Page 36 of Shelter for Martina

“Night.” Yeah. It was a night. And what a night it had turned out to be.

* * *

There wasno way around it. He’d have to tell Martinasomething. He just didn’t know which parts and how much.

She was waiting for him, and she was spoiling for a fight. “Does that fucking MartyBurgess know where my girl is?”

“No, babe, he doesn’t.”

“But he knows what happened to her?”

“He knows what he’s afraid happened to her.”

“And what is he afraid has happened to her?”

“The same thingwe’reafraid has happened to her.”

“And what makes him think that?”

Bud spent the next thirty minutes explaining to Martina what he knew and how. Then he told her what was happening the next day. As they talked, he got a text from Len.

Talked to the MuhlenbergCounty sheriff. Putting him up in a safe house tonight, maybe longer. Dennison’s driving him.

Well, that took some worry out of the equation. At least he didn’t have to be concerned that somebody would put a bullet in Burgess’s head before they could get everything else under control.

“What was that about?”

“They’re putting Marty in a safe house until we figure out what’s got to happen. And my captain’s calling Kentucky Department ofCriminal Investigations in. They need to handle this, not us.”

She shook her head. “No. I want you to be the one to find Renita.”

“Oh, I’m staying on that. They’re going to take over anything that sounds drug-related, especially anything that involves local law enforcement. That keeps us out of the crosshairs.”

Martina sat quietly for a minute before she said, “Oh, and by the way, some of the things I said to you earlier, I really… I’m sorry I—”

Bud’s arms wrapped around her waist and he pulled her up against him. “Don’t worry about it. I know you were just upset. I’m not mad. I understand. This is a hard time for you, babe. It’s okay.”

She pressed her forehead into his chest and stood there for what seemed like forever. God, he loved standing there with her! It didn’t matter that they weren’t talking, or sitting, or even looking at each other. Just the feel of her in his arms was enough. “I’m really tired. It’s been a very long day.”

He stroked her hair with one hand and then tilted her chin up to look down into her eyes. Her lids were heavy, and those blue eyes seemed even bluer than usual. “I know. Ithasbeen a long day. But hey, you and the kids got along great. That was a huge relief for me.”

“Yeah, they’re nice. The girls and I had fun in the kitchen. I know she’s not your daughter, but Maeve is a sweet person. She was so complimentary of me in everything I was doing, and Riley is so funny. She kept us laughing all afternoon.”

He grinned and kissed the top of her head. “You needed that, didn’t you?”

“I did. I need some laughter in my life. And I think the little ones had fun too. Did you see Gabby crying and reaching for Maddie?”

Bud laughed. “Yeah! I think she would’ve gone home with Blake and Maeve if we’d let her.”

“She would.” She let out a deep sigh. “I can’t believe I’ve got to go to work tomorrow. I don’t know how I’ll make it through the day.”

“I don’t know what time the KDCI agents will get here, but I’ll let you know when I find out. If you need some encouragement during the day, just text me, but you’ll be fine. You’re a tough girl. You can take it.” He gave her a kiss on the forehead. “Let’s get ready for bed and get some rest.”

When Bud turned out the light, he lay there on his back, staring at the ceiling, until Martina rolled toward him and threw an arm across his belly. His arm wrapped around her and drew her in, and he stroked her cheek with his other thumb. “I love you, beautiful.”

“I love you too. Can we just sleep?”

“Sure. No pressure, babe. We’re not twenty-five anymore. I need my rest as much as you need yours. We’ve got tomorrow night, and the night after that, and the night after that. There’s plenty of time for us to enjoy each other’s bodies. If we need to sleep, we sleep. And you need some sleep. Night, baby.”

---