Who was he kidding? Even if they were closer in age, he couldn’t see Evie—or any woman—putting up with his long absences or occupational secrets. Lisa was a perfect example. From the start, she understood the demands placed on a special agent. But all understanding flies out the window when the loneliness sets in and the secrets pile up, creating an immovable wedge.
Retiring from SONR wouldn’t end either of those two conditions. He’d still be an agent working for the Service, tracking down poachers. By himself. No more team, no more immediate backup. Just him versus the bad guys.
He rapped his near empty water bottle against the pavement, realizing he hadn’t thought through the whole settling down thing as well as he should. How did other agents do it? How did they make both career and family sync?
Now he had to decide what to do about Evie and her revelation. Knowing her, she wouldn’t give up on them, no matter how compelling his argument. He might have given her some new things to think about, but it wouldn’t be long before her beautiful mind found a way around it all.
While he sniffed out possible connections to the Distributor, he would have to keep a keen eye on his black-haired temptress. His attention drifted from the crowd to the Med Mobile door, waiting for her sweet smile to appear.
What a damn mess.
Rising, he smashed the empty Doritos bag and pitched it into a nearby garbage can.
Time to put aside his dismal love life and do some snooping.
Setting his sights on the nearest patient, he sidled up to a young mother with a toddler clamped around her waist.
“Here to get checked out?” he asked.
The woman moved her child to the opposite hip, away from him. “My baby has a fever.”
Sure enough, moisture dampened the child’s hair along the edges, and a rosy hue stained its cheeks. “Boy or girl?”
“Why, a boy, of course.” She pinched the child’s sleeve. “Don’t you see Harry’s blue T-shirt?”
Deke propped his mouth into a chagrined smile. “Sorry, color blind.”
“Are you messing with me?”
“No, ma’am. Everything’s in shades of gray.”
“I can’t even imagine.”
“It’s all I’ve ever known so it doesn’t bother me much.” He made a show of glancing around. “Not too many menfolk around. Must be at work.”
She snorted. “More like off playing with their guns.”
“As in shooting or collecting?”
“They sure as heck don’t own anything so nice as to be considered a collector’s item.”
“Shooting, then.”
Harry started to fuss, his eyes welling with tears.
The young mother glanced at the RV door, rubbing soothing strokes over her son’s back. “Those boys spend hours and hours and hours putting bullets in paper villains. Or trying to.” She lowered her voice. “None of them are all that great.”
“Do they get much hunting done?”
“Enough to keep meat in the freezer.”
The Med Mobile door opened, and Evie appeared. “My apologies for the wait, y’all. Who’s first?”
“This young lady.” Deke eased his new friend and her baby forward.
She dug in her heels. “Oh, no, sir. Three or four people arrived before me.”
“Her baby’s burning up with fever,” he explained to Evie.
Evie glanced from Deke to the mother to Harry to the others trying to form a line, then back to the baby’s rosy cheeks. Her features softened. “Y’all don’t mind if we take the baby first, do you?”
A low murmur of agreement echoed through the group.
Stepping aside, Evie allowed her first patient to enter the Med Mobile. “Thank you.” She studied him a moment. Her gaze thoughtful, yet warm. “Care to do that again?”
“Do what?”
“Ask each patient a few questions to determine their level of medical need.”
Goldmine. He’d planned to pick and choose what patients he would interview in order to keep suspicions down. No one would think twice about a guy burning time by chatting up people.
But Evie presented him with a golden opportunity to speak with each patient. Britt liked to rib him about his ability to cajole even the crankiest into sharing their life history, by the end of a conversation.
“Happy to help.”
She handed him five clipboards. “Have the patients fill out these forms. If you find someone who needs immediate attention, bounce them to the front of the line.”
He read through the questions, feeling Evie’s eyes on him. “Piece of cake, boss.”
“Don’t probe too deeply into their medical condition, or you’ll violate HIPAA. Keep your questions surface level and out of earshot of the others.”
He winked. “Yes, ma’am.”
After Evie closed the door, he turned to address the closest patient and was surprised to see the crowd had swollen to over twenty—and more people were trickling into the parking lot.
The tactical part of his mind clicked into four-wheel-drive and he began developing a game plan.
He passed out the clipboards, then dug into his backpack for paper and pen. His attention landed on a twelve-ish-looking girl who leaned into a woman sitting next to her.
Cocking his most charming smile into place, he asked, “Are you a patient or moral support?”
The girl deferred to the woman, who smiled and said, “Amber’s keeping me company today.”
“Mind if I recruit Amber for a few minutes? I have a small task that requires good penmanship.” He held up his sling. “Mine’s not so good, right now.”
“My daughter’s handwriting is beautiful.” She patted Amber’s hand where it gripped her forearm in a white-knuckled grip. “Would you like to help Mr. —?”
“Conrad. Derek Conrad. Everyone calls me Deke. I’m assisting Miss Evie and Miss Lisa today.”
“I guess,” Amber said quietly.
“All I need is for you to tear this paper into fifty squares, then write a number on each one, from one to fifty. Easy enough?”
Amber nodded.
“When I send a patient over, give them the next number in line, okay?”
The worry weighing down her youthful features lifted. “Yes, sir.”
“We’re partners now. Call me Deke.”
She blushed, and her mother’s chin wobbled with emotion.
The mother’s reaction puzzled him, but his tactical mind was fully engaged. He set off to organize and interview the other patients.
Not until his stomach growled did he realize the lateness of the hour. With one patient left, Deke knocked on the RV door.
Lisa answered. “What’s up?”
“Looks like we’re coming to the end. Can I take you ladies out for a bite to eat?”
“Not me, thanks. I’ve learned to give myself some downtime, or I’m useless the next day.” She peered behind her. “Evie missed her afternoon snack. She’s been holding back yawns for the last half hour.”
“Can I bring you back anything?”
“I wouldn’t turn down a milkshake from Bailey’s.”
“Vanilla with toffee pieces?”
“You remembered.”
“How could I forget? Every Friday night, like clockwork.”
A throat cleared. “Excuse me, Lisa.” Evie stood a few feet away. “Mr. Lester is ready for you.”
“Deke’s buying dinner. Why don’t you go with him. I’ll finish up here.”
“I’m not going to leave you to clean up—”
“I’ve got it, Evie,” Lisa interrupted. “Once I take care of Mr. Lester, I’m off to find a quiet place to read.”
Evie stared at her supervisor for a defiant moment before relenting. “I don’t like leaving you with a mess.”
“Just make sure our new assistant brings back my milkshake and we’ll call it even.”
“Come on, Steele,” Deke said. “My blood sugar’s dropping. If I faint, you’ll have a helluva time draggi
ng my two hundred pounds up those stairs.”
Evie shouldered past Lisa before stopping next to him. “If you faint, I have a nice, cold bucket of water that will snap you back to life.”
Lisa watched Evie march away. “Well, Deke, you managed to wake a sleeping tigress. I hope you’re prepared for her bite.”
7
Caleb Harwood unlocked the door to one of six climate-controlled storage buildings he’d leased since his disastrous meeting with his father.
Humiliation still burned. Blaze Harwood gave and took in the same breath, preventing him from basking in his success.
Had his father forgotten how he’d emptied the barn and set booby traps in under two hours? Few could have pulled off such a feat. But he had saved their product and coordinated its shipment. All while maintaining the appearance of having a day job. His source at the hospital had even confirmed that his traps had wounded two agents.
An image of Tobias sitting on his granddaddy’s lap surfaced. Many saw Blaze Harwood as a somewhat reclusive war hero, a self-made scholar, an artist, and a loving family man. They didn’t see his ruthlessness, his coldness, his inhumane tendencies. Those who knew him as a devoted family man would never believe him capable of killing a child to incent his own son to do his bidding.
But he knew the depths of evil that writhed in his daddy’s chest. The whole family did, except trusting Tobias, who adored his granddad.
“Ready for us to unload?” Eli Harwood asked.
He pivoted to find his younger brother framed in the doorway.
“Yes. Quickly.”
He supervised the transfer of the product, though he needn’t have bothered. For a number of years, Eli had been lost in a world of vice and drugs. But Caleb had rescued him—in squalor and skin and bones.
It had taken weeks to remove the stench of addiction from his brother. To look at Eli now, no one would ever guess how close he’d come to standing before the gates of hell.
He’d given his brother a second chance at life. Something Eli thanked him for every day, in small ways, meaningful ways.
“Daddy asked about the alarm systems again,” Eli said.
“Walter said the first two would be done by this weekend.” Being down three technicians, their cousin hadn’t been able to install the building alarms before the product started arriving. Not an ideal situation, but Walter—and anyone who worked for him—knew better than to betray Blaze Harwood.
The transfer took less than an hour. Eli strode next to Caleb as he checked the wall-to-wall storage containers, ensuring the product was stored to their father’s exact specifications. The old man was known to make surprise visits.
He tested the lids to make sure they were airtight. The next shelf held large square glass units filled with foreign delicacies. He didn’t understand the demand for them, but his family had made a fortune supplying the items.
“Well done, Eli. Everything is as it should be.”
His brother waved a muscular arm through the air to encompass tonight’s work. “This is the last of what we had on hand. More should be coming in daily, though.” To keep his mind off drugs, Eli had focused his energy on honing his body into a perfect example of masculine power.
“Prepare the other storage units as needed.”
“Anything else?”
“Daddy’s source said agents from the Service are still nosing around.” He handed Eli a slip of paper. “Make them stop.”
8
After changing into her street clothes, Evie searched for her purse and phone, still not happy about leaving the day’s mess to her boss. Toward the end of the day, she’d noticed Lisa rubbing her right temple. She’d been doing that a lot lately. Every time Evie would ask her about it, she would murmur something about a headache.
Despite Lisa’s comment to Deke, she rarely read for pleasure. Most of her downtime was spent going over the current day’s treatments and preparing for the next day.
On the last tour, Lisa had been preoccupied with administration matters, spending more hours than normal on the computer and pouring over documents. Evie’d only been able to manage a glimpse of the paperwork, but she saw enough to know they weren’t patient-related. When she’d offered to help, Lisa had refused, citing her desire for Evie to concentrate on the patients.
Evie forced herself to set aside her worry for Lisa. In order to make it through the next two hours without embarrassment, she would need whatever end-of-the-day mental power she had left while dining with Deke.
Splaying her feelings at his feet had been one of the most liberating and frightening things she’d ever done. But she wouldn’t allow her inclination toward shyness—something she’d fought against her entire life—to send her running.
Few knew that she had to force herself to be outgoing and to talk to strangers. Confidence didn’t come naturally to her like it did the rest of the Steele clan. Every day, she had to psych herself up for whatever challenge lay ahead. Succeeding at her part-time job and graduating college summa cum laude had helped a great deal.
The only time she didn’t second-guess herself was while she worked with her patients. Every decision or recommendation she made seemed like second nature. Natural. Only after the patients had long departed did the questions and worry start.
As long as she didn’t poison anyone, she could see kicking this lack of self-confidence thing, once and for all.
Dropping her phone inside her purse, she stepped out of the RV and searched for Deke. Halfway between the Med Mobile and staff RV, he stood in profile, a white earbud attached to the side of his head. His gaze strayed her way, and he gave her a wave of acknowledgment.
All these years she’d assumed he couldn’t see beyond her connection with Britt. The sibling thing had been part of the issue, but not the grand banana. An age gap had kept him away. Had his fantasies of her made him feel like an old lecher?
She grinned. Not at his internal torment, but at the image of this big, strong, handsome-as-hell guy thinking he needed to protect her. From himself.
He turned, catching her smile. The moment drew out, intensified. Not backing down, she lifted a brow. He ended the call.
“Something funny?”
“Yep, but you wouldn’t appreciate the humor. Are you up for a walk?”
“Lead the way.”
They strolled down Main Street for a few blocks until they reached the downtown area. The hub of Haden’s Hollow consisted of a bakery, restaurant, real estate agency, and bank. A gas station, park, grocery store, and church wrapped around the town’s center.
A bell jingled when they entered Lantern Café, and the rich scent of mashed potatoes, coffee, fried chicken, grease, apple pie, and decades-old wood enveloped them.
“Hey, y’all,” a fresh-faced young hostess said. “Two tonight?”
“Yes,” Evie said. “Any booths left?”
“One just opened up.” She showed them to a corner booth lit by a small hanging lamp with a shade made of amber glass.
“What’s with family-owned, small-town restaurants and fake green plants?” Deke asked.
Evie scanned the dining room, spotting variegated ivy and philodendrons trailing along shelves. “Lower maintenance than the real deal.”
“What’s good here?”
“I’m fond of the chicken wrap. Lisa likes the Reuben.”
He closed his menu. “Reuben it is.”
Uncertainty burrowed into her chest. Did he value Lisa’s opinion over hers? Or did he find Reubens manlier? A more insidious option scratched to the surface. Did he and Lisa have a history? She hadn’t missed their exchange about milkshakes.
“How did things go today?” he asked.
“Pretty well. We had a couple of tough cases, though.”
“Can you talk about them?”
“Not really.”
“Will the baby Harry be all right?”
“Should be. Lisa will call his mom tomorrow to see if his treatment is working.”
“The girl who helped me organize the crowd—is her mom very sick?”
She sipped her water. “Yes.”
“Cancer?”
“I can’t get into specifics. I’m already walking a thin line.”
“Many of your patients quite freely told me about their issues.”
“They’re allowed to. I’m not.”
He cocked his head, studying her. “Don’t take this the wrong way…”
“Why do people always think that statement somehow lessens the blow?”
“I’m used to seeing you carefree and happy, as if nothing can dampen your spirit.” The area around his eyes lifted in amusement. “Like the time I came over to pick up Britt before our high school graduation ceremony. It had rained the previous night. You came flying out of the house toward me, wearing a pretty blue dress. Your bare feet slipped on a patch of damp grass, and you went down.”
“How could I forget such a mortifying time?”
“Most girls your age would’ve burst into tears or complained about the grass stain.” His dimple deepened. “Not Evie Steele. You bounced up like a pogo stick and laughed about how your mama was going to kill you.”
“My wild ways, Mama used to call them. It took me years to find the balance between my love of all things feminine and the need to run with my brothers.” She rubbed her middle finger against the table. “You remember the color of my dress.”
He broke eye contact. “Where the hell is our waiter?”
“That had to be sixteen or seventeen years ago.”
“The point of my story,” he said in a tone determined to change the subject, “was to highlight how nursing has brought out another side of you.”
“Is that good or bad?”
“Neither, just different.”
“Are you going to tell me how—or do I need to tickle the information from you?”
His attention slid down to her mouth, and her lips parted of their own accord. Need darkened his features. Her pulse slammed against the side of her neck.
An eternity ticked by before a breath expanded his chest and his gaze lifted. “You’re more serious, focused, though I detect some uncertainty. Does this work mean so much to you?”
Roaming Wild (Steele Ridge Book 6) Page 5
