“You know him?” Kennedy started to relax.
“We’ve never met. He’s been keeping tabs on my family, so I’ve been keeping tabs on him.”
As she headed for the door, Kennedy panicked. “Wait! Should you open that?”
Gently, and with understanding, Madison said, “It’ll be okay, I promise. I won’t let anyone hurt you.”
She wouldn’t let... Good grief. Was everyone in the McKenzie family so cocksure of themselves? Of course, she believed Madison was capable, but the man was big, muscular, and he just might have his own set of skills.
Launching from her seat, Kennedy quickly backed up to the kitchen entry, which also put her in line with the hall. If she had to make a run for it, she’d go to the guest room she used, lock the door and dig out her weapons. In fact, maybe she should do that now.
Too late.
Madison swung open the door to reveal a... Wow. Seeing him for real instead of through the camera, the guy looked like a male model. Not as tall as Reyes and Cade, but then who was? He was still six-two, with broad shoulders beneath an expensive suit.
Sandy-brown hair, with gold streaks that made it a few shades lighter than Madison’s, and dark-as-sin eyes, made him a devastatingly handsome man.
Madison smiled. “Hello, Detective Albertson. How nice to see you.”
The detective had been staring at Madison in a surprised yet absorbed way—until her words registered. Then he straightened, on alert. “We haven’t met.”
“No,” Madison confirmed. “We haven’t.”
He looked past her into the house, locked on to Kennedy for a heart-stopping moment, then gave his attention back to Madison. “Miss Madison McKenzie.”
Madison actually seemed pleased that he’d said her name. “That’s Ms., if you don’t mind.”
He acknowledged that with a nod. “I wanted to speak to your brother.”
“Which one?”
“The one who lives here?”
She laughed. Kennedy couldn’t credit it.
And, damn it, she was still tempted to run.
“Unfortunately, Detective, he’s away at the moment. Would you like to come in?”
Kennedy almost choked. She didn’t want a stranger in the house!
Sensing her unease, Madison glanced back. “It’s okay. Detective Albertson is a very good, honest cop. Isn’t that right, Detective?”
Confused by the familiar way she addressed him, he ran a hand over his mouth. “You’ve been studying up on me.”
“Tit for tat, you know.”
Flirting? Was Madison actually flirting with the man? They were all certifiable...but also proficient, damn it. She trusted that Madison knew what she was doing. Sort of.
Maybe.
Still undecided, Albertson hesitated, then finally nodded and stepped in. “Thank you.”
“Coffee?” Madison asked as she headed to the couch and casually closed her laptop.
Not missing a thing, the detective’s suspicious gaze zeroed in on the device. “Sure, thanks.”
Madison looked to Kennedy. “Would you mind?”
“Oh.” Shaking herself, Kennedy said, “Sure,” and hurried away. She needed a minute to herself, and this would help. As she poured the coffee, she tried to think.
Reyes would be furious, she didn’t doubt that. Would he be mad at her, or just his sister?
Didn’t matter. Reyes was the one she trusted—his sister, she barely knew. So she used her phone to quickly send a text to Reyes.
your sis just let in Detective Albertson. They R talking
& it seems ok but thought you should know
Immediately she got a reply: On my way. She was about to put the phone in her pocket when another text came in: Stay behind Madison.
Obviously, he believed his sister could protect her. For the moment, that was good enough for her.
* * *
“SO.” MADISON COULDN’T help admiring the handsome detective. His sandy-brown hair was a bit too long, curling at the ends in what might have created a boyish look if it wasn’t for his strong jaw and sinfully dark eyes. Such a stunning contrast, that lighter hair with the dark chocolate gaze. With brothers like hers, most men seemed far too ordinary in comparison.
Not so with Crosby. Having never experienced lust at first sight, she sighed.
The good detective shot her a suspicious look, to which she smiled...and yes, that only made him more wary.
It wasn’t only his looks worth noting. Since he’d been checking into them, he had to know that her brothers were very dangerous people. So was she. Yet here he stood, in Reyes’s house, gazing at her with cautious interest—something most men didn’t dare to do.
That dark stare did funny things to her insides. She’d have to get used to the detective in small doses. “If you’re here for a reason, I suggest we get to it.”
Now he smiled. “Suddenly in a rush?”
“Well, since Kennedy surely texted Reyes, and since he’ll race over here just to throw you out—and I do mean throw—yes, it might be wise to find out the reason for your visit.”
That took care of his smile. Annoyance gathered his brows together. They were a few shades darker than his hair and added even more interesting dimensions to his face.
“You’re threatening me with your brother?” he growled.
“Oh, no, I’m happy to finally meet you in person. Remember, I offered you coffee.” Louder, so that Kennedy would hear, she said, “Although I’m starting to wonder if that meant making a new pot, since it’s taking so long.”
Wearing a hot blush, Kennedy finally slunk back. She set the cup on a coaster on the coffee table, then backed a safe distance away.
Clearly she didn’t trust Albertson, which sort of amused Madison. “Crosby—may I call you Crosby?” She didn’t wait for him to answer before continuing to Kennedy. “Crosby is fine, I promise. You can trust my judgment. That said, I don’t mind that you contacted Reyes, I promise. No reason to blush.”
Now Kennedy frowned, too. “I think you’re trying to embarrass me.”
“Not at all. I just want us all to be honest.” She turned back to Crosby. “Now, why are you here?”
He rubbed a big-knuckled hand over his mouth. “We’ve arrested a lot of shady men lately—”
“I’m aware.”
“Yeah, well, maybe you don’t know that there was one particular man I want, but he wasn’t in the mix. I thought you might know something about that.”