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“And… last night? The men?”
“One is in custody.” She bit her bottom lip.
He frowned. “Only one?”
She closed her eyes and nodded. “The other… I killed.” He watched as a tear slipped down her cheek.
“You…” He reached up and touched the tear. “Don’t cry for him. He doesn’t deserve your tears,” he said softly. “I’ll want to hear all about it, but for now, tell me Jamerson was able to get the rest.”
“Wyatt, it was Arlene.”
“What?” He jerked up a little. The younger woman hadn’t been on his short list. He couldn’t even remember why. Most likely she’d been too big of a public figure and had dropped off the list so early on he hadn’t looked into her any further.
More tears rolled down Jade’s face. “She’s talking. A lot, apparently. Jamerson says she’ll fill us all in when you’re home.” She smiled. “For now, what she wanted me to tell you is that the one guy I didn’t kill last night is talking too. He’s given them an entire list of names. Names of people at other resorts—some workers, others guests like Arlene. Names of people both on the island and in the States. She said she wanted to stick around and watch you get better, but that your team had work to do. They had to finish the job you started.”
He nodded. “Good.” He sighed, then pulled her closer until she lay next to him. “I meant it, you know.”
“Hm?” she asked, resting her head against his chest.
“I was thinking,” he started with a smile. “The security around the Emerald sucks.” She sat up until she could look down at him. The slight frown on her face had him smiling. “You could use a new head of security.”
Her smile replaced the frown. “I could?”
He nodded. “Of course, until this leg is healed, I’d need a place to crash. You know, get that rest the doctors are going to tell me all about.”
“Okay,” she said slowly. “I might just know a place,” she said. “The Blue Marlin Cove might have—”
He stopped her by pulling her back down and covering her lips with his. “Marry me. I know it’s not the most romantic proposal, and after I can stand on my own, and more importantly, get down on one knee, I promise you flowers and moonlight.”
She chuckled. “I don’t need any of that. It would be nice, but…” She sighed. “For now, this is perfect.” She kissed him again.
“Is that a yes?”
“Yes,” she said with a nod. “Of course.”
She moved to kiss him again, but he stopped her. “I love you. I guess those words should have come first. I’m all backwards right now.” He smiled when she laughed.
“I love you, too,” she said. And then she kissed him.
* * *
He was in the hospital for three days. Three very, very long days. But since his room was always filled with people, he didn’t mind it so much. Jade spent each night with him, so that helped.
The second day that he was back at Jade’s place, along with her family and his dad, Jamerson showed up to check up on him.
“Well, you did it,” Jamerson said.
She was sitting across from him, his leg propped up on the sofa with pillows. Jade sat beside him and everyone except Brock and Emma were there. Brock had taken Emma out to swim on the patio.
“Both of you did,” Jamerson corrected as she looked between him and Jade.
“Charles Knowles, the man we captured the other night, has provided us with a very long list. We had to move fast, but out of the thirty names, twenty-nine are now in custody. One is in the morgue, thanks to you.” She motioned to Jade. Jamerson ran her eyes over her. “It’s hard to imagine a skinny girl like you taking down a two-hundred-pound giant.”
“He fell,” Jade said as she took his hand in hers.
“Yeah.” Jamerson nodded. “So, I’m told. Still, we got ’em. Arlene was just one of many pawns situated at several resorts. Most of them were in their twenties. Arlene was the highest-profile asset.”
“Why?” Jade asked, shaking her head. “Why would she do something like that?”
