby could be two years old in one episode, and nineteen the next week, though. Care to explain?”
“Creative license, Trace. That is all I am going to give you.”
