Page 89 of Final Exit

She clutched the edge of the counter at the sound of the deep, familiar voice behind her. Then she slowly turned around. Kade lounged in the doorway about five feet away, his broad shoulders taking up most of the space. His hair was slightly damp and he was wearing a different shirt since the planning session for tomorrow’s assault on EXIT had broken up. Had he gone for a swim in the pool? Or taken a shower?

“You’ve been avoiding me since the plane. We really need to talk.” He straightened and walked toward her.

“You aren’t limping,” she said, surprised.

“All that exercise in the caves might have hurt like hell but it loosened up the muscles. After a few minutes in the hot tub I’m feeling better than I have in ages.”

“Maybe you should buy a hot tub then, after all of this is over.”

“Maybe.”

He stopped in front of her, forcing her to lean her head back to meet his gaze.

“Where do you live anyway?” she asked. “I mean,reallylive. When you’re not in an FBI rental.”

“Jacksonville, just south of the Georgia border on the Atlantic Ocean. I grew up there, have pretty much spent my whole life there, except for when I’m traveling on assignment. That’s where my dad is, so I imagine I’ll go back there once Faegan is captured. Unless someone gives me a reason not to.”

She clutched the countertop harder. “I’ve never cared much for the beach. I’m more of a mountain and snow girl myself. Montana.”

He nodded, not looking surprised. Her heart stuttered. Did he already know about her past?

He edged a little closer. “The tide is turning. Mason and Devlin’s reconnaissance tonight proved what we thought, that the EXIT building is being used by Faegan’s men. Security is tight, but we’ll figure out a way in tomorrow. We’re optimistic that we’ll find the prisoners there.”

She should have been happy, thinking about possibly finding her missing friends. Instead, all she could think about was this incredible man standing in front of her.

His right hand lifted toward her face, as if he wanted to touch her. But then he lowered it to his side. His deep blue eyes were so intent, as if searching for... something. He seemed... different, somehow. Something elemental had... changed between them since that plane trip.

It was as if she was seeing the real Kade for the first time, the man he’d been before Faegan’s horrible manipulations, and the accident, and the fake-Abby guilt he’d borne for so long. This Kade was confident, strong, willing to put himself in danger to save her, but not recklessly as he’d done before. This Kade was tender touches, wild kisses, and impossible dreams. He was the reason she was admiring marble countertops, and thinking about the future.

And it terrified her.

She was terrified that, if he knew the truth, he would reject her, turn away in disgust, and never want to see her again. She was even more terrified that he wouldn’t.

“Bailey, about what you said on the plane. I need you to know that I—”

“I’m surprised Mason isn’t worried that someone from EXIT will look for us here.” She waved at the opulent kitchen surrounding them. “And even more surprised that he didn’t send his wife into hiding like everyone else has done.”

He glanced around the kitchen as if noticing it for the first time, then shrugged. “I imagine it’s listed under an alias or he wouldn’t have risked bringing us here. Faegan isn’t as good at ferreting out property records as I am.” He smiled. “And from the argument I heard out by the pool earlier, the fact that Sabrina was here when we arrived was just as much a surprise to Mason as it was to anyone else. I gather he’d told her to go off the grid and she’d refused.”

“By the pool?”

“I was in the hot tub and they didn’t notice. I was about to announce my presence when they, well, ended the argument. Let’s just say, don’t go near the pool for a while. I think they’re still out there.”

A burst of laughter escaped her and she covered her mouth, looking around, worried she might wake someone. She wasn’t exactly sure where everyone else was bunking for the night. Someone might even be out in the family room on a couch.

“I love when you smile. It makes your eyes light up.” This time when he lifted his hand, he didn’t stop. He gently traced her jaw. “Bailey, I’ve made some poor choices over the past few months. Hell, the past year. But the ones that I regret most are the ones that hurt you.”

His hands shook as he caressed her face. “It kills me to think that if you hadn’t gotten away that first night, I would have turned you over to Faegan.” He shuddered and pulled her against him, wrapping his arms around her, with his cheek against the top of her head. “I’m so, so sorry, sweetheart,” he whispered.

She blinked at the endearment that was fast becoming a habit of his, and tried not to melt against him. He held her, gently swaying as if to music only he could hear. Except that she could swear that she heard it, too—in the feel of his strong arms around her, in the whisper of his breath against her hair, in the thud of his heartbeat beneath her ear.

Danger. Her mind screamed the word.ThisKade could destroy her. He couldn’t know what he was doing, looking and smelling so wonderful, calling her sweetheart, holding her like he never wanted to let her go. It was cruel, to both of them.

She pushed against him, forcing him to drop his arms and step back.

“I can’t do this,” she whispered. “You’re making me want things I can never have.”

“Sweetheart—”

---