Page 63 of Maddox

All for the greater good.

Was I bitter I’d felt like the Navy had abandoned me? Maybe, but I’d tempered my anger over the years.

Sadly, I felt it returning.

Now my worry was concentrated on the woman sitting beside me. She didn’t deserve to have her life shattered because she’d been trying to do the right thing. If anyone wanted to fuck with her, they’d need to go through me.

She smoothed her hands down the skirt she was wearing. At least we’d been provided with a change of clothes, something more appropriate to wear in front of a bunch of attorneys.

All the while during the trip, the members of the SEAL team had studied me as someone would an animal at a zoo.

It would seem my unsavory reputation had preceded me.

As we entered the heart of the District of Columbia, my chest tightened. I was surprised when she reached over, placing her hand on mine. She wasn’t looking in my direction, merely staring off at the front, but I could tell she wasn’t focused on anything.

I squeezed her fingers. I owed her that much. She hadn’t signed up for this any more than I’d done. She was intelligent enough to keep from saying but so much on the plane and during the ride. Maybe because it had become apparent that we were being watched.

Where the hell did the bastards think we were going to go?

In contrast, the two men dressed in suits up front chatted about whatever basketball game had been on the night before.

As their voices grew louder, I became more annoyed. Perhaps Charmaine sensed I was in a pissy mood, trying to calm me by rubbing her thumb back and forth across my skin. She had a way of drawing me in, creating a fog that I didn’t like.

Just like she’d done the night before.

Being out of focus was also dangerous; it led to making stupid decisions.

With her, I could lose a part of myself and while the thought was ridiculous, it was the truth.

“Thank you,” she said in a revered tone.

“For what?”

“For bringing me home.”

“Do you live here?”

She laughed. “No. You know that. I’ve never wanted to live in DC.”

“Then I didn’t bring you home. But I don’t blame you. Chicago is a nice town.”

“It’s full of too many people and insane traffic jams. It’s expensive and controlled by the mob. Don’t tell anyone I said that.”

“Your secret is safe with me. Why live there?”

Her hesitation forced me to turn my head, studying her face. “I honestly don’t know. I like to say it’s because Chicago is a vibrant place with amazing people. Which is true. I have a great boss that I adore and I love my job, but I always wanted to live in a quiet little town where everyone knew everyone else. A smalltown with heart. Maybe they don’t exist any longer except for in romance novels.”

“They exist.”

She caught my stare and blushed, glancing at the two men before shifting her gaze toward me. “Is your ranch in a small town?”

“Yeah, too small. Try five thousand people.”

“That sounds amazing. I grew up in a small town in Illinois. My adoptive parents preferred being close to their neighbors.”

I hadn’t realized she’d been adopted. Another reason she’d been drawn to the cover story. So many things about her were starting to make sense. “It’s okay. Maybe not what I expected.”

“If you hate it so much, why did you buy the place?”

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