Logan saw everything. The way her eyes pinched at the corners. The way her fingers of one hand wrapped around the other so tightly, her knuckles were as white as clouds.
She was nervous. And for some reason, that tugged at Logan’s conscience. It didn’t fit into the perfectly constructed bio of the unethical villain he’d created in his mind. The therapist who’d heartlessly sold out her patients.
“So Barret threatened you with bodily harm if you didn’t give him the information you had on us and the guys in Marble Falls?”
She squirmed at Aidan’s question. She clearly didn’t want to answer it. But then, she hadn’t wanted to answer similar questions of Logan’s the previous night. Why? What was she trying to hide?
She wet her lips, gaze shooting around the Blue Halo conference room table, brushing over him, Blake and Jason, before landing on Aidan. “My life would have been endangered if I didn’t give him the information he requested.”
Interesting. She’d rephrased the question, answering it in a way, but also not completely. Why? Because he hadn’t threatened her with bodily harm?
Blake rubbed at his temple. “I have a daughter, Grace. She’s almost five, and reporters have been taking pictures of her. Scaring her. Scaring her mother.”
Grace paled. Again, there was that same tugging at Logan’s conscience.
He gave himself a mental shake.
“I’m sorry,” she said quietly.
Logan didn’t need to be trained in detecting a lie to know that wasn’t one. Remorse all but bled out of her. The woman was making it hard to maintain his anger.
The mere fact that she’d stepped back into Blue Halo this morning surprised him. Last night, she’d seemed scared. Vulnerable. Like she wanted to be anywhere but here.
He hadn’t been expecting her to return. He’d expected the woman to have hightailed it out of town at the crack of dawn.
Jason leaned forward. He’d always been the calm one in the group, and today was no exception. He spoke to her like he’d talk to any other person. “Why didn’t you speak to Samantha’s partner, Kye, or anyone else from his team? You knew what they could do. That they would have protected you.”
There was a slight shake of her head. “It’s not that simple.”
Really? Because it sounded pretty damn simple to Logan. “Why not?”
Pain flashed across her face. It was so fleeting that he almost missed it. “I’m sorry, I…I have a plane to catch. I should go.”
She pushed to her feet quickly, and Logan, Blake, Jason, and Aidan all followed. She paused when she looked up at them, her nervous energy bouncing around the room. Logan had no doubt they were an intimidating sight. All well over six feet tall and muscular.
“I need to go,” she repeated, eyeing the door. “I just…I had to apologize in person. I’m truly sorry.”
She gave them all a quick, wonky-as-hell smile before turning and all but fleeing the room.
They remained where they were as they heard the entrance door open and close, then the distant pattering of her moving down the stairs.
Aidan sighed. “Well, that was unexpected.”
Jason dropped back into his seat. “What isn’t she telling us?”
“A lot,” Logan muttered.
The idea of her leaving town, and him never learning her truth, left him…uncomfortable. She didn’t seem like a terrible person, which meant she’d likely been backed into a corner. Why? How? What kind of force was used?
Pulling his phone from his pocket, Logan called Wyatt in Marble Falls. Not only was the man a former SEAL, he was also a whiz with technology.
Wyatt answered on the second ring. “Logan, what can I do for you, buddy?”
“Hey. We’ve just had an interesting visit from Grace Castle.”
There was a beat of silence. “She flew out to Idaho?”
“Yeah, we were surprised, too. Just wondering what you know about her. Background? Family?”
“Her parents are retired, father was a real estate agent, mother a receptionist. They live in Fort Valley, Georgia, where she grew up. She acquired a Bachelor of Psychology from Capella University, which she studied online. She then did her masters before moving to Marble Falls.”
It all sounded incredibly normal. “If you didn’t know she was coming to Idaho, I’m guessing you don’t know where she’s heading next?”
“No. We’ve been focused on dodging media right, left, and center. It’s been a nightmare.”
Aidan grunted. “For us, too.”
“I can keep an eye on the airlines,” Wyatt offered. “Let you know where she’s headed?”
Logan tapped his fingers on the desk. “I’d appreciate it.”
“You got it. And for what it’s worth, I do think she’s sorry. And I also think there’s a lot more to the story than she’s willing to share.”
He wasn’t surprised the guys from Marble Protection saw what they saw—secrets. “Thanks, Wyatt.”
When Logan hung up, Blake shook his head before standing. “What a mess.”
Jason lifted his shoulder, a half-smile on his face. “At least we’re getting plenty of business from this media fiasco.”
He wasn’t wrong. The phone had been ringing off the hook with people wanting the “super-soldiers” as their security.
The rest of the guys began to exit the room, while Logan remained where he was. Jason was the last to leave, but he paused at the door, turning. “She’s staying at The Apollo Inn.”
Logan raised a brow. “And you know this how?”
“Saw the room card when she took her phone out of her pocket.” He tapped the door frame. “You’re welcome.”
Grace grabbed her items from the bathroom counter, placing them into her toiletry bag.
Bob Dylan’s “Handle with Care” played in the background. It was pretty fitting really, given how fragile she felt at the moment.
Music had been playing since she got back to the motel. But then, music of some sort usually played in the background of her life. It was her escape. Her place of peace.
She still had no idea where she was going. Iowa, maybe? Des Moines was supposed to be one of the quietest cities in the US. She could use some quiet right now because her mind was loud.
And if not Iowa, then maybe Florida. She’d been looking at pictures of Anna Maria Island. Gazing at its beaches. It looked peaceful. A perfect escape from the world.
Sighing, she zipped the small bag, returning to the room and popping it into her suitcase.
Right now, she just needed to get out of Cradle Mountain. There was too much media here. No one had discovered she was Grace Castle, the main source of information on the Project Arma piece. But if she stayed too long, it was entirely possible they would. She’d successfully avoided bringing attention to herself for eight years. She needed to reclaim that anonymity. If she didn’t…
She couldn’t think about that right now. All it would take was one headshot of her, and he could see.
She shivered as she slid the closet door open, taking out the four dresses she’d hung up just yesterday. Coming here had been a risk. One her father had strongly advised against. But her need for absolution had been stronger than her fear. She hadn’t been able to apologize to the entire team, but half was better than none.
Zipping up her bag, she was just about to lift it onto her shoulder when a knock sounded.
Grace paused, moving to the door without opening it. “Who is it?”
“My name’s Nicole Fleece. I saw you leaving Blue Halo Security and I’d like to talk to you about what you know about the owners for an article I’m writing.”
She froze. Did the woman know who she was? No, she couldn’t. She hadn’t even booked this room under Grace Castle. “Sorry, I’m not interested.”
“Are you engaging their services? I would love to know the nature of your relationship with them.”
And she would love the woman to go away. Had she followed her all the way from Blue Halo to here? She’d said more than enough to Phillip Barret. She was done answering questions.
“Please leave.”
Grace blocked out whatever the woman said next, instead focusing on checking the room for any last items. It took about five minutes before the woman’s voice silenced. And another two before Grace heard the clicking of her heels as she left.
Good. Grace shot a quick glance to her phone, almost willing it to ring. Her father called once a month. Always a call, never a text. And the calls were kept short.
God, she missed him.
For the first two years after her hospitalization, she’d barely seen him. Then, as time went on and she started to feel safer, he began to take “vacations” to visit her. He was good at being careful and stealthy. Not seeing each other wasn’t an option. Not when he was the only family she had.
She was about to lift her bag yet again when another knock sounded on the door.
A long, frustrated breath released from her chest. Could the woman not take a hint? “I said no.”
“Grace?”
At the deep familiar voice, Grace’s breath froze in her lungs.
“Logan?” She said his name under her breath. No regular man would have been able to hear. Of course, he did.
“Yeah, it’s me. Can we talk?”
Did he want another apology? She felt pretty depleted of them.
It took a moment for her to snap out of her frozen shock and move across the room. When she tugged open the door, she saw him standing there, looking as tall, dark, and dangerous as he had that morning.
Why did the man have to be so good-looking? Good-looking and dangerous, a lethal combination. It was the dangerous part that had every guarded part of her screaming to stay away though.
He stared back, unsmiling. “Can I come in?”
“Ah…sure.”
Stepping back, she watched him enter, taking up all the space, making the tiny room feel even smaller.
Christ, his head almost touched the ceiling.
Closing the door, Grace wet her dry lips. “Sorry. There was a reporter here a few minutes ago asking for information. Not because she knew I was Grace Castle, but because she saw me leave Blue Halo. She must have followed me back.”
Anger flashed through his eyes and his jaw ticked. He shoved his hands into his jean pockets, biceps straining the fabric of his shirt. “Yeah, they’re a bunch of overstepping jerks.” He cast a quick look at her suitcase. “What time’s your flight?”
“I haven’t actually booked anything yet.” Still, she’d returned to her room and started blindly packing like a mad woman. “But I’m on my way to the airport now. If you’d come a minute later, you’d probably have missed me. How did you know I was here?”
“Jason saw your motel card at the back of your phone.” He studied her eyes far too closely, as if seeing way more than she wanted him to. “You didn’t book this room under your name.”
She hadn’t. Which begged the question—
“I described what you looked like, and they sent me here.” Even though he said the words with the same smooth, give-nothing-away voice, she could see the tinge of annoyance in his eyes. Despite being the one asking about her, he didn’t like her privacy being broken any more than she did.
For some reason, that small detail heated her insides.
“Lucky I’m leaving then. Do you need something?”
He crossed his arms over his massive chest, and if possible, the guy looked even bigger. “I’d like you to stay until the rest of my team gets back. Apologize to them, too.”
Her heart skidded in her chest. He wanted her to stay? In this media-infested town where her obscurity was about as fragile as glass in the hands of a toddler?
“I don’t know if I can do that, Logan.”
Well, she could. But it wasn’t safe for her. And safety had to come first. It always did.
Logan took a small step forward, his granite jaw so hard it could have been carved from stone. “Didn’t you say you wanted to apologize to everyone?”
“Yes. But…”
But I can’t?
But if I stay and someone discovers what Phillip Barret discovered, I’m in danger?
But if the media gets a picture of me and shares it across news channels, I’m as good as dead?
She nibbled her lip. “When will they be back?”
“A week, maybe two.”
A beat of silence passed as her mind battled her conscience. Even if he was right, she did want to apologize to every man she’d hurt in person, she could say no. But…
“Okay.” The second the word was out of her mouth, she wanted to snatch it back. Too late.
“Great.”
“Just one week, though.” She’d simply have to keep her head down.
For the first time since she’d met Logan, he smiled, his granite jaw relaxing. Her heart did a funny kick.
Suddenly, he looked less intimidating, less threatening, and a whole lot more human. She could almost convince herself she was safe with him.
