CHAPTER ELEVEN
Deacon was never quite sure what day of the week it was. When you tended to work all seven, the days didn’t seem to matter all that much. There were no such things as weekends. Downtime came when it came, whether it was a Tuesday or a Saturday.
The sheriff had come by to check out the van, but he hadn’t found anything. The Shadow could always be trusted to cover tracks completely, and this time was no exception. Deacon could tell the sheriff was annoyed not to have found any trace of mud or the bullet hole the perps had spoken of, but there was nothing there for him to find. Which was fine by him. The farther away the sheriff stayed, the better. He didn’t like the way Cal looked at Tess, as if he were thinking about trying her on for size.
The only reason he did know that it was Saturday was because Tess had had the funeral to see to, and it was Axel and Elias who’d been up for the burial rotation. He’d watched them leave the house in the Suburban and the newly repaired transport van that morning.
After the funeral, Deacon, Elias, and Dante finished a solid workout in the gym. When they’d finished, they took quick showers in the locker room and coded themselves into HQ. They heard Colin laughing the moment the door popped open with a tiny click, and when they entered the room they found him working at one of the computer stations, but he had the volume turned high for the cameras inside the house.
“What are you doing?” Deacon asked, instantly recognizing Tess’s voice.
“Tess is baking cookies,” Colin said. “The smoke alarm just went off. I think she caught the oven on fire.”
“How does she keep doing that?” Deacon asked, grabbing a bottle of water and taking a seat at one of the workstations.
“Hey, that’s Miller,” Elias said, very interested all of a sudden. “You shouldn’t be listening to their personal conversation.”
“That Elias guy is an interesting character. He’d make a fabulous hero for one of my books. He’s sexy and funny . . .”
“You were saying?” Colin asked as Elias turned up the volume a little.
“Quiet,” Elias hissed. “I’m trying to listen.”
“That’s wrong,” Deacon said. “She would kick your ass all over the place if she found out you were doing this.”
“I don’t see you putting in earplugs,” he shot back. “Maybe because you want to see if Tess thinks you’re as spectacular in bed as Miller thinks I am. Lord, that woman is a temptation no man could resist.”
“She’s managed to resist you for months,” Dante said.
“That’s because I haven’t tried. It’s hard to resist all this charm when it’s coming at you full force.”
“Just like every other cocky SEAL I’ve ever met,” Colin said. “Care to put a wager on it?”
Deacon rolled his eyes, and then caught Tess’s words—“Just never with an actual man.”
“Holy shit,” Deacon said, leaning forward.
“Poor girl,” Dante said sympathetically. “Maybe we should find this Henry and make sure he has a bit of an accident.”
“This place could use a little excitement,” Colin said. “I’m in.”
Deacon wasn’t sure what he was doing, but the direction of the conversation had him racing out of the room and up the other set of stairs that led to the casket warehouse. He didn’t want the others hearing whatever Tess was about to say. He pressed his thumb to the keypad and the door that led into the casket warehouse swung open.
He’d spent most of the day away from her, determined to give her some space and put some distance between them, hoping she’d be thinking of him like he’d been thinking of her. But knowing that a man had never pleased her as she should’ve been pleased made him angry and unreasonably possessive all at once.
He knocked once on the kitchen door and then stepped inside without an invitation. Both women stared at him in surprise. They were sitting in the same position they had been in when he’d been watching on the screen, but up close he noticed the flush in Tess’s cheeks.
“I need to talk to you,” he said to Tess. “It’s really important. Come riding with me.”
“You’re not extending the length of my bathroom renovation, are you?” she asked, narrowing her eyes. “You said four weeks.”
“I don’t know why you’re so obsessed with timelines. You’re getting a new bathroom out of it.”
“Timelines are essential to life. And so are showers. I want my space back.”
“Speaking of, we should probably fix the floor of your bedroom before your bed falls through. Might as well do all the renovations at once.”
“Except I won’t have a place to sleep.”
“There’s always slumber room number one,” he said, lips twitching.
“I don’t mean to interrupt,” Miller said. “But what the hell is going on here? I feel like a third wheel. Should I leave y’all alone?”
“Yes,” he said.
“No,” she said at the same time.
Miller turned to look at Tess with a twinkle in her eye. “Never mind my earlier question. I think I have it figured out.”
“We’re having girls’ night,” Tess said to Deacon. “Thank you for the suit, by the way. It was very nice.”
“Did it fit?” he asked.
“Perfectly.”
He grinned and crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m an excellent measurement taker.”
Tess turned crimson.
“Hello.” Miller turned to Tess inquiringly. “You left a lot of information out just now.”
“I was getting to it,” Tess growled.
He turned his attention to Miller. “I need to talk to Tess. It’s important.”
“If it’s so important, why didn’t you come earlier instead of going to the gym for a workout? You’ve been wasting all this time.”
“Because we didn’t want to deny you the opportunity to use your binoculars.”
Tess snorted out a laugh and Miller pinched her lips together. “You left the blinds open.”
“That’s a Peeping Tom’s favorite excuse,” he said.
Tess laughed even harder at that and tears rolled down her cheeks. “That’s what I said too.”
“Remember what’s in the emergency supply pack,” Miller said, looking pointedly at Tess. “Maybe take it with you. Just in case. Though I think that box has been in the bag four years now. I’m not sure what the shelf life is.”
“Hush,” Tess hissed.
Deacon was pretty sure he was getting the gist of the conversation. “What’s in the emergency supply pack?” he asked. “I thought we’d take the bike out for a ride. Bring it with you.”
Miller broke into hysterical giggles, and Tess groaned.
“Y’all should go,” Miller said. “I just remembered I have some errands to do.”
“You just remembered?” Tess said. “How very convenient. You never do errands on the weekend because of the crowds.” Then she turned to Deacon. “I’ve never been on a motorcycle.”
“You’ll love it. Nothing makes you feel freer than riding the open road.”
She pushed her wineglass back, though it was half-full. “If I go with you, I’d like some explanations please.”
“You’ll get them,” he promised. “As much as I can.”
“This is super-awkward,” Miller said. “I’m going to go now.” Miller stood and started gathering dishes. She tossed the cookies into the trash and rinsed the wineglasses in the sink.
“Can you cook?” she asked Deacon.
“Yes. But mostly out of necessity.”
She nodded. “That’ll be good enough. I approve.”
Tess sputtered. “You approve what? My life is not your next romance novel.”
“This is what I like to call backstory,” Miller said. “This is the part of your life where you do something wild and crazy and have the best sex of your life. This is the part of the story that has to happen so you can learn from your experiences and find your true happily ever after.”
“She gets philosophical after a couple of glasses of wine,” Tess said apologetically.
His lips twitched. “I’m okay with it. I like this story. Best sex of your life?” he asked, brows raised.
“Hmm . . .” Tess said for lack of anything better. “Maybe we should talk about my bathroom. It seems like safer ground.”
“You’d think that,” he said, “but I wouldn’t bet money on it.”
“Y’all stop talking about bathrooms and go have fun. Don’t forget the emergency supply pack,” Miller said, dropping it in Tess’s lap. “My work here is done. Call me tomorrow if you’re free. Just don’t call before noon, because it’s my morning to sleep late.”
“It’s always your morning to sleep late,” Tess said. “Do you even know what before noon looks like?”
“Sure,” Miller said. “I see it around six a.m. when I’m heading to bed.” She grabbed her purse and blew Tess a kiss.
“Hold on, cowboy,” Deacon said, stopping her in her tracks. “You’ve had about one glass of wine too many to drive home.”
“I live three blocks from here,” she said.
“Most accidents happen less than a mile from a person’s home.”
“You made that up,” she said, hands on hips.
“I never make things up,” he retorted.
“Well, I make up stuff for a living, so I can recognize a good bullshitter a mile away. But I’m happy to leave my car here and walk home since the rain has stopped. When Tess and I move to the city, we’ll never have to worry about having too much wine because we can just take the train wherever we want to go.”
“Are you moving with me?” Tess asked.
“I just decided. Is that okay?” Miller asked. “I don’t want to live with you though. I’ll get my own place. Maybe next door. You know I don’t like living with other people.”
Deacon was starting to think maybe Miller had had more than two glasses of wine. She hadn’t stopped talking since he walked in the door.
“No need to walk,” he said. “Just a second.”
He pulled out his cell and dialed Elias. Since he knew he’d been watching the cameras, Deacon didn’t have to explain what he needed, but he did it anyway.
“I need a favor,” he said.
“I can see that,” Elias said. “I’m happy to take her off your hands. What the hell is in that emergency bag? I can’t decide if she terrifies me or if I’m turned on.”
“I’ll let you be the judge of that,” Deacon said. “Can you give Miller a ride? I think she lives near your place.”
“This day is getting better by the minute,” Elias said. “I’ll be right there.”
Elias knocked on the kitchen door a minute later and opened it without being invited in. “Looks like I missed the party,” he said, winking at Miller. “What do I have to do to get an invitation next time?”
“Have a vagina,” Miller said deadpan.
Tess burst into laughter and said, “She’s an acquired taste.”
“My favorite,” Elias said. “What do you say? Want to hit the open road and see where it takes us?”
Miller arched an eyebrow and said, “As long as it takes us to my front door.”
“And I thought you were the one who liked to take chances.”
“I’m letting you take me home,” she said. “That seems like a pretty big chance to me.”
Elias arched a brow and moved in closer. “How’s that?” he asked.
“If I have to explain it to you then maybe you’re not as smart as I thought you were.” Miller gave Tess a hug and tossed her keys to Elias. “Looks like I’ll be eating ice cream and watching movies tonight. Don’t forget to call me tomorrow. And for Pete’s sake don’t forget the emergency pack.”
“I really want to know what’s in that emergency bag,” Deacon said as Miller and Elias left.
Tess just smiled, two streaks of color painting her cheeks. “Hmm. I’m at a loss for words so it seems like a good time to change the subject. Did I tell you I’m thinking of getting a motorcycle when I move to the city? I hear they get great gas mileage.”
Deacon stared at her blankly for a moment. The thought of her decked out in leather, straddling a bike, made him go temporarily mute.
“Do you have leather pants?” he asked.
“No, should I get some?”
“It’s essential,” he said stoically.