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"Right. I'll call Emmy and fill her in; she'll take care of the house. Keep in touch and let me know you’re both safe."
"Yeah, thanks, Rory."
Chapter27
Oh. My. God. What in the world had she done? All of his hard work and effort to keep her safe, them safe, and she'd thrown it away feeling sorry for herself. Mortified wouldn't begin to explain how she felt right now. Ignorant. Dumb. Selfish. Were there other words? Plenty.
When he turned and walked out of her room, she wanted to scream and cry. Of course, that would do no good at all. She could hear him on the phone now with Rory, so she stepped into her bathroom. Looking at herself in the mirror, she saw her auburn hair curling in every which way, the humidity making it bigger than it had been in years. Her eyes had bags underneath, her lips too full and puffy. All in all, she hated the woman looking back at her.
Turning the water on in the shower to warm, she decided to take a quick warm shower and get dressed in fresh jeans and T-shirt then she'd offer to leave. She'd tell Ford she could hop on a bus to her brother's in California—surely, she’d be safe out there.
Undressing quickly, she stepped into the warm water, and a shiver skittered down her spine. How did people who loved drama in their lives stand this? She felt like she'd aged ten years in just a week. Washing her hair, then her body, she rinsed, dried herself off and donned her clean clothing. Pulling her hair back in a haphazard braid, some tendrils not minding her ministrations and curling around her face, she inhaled a deep breath and stepped out into the living room to face his wrath. She deserved it.
Stepping into the living room, she saw him sitting at his desk, typing away on his keyboard, engrossed in once again trying to keep them safe. "I'm so, so sorry Ford. Honestly, I didn't even think about it. I'm not used to this. It's not an excuse—not a good one anyway, but please forgive me."
He looked up at her from his computer and let out a long breath. "Come here, Meg."
She took small, tentative steps. He'd shown no violence toward her, but this was just the stuff that would make Waylon snap and throw things. He'd only hit her once, and that was the last year they were married, which was just one more reason to get away from him. As if there needed to be more than she already had.
Once she reached the edge of his desk, she stopped, searching his face for signs of his mood. His brows furrowed as he watched her. "I'll never hurt you. Ever."
She swallowed, placed her hand on her tummy and stepped closer to him, alongside his chair. He reached over and wrapped his hands around her hips and set her down on his lap. Resting his chin on her shoulder, she heard him breathe in her scent, then rest his cheek next to hers. His arms tightened around her waist before he spoke.
"I had to destroy your phone." She sucked in a breath, her head spinning slightly. "Marcus had a tracking device attached to it, and we didn't have the time to figure out how to disable it. So, it wasn't the fact that you left your phone on as much as they've been tracking you all along. It explains how he knew you were at Jolie's and when you were at work and when you weren't. It's also how he knew you were here and just happenstance that his boss is my ex’s fuck buddy."
Her lips trembled. "Okay." What do you say to that? She'd never in her life been in a situation like this.
"So, go in your room and pack up all of your things. We're leaving tonight. I've emailed Emmy and Dawson and explained a bit of what's going on. Rory will fill them in on the rest. He found us an Airbnb to stay in tonight, which is in the heart of downtown South Pass, and easily accessible to the police. He also has alerted patrols that we'll be there, and they'll be watching for Marcus' car and any of his colleagues."
Turning in his lap, she looked into those black depths, for comfort and to make sure he wasn't angry. She held his gaze for a long time, and he held hers. His hand cupped her jaw, his thumb swiped over her bottom lip once before he added, "I'll keep you safe. I promise."
"I'm not your responsibility, Ford. I seem to keep pulling you away from your work and completing your mission, and for that, I’m truly sorry."
"You are my responsibility, Megan. It seems I've developed feelings for you, and for that, I’m not sorry." His lips brushed hers gently, and her tummy flipped. "Okay, go pack, and I'll do the same, we've got to hit the road. Rory and a couple patrols will be at the bottom of the mountain in about twenty minutes to make sure we don't have problems leaving town."
Standing, she swiped her hands down her thighs to dry the sweat that had gathered. She walked to the first aid kit still on the edge of the counter and pulled a couple of Band-Aids from the box, sat on a stool and bandaged up her cuts, then went to the basement to get her clothes long forgotten in the laundry room. As she descended the steps, she turned to see Ford watching her, scary Ford long gone and this new Ford, sweet and protective, watching her movements as if he couldn't look at her enough. The thought of that was so nice it made her heart flutter, and her lips trembled with a soft smile. Things were bad, but they could be so much worse.
Chapter28
Packing was easy for him. He'd done it so many times in his life and for extended periods. Often, he'd leave home and not know how long he'd be gone. This was just another one of those times, but it was the first time he was bringing someone along with him, and this someone had become special, so that explained his sudden nerves. Grabbing his duffel bag, he headed to the desk and gathered his notebook and the maps he'd been compiling. Megan exited her bedroom, and he motioned with his head to the garage. She'd put on shoes, and he noticed that she was walking on the outside of her feet. Another dilemma was she wouldn't be able to run if they needed to. He'd have to keep that in mind as they made their way toward Bobby Ray.
Double-checking the security systems on his laptop, he closed the lid and laid it in the drawer, locking it up. The lights were on timers and would go off at different times each night, and if they were watching, Marcus and Stephano wouldn't know if they were inside or not. Closing the blinds on the windows, he quickly made his way to the garage and tossed his bags into the back seat of his truck. Megan had already settled herself in the passenger seat, her head turned to watch him from over the seat. He caught her gaze. "I'll be right back, please stay here."
She nodded but didn't vocalize her acceptance, and he hoped that was due to fear and not that she had no intention of complying with him. He swiftly made his way to the back garage, pulled his weapons from the bags and hiding places on his Harley, strapping them to his waist, ankle, breast holster and one for the console holder in his truck. Locking up the doors, he scurried to the garage and let out a breath when Megan was still sitting still as a mouse in the passenger seat.
As Ford backed out of the garage, she watched as the door came to a close before them, then turned his truck and headed down the side of the mountain. His eyes scanned the area for signs of anyone approaching, any danger, or movement, and his back was stiff and tight. Navigating a sharp corner, he pulled his phone from his back pocket and with a quick flick of his wrist, set it up in the holder on his dash. Tapping the MS icon, he flicked his gaze between the road and his phone, making sure the security system was working. Maneuvering around another corner, his headlights scanning the area for him, his relief at being close to the bottom and not seeing signs of anything out of the ordinary helped his breathing regulate. Megan sat perfectly still, probably nervous on the mountain road at night and the whole situation, but for right now, he was grateful for her silence.
His phone rang, and he tapped the Bluetooth connection on his steering wheel. "Montgomery."
"Rory here. Marcus is still at Stephano's, and so far, we haven't detected any minions running about. I'm down here waiting."
"We're almost there. Five minutes."
The call ended without any further conversation. It was how he and Rory communicated, no extra bullshit needed.
Rounding the final corner, he saw his friend’s headlights at the end of the drive and felt immensely better for it, but they were far from safe at this point. Who knew what Stephano had planned? This in itself was most likely a trap.
Megan let out a long-held breath and voiced his concerns. "This might be a trap to get us to move."
