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Chapter Two

K enna stared across the breakfast bar at her nemesis, the offending creature she was supposed to share her life with. Not the husband she had married two months ago. No, he’d made good on what should’ve been a throwaway comment but had turned out to be very real threat about getting an animal.

“Jolene, get off the counter.”

The light gray cat swished her tail, prowling around looking for trouble like her namesake. Probably waiting for Jax to show up and coddle her. Meow. Jolene swished her tail.

“Are you talking to the cat?” Jax wandered in wearing his work clothes. Slacks, and a buttoned shirt tucked into his belt. Her husband opened the dishwasher and upended his mug, putting it on the top rack.

He glanced at her as he closed the dishwasher door.

Slowly.

Kenna rolled her eyes. “Put it wherever you want.”

“Because you’ll rearrange it later?”

She chuckled, shaking her head. Married life was fun.

Like trying to merge two laundry styles.

And debating the best configuration for the dishwasher.

Was he really going to complain if she could fit more dirty dishes in there than he managed to?

She wasn’t the one who’d shrunk a perfectly good hoodie last week.

Jax wore a gun holstered on his hip, but with the position he had now, he rarely had occasion to pull it out.

As the Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Phoenix office, he had more of a managerial position, though he never complained about the bureaucracy.

The guy was way too good at politics and getting things done to have an issue.

In fact, the job suited him well. So did the town house they now shared, with her RV parked in the tall bay on the side of his garage.

Sure, she was going to complain about things on occasion just to keep him on his toes.

Only a little, though. Just enough for them both to know she was paying attention and fully aware of the change in her life.

Kenna leaned back on the bar stool, resting against the back.

She was dressed for her job in lightweight black pants that were supposed to be cooling and a white tee that was loose enough she could keep a gun at the small of her back.

Trying not to look as tired as she felt, which probably didn’t work.

Her husband was far too astute. Over the last couple months of being married—spending more time together than they had since they met—he could read her even better now.

And he’d already been able to see through her.

“ Your cat is on the counter again.”

Jax came over and kissed her, running his hand between her shoulder blades. “I thought Jolene was our cat.” He scooped Jolene off the counter and set her on the floor, then went to the cupboard with her food.

“Does anyone own a cat? I think cats own you.” And she much preferred dogs, which, of course, everyone already knew. “She doesn’t like me because she knows I won’t let her be the one in charge.”

Jax chuckled, setting down the bowl of cat food. “Easier to leave a cat alone all day when I’m at work. Especially with occasionally having odd hours.”

“Don’t ruin my story with your logic.”

Jax shot a grin at her, but it quickly turned into an assessing gaze. “Doctor’s appointment?”

“It’s at eight.”

“Do you want me to call out for a couple of hours so I can drive you?”

“I’ll be okay.” Truth was, she worried that the moment she stopped regularly driving, she’d have trouble finding the energy to start again.

She slid off the stool, trying to keep it from looking like she had to drag herself around.

Her body felt…heavy. That was the only way she could explain the lethargy she felt.

It didn’t help that food failed to taste good and most things left her nauseous, but she wasn’t pregnant.

At least, so far, she hadn’t had a positive test.

Kenna took a package of two steaks from the freezer drawer at the bottom of the fridge freezer and put it in the sink.

“Sure you don’t want me to go with you?” He knew there was plenty she wasn’t telling him. But it wasn’t as if she planned to keep the results of any tests from him.

“I’ll call you as soon as I’m done.” She moved to stand in front of him, sliding her arms around him. She lifted up on her toes and kissed him. “Promise.”

He slid his arms around her. “I’m sure everything will be fine.”

“I don’t need fine. I need answers.”

“I know.” He kissed her again. “Gotta go or I’ll be late for a meeting.” But he didn’t move or let go of her. “Love you.”

That meant, I’m so glad you’re here now , I’m still glad we got married , let’s go on vacation , I don’t want to go to work because I’d rather stay here with you , and a whole lot of other things.

Enough to make her smile. She dragged her hands up his chest to his cheeks and kissed him, replying the same without words.

“Someone has to be the breadwinner.”

Kenna gasped, laughing when she caught the playful look in his eyes. He knew well enough she didn’t need anyone to take care of her. After all, they’d combined their finances as soon as they got married.

“Speaking of.” He bent to grab something from his work backpack.

“Don’t tell anyone I gave you this.” He handed over a manila file stuffed full of papers and newspaper clippings.

“It’s a cold case. A legend in the Phoenix FBI office, or a myth.

Everyone seems to have a theory about what might’ve happened. ”

“What’s the case?” She set the file down, working out when she would have time later to look at it between her appointment and grocery shopping. Princess Jolene needed more treats, and Kenna needed more of the energy drinks she’d been living on these days.

“Right around July 1972, a Mafia boss, Lorin Barone, who was the subject of an investigation, disappeared. On the same day, one of our agents, Walter Collins, who was the lead in investigating him, disappeared as well. Along with a hundred thousand dollars in gold that was never found. No one knows what happened to them or where they went or where the gold is. They just vanished.”

Her brows rose. “Thanks.”

Jax chuckled. “Have a good day, dear.”

She rolled her eyes and hung around in the kitchen while he headed out to work.

Her phone was where she’d left it on the end table in the living room, where she’d been listening to the Bible while Jax took his shower and got ready.

Maizie had called once already this morning.

Kenna finished getting ready, poured coffee into a thermal cup full of ice, and armed the alarm before she went out to her car.

She opened the garage door and turned the air-conditioning to full blast while the interior cooled off. It might be morning chill, but this was Arizona summer. Being outside after nine in the morning was like stepping into a furnace.

She called Maizie on the way out of the drive and sipped her coffee as it rang, heading to the entrance of the complex. The two pillars that flanked the drive in and out had a security guard shack on the left side and plenty of palm trees on either edge.

Maizie said, “Hey.”

“Morning.” Kenna rested one hand on her lap on the straight roads, giving each a break in turn. “You didn’t tell me earlier…how was your night?”

“I got my English paper done.”

“That’s great. What about history?”

Maizie made a noise. “Let’s not belabor the point here.”

Kenna chuckled. “Summer classes are a good test of whether you’d like college in the fall.”

“Or if I’m going to be a model student or a slacker,” Maizie said. “I’m still getting used to the name Maizie Jaxton coming up on the card reader when I sign in to class.”

“I know what you mean, though I don’t know if only changing my driver’s license and my name at the bank is making it worse or better.”

“What about the doctor’s office?”

Maizie was still talking about how they both took the Jaxton family name when Kenna married Jax because Jax and Kenna had legally adopted Maizie.

But she had more important things to talk about with Maizie.

The teen was already eighteen, legally an adult, and they’d talked at length about her moving in with them.

In the end, Maizie had opted to stay in the Airstream in Colorado rather than invade the space of two newlyweds. Not that they’d have minded.

Still, the girl had all the care she needed where she was.

Kenna would’ve liked to have Maizie with her, but spending time alone with Jax was never a bad thing.

She didn’t want anything about their closeness as a married couple to remind Maizie of the horrific parts of her childhood as the captive of an evil man.

Kenna said, “I’m headed to the doctor’s office right now to find out the results of all the tests.”

Silence was her only answer.

“Jax gave me a cold case. I’ll upload all the pages this afternoon. Want to help me with the research?”

“Why did he give you a cold case?”

“He probably thinks I need a good distraction.” Which, to be fair, she likely did.

With all the angst she’d been feeling surrounding what was wrong with her, she could use a juicy distraction.

One that had nothing to do with her father, her history, or international criminal consortiums who called themselves Dominatus .

The kind of group she couldn’t find a way to take down, no matter how long she worked on it.

“If you need something to do, I have a history paper you can write.”

Kenna laughed. “Not on your life, kiddo.”

“It was worth a try.”

“I’ll upload the cold case file after you’re done with your history paper.”

“Ugh.”

Kenna smiled to herself. “Did you find anything out about the medical center?”