Page 27 of The Hero
“Kendric, I mean it. I—”
“Not. Happening,” he repeated almost angrily. “You really think I’d let you give yourself up so I can get away? I’ve never been that guy, and I never will be. You’re under my protection, Marlowe. Hell, you’re mywife, and I’m going to protect you with my last breath if need be. Youwillget back home.”
“It’s possible we aren’t really husband and wife,” she murmured.
“Funny, I remember standing in front of that officiant today, promising to honor and protect you for the rest of this life and beyond,” he said dryly.
“All I mean is that I have no idea if it’s recognized in the States. And I’m not going to hold you to it either way.”
“Why not?”
Marlowe was at a loss for words. What was he saying? That hewantedthem to be married for real?
The pang of longing that hit her was surprising. Despite barely knowing this man, she wanted him for her own. She wanted to meet his friends. See those children being born. Watch him fly down that zip line she was sure he’d build one day.
When she didn’t respond, he said, “We’re both getting out of here, Marlowe. You remember what I said about my friends? How if I don’t get home when they expect, they’ll track me down? Even if we do get caught and put back in jail, they’ll get us out. Both of us.”
“But they don’t even know me.”
“Doesn’t matter. You’re withme. That’s all they need to know.”
“Kendric ...,” Marlowe said, words failing her. She’d never had anyone, other than her brother, throw down for her like Kendric was. And it felt good. Really good.
“Tell me about your brother. Are your folks still alive?” he asked.
Relieved he was changing the subject, because she was feeling a little too emotional, Marlowe gladly talked about her family. “Tony’s five years older and has always watched out for me. Our parents died when he was nineteen, and I was fourteen. They were in a huge pileup on the freeway. He fought the state for the right to keep me with him. Put college on hold for a few years as we settled into our new normal. He’s married now, with two kids. He still tries to boss me around, but it’s hard when I’m not even in the country.” She smiled as she thought about her bossy brother.
“He sounds amazing.”
“He is. Overprotective and a worrywart, but without him, I don’t know where I’d be today. What about your family?”
“My friends are my family,” Kendric said. “My parents weren’t ... good. They didn’t care much about what I did. They didn’t even want a kid, they made that pretty clear, but it would’ve looked bad if they got rid of me. I went my own way when I graduated high school and haven’t looked back.”
“Do you talk to them at all?”
“No. But don’t feel sorry for me. I’m sure they’re living their lives, happy and free, and I have my family in Chappy, Cal, and JJ. And now their wives.”
“Tell me about them?” Marlowe asked, then yawned.
“You’re tired. You should sleep,” Kendric said.
“Please?”
“Okay.” His hand hadn’t stopped stroking her lower back, and his touch made Marlowe want to purr. “Our business, Jack’s Lumber, is named after JJ, because he had the idea to get out of the Army in the first place, and he’s the guy who keeps us all in line. He was a leader on the battlefield, and he still is, now that we’re out. April is our adminassistant that we hired a couple of years ago, and the two of them have a thing, but neither will admit they’re attracted to the other. It’s an interesting dynamic, and we’re all just waiting for the fireworks when they finally give in and admit they were meant for each other.
“Then there’s Carlise and Chappy. They met when she was trapped in his cabin in the mountains during a blizzard. She had a stalker who came to kidnap and kill her, but was saved by an avalanche and by hiding in an old, abandoned prepper’s bunker.”
“Um ...what?” Marlowe asked. “Are you kidding?”
“Nope. And Cal and June are a real-life Cinderella story. Complete with a nasty stepmother and stepsister who hired a hit man to kill June, in the hopes that the prince would come running back to the stepsister to protect her.”
“Oh my God! And they’re all okay?”
“Well, the hit man managed to shoot June, and it was touch and go for a while, but she’s tougher than she looks. She pulled through and is thriving now.”
“Wow. And they still live in Maine?”
“Yeah, why?”
