“You first,” Maddie said in the sweetest and most smart-alecky tone ever used by a beautiful, hilarious, and unsettling woman.
Braden’s eyes widened as he realized neither of them had even gotten a shot off. He dashed across the room and swept the closest gun off the floor. The man with the hand wound scrambled away from him and darted through the laundry room. He banged out the back door.
Braden kicked the other gun away from the man on the floor.
“You got him?” Maddie called as she ran after the escapee with her gun in hand.
“Yes,” was all Braden could manage before she was gone. He pointed the pistol at the man sitting against his wall and grasping his shoulder, glaring at Braden. This guy was hurting, but not afraid. It was obvious he regretted that he’d lost the gun and failed his assignment.
Maddie cruised through the back door and was gone. Braden tried to catalogue what had just happened as he prayed she returned unharmed and with the other guy in tow. He wished he’d darted after the man escaping and left her here guarding this guy. She’d reacted so quickly he’d lost his chance. It grated at him. He was the leader, the decisive action man, not the sit-and-hold-the-gun-on-the-man-who-was-already-incapacitated kind of guy.
Braden could only stew about everything Maddie had said as he waited. She claimed she’d come after him to get information about Admiral Seamons, but Braden knew his commanding officer. If Seamons wasn’t loyal and good to the bone, America might as well wave the white flag to the world now. No way was his admiral a traitor and in league with King Frederick. No way.
There was also the humiliating fact that Maddie had bested Braden, shot both of these guys in the blink of an eye, and gone after the guy before Braden could make that move. Their roles right now were probably exactly what they should be. She was the Lieutenant and he was the new recruit following orders. He’d had to learn to follow orders to exactness in his military career, but he definitely preferred giving the orders. Following Maddie’s orders wouldn’t be tough, especially if she’d let him cup her soft cheeks in his hands again, lean in, and kiss her.
The back door opened and he startled. His heart slammed against his ribs, and he was shocked how invested he was in Maddie Delta. He was far too taken with her and had wanted that kiss earlier as badly as he’d ever wanted anything. He tried to school his expression so she wouldn’t know how gone he was in a matter of minutes. She’d probably only laugh at him. And he should be concerned that there was something forlorn about her, something dark that he hadn’t seen in any of the other Deltas.
“Lieutenant?” It was Ensign Chaz, not Maddie. Chaz was a great guy, but the disappointment of it not being Maddie made his stomach wrench.
“I heard shots.” Chaz edged into the room. His eyes widened, taking in the injured man, Braden pointing a gun at the attacker, and the blood all over the wall and floor. Chaz backed away.
“We’ve got it under control,” Braden said. “Go home and watch over your family.”
“Okay.” Chaz’s gaze flitted to the masked and injured man on the floor and then back to Braden. “Should I call it in?”
“My girl is all over it,” Braden told him confidently. He had no right to call Maddie his “girl,” but he instinctively knew that she’d get ahold of Admiral Delta, and whoever the Deltas sent to contain the situation would be more experienced than the local police. They’d know the right questions to ask and what to do with these two men.
Now if only “his girl” would get back here.
ChapterTwo
Maddie sprinted around the back of Braden’s house and into the street. She caught a glimpse of the man with the hand wound running toward the north. She rushed after him, trailing him for several blocks, but he disappeared behind a house. Darting around the side, she slowed as she edged toward the backyard, making sure he didn’t plug her in the head as she came around.
She crept into the backyard but saw him dart into the neighbor’s front yard. Taking up pursuit, she followed him to the far end of the block. A van waited with an open door. Her guy climbed in and the van drove off up the street. Maddie ran toward them, lifting her gun to take out the tire.
An assault rifle appeared in the open door. Maddie dropped to the grass and rolled to a nearby flower bed with a huge decorative boulder in it. No shots came. She peered over the boulder.
The van was gone.
Stupid. She should’ve taken the shot, or at least gotten the license plate. Panic filled her. What if they circled back around for their other guy and hurt Braden?
She raced back in the direction she’d come, wishing she could be like Jessie and pray for Braden’s protection as she ran, but she was the last person heaven wanted to hear from. That was unfortunate, as Papa would not be happy if she got Braden killed. She’d be disappointed herself. She couldn’t think of the last time a man’s body pressed against hers and the anticipation of a kiss had been so thrilling and all-consuming. She’d almost missed the sound of the back door opening and the assailants coming in.
Who did these guys work for? Frederick? Seamons? Somebody else after Lieutenant Braden Moyle, or after her?
Finally, she made it to Braden’s house. No sign of the van. All looked quiet and peaceful in the neighborhood with small homes, porch swings, and the feel of small-town America. Downright quaint. Interesting that the tough lieutenant had chosen such a neighborhood for his home. He was definitely not someone she could ever be interested in. Not that it mattered to her in the least. No man would truly want to be close to her if they could look inside her brain for a few minutes, especially if they were privy to her nightmares, or the tally of kills she wished she didn’t have in her head.
Racing around to the back door, she burst through it and into the kitchen. Braden was exactly where she’d left him, aiming the pistol steadily at the man she’d shot in the shoulder. She could’ve easily killed both of their attackers, but she wanted answers, not dead bodies. Plus, she didn’t want the tally to go from thirty-eight to forty. There was always something soul-destroying about moving to the next rounded number. Something that shoved her further from any hope of redemption or heaven’s love. She wanted to mock herself for that thought. As if she had a redeemable soul left at this point.
“Good boy,” she said to Braden, winking at him.
They needed to move, and quick. Something told her that van was coming back. Hopefully she could get a few answers out of the guy on the floor before they bugged out. She’d have to let whoever Papa sent over to interrogate him figure out what to do with this man.
“You’re okay?” Braden asked. He was calm but concerned about her. It impressed her that he trusted her training and had let her go after the other guy rather than going all alpha male on her and trying to push his way to the front. But it might’ve been that she’d moved quick enough he hadn’t had a choice. At least he’d stuck with his assignment.
“Never better,” she said sassily.
Braden arched an eyebrow at her, but his teal-blue eyes were full of warmth. He was relieved she was okay. Ah. That was sweet of him. She’d think after the way she toyed with him he’d know she could hold her own with any man. Lieutenant Moyle had been strong, a decent challenge, and hadn’t given up—she’d give him those points. She licked her lips, liking the idea of more hand-to-hand combat with this fine-looking lieutenant in her future.