“I have trust issues, too, but that’s not what I meant. It’s the fact that you don’t cave to manners. Most people would, you know. They’d worry about offending someone, so even if they sensed something was wrong, they wouldn’t do anything about it.” He lifted his hands. “You don’t care if they’re offended.”
Jodi muttered, “I always think something is wrong.”
That amused him. “You have an answer for everything, don’t you? It’s not going to change my opinion. You’re special, period. I see it, Hunter obviously sees it.”
“I do,” Hunter agreed.
“And,” Memphis continued, “I promise to never give you reason to shoot me.”
His good humor was starting to wear her down. It was hard to be grumpy with someone like Memphis around. “Okay, fine.”
This time his grin looked downright wicked. She’d be willing to bet he gave women fits. And his poor mother. She’d had her hands full raising him, Jodi could tell. “If everyone’s done eating, I’ll clean up the mess while you two visit.”
Somehow Memphis managed to look appalled. “I’ll clean after I grab my bags from the Jeep. It’s the least I can do after barging in. You two just...carry on.”
Hunter pushed back his chair at the same time Jodi did. Knowing they shared the same thought, she smiled. It was nice to be in sync with someone. “You can’t go out there alone.”
Taken aback, Memphis glanced around as if assuming she spoke to someone else. “I’m thirty years old, not a kid afraid of the dark. Besides, Hunter’s yard is lit up like a stadium.”
“It’s not that,” Hunter said. “We’ve had too much trouble.” Briefly he explained about Remmy’s visit. “We don’t yet know what’s in her house, but I’m guessing it’ll be evidence enough to destroy King.”
“Well, that settles it. I’ll bring in my stuff, then go to Jodi’s house and start searching.”
“No,” Jodi said, appalled at the idea of him rummaging through her things.
“No,” Hunter echoed, equally adamant. “If I didn’t want Jodi there alone, I damn sure don’t want my brother there alone either.”
Memphis tucked in his chin with an incredulous expression. “You say that,” he accused, “as if she’d be better equipped to defend herself than I would.”
Frowning, Jodi asked, “You think I wouldn’t?”
“Enough.” Hunter stepped between them so that all Jodi could see was his broad back. “We’ll all sleep tonight—”
“You’re not planning on sleeping,” Memphis pointed out.
“Hope not,” Jodi whispered, and that stalled him for a few beats.
“Tomorrow, we can all three go to her house and search.”
Stepping around him, Jodi asked, “Did I agree to that?”
Hunter put an arm around her and drew her to his side. “You’re reasonable, so you would have.”
True. Plus, she really didn’t want to argue with Memphis. She got that his pride was bent a little, but then, he didn’t yet know her well enough to see that she was totally better at defending herself than he’d be. And he didn’t understand the level of threat posed by King and his goons. “Tell you what. You go guard your brother while I get started in here.” To Memphis, she ordered, “No argument. Until we get this resolved, no one goes off on his or her own.” To Hunter, she said, “Carry your weapon.”
“I was planning to.” He caught the back of her neck and drew her up for a firm kiss to her mouth, lingering just long enough that Memphis whistled.
That drew Turbo, who lumbered into the kitchen with a yawn.
Still holding her, Hunter said, “Keep in mind that I’m not an idiot, okay?”
Yeah, she really did need to quit insulting the brothers, even inadvertently. “Sorry.”
“You’re forgiven.” As if to prove it, Hunter gave her another kiss, then took the leash from the back-door knob and headed off with the dog.
Jodi stood there watching while Hunter paused in the living room to pick up his Glock where he’d left it.
Next to her, Memphis murmured, “You’ve got it bad. I like it.”
She turned and almost ran into his chest. Frying him with her deadliest stare—which had him backing up two steps—she said, “Don’t sneak up on me.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Jodi huffed a laugh. “And don’t ever again call me ma’am.”
“Yes, Jodi.” He saluted smartly and sauntered out.
“Goof.” Grinning, she stacked plates together near the sink, then put her own weapon near at hand. It didn’t take her long to rinse the dishes and get them in the dishwasher. She cleaned the almost-empty coffeepot and put away the waffle iron, wiped off the table, counters, rinsed the cloth, rehung the dish towel... Out of things to do, she glanced around.
Hunter’s kitchen wasn’t that big, but the way it opened into the dining room, which was connected to the great room, made it feel larger. Curious, she stepped out of the kitchen and could see both men through the open front door. Memphis stood there beside his Jeep, holding a bag and talking quietly with Hunter, while Turbo investigated several spots.
Security lights kept the area bright. Other than a stirring breeze, all was quiet.
The fact that Turbo was at peace reassured her that none of King’s men were lurking around.
While they were occupied, Jodi went to the smaller bedroom that Memphis would use. There was a full-size bed, made up with a quilt and two standard pillows, one nightstand, and a closet with folding doors, a few hangers inside. Overall, a utilitarian room, but it had everything he needed. Across from it was Hunter’s office and a small bathroom. The bathroom had two hand towels hanging on a rod, a clear curtain for the shower, a bar of soap in a dish, but nothing else. Clearly, Hunter preferred the bigger bath connected to his bedroom.
She hadn’t investigated these rooms before, so while she was here, she checked the locks on the bedroom windows and, as expected, found them to be as secure as the rest. The only way for anyone to get in would be to break the glass, and that’d set off an alarm.
The bathroom was windowless, so she moved on from that and stepped into the office doorway. This room was small and simple, with a desk in front of the window that overlooked the backyard, the chicken coop, garden and all those trees. On the desktop was a calendar, lamp and a cup full of pens and pencils. A large swivel chair on rollers would make it easy to glide over to a bookcase filled with papers. On another wall was a tall, very cool gun-and-rifle cabinet.