He stepped back and looked down at her. “I disagree.”
“Go on,” Tina said to Jaxson. “I got this.”
Jaxson nodded and then stepped out of the room.
“What, are you two in cahoots or something now?” Penny groused to Tina. “Conspiring against me?”
Tina laughed. “Just helping a sister out.”
“What’s that’s supposed to mean?”
“You can’t even see it, can you? He’s crazy about you, Penny.”
Penny snorted in a very unladylike way. “When’s the last time you were at the eye doctor? He tolerates me, mainly because I don’t give him a choice.”
“And yet he apparently cares enough to see that you’re taken care of. Actions speak a lot louder than words, and from where I’m standing, it looks like he’s got it bad.”
“That’s misplaced guilt, not concern. He feels responsible because I got hurt in the process of following the guys who were following him. Which is ridiculous, of course. It was my own doing.”
“Probably not the smartest thing to do.”
“Maybe not, but it’s a good thing I did! He was in the bushes, Tina. Tell me you wouldn’t have done the same.”
“Absolutely, I would have,” Tina agreed. “But I guarantee Doc would have reacted similarly. You should have seen him when I went after those guys who had shot out my tire. He was livid, and I was annoyed with him for being mad at me.”
Penny didn’t know Doc that well, but he seemed like such an easygoing guy every time he came into the flower shop. She had a hard time picturing him going into a rage. “Doc is a sweetheart!”
“He is. It’s easy to forget that beneath that mild-mannered medic is a highly trained SEAL. Eventually, I realized Doc’s overreaction was because he cared so much. I imagine Jaxson is the same way. It’s how these guys react when something threatens those they care about.”
That gave Penny pause. Underneath the irritation, did Jaxson really care about her? Her lips tingled, reminding her of the kiss they’d shared. And the genuine fear and anger in his eyes when he’d learned she’d been hurt. Maybe Tina was on to something, but Penny was afraid to hope.
“Just let Doc take a look, okay?”
“Fine,” Penny said on an exhale. She lifted her chin toward the doorway and the dining room beyond. “What’s going on in there anyway?”
“I’m not sure,” Tina told her, “but they called in Cage. You know, Bree’s guy. He’s a skilled hacker, though he prefers the term information specialist,” Tina said with a grin. “My guess is, they’re going to do some digging into Jaxson and Sam’s birth records.”
Cole Watson—or Doc, as most people called him—entered the room, carrying what looked like a fancy toolbox.
“Hey, Doc.”
“Hey, Penny. What’s going on? Tina said you hurt your feet.”
“It’s nothing,” Penny said on an exhale. “A few cuts and scrapes, that’s all.”
“Let’s take a look, okay?”
She sighed heavily. “Okay. But I’m telling you, it’s nothing.”
Doc smiled and pulled up a hassock before gently removing her sneakers. Blood had soaked through the double layer of socks despite her attempts to be careful.
“Some of these could use a stitch or two,” Doc told her after giving her a quick exam.
“Don’t you just have some duct tape or something?”
He laughed at that. “No, but I have something almost as effective.” Doc cleaned the wounds and applied antibiotic ointment with some kind of topical anesthetic that felt amazing. Then, he secured the biggest cuts with butterfly bandages and dressed the bottoms of her feet with Telfa pads.
By the time he finished, Jaxson reappeared with Sam.
Sam made introductions. “Jaxson, this is Doc. Doc, Jaxson.”
“Nice to meet you,” Doc said, extending his hand.
“Same. How is she?”
“She is right here,” Penny grumbled.
“She should stay off of them as much as possible for the next few days, and she’ll be fine.”
“Thanks. I appreciate it,” Jaxson said.
He appreciates it?
“No problem.” Doc looked between Jaxson and Sam, no doubt thinking the same thing everyone else did—that the resemblance was uncanny. “So?”
“Cage is going to do some digging and see what he can find,” Sam told them. “But it looks like Jaxson and I might be”—she paused and shook her head—“twins.”
Both Tina and Penny gasped, but it was Penny who said, “Seriously?”
“Yep. Just saying it sounds fantastic, and yet I feel it in my bones. In any event, we should know one way or the other once Cage accesses the records. He said it might take a little while, given the circumstances, but it can be done. In the meantime, how about joining us for lunch? Church is firing up the grill down by the lake.”
“Church?”
“Sorry. Matt Winston.”
Penny looked at Jaxson. His expression was guarded and unreadable. “What do you want to do?”
“I’d like to stay and see what Cage comes up with.”
So would she. The only other item on her agenda was identifying the thugs who’d followed Jaxson to his motel the night before. Well, that, and trying to gracefully get Lenny off her back. Apparently, someone had seen her riding around with Jaxson the night before, and Lenny was concerned. He’d stopped into the flower shop twice already that morning, according to her mother, who had been texting her with updates and wanting answers. Great-Auntie Agnes, Martha McGillicuddy, and the Schaeffer twins had visited the store too, looking for the scoop. Penny was in no hurry to get back to that.
“Lunch sounds wonderful, thank you.”
Was that a look of relief she saw in Jaxson’s eyes or wishful thinking on her part?
Jaxson stepped forward, as if to carry her again, but Penny held up her hand.
“But only if I can walk there myself.”
He scowled. “You heard the doc.”
“I did. And he didn’t say don’t walk. He said to limit how much walking I do.”
She stared at him, daring him to disagree. Had it been just the two of them, she was certain he would have done just that, but under the amused and curious eyes of the others watching with undisguised interest, he was more prudent.
“Kate can drive her down in her Jeep,” Sam offered. “Heff and Mad Dog are loading it up as we speak.”
“Thank you,” Penny said, gratefully accepting the offer. “That would be great.”
“She could take you down, too,” Sam said to Jaxson.
“I’m fine,” Jaxson rumbled before turning and walking out of the room with Doc.
“Typical protector syndrome,” Sam said, shaking her head. “Thinks you should take the ride but not him.” Her lips quirked. “I did like the way he carried you in here though. Very caveman-like. It’s something Steve would do.”
“Doc, too,” said Tina on a laugh. When Penny scowled, Tina helped her to her feet and teased, “What, you don’t like being carried around by big, strong, silent types?”