Page 41 of The Saint

“You should tell me who you work for,” she said.

He gave her a funny look and walked toward the refrigerator. “How come?”

Because she was staying in the house with a stranger and essentially knew nothing about him. By his facial expression, she guessed he wasn’t allowed to share the name of the supersecret employer that had the ability to pluck her from prison. “How about this: What’s your last name?”

“Brooks.”

“Camden Brooks from New Jersey. Family?”

He laughed. “Yup. I’ve got one of those.”

“I don’t.”

He faltered. “I didn’t mean…”

Amelia set the football on the kitchen counter. “It’s fine.” She twisted her fingers together. “My parents died in a car accident.”

He shoved his hands in his pockets. “I really didn’t mean—”

“Honestly, it’s fine.”

She didn’t like the pity in his face and looked beyond him. The kitchen was tidy. She didn’t suspect he’d cooked while staying there. The counters were empty except for the football and a toaster. The hand towel looked as clean as the day it left the store. She took a seat on a barstool at the counter as he opened the fridge, pulled out two bottles of water, and took the other barstool.

Camden cleared his voice and said, “Hailey and Jonathan worked for an agency that was breached. No one knows still the extent of the problem, but at the time, their agency issued an all hands on deck. Anyone who could—”

“That’s you. A different agency.”

“We’re probably considered contractors in this situation.”

“Oh.”

He set one of the water bottles in front of her and cracked open the other. After a long pull, he added, “My company was able to help when the request came in. I was assigned to pick up the phone if any calls were routed our way, and that’s how we came to meet.”

“Serendipity, I suppose.”

“I suppose.” He chuckled and rolled the water bottle between his hands. “What else do you want to know?”

Oh, about a million other things. If this is a safe house, where do you usually live? Do you normally travel, rescuing people out of prison?She couldn’t imagine a day job like that, but she hadn’t imagined extraordinary day jobs really existed.

His chiseled jawline shifted with a curious half grin. “Nothing?”

“I have questions… but I don’t know where to start.”

He nodded as though he understood. “Start with the basics.”

“All right.” She opened her water bottle and took a small sip. “So you’re not with the government?”

“Correct.”

“But your vehicle had government plates.” She cocked her head. “How does that work?”

“The government contracts with my company. It’s their show and, for the most part, their resources.”

“Who do you work for?” she tried again.

That time, he offered without hesitation, “Titan Group.”

Amelia raised her shoulders. “Doesn’t ring any bells. Guess they don’t plan galas or networking happy hours.”

---