Page 11 of Bossy Hero

Her eyes widen like a hoot owl. “All night?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Over my dead body.” She rolls her eyes with a flourish and opens the door wide, motioning for me to enter her room. “There are two beds. If you insist on staying, I refuse to let you sleep on the ground outside my door like a dog. Don’t be ridiculous.”

“No, that’s fine. You wouldn’t be comfortable with me staying inside. You need your privacy. I’ll be fine out here. Slept on far worse.”

Before she can hurl objections at me, I wink and grasp the door handle. “Good night, Madeline. You’ll be safe here. I promise.”

And I close the door, leaving a shocked Madeline on the other side.

Chapter2

Moments in the dark

Madeline “Maddie” Mason

Iblink. And then blink again. I’m unable to tear my gaze from the back of the motel room door. All I can do is stand here.

Has he lost his mind? Is he applying for sainthood? Does hereallyintend to sleep outside my door on the cold, hard pavement?

This is madness.

What if he has to go to the bathroom?

That random thought shakes me from my stupor. Maybe I’m the one who has lost her mind.

A man is standing guard outside my motel room door all night long, and yet I’m worried about his bladder. Not that he doesn’t have anything soft to sit on or will be cold. Not that he probably has work to do tomorrow and won’t get any sleep. Not that he has nothing to drink, no blanket or pillow.Oh no.I’m worried about where he’ll urinate.

Pretty sure his access to a restroom is at the bottom of the list of the things wrong with this situation.

I scurry over to my purse to get my cell phone, quickly flipping it open to call Leo. He assured me that his squad leader was an honorable man. If my son can trust him with his life, I can surely trust him with mine. Leo’s an excellent judge of character. But now I have my doubts. This isn’t normal behavior.

Or is it?

I can’t decide whether it’s sweet and kind that he’s so insistent or flat-out manipulative. My head is too messed up to decode it.

Leo answers on the first ring. “Mom, are you okay? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing is wrong, my love. I’m fine. Alan got me a room at the Holiday Inn a few blocks from the diner. I’m settled in for the night.”

When he speaks again, his voice is steady. “That’s great. Are you comfortable then? Do you feel safe?”

A wistful sense of pride inflates my chest. My son is so sweet. How did I get so lucky with him and unlucky with his father?

“Yes, my gentle giant. It’s just...” I creep farther away from the door and lower my voice. “Alan insists on sleeping outside my door. On the ground. In the cold.”

There’s a pause, and the line crackles. “Yeah? And?”

My eyes bulge, and I jut my chin forward. “And? Seriously, son?”

“Yes, seriously. He told me he was gonna watch over you all night. That’s what he’s doing. If I could be there, I’d be doing the same.”

“You’d be inside the room, at least. I can’t let him stay out there all night. Call him and tell him to go back to base.”

“I’d rather not do that, Ma. And he wouldn’t listen to me even if I did. Let’s face it. Dad’s probably looking for you as we speak. And he knows there’s only three places you could go.”

He’s right. Travis knows I’d go to stay with one of our three children. Sammy and Drew are out of the question since they’re at college. They don’t need my drama. Not that Leo needs it, either. But he’s better equipped for this than the other two.

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