Bear Claw Bodyguard Read Free Page B

could make a difference, which is why I canceled a speaking engagement and fast-tracked a grant application to get my butt down here as soon as I found out about the problem in the Forgotten.” She paused, though, because there were still some solid nerves beneath the irritation. And although she might be tripping over her tongue right now with her handsome escort, she wasn’t an idiot. “Please, Detective, tell me honestly—and we’re talking the absolute truth here, taking your other cases or whatever else is going on inside your head out of the mix—how much real and concrete danger will I be in if we go out there?”
    His gaze sharpened on her with surprise and, she thought, maybe a bit of respect. Didn’t expect the pint-size plant nerd to push back, did you?
    He was paying attention now, though, with none of theearlier eye crinkle that said he was humoring her. And his voice was dead serious when he said, “Okay, Doc, here’s the deal. There’s no hard evidence that the militants are still in the area, and there hasn’t been any sign of daytime movement, at least not that the surveillance has managed to pick up. It’s just gut feelings and suspicions right now. So, no, there’s no hard evidence. And if you’re certain that you want to do this, we’ll go. But I’m going to drive you in and out each day from Station Fourteen, and camping out up at the site just isn’t an option. Take it or leave it.” He paused, then said almost grudgingly, “For what it’s worth, I know the situation’s not perfect, and I’m sorry that it’s going to complicate your investigation.”
    He even looked like he meant it, which had her tension easing somewhat, and her shoulders coming down a bit from their tight “trying to be taller” squareness. “Okay,” she conceded. “The commute is going to slow me down, but I’ll work around it somehow.”
    “And you’ll do what I tell you once we reach the Forgotten?”
    “I won’t do anything stupid.”
    “That’s not what I asked.”
    No, it wasn’t, but she knew better than to make blanket promises like that. Re-squaring her shoulders and not letting herself get trapped in those eyes, which made her want to agree to just about anything, she said, “If we’re talking about cop stuff, then yes, of course you’re in charge. But when it comes to fieldwork, I’m going to be calling the shots on when, where and what. And the ‘when’ is now and the ‘where’ is out at the infection site. I know you probably think what I do is lightweight compared to your job, but if my suspicions are correct, BearClaw Canyon could be looking at a major ecosystem collapse unless we can—or, rather, unless I can—contain the spread of this disease.”
    As if to punctuate her words, the luggage carousel finally rumbled to life, the “Delayed” sign blinked off, and her flight number came up in glowing pixels. The luggage started spitting out almost immediately, and Blondie grabbed a couple of Vuittons and clicked away with only a single last look over her shoulder, which the detective didn’t acknowledge. He kept his eyes locked on Tori, and she stared right back.
    Finally, he sighed, nodded and broke their eyeball stalemate. “Okay, we’ll head out to the station and go from there. Which bags are yours?”
    “I’ve got them.” As her two bulging duffels trundled their way around the conveyer, she stepped forward and snagged them. She was aware of his gaze following her as she handled the heavy load with a combination of leverage and a bone-deep refusal to let him see her wobble. When she turned back to him, he was holding out a hand. She eyed it, trying not to notice the faint but capable calluses or how much bigger it was than her own. “You want to shake on it?”
    “We could do that. Or you could give me those bags and we can hit the road.”
    She wasn’t entirely sure if they had reached an agreement, a standoff or what. But as she handed over one of the duffels