“Are you headin’ back today?” Magnus asked as he stepped out of the shower and grabbed a towel.
“Gonna go to the hospital first,” he answered, flipping the shower water off and opening the door wide.
“Want me to go with you?”
Trey’s response was instant. “No. You should head back.”
The last thing he wanted was for the team to know he was indulging in this sort of behavior. He went to great lengths to conceal his interactions with Magnus because the last thing he wanted was to get shit from those he worked with.
Magnus was watching him, his expression unreadable. “Okay then.”
Trey nodded, took the towel Magnus passed over before turning away from him.
As far as Trey was concerned, their night was over, and it was time they got back to the real world.
*
The moment JJ set eyes on Brantley in the ICU waiting area, she knew something was wrong. Something more than the fact that Reese had been shot and was now recovering from surgery.
Yes, that was far more than enough to put that irritable look on a man’s face, but she could see it in his eyes. The storm clouds were back, the ones that had been there when Brantley first returned to Coyote Ridge after being medically discharged from the navy. It had taken a couple of months and his introduction to Reese to move those storm clouds out.
While JJ knew it would be best to give him a wide berth, it was nearly impossible for her to do that. It was in her nature to want to help those closest to her, and Brantley was the closest thing to family she had these days.
“Why don’t we take a walk,” she suggested from the chair beside him, hoping to get a few minutes alone with Brantley to get him to open up.
“Don’t want to leave,” he said, staring down at his phone.
“Brantley…”
His sharp gaze lifted, slamming into her. “Let it go, JJ.”
Pain flooded her. An emotional onslaught, not physical. She hated that he could so easily shut her out when she considered him her best friend. But she understood Brantley on a level most didn’t. He’d always been the strong, silent type. Even in high school, back when Brantley was dating JJ’s brother, Jeremy. She figured that had been part of the allure for her brother, and since she’d had a crush on Brantley at the time, she fully understood the appeal.
It wasn’t all that appealing at the moment.
“For a minute,” she said harshly. “But that’s all you get.”
A small smirk tugged at Brantley’s mouth before he exhaled and leaned back in the chair. “I’m sorry.”
“I know.” JJ glanced around the waiting room, taking stock.
RT and Z had gone back to see Reese while Cindy and Hugh were sitting in the corner, both sipping coffee. JJ had heard that Reese’s sister Jensyn was on her way to the hospital, having flown in from California this morning.
“What are the doctors saying?” she inquired, keeping the topic neutral.
Brantley sighed softly. “It’ll be a long recovery. The bullet nicked an artery, but he suffered more injuries from the fight. A couple of cracked ribs, contusions, and a broken finger.”
“Jesus.” She glanced over at him. “They did a number on him?”
“Two on one.” Brantley wouldn’t look at her. “He was protecting Madison Adorite.”
“She related to Max?”
“Sister.”
“Was she at the training facility?” she wondered aloud. How else would Reese have run into her?
“No.”
Hmm.
JJ let the information tumble around in her head. Reese protecting a woman while at a restaurant. A woman related to a notorious mob boss she’d never heard of until she’d become acquainted with Sniper 1 Security. Why in the world would he be doing that? Was it business, was it—
“She’s also Reese’s ex-girlfriend,” Brantley said softly.
JJ’s head snapped over, her eyes slamming into Brantley. “And he was … out with her?”
“A date.”
No. No way that was true.
That information wasn’t processing all that well. No matter how much she shifted and turned it, JJ couldn’t get the pieces to fit. She knew Reese was head over heels for Brantley. She got to witness it every single day, had for months now. Those two were still floating on clouds half the damn time with rainbow glitter and sunshine coming out of their asses.
Something didn’t add up.
A date? With a woman? An ex-girlfriend woman?
“Is that the woman everyone was looking for?” JJ asked, recalling the conversation she’d overheard between RT and Z.
“Yeah. But she’s fine. Not a scratch on her.” Brantley stretched as he sat up straight. “One of Max’s enforcers was there to save the day. Got her to safety and left Reese there to die.”
There was pure venom in Brantley’s tone. Enough that JJ leaned away slightly as she twisted to look at him. “He’s not gonna die, B.”
“I know that,” he snapped, shoved to his feet. “Doesn’t change what they did.”
No, clearly it didn’t.
JJ watched Brantley walk away. She could practically feel his frustration and his anger. Whether it was because Reese had been shot or because Reese had gone on a date, she didn’t know.
But whatever it was, she didn’t see it resolving itself anytime soon.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Brantley knew it was time to make his exit. He’d spent the better part of the day with everyone else, waiting to get confirmation from the doctor that Reese was on the mend. They’d finally gotten that when they were told Reese would be moved to another floor where he could be monitored now that his condition had been upgraded to stable.
Now the question was whether or not he told RT and Z that he was bailing or if he simply walked out and waited until someone realized he was gone. The latter would’ve been the easy route, and he was damned tempted to take it.
Unfortunately, easy wasn’t something Brantley experienced all that often, proven when Baz and Trey intercepted him as he was heading for the elevators.
“You goin’ to grab somethin’ to eat?” Baz asked, carrying two Styrofoam containers and a bottle of water.
Brantley stopped, took a deep breath, and decided to be truthful. “I’m headin’ back to Coyote Ridge.”
Trey frowned, glanced at Baz then back to Brantley. “Are they releasing Reese?”
“No. He’ll be here for a while longer. But he’s got his brother and his mom. They’ll take care of him.”
Brantley could see the concern on their faces, but he wasn’t in the mood to break it all down for them. He didn’t want to acknowledge the fact that the man he loved had been on a date with his ex when he’d been shot for putting himself between her and a bullet. And he damn sure didn’t want to try and explain it to anyone else.
“Why don’t I go with you,” Trey suggested, looking at Baz again. “Y’all can take my truck back. Leave Reese’s here. He might need it.”
“I’m good, Trey,” Brantley insisted.
“The hell you are.” Trey grabbed Brantley’s arm when he attempted to move past. “Take my keys,” he told Baz.