Page 137 of Burn Bag

“Hmm?”

“We’re going to head back to the house and get cleaned up. We’ll need to leave tonight so we can be prepared for our meeting in the morning.”

“Oh, I?—”

Ignoring me, she turned to my father. “Did you pack anything to change into?”

“Yes, dear. I have a suit.”

“Good.” Putting a smile on her face, she rushed over to me and pressed a kiss to my cheek. “This really is going to be the best trip ever.”

My parents were gone in a flurry, and I didn’t need to turn toBradley to feel the anger coming off him in waves. Whether that was because my parents had barged in here and took over or because they hadn’t bothered to ask me how I was feeling, I really didn’t know.

His strong jaw was clenched hard when he finally turned to face me. Though it softened slightly, a look of unease filled his eyes as he came back to my side and took a seat.

Instead of saying a word, he took my hand and stared at our linked fingers. There was so much I wanted to ask him, starting with how he felt about me running off on a dig halfway around the world, but fear that he might have no problem with me leaving had me holding back.

Did I want to stay? I wasn’t sure. Queen Nefertiti’s tomb was a huge discovery and something I had dreamed of finding since I was a kid. But I was just finding my rhythm with Bradley. Disrupting that now could ruin everything.

So, as we sat in the silence of the room, I kept my thoughts to myself, too afraid that he would tell me to go. Too afraid that everything that had been building between us would be swept away in a single moment.

32

KAVANAUGH

“Where’s the wifey?”Eli asked as we marched toward the conference room.

“Home,” I bit out, ready to tear out my hair at the thought of her being anywhere near her parents.

“Why’s that?”

“Because she has a fucking head injury. Not that her parents would know what the fuck to do if anything was wrong,” I muttered.

I stopped walking suddenly, nearly causing him to run into me. “You know, they walked into her room and didn’t even fucking ask how she was. They just started talking about this fucking tomb.”

“The very tomb you’re about to tell us all about,” he grinned, crossing his arms over his chest. “Two points against them for bringing a mummy into this. How’s the stomach?”

“I’ll be fine.” I shook off the feeling of dread and continued down the hall. I would not chicken out and run away over a mummy. Or worse, pass out. I would conquer my fear if it was the last thing I did.

“Right,” he laughed from where he still stood, watching me walk away. “Just like that! Remember, we had to sedate you when you encountered the last mummy!”

I pushed open the conference room door and strode inside, readyto get to work, to clear my mind of the chaos threatening to consume me. “Rae, what’s the situation in Egypt right now?”

“You mean other than murder and chaos?” she grinned.

“I mean, is it safe for Daphne to go to Egypt on this dig?”

She spun in her chair, arms crossed over her chest as she eyed me carefully. “I don’t think you really want the answer to that. The truth is, it will never be safe enough for her. Or you.”

“What—”

“You know exactly what I mean,” she cut me off. “There will never be a time when you’re okay with her going on a trip around the world. That’s a fact, and it’s precisely why you should let her go.”

Sighing, I shoved my fingers through my hair. “It’s not like it’s really my choice.”

“Ah, you see that now, do you?” Eli grinned.

“What are you talking about?”

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