“What’s going on?” she asks.
“Me and Beau are going to check in with a couple of his connections,” I say. “See if we can get ahead of the Mercer problem before it turns into something bigger.”
Her brows pull together slightly.
“Can I come?”
“No.”
The answer comes out fast, but I keep my tone calm.
“It’s not like that,” I add. “We’re not walking into anything. We just need to ask a few questions. These are people who only trust us, so I don’t need backup.”
She holds my gaze for a second, reading it, trying to decide how much of that she believes.
“I should at least come in the car.”
I shake my head.
“No.”
Her expression tightens.
“Seth—”
I step closer before she can keep going and cup her face, pulling her into a kiss that cuts off whatever she's about to say.
She softens against me for a second before I pull back.
“I’ll be back,” I murmur. “Three hours. Max.”
Her eyes search mine.
I can see it.
The hesitation. The part of her that doesn’t like this, that doesn’t trust it, that doesn’t want to let me walk out that door again.
“Three hours?”
“Three hours.”
She exhales slowly, like she is forcing herself to accept it.
“Fine,” she relents, even though it isn’t.
I brush my thumb along her jaw once, then step back.
“Lock the doors after we leave.”
Her lips press together, but she nods.
I turn before I give myself a reason to stay.
Chapter 55
Brooke
Ipace the length of the house until my calves burn and my pulse thuds behind my eyes. Krueger paces with me, his nails clicking against the concrete in an uneven rhythm, stopping when I stop and starting again the second I move. Every few steps, he glances up at me like he is waiting for orders I don't have.
