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“Sounds good, Dev.” Gideon looked at Alex. “That okay with you?”
“Of course,” she said, forcing herself to stay calm. In control. “You’re the security experts. I’ll do what you recommend.”
“Good. Total isolation. I’ll send a satellite phone with Spence. No cell coverage at that cabin.” He smiled. “Lots of wood, though. We dropped a tree and split the wood last fall. More than enough to last a few days.”
“If there’s wifi, my phone will work,” Alex said. “I can make and receive calls with wifi.”
Dev studied her for a moment. “Good to know. And there is wifi, but I’m sending that sat phone anyway. I know it works. Your phone can be the backup.”
Gideon draped her coat over her shoulders, being careful not to jostle her arm, then slung her purse over his own shoulder.
Before yesterday, she’d have teased him unmercifully about wearing her purse. Now she was just happy she didn’t have to worry about it. The thought of that heavy purse, bumping against her splinted arm, made her shudder.
With a hand beneath her right elbow, Gideon helped her stand. Then he twined his fingers with hers as they walked slowly toward the door. He held it open for her, and she stepped into the cold air.
Still gripping her hand, Gideon held on as if he were afraid she’d fall again. Or run away. “We’ll stick to the sidewalks and the driveways,” he said as they walked slowly toward the garage. “Smoother surface. Fewer bumps.”
“Okay,” she said, shivering in the coat that flapped open with every gust of wind. Gideon moved closer and held the coat closed with one hand while gripping her hand with the other. She wanted to lean into him. To find comfort in the strength and warmth of his body. But when she’d accused him of breaking her trust last night, she’d relinquished the right to look for comfort from him.
Today, though, he’d been kind. Gentle. It made her ashamed of herself. And she had no idea how to get Gideon’s trust back.
She was good at fixing things. At solving problems. She hoped she could figure out how to fix this.
Finally they reached the garage, and Gideon helped her into the passenger side of her car. He moved slowly. His hands were infinitely gentle as he eased her onto the seat. He lifted her arm and buckled the seat belt across her chest. “Don’t want that arm beneath the seat belt,” he said. “In case we have to make a quick stop. That would hurt like hell.”
“Thanks, Gideon,” she murmured.
As he opened the garage door and climbed into the driver’s seat, she glanced over at him. He’d been excruciatingly careful with her. He hadn’t said a thing about last night, and their fight loomed between them like a steel wall. That steel was slippery. Hard to climb. A seemingly impenetrable barrier. But Gideon had come running when Brynn called him, and now he was taking care of her as if their fight yesterday afternoon had never happened.
She studied him as he exited the compound gate, but he didn’t seem to notice. His gaze moved constantly between the windshield, the rearview mirror and the side mirrors. He gripped the steering wheel tightly, as if preparing for a collision. Or a confrontation.
Alex glanced over her shoulder. Nico and Brynn were in a large black SUV behind them. They didn’t crowd her smaller Subaru Forester, but they stayed close.
“Nico and Brynn have both taken the same defensive and evasive driving classes I’ve taken,” Gideon said. He must have noticed her watching the SUV behind them. “My job is to get you to the hospital as fast as I can. Nico and Brynn’s job is to make sure no one surprises us.”
She frowned. “You think that’s possible?”
“Yeah.” A muscle clenched in his jaw. “Trotter and the Russians were watching the compound when you fell.” His hand crept over the console. Touched her shoulder. Lingered for a long moment., and it settled her. Soothed the pain in her arm.
“They would have seen us leave,” Gideon continued. “Those damn Russians would like nothing better than to get hold of you. Use you as a bartering chip for the money you took from Trotter’s safe. And Trotter not only wants you dead, he wants those files. They have a lot of reasons to follow us.” His fingers tightened on her shoulder. “I’m not gonna let them hurt you, Alex.”
“I know,” she murmured. “I trust you to keep me safe.”
He clenched his jaw, and she realized what she’d said. She trusted him with her safety, but not with her secrets. Or her heart. Swallowing, she said, “Gideon, I want to talk about what happened last…”
He squeezed her shoulder, then his hand dropped away. “We’ll have plenty of time to talk after we get your arm taken care of and settle into the safe house. Until then, I need to focus on driving. On watching what’s going on around me. You can keep your eyes open, too. Watch for Jerry’s car.”
“I can do that,” she whispered. She was the one who’d put this distance between them. She’d thought she had a good reason -- but had she? He’d been standing next to her tote. But that didn’t mean he’d opened it. Didn’t mean he’d looked inside it without asking permission.
He’d been angry. Hurt. And rightly so, she realized. She’d jumped to conclusions. Accused him of betraying her.
She’d hurt him. Hadn’t trusted him.
Her pride and her fear had made her throw away something priceless. Something she was pretty sure was as rare as the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.
She vowed to fix what was broken between them as soon as possible.
