Page 79 of Jack of Hearts
Ouch. After racking his brain, trying to think of how to start over with her, he’d decided on a romantic weekend away. At first he was going to ask her to go somewhere with him, but what if she refused? Since he didn’t have a clue what her answer would be, he’d decided to just abduct her, not giving her the chance to say no.
If she’d adamantly refused, he wouldn’t have followed through. But he’d seen the excitement in her eyes, and he’d breathed a sigh of relief. He’d have a whole day to romance her with no one bothering them, and he hoped they’d spend most of that time in bed. At the moment that wasn’t looking promising, though.
He estimated he had another hour of driving to set things right between them. If he failed, he might as well turn the car around and go home.
“I have some things I need to say to you, Madison. Will you listen?”
“I’m here, aren’t I? That must mean something, although I don’t think I should have let you talk me into this.”
He hoped to hell it meant something. Traffic grew heavier as they crossed the first of forty-two bridges that would ultimately take them to Key West, and he let his foot off the gas pedal as he collected his thoughts. He had to get this right.
“When you told me you loved me—”
“I took it back.”
“Yeah, you did. You sent me to the devil.” He’d been proud of her for telling him off. Hadn’t at all liked it, but he’d deserved it. “The thing is, Mad, that man didn’t deserve your love.”
“No, he didn’t.”
She sounded so sad, and he glanced at her. Maybe it was a mistake to try to have this conversation while he had to pay attention to the road, but he wanted things settled between them before they arrived at their destination.
“Why did you come with me tonight?”
The look she gave him implied he was stupid. “Because you kidnapped me?”
“Not really. I think you know I wouldn’t have forced you. Let’s be honest with each other, okay? I’ll go first.” After crossing another bridge, he saw a pullover on the gulf side and turned the car in. Once stopped, he released his seat belt and shifted to face her. He wasn’t good at talking about his feelings. Hell, what man was? But if he didn’t, he’d lose her.
“I’d hoped to say this in a more romantic setting, but this will have to do.” He locked eyes with her. “I’ve never told another woman I loved her. You’re the first.” He scrubbed at his face. “I’m a man and when we’re in love, we really do get stupid.”
“That’s a fact.”
He chuckled. “You don’t have to be so agreeable, Grasshopper. Anyway, if nothing else, I want you to know that I regret lying to you. I don’t know how else I could have handled being in love with you and doing my job ... Well, I just don’t know, okay? I can’t undo any of it, but I’d do it all over again if it meant keeping you safe. If you can’t accept that, now’s the time to tell me.”
What was it about this one woman over all the others he’d dated that had his heart pounding so hard he could literally hear its beats as he waited for her to speak?
“You should have told me.” She turned her gaze back to the window. “But I suppose if they had no qualms about killing my father ...”
“That they wouldn’t hesitate to come after you?” he said when she didn’t finish. At her nod, he said, “What makes you think they did?” They still hadn’t found proof that the Alonzos had murdered Michael Parker.
“If I tell you, are you going to use the information against my uncle? Because it would kill my mother to know her brother had anything to do with it.”
He had to touch her, and he reached over the console, putting his hand on hers. “We have enough to put Jose away without it.”
“I’m not sure why I trust you after everything, but I do.” She turned her hand over, lacing her fingers through his. “I found a thumb drive in Ramon’s office that belonged to my father. It had all his notes from his investigation and the first draft of the story he was writing. How would Ramon have that if he didn’t have anything to do with killing my dad?”
At the tears rolling down her cheeks, he squeezed her hand, wishing there weren’t a console between them so he could wrap his arms around her. “Are you going to tell your mom?” He hoped not.
“No. I put the thumb drive in a safety deposit box. I plan to forget it exists.”
“I think that’s wise. I’m so sorry, baby. That had to be an awful thing to learn.”
“God, it was. Right now, I don’t even want to think about it. On the plus side, I guess I won’t have to pay back the loan from my uncle.”
“It’s over. Neither one of those poor excuses for a man will be able to hurt you again,” he said. “What about us, Madison? I meant it when I said I love you. Where do we go from here?” She rubbed her thumb over the top of his hand, and he wanted to close his eyes and do nothing but feel her touching him.
“I have no idea. You’re the one who kidnapped me.”
“That’s not what I meant, and you know it.” Pushing aside the disappointment that she’d avoided answering, he started the car. Although quiet settled around them as he drove, it wasn’t uncomfortable, and she still held on to his hand.
