Page 40 of Redeeming Meg

That he was the one with the information on that USB.

That Tommy—Jessie’s baby brother—could even be in the same room with the man who had killed his sister and not seek revenge.

The idea that he might be working with him? That was too horrifying to entertain.

“Meg?”

She startled. Declan was staring at her.

He took her hand and let her toward the bathroom. “Come on.”

He turned on the water, keeping his fingers under the stream until it warmed to his liking. It took a couple of tries to get the shower to work, but finally, it did.

He touched the lapel of her shirt, trailing one finger down the buttons. “Need help getting out of your clothes?”

His tone was sincere, but she saw the teasing in his eyes. She was grateful for it—his attempt at lightening the mood. She waved him off. “Still trying to get me naked,” she retorted flippantly, pleased to see him smile.

“Holler if you need me to scrub your back,” he offered as he walked out, shutting the door behind him.

The water pressure was weak, but it was warm, and that was better than she could hope for. She scrubbed herself from head to toe several times, letting some of her whirling thoughts go down the drain with the dirty water.

When she emerged, she found a set of folded clothes waiting on the sink for her. She was definitely distracted if she hadn’t noticed him sneaking them in.

Of course, he’d always moved with silent and deadly precision. It shouldn’t surprise her that he could get in and out without her noticing. Still, it annoyed her.

She was slipping.

Had slipped.

Would it ever stop?

Could she reverse it?

Leaving the bathroom, her nose led her to the kitchen. He’d set places at the table and reheated a casserole that smelled heavenly.

“It was labeled chicken and mushroom,” he told her. “Directions said to cook it in the oven, but I threw it in the microwave.”

She sank into a chair and started shoveling the saucy noodles into her mouth. It wasn’t the best she’d ever had, but it was damn good at the moment.

He sat across from her, but after a minute, she discovered he wasn’t eating. He was simply staring at her.

“What?” she asked around a mouthful.

“Glad you haven’t lost your appetite.”

She shot him the finger and snagged a second helping. “You can take the couch for that comment.”

“I already made it up.”

She’d passed by it without noticing. Slipping, slipping, slipping… “What if we can’t find him?” she blurted.

Dec dug into his food. “We will.”

“What if we don’t? He’s young and inexperienced. He’s caught up in something way over his head. I’ve seen enough to know how easy it is for someone like him to get messed up because they don’t realize who they’re messing with until it’s too late.”

“There’s nothing you can do for him right now.” He reached across the table and patted her hand. “We will find him, and no matter what he’s got himself involved in, we’ll help him get out of it.”

Always so sure. One of the things she loved about him.

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