Page 15 of A Dangerous Proposal

She bit her lip. “It’s less than a mile.”

“Okay. Here is what we are going to do.” Alex smiled what he hoped was a friendly smile. “I’m going to drive you there to get your keys. You and the boy can dry off, and then I’ll bring you back to your car. Fixed in less than ten minutes.”

“I can’t.” The words burst out of her.

“Do you have any other options?” He lifted a brow, and then used a weapon he knew was unfair, but wasn’t at all sorry for deploying. “If you stay here in the wet and cold, he will get sicker.”

She blanched.

“I don’t know you…”

“We’ve met. We know people in common.”

Her eyes flickered.

Ah, what had James Bloom decided to share? He mentally shrugged. Probably the truth. He didn’t blame her for hesitating.

Still… Alex wasn’t ready to let her go yet, and he refused to regret whatever he needed to do to fix this situation for her.

“Kidnapping soaking wet women and sick babies isn’t really something I do.” He winked. “There isn’t enough money in it.”

Her shoulders eased a fraction, and the ghost of a smile twitched across her full lips. “I suppose that’s true.”

“This shopping center has security cameras everywhere, and, at the risk of sounding arrogant, I am easily recognized.”

“I don’t have his car seat.” Her shoulders drooped. “I can’t put him in a car without one. It wouldn’t be safe.”

He wondered how much of the subtext in her brain was telling her that getting in the car with him was more unsafe.

“I don’t see that you have much choice. Which is more dangerous? A slow ride less than a mile in a car without a safety seat or staying exposed to the elements when he’s already sick and wet?”

If Alex didn’t already know he was destined for hell, his spot was guaranteed by the guilt that washed over her face.

“I will drive slowly and carefully,” Alex said, looking into her eyes. “I won’t let anything happen to either of you. I promise.”

After another moment of indecision, she gave a tiny nod and muttered, “I’m the worst mother on the planet.”

“Wait here.”

Not wanting to give her a chance to change her mind, Alex jogged through the rain to his car. With the heat on full blast, he pulled up to the curb next to her and rounded the hood to open the back door for her. Her decision made, it was clear Madison wasn’t going to waste any more time as she slid in, clutching the boy tightly.

“You promise you’ll be careful?”

“With you, Angel? Always.”

Chapter Five

Ten minutes later, Madison’s entire body shook violently, and she prayed to wake up from the nightmare she found herself in.

What just happened?

What the fuck just happened?

Her brain was malfunctioning, and she couldn’t stop reliving what she’d just witnessed in her office.

Cami.

The young man.

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