Page 55 of Night Hawk
Sierra got out of the SUV and met Clay at the tailgate. “She’s a trained agent and knows not to linger outside.” Sierra grabbed her field kit, a near match to their dad’s giant tackle box. “And you’re setting a bad example.”
“How’s that?” He took the box from her.
She grabbed a bin labeled lights. “You were a target at the school too. You shouldn’t be standing here helping me.”
“Brendan’s on the dune on overwatch.”
Sierra lifted her eyebrows. “So what you’re saying is, Brendan would let Toni get hurt but not you.”
“No, I…” If Clay’s hand was free, he would run it through his hair, maybe tear it out. “Okay, fine. You’re right. And I hate it when you are.”
“I know.” She grinned. “You might want to tell Toni you’re sorry.”
“Yeah, I might.” He followed Sierra into the house, noticing her gait had changed from her pregnancy. He started to mention it, but saying she was waddling was theverylast thing he should say. Not even in jest. Not even if the comment moved her mind away from his concern for Toni.
After Clay had picked Sierra and Kelsey up at Gage’s place, he’d listened to them compare pregnancy woes. He’d started to say something, but Blake slashed a hand across his throat to stop him. Later, he’d told Clay, “a woman may complain about getting fat, waddling, and many other things I wish I didn’t know, but you are never to acknowledge them unless directed to do so by her. Ever.”
Clay had laughed, but Blake had been deadly serious, and now Clay appreciated the advice.
At the front door, Sierra turned to him. “Where do you want me to start?”
“In the bedrooms with the bunk beds. It’s the most likely place to find something related to the trafficking.”
“Will do.” She got her camera from her kit, and her phone chimed. She hung the camera strap around her neck and looked at her screen. “Text is from Chad. Whatever Toni said to Hunter must’ve worked because Chad said the twine samples are on the way.”
Sierra’s assistant was good, but… “You trust Chad to do the comparison?”
“He’s a top-notch assistant. But do I wish I was there to compare the samples myself? Yes.”
“Maybe things will go smoothly here, and you’ll be back in time.”
“You did not just say that, did you? Talk about asking for trouble.” She shook her head, but he could tell she was kidding. “You can hang with Toni in the garage while I take the scene photos.”
He went back to the garage. Now that he had Toni alone, it was time for him to apologize for being pushy about her safety. She was intently studying the file from Martin’s investigation, but he wanted to get the apology in before talking to her about the report.
“I’m still coming on too strong,” he said.
She looked up. “Yeah, you are.”
“I know you’re a capable agent. I really do. It’s just…” He moved closer. “I guess I don’t think of you as an agent anymore. At least it’s not my first thought.”
She arched an eyebrow. “What do you think of?”
“You’re the woman who has captured my attention, and I want to get to know you better.”
“But I—”
“Don’t think of me that way.”
“That’s not what I was going to say.”
“Then what?”
“I don’t want to get involved.”
“But you’d think of me as a guy you’d like to get involved withifyou wanted to get involved?”
“Absolutely.” Her conviction made his hope surge even in the face of her rejection.
