The Diehard Warrior Read online

  She nodded. “I understand.”

  He could tell that she didn’t, however. He touched her hair. “Life is made up of moments.” Tenderness welled in his chest. “Wonderful moments that take your breath away. Those are the moments I hold onto.” His gaze moved over her features, savoring every detail. “Take, for example, the moment we shared this morning. Our kiss,” he murmured. He caught a flicker of desire in her mesmerizing eyes, sending a blaze of heat blowtorching through him.

  Her lips parted expectantly as he encircled her waist, pulling her closer. This time, he didn’t wait for her to kiss him, he crushed her lips with his. She melted into his arms, her fingers slipping like silk up his back and through the hair on the nape of his neck. A tiny moan of acceptance escaped her throat when she arched her back. Her lips were a bewitching mixture of softness and demand. As their lips moved together in a tumultuous river of fire, lightning, and thunder, one word kept blazing through Maddox’s mind—perfection. Just when he thought he would lose himself to the aching need of her, she pulled back, ending the kiss.

  A smile tugged at his lips. “Wow, you are something,” he uttered.

  Her brows drew together, her eyes turning to hard, green marbles, as she gave him a death glare.

  “What?” Raw confusion burst through him like shards of glass. Addie had wanted the kiss as much as he, hadn’t she? Her body went rigid as she stepped back. Not sure what to think, he dropped his arms to his side, letting her go. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her hand go up and realized she was going to slap him. Pain streaked through him as the flat of her palm connected with his jaw. His eyes rounded, his voice rising. “What’re you doing?”

  “That’s for Felicity,” she said savagely.

  A startled laugh rumbled in his throat. “W—what?”

  Her eyes shot fire as she got up in his face. “The second you got home from Syria, you took up with another woman.”

  “I didn’t take up with another woman,” he fired back.

  She threw back her head, nostrils flaring. “Date another woman, take up with another woman. It’s all the same to me.” Her jaw turned razor sharp. “Then, as if that weren’t bad enough. You’re with her now, and you’re here kissing me!” She shook her head. “Despicable.”

  Maddox’s hand went to his jaw, still feeling the sting of her slap. He could’ve sworn he saw steam coming out of Addie’s ears. “Are you bi-polar?”

  “Not hardly,” she scoffed.

  “Your moods shift faster than a speed skater with greased blades. One minute we’re kissing, and then a second later, you go on the rampage over something ridiculous.”

  “Ridiculous?” Her voice escalated. “I’ll bet poor Felicity doesn’t think it’s ridiculous! You’re supposed to be with her and yet you’re kissing me.”

  “Darling, from where I was standing, you were doing your fair share of kissing too. In fact, you were about to kiss me like you did this morning. I just beat you to the punch.” He felt a rush of triumph when her face flamed. He could tell from the embarrassed look in her eyes that she knew it was true. “For the record,” he continued, punching out the words in hard hits. “You broke up with me, remember?” The all-too-familiar hurt poured over him like scalding water.

  She gasped, her hand going over her chest. A second later, tears misted her eyes. “Breaking up with you was the hardest thing I’ve ever done.” Her voice went hoarse. “You can’t imagine what it was like.”

  “Oh, I think I can,” he chuckled darkly.

  She lifted her chin, eyes sparking fire. “No, I don’t think so.” She jabbed a finger into his chest. “Otherwise, you wouldn’t have found my replacement a day later.”

  This whole situation was ridiculous! Addie was getting ticked about a non-issue. An incredulous laugh built in his throat. He tried to hold it back, but it came rolling out like a mudslide. He saw her shocked expression before it twisted into resentment. Once he started laughing, however, he couldn’t contain it. He doubled over, holding his stomach, his shoulders shaking.

  “Stop!” she demanded through clenched teeth. She shoved his shoulder. “It’s not funny,” she growled.

  Finally, he straightened up, mopping his eyes. He took in a breath to regain control of himself.

  She folded her arms tightly over her chest, her fingers tapping out a quick beat, as she gave him a look that could stop an army in its tracks.

  He touched his jaw. “Was slapping me really necessary?”

  “You’re lucky I didn’t punch you,” she muttered, “you two-timing sleaze ball.”

  “Really? You’re saying that to me? What about your boyfriend?”

  She frowned. “I don’t have a boyfriend.” Her eyes narrowed. “Unlike you, I didn’t find your replacement faster than you could blink.”

  He rubbed his neck, trying to decide if he wanted to tell her about the guy he’d seen her with at the resort. If he did, the jig was up. She’d know that he came here to see her, and the sight of her with another man sent him running back to San Diego faster than a tucked-tail dog. Then again, would it be so bad if Addie knew? She obviously still had feelings for him. The kisses were evidence of that. No way could he have felt those things if Addie hadn’t felt them too. The two of them were dynamite together. Maybe it was better to just come clean, lay it all on the line and see what Addie did with it. “Addie, the thing with Felicity …” He paused, trying to figure out the best way to continue.

  She paddled a circular motion with her hand. “And?” she prompted. “Spit it out.”

  Her phone rang. She looked toward the phone, but stayed rooted to the floor.

  “You’d better get that,” Maddox said. “It might be important.”

  She sighed heavily as she retrieved it from the counter. “It’s Sadie, probably wondering about the award ceremony tomorrow for the Watermill conference.” She held up a finger, giving him a warning look. “This conversation is not over. Hey, Sadie,” she said sweetly, putting the phone up to her ear and turning her back to him. “What’s up?”

  As Maddox watched her talk, he couldn’t help but smile. Addie had more grit than a pound of cornmeal. She was outspoken, impulsive, harsh on the outside and yet, so delectably sweet and tender on the inside. His eyes followed the trail of tangled, milk chocolate curls cascading down her back. The ends were tipped with blonde highlights, reminding him of morning sunlight kissing the ocean horizon. He wanted to slide his arms around her thin waist, bury his head in her thick mane of hair, and kiss the delicate skin on her tantalizing neck. He laughed to himself. If his SEAL buddies could see him now, they’d say he was a pathetic sap. Well, maybe he was. Addie was in his blood, and there seemed to be no way of getting her out.

  His phone buzzed. He fished it out of his pocket. It was a text from Sutton letting him know the ETA for the jet. Less than two hours from now. Crap! He’d not yet broken the news to Addie. Considering her demeanor at present, he’d better hold on tight because it was bound to be a rocky ride.

  A few minutes later, she ended her call. Her eyebrow arched as she launched right back into their previous conversation. “You were saying something about your thing with Felicity?” A dark cloud shadowed her face.

  “Yeah.” He rocked on the balls of his feet. “I’m afraid that’s gonna have to wait.”

  Her brows furrowed as she wagged a finger, her voice going school-girl sassy, her hips swaying. “Oh, no, Superman. You’re not getting out of this.”

  No time to beat around the bush. Better to just dive in. If he were Catholic, he would’ve crossed himself before continuing. “We have to hop a plane to New Jersey in less than two hours.”

  Her mouth dropped. “What?”

  “The local authorities are going to arrest Brent Barrett tomorrow afternoon on the charge of your attempted kidnapping. Sutton thinks it’s a good idea for me—us—to get there first to question him. That way, we can learn for ourselves how heavily Barrett’s involved in this. Also, I’d like to question Bla
nche Richey, the woman Jordan had the affair with.”

  She pushed her hair back from her face. “Less than two hours?” She motioned at the salad, her voice rising, hands flying. “That doesn’t even give us enough time to eat and get packed! I told Sadie I’d be there tomorrow to help with the award ceremony! I want to go to San Diego to check on Corbin and Delaney before the funeral!”

  He caught hold of her hands. “Whoa, take a breath.”

  She jerked, her lips clamping shut.

  He kept his tone calm. “One thing at a time. First of all, as much as I’d love to try that blue cheese—” he couldn’t help but smile at the mention of it “—we can forgo the salad and pick up something on the way. Second, your assistant has been handling the conference up to this point. One more day won’t tip the turnip truck.”

  “Turnip truck,” she grumbled. “I don’t even know what that means.”

  “I’m sure you get the idea,” he chuckled.

  She rolled her eyes. “What about the most important part—Corbin and Delaney?”

  She reminded him of a kid, pouting to get her way. She was so darn cute that it made him want to give her everything she asked for. “After our trip to New Jersey, we’ll take Sutton’s private jet to San Diego.”

  The words private jet had the magical effect of shifting the tide in his favor. The lines on her face smoothed, and he caught a hint of excitement glowing in her eyes. “Are you sure Sutton wouldn’t mind?”

  “No, not at all.”

  She let out a breath, her shoulders relaxing a fraction. “Okay, it would be nice to get to the bottom of this ordeal, so we can put closure on it.” She tipped her head like she’d suddenly thought of something. “Do you think we’ll be able to find out if Brent Barrett’s the one who stole the hard drive?”

  “That’s the hope.”

  “If we could get it back, Piper would be elated.”

  “That would be great.” Maddox wasn’t holding out hope that they’d ever see the hard drive again. Even if Brent Barrett took it, the chance of him handing it over was slim to none. However, he didn’t want to dash Addie’s hopes.

  “You know, you never cease to amaze me.” Disappointment rang heavy in her voice.

  Uh, oh. Maybe he’d called the shifting of the tide too soon. “What?”

  A deviant giggle bubbled from her lips. “All this to get out of eating blue cheese.”

  He laughed in surprise, sticking his finger in his mouth and gagging. “You mean the cheese of the dead?”

  “So dramatic,” she purred.

  “You’re calling me dramatic? Seriously! Says the woman who laid a big kiss on me and then slapped me.”

  Her cheeks reddened. “Uh, for the record, you kissed me that time, Bama boy.” She straightened to her full height. “Any self-respecting woman would’ve done the same.” Her eyebrow arched. “By the way, don’t even think this gets you off the hook. As soon as we get on that plane, I wanna hear all about this Felicity thing.”

  There was no mistaking the bite in her voice.

  He sighed heavily. “Fine, but only because you’re pulling it out of me.”

  She patted his jaw. “Since you’re pretty much already packed, I’ll leave the kitchen clean-up to you, while I get ready.”

  He watched as she traipsed out, her hair moving in rhythm to her steps. Talk about a long, lean stick of dynamite. They broke the mold when they made Addie. He glanced at the ingredients of the unmade salad, spread over the counter. He reached for a diced tomato and plopped it into his mouth. “This is the second time today you’ve waltzed out, leaving me with clean-up duty,” he said mostly to himself.

  “I heard that,” she chimed from the hallway.

  “The vixen has owl ears too,” he said loudly, then grinned when he heard her grunt in response.

  15

  Addie rubbed an appreciative hand over the vanilla leather upholstery on the plush seat as her gaze trailed over the patterned, monochromatic carpet and glossy, mid-toned wood accents of the sleek private jet. Maddox was sitting across from her, a small table separating them. She reached for her glass of ginger ale and stirred her straw through the ice before taking a drink. Had they not been traveling to New Jersey to question the man who most likely killed Jordan, Addie might’ve thought she was in a dream. Working for Sutton certainly had its perks.

  She placed her drink back on the table and sat back in her seat, pulling a travel magazine from a nearby rack. She spread it over her lap to appear as though she were reading it, while surreptitiously glancing at Maddox. He was staring out the window as if lost in thought. She smiled inwardly at his unruly curls that went in all directions. A lock fell over one eyebrow, giving him an adventurous, boyish look. Mentally, she circled a dot on the spot on his cheek where his dimple appeared when he smiled. She allowed herself one glance at his muscular biceps before her eyes swept to his torso. His t-shirt formed to the definition of his pecs and flat abdomen.

  Heat simmered through her as she looked at the clean lines of his chiseled jaw. Then her eyes settled on his lips, remembering the burn of them against her own. She felt a smidgen of guilt for slapping him. Mostly, it was a knee-jerk reaction when she realized that she’d let her guard down, once again, and was kissing him with reckless abandon that would’ve made Madonna blush. Geez. Did she have no self-restraint whatsoever where Maddox was concerned? She knew he had a girlfriend, meaning that she’d been relegated to the role of the “other woman.” When Maddox was kissing her, that meant he was two-timing Felicity.

  Maddox felt her gaze and gave her a slow, leisurely smile that unleashed butterflies in her stomach. She was hyper aware that the only other person on the plane, besides the two of them, was the pilot. Dang Maddox! All he had to do was smile and she turned to a puddle of mush. This had to stop! She took a deep breath, mustering up her resolve. It was time to talk turkey.

  “How ya doing?” Maddox asked.

  “Okay.” She homed in on him with a laser focus. “You were going to tell me about your thing with Felicity.” She didn’t try to hide the accusation in her voice. It was the make-or-break moment in the game when all gloves were off.

  He scratched his forehead. “Um, yeah.” He motioned at the sofa to their right. “Shall we?”

  Her pulse bumped up a few notches. The idea of sitting beside Maddox in a private jet was the stuff dreams were made of. Him having another woman—the stuff of nightmares. She frowned, a thundercloud of irritation rolling over her. “I’m fine where I am.”

  He stood and came around the table. “Come on.” He reached for her hand.

  She tried to jerk it away, but he held on tight. Her eyebrow shot up as she gave him a questioning look.

  “Come on,” he urged. “I don’t bite.”

  “It’s not biting that I’m worried about,” she retorted.

  He pulled her to her feet and to the sofa. She gave him a hard look. “I’m only going along with this because I want to give you the benefit of the doubt. I figure I owe you that much for protecting me.”

  An amused grin slid over his lips. “That’s mighty noble of you, Adelaide Spencer.”

  The taunting edge in his voice came at her like a thousand needles pricking her all at once. “You think this is funny?” She gritted her teeth. “I don’t appreciate being made a fool of.”

  Concern filled his eyes, all joking vanishing in an instant. “What’re you talking about?”

  She balled her fist. “You have no right to kiss me the way you did when you have a girlfriend.”

  He rubbed his neck, blowing out a long breath. “It sounds like my thing with Felicity’s getting under your skin.”

  She rocked back, hardly believing the words that had come out of his mouth. “Now you’re taunting me about it?” The nerve! Heat burned up her neck, making her feel like her head would explode as she jumped up. “You think this is all a big joke?”

  He sprang to his feet. “No, I don’t think it’s a joke.” His jaw tensed. �
��I didn’t think it was a joke when you dumped me.”

  “Well, you couldn’t have taken it too hard because you found another woman a day later!”

  “Sit down, so we can talk about this like rational adults.”

  She slung back her head as she barked out a laugh. “Ha! You would pull the adult card!”

  “Addie, sit down, please.”

  They stood there eyeing one another until finally Addie sat back down, mostly because she had no place else to go. “I’m listening,” she huffed, crossing her arms over her chest.

  Maddox rubbed his jaw, laughing humorlessly. “I don’t understand you, Addie. You’re acting like you’re the one who was wronged, when you’re the one who broke up with me.”

  She tried to interject a comment, but he held up a hand. “Let me finish.”

  She clamped her lips shut, glaring at him.

  “You act like I’m the only one who found someone else, but that’s not true.”

  “I don’t have anyone else,” she countered, her voice escalating.

  His eyes burned into hers. “You sure about that?”

  “Of course!” Had he lost his freaking mind?

  “Can you sit there and honestly tell me that you haven’t gone on any dates in the past few weeks?”

  She went hot all over, then stone cold.

  “Yep, just as I thought,” he said, giving her a vindicated look.

  “T—that’s not fair,” she sputtered. “Going on a few dates is not the same as going steady.” The need to defend herself was all-consuming. Her throat went impossibly small as she swallowed.

  The hurt in his eyes darkened them to indigo, his voice taking on a musing tone. “Let’s see if I can paint a picture for you. You’re standing in the resort. Your curls piled high on your head, sporting that green dress I got you for your birthday—the one that hugs your figure in all the right places. Your long legs showcased in sleek, high heels.” His jaw hardened, eyes searing into her soul. “A guy approaches. Hands you roses. Leans in and says something. You laugh and look at him with moon eyes.” Disgust coated his voice. “Need I continue?”