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Her father set his cup down. “Good. The rest of the team and I will go to the embassy and contact the secretary and solidify the evacuation. I’ll fill her in on what’s going on at the palace, giving her time to talk to the president and set the evacuation plans in motion.”
“Clay,” her mom said, her voice teary as she clutched his arm, her eyes filling. It shocked Maddy, her insides churning with uncertainty, and she looked down at her plate. Her mom was always a rock when it came to her dad’s job, but her mom’s reaction struck home how precarious everything was. He covered her hand, then laced his fingers with hers.
“I’ll be fine, darling. We have the Marines, and a determined bunch of SEALs to help out. We’ll be fine, and I’ll see you at home in Washington soon.” There was a pause, then he looked at her, a grim expression compressing his mouth into a hard line. “Can I speak with you for a moment, Maddy?”
Everyone got up and took their plates to the sink. Her mom hugged her dad, clutching him until Twister intervened and escorted her out of the house, several of his teammates loading up their luggage and her equipment. Shark met her eyes, that disarming, sensual, intimate look shaking her all over again, turning her heart to jelly. She looked away so she wouldn’t lose her shit, realizing how easily she’d fallen for him. She was going to feel every second of his absence as things unfolded in Haiti.
Her thoughts were interrupted by her dad taking her arm and directing her to the patio. She threw one more look over her shoulder, but Shark had disappeared. “I don’t want animosity between us, kitten. I love you so much, and that’s why you have to go.” Her stomach reacting to her dad’s agonized tone, she stared at him. “I will try to negotiate something with the prime minister on behalf of Fabrice and her son. I can’t promise anything, because it’s all contingent on that deceiving bastard, but I will make a strong effort to persuade him to allow her to seek asylum with the United States.”
Of all the things she might have expected from him, this was not one of them. Realizing he was watching her with a steady, unreadable look, she gave herself a mental shake, her pulse pounding with hope. She wasn’t sure how to respond. Finally, she said, “I won’t blame you if you can’t do this. Some things are just out of our control.”
Her dad stared at her, the expression in his eyes darkening, the muscles in his jaw tight. Finally, he said, his voice strained. “I know, kitten.”
Her heart suddenly full, Maddy gazed back at him, the clamor in her chest making it hard for her to think. Of course, he knew she could never hate him, and he would try his best. She was so scared for his safety, but she had to trust her father. This was his job. Unsettled by the thought of him in danger, she dragged her gaze from his, needing to let go of her anger at the situation and not take it out on him. “Thank you, Daddy. I love you, too. Please be safe. Keep them all safe.”
He nodded and they embraced, Maddy holding onto him with a fierceness that made tears sting her eyes, but she had to be strong for him. So many people depended on him today. He hugged her so hard it hurt. “Shark will be responsible for you until you get on that plane. Don’t give him a hard time. He’s following my orders. Understood?”
“I’m sure he’ll be thrilled.”
He smiled at her sarcasm, the creases around his eyes deepening, the glint making her smile back at him, responding to his amusement at her.
Then he left the patio, swept her mom up in another embrace, kissing her just as fiercely as Maddy had hugged him, murmured what were probably affectionate words, and reassurance, then he was gone.
In emotional overload, worried about her father, his staff, Fabrice and Kenzy, the SEALs, and Shark, she left the patio and gathered up her carry-on bag. Then headed toward the garage. Her father’s limo was out of the gates and speeding down the road on its way to the embassy. Her equipment, luggage, her mom’s luggage, and her mom were all in the SUV. Twister was in the backseat with her, so Maddy walked around the vehicle and settled into the front seat.
Shark looked over at her, held her gaze for a moment, then he looked away, his profile tense. “I’m in contact with the team,” he said, his voice gruff. “We can check in with them whenever we want.” He finally looked at her, his expression solemn, something in his eyes making her heart contract.
Experiencing an unexpected awkwardness, Maddy nodded, lacing her hands together to keep from touching him. She swallowed hard, her heart melting at his attempt to put her at ease about her dad and the team.
His expression cast in harsh lines, he shifted the car into Drive. With one last glance at her, his gaze dark and unreadable, he pressed the gas. She swallowed hard again. She didn’t want to leave him, her heart climbing higher in her chest. She wanted something, anything to tell her that when this was all over, there was going to be more. More time with him, building something she’d been so afraid of engaging in during her ill-advised and unilluminated past. Now that she had discovered how she’d been hiding from reality, she didn’t want to retreat now. She wanted to do the hard stuff…with him.
She didn’t want anything superficial with Shark but so wanted to deepen her commitment, face difficult conversations, look at existing challenges that needed to be met, rather than new opportunities to explore. Take action to solve problems in a direct way, even if it was hard.
But right now, they were all in crisis mode, sitting on a powder keg ready to blow, and she had to do her part to put Shark and her dad at ease, no matter how much she wanted to stay and help. She wasn’t equipped or trained in these types of situations, so she would do what was necessary and leave.
When they pulled up to the shipping area, Twister and Shark got her equipment out and she went through the process of shipping it back to the university. Then it was over to the terminal for her mom to catch her plane back to DC. At the entrance, she held her mom for a long while. “Everything will be okay,” Maddy said. “Dad will finish up here, and we’ll all be together soon.”
Her mom nodded, her expression working hard to stay even for Maddy’s sake. “Good luck with your presentation.”
They hugged again, then her mom disappeared among the crowd in the busy terminal. She got back in the car, and Shark said, “We’ve been contacted by the embassy. The doctor needs Twister there to assist. Someone was hurrying and may have broken their arm. They need him to assess it, and if the person needs to go to the hospital, they can get that done.”
“But you’re staying with me until I leave, right?”
He smiled, reached over, and squeezed her hand. “Yes, I’ll be with you until you take off. Nothing is going to happen to you, or to your father, Maddy.” He didn’t have to say the words, the promise was in his voice, laced through his words, and in his eyes.
Suddenly, she was even more scared. Up until now, they’d been having fun, enjoying the tropical paradise and the beauty of the island, but now that had all changed.
He was in warrior mode and like the seven other men here, they thrived on being different and doing something unique and risky. He was trained for extremely dangerous missions, sneaking among a sea of enemies, hiding in miserable conditions and gathering intelligence, and when mandated or when necessary, going into battle with only one thing on his mind. Winning.
She got chills, the hair on the back of her neck lifting, and the affection she felt for him was just as beautiful and meaningful as her respect for him—for them all for the job they did with unrelenting determination.
She shouldn’t worry about them. That was the enemy’s problem. All she needed to do was be cooperative and give them the respect they were due. They had the expertise and the wisdom to make the hard decisions when it counted. She could only be humbled that this man had deigned to spend time with her. She squeezed his hand back.
They swung by the embassy and dropped Twister off, and then headed back to the residence. She got butterflies in her stomach at the thought of being alone with him. She knew she wanted to get into a conversation about them, but she was so scared he was going to shut her down.
After he parked the car and shut the garage door, they entered the house. There were several things she needed to do to close it down. She looked over at him. “Could you help me with a few chores that need to be done to close up the house?”
“Of course,” he said. “What do you need?”
