Page 27 of A Dangerous Proposal

“It’s Cami,” she said, snatching her phone off the table. “Hey!” Alex caught her eye and then put a finger over his lips.

She remembered his warning about talking over the phone and gave him a tiny nod. Madison wouldn’t say anything to compromise them.

“How are you?” Madison asked breathlessly.

“Where are you now?”

“I’m still at my friend’s house.”

There was a beat of silence on the other end. “Still? I thought James texted to let you know everything was safe at your house.”

“He did.” She didn’t know why, but Cami’s tone made her defensive.

“Do you need him to come get you? He might be hard to pry away, but I can ask Declan if you’re worried.”

Irritation flared. “No. We’re almost finished with dinner, and then Alex will drive me back.”

“Are you sure?” Cami was using her what-the-hell-are-you-doing voice.

“Yep. What about you? Is there anything I can do for you?”

“No.”

“What the hell happened?” Madison burst out.

“I’ll tell you the whole story tomorrow, but essentially we had the wrong brother as the killer. Luckily, I had my computer recording so, while he was bragging about the murder, I got it on tape.”

“But why?—”

“I promise to give you all the gory details later but I’m beat. I gave my statement to the police, and went to the emergencyroom to get my arm stitched up. Now, I just want to head home and sleep for a few days.”

“I understand. Is James with you?”

“Yeah.” There was a beat of silence. “Mads.” Cami hesitated again. “Be careful, okay?”

“I love you, Cam. Call me tomorrow when you’re ready to talk.”

Madison set her phone carefully back on the table. “It sounds like everything worked out the way you said. I guess Jax and I should probably head home.”

Alex pushed his plate away. “If that’s what you want.”

Her brow creased at the odd response.

It was almost as if… No, she was reading too much into it.

And that hollow feeling in her stomach wasn’t disappointment, either. To cover her sudden uncertainty, she rose and carried their dishes to the counter.

“Leave them. Angela, my housekeeper, will get them in the morning.”

His voice was closer than she expected, and when she spun around, her breasts brushed against his hard chest. Heat bloomed through her, spreading like wildfire through her veins. The silvery blue of his eyes had turned smoky, sending a shiver down her spine.

Alex’s hand lifted, lightly brushing the bare skin of her neck, then trailed down to trace over her exposed collarbone. Her pulse skittered out of control. His gaze flicked to her mouth, and her body swayed closer.

“Ma ma!” Jax’s sudden shout yanked her back to reality.

Was I actually going to kiss him? Jax is on the floor only a few feet away.

Stepping away from Alex, she scooped Jax up, cradling him to her chest. His familiar weight settled her nerves that had suddenly leaped into overdrive.

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