Page 111 of Maddox

Hearing his words sent another cold shiver through me. I’d gravitated toward him because he was the single person I felt I could trust.

Now, even more so than ever.

After he walked away, I grabbed his shirt, pulling the dense material to my nose. How long had I wished I could do nothing more than inhale his scent? How many nights had sleep evaded me until thoughts of being in his arms finally lulled me in notlong before the sun cast a beautiful glow across the horizon? Just being here was everything, so much so my mind remained scattered about details from the long hours before.

With my eyes closed, I allowed my thoughts to drift to the two days spent in a foreign country. As crazy as it would sound to anyone, including to myself, the hours had been both some of the best and worst in my life. If I hadn’t gone off the deep end, I would never have met him.

Yet being here could place his life in danger.

Unable to help myself, I slipped into his shirt, sighing the moment the thick material was pressed firmly against my skin.

As soon as he returned to the room, he stopped short when catching sight of me. A wry smile crossed his face as he walked toward me. “You look better in that than I do, but it’s dirty.”

“It smells like you.”

His laugh was robust. As he handed me a glass, our fingers touched, the instant jolt of current affecting us both. He sat down in the chair close by, shifting his drink from one hand to the other. “Whoever threatened you will make good on the threat if possible. I’m surprised you were allowed to testify even in a closed-door hearing.”

“I was assured I’d be safe. In truth, I wanted to do my part. I have a bad feeling the people indicted were low-level players meant to take the fall if anything happened.”

“What makes you say that?”

I took a sip of the drink, enjoying the slight burn as the liquid slid down my throat. “While I realize the judicial system is hiding details of the case for obvious reasons, what you read in thenews alone can be pieced together. Think about it. New to the system politicians. Department heads of large corporations and not anyone on the executive teams. I’d call them little fish in a swirling cesspool.”

“I’d be curious if they’re going down with the ship willingly or were forced.”

“That I can’t tell you,” I said quietly as I reflected on what I knew.

“Do you have your phone with you?”

“Of course. Are you worried about the possibility whoever had the number used it to track me? Because I didn’t think of that.” I rose to my feet, grabbing my jacket and pulling the phone from the pocket.

He shook his head. “It’s possible someone from WITSEC placed a tracking system on the phone before they gave it to you. I’m uncertain of their laws. However, even if they did, the number would be kept private for few eyes only. That’s the point of the system.”

I pulled the screen to my face for recognition before handing it to him, watching as he navigated toward the text screen. “See?”

He narrowed his eyes. “What’s interesting about this is that it’s not exactly a threat.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Whoever sent this is warning you. Maybe they were cut off before being able to explain.” He slipped the phone into my hand once again.

“Huh. You’re right. I immediately thought someone was threatening me,” I said.

“I think whoever it was had full intentions of looking out for you.”

“Maybe one of the Feds.”

“Maybe. Or maybe there’s someone out there with more information than either one of us were led to believe.”

“Okay. Let’s go on that assumption. Do you still have the jump drive?”

“Of course I do. I’ve spent time with it, but I couldn’t decipher anything else that would cause alarm.”

How could I not smile after what he’d said? “You were worried about me.”

“Fuck, yes, I was. Your instinct had me keep the damn thing. The least I could do was try from time to time to figure out what the hell was going on. So what are you thinking now, Ms. Nancy Drew?”

Hearing him tease me brought another wave of happiness. How strange to think how relaxed and normal I felt anytime I was close to him. I bent my knees, wrapping one arm around my legs. “Maybe we weren’t looking at the right things.”

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