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M y thinking exactly.

The possibility that her mother’s murder and her father’s disappearance could be connected had been at the back of his mind, with each new lead confirming it. Naomi’s revelation seemed to lend more credibility—at least in his mind—that there could be a connection.

On the drive back, he had gone above and beyond to make sure no one followed them to the safe house.

He’d made sure that no one had placed a tracker on the vehicle.

After all, the gunman had been at the bait shop.

If he was after Jo and not Naomi, then he could have attached a tracker.

Cole and Hawk had arranged to trade vehicles behind a shopping center in Olympia.

Cole had driven out of his way for that, but it was worth it.

He’d put on a ball cap and Jo had ducked down in the seat as they exited.

The plan was that Hawk would wait half an hour and then head in the opposite direction.

The two brothers looked enough alike, Cole hoped, that if someone was waiting, they would follow the Yukon.

Cole had seen no vehicle lights along the two-lane road, then finally, he turned onto the gated drive and steered through the privacy gate, up the drive that cut through a thick, dark forest. It was approaching five o’clock, but the gray, dreary day made it seem much later.

He parked in the garage and shut the door behind the vehicle.

Jo started to get out.

“Wait. Let me clear the perimeter and the house,” he said. “I’ll look at the cameras first.”

He viewed the security cameras at the house, and no one had entered or approached. The possibility remained that someone had hacked the cameras, so Cole would clear everything himself for good measure. After he did a quick perimeter check, he moved back to the vehicle. Jo got out.

She stayed with him as they entered the house through the garage. She had her weapon drawn too, as he cleared the house that was a little too large for his comfort when it came to security. But the location met other check marks—it was remote and hard to find or get to.

Cole tucked his gun away.

Standing in the kitchen, Jo rubbed her arms. “When will Hawk and Remi be here with dinner?”

Cole glanced at his watch. “Shouldn’t be too much longer.”

“How will you get your Yukon back?” She got a glass of water.

“I’ll figure it out. It’s the least of my concerns.

” He didn’t want to lead anyone here. Still, even Remi and Hawk coming here could be a mistake.

But Hawk had been a military guy and was former law enforcement.

He would take all the necessary precautions to make sure he and Remi weren’t followed.

Cole pushed all those thoughts away and focused solely on Jo.

She stared up at him with those big, beautiful chestnut eyes. Every day seemed to turn into an unending nightmare for her. He didn’t know how to stop the madness.

What was worse, exhaustion weighed on him.

He didn’t have the strength to fight his urgent need to be near her—physically and emotionally.

He wanted to tell her what happened, why he disappeared, but that needed to wait because it would only be confusing if he told her in the middle of this muck. Now wasn’t the time.

Or was it?

He stepped forward, resisting the urge to touch her cheek and watch the reaction in her eyes. Reach for a tendril of her long, gorgeous hair. He could barely fight his need to wrap her in his arms.

But he could do this for her. She’d said she wanted a professional relationship with him only. Didn’t she? But she was sending him completely different vibes. What should I do?

“We’ll figure this out, Jo.” I promise. I would go to the ends of the earth for you.

But she wouldn’t believe him. Still, the way she looked at him now, he thought maybe she wanted him to say those exact words. He must have been imagining it. Willing it to be so.

And when she leaned toward him, that was all the invitation he needed.

He slid his hands over her shoulders and around her back, pulling her fully against him, and held her.

She held him. This was right. How it was supposed to be.

For the moment, his heart was content. They cocooned each other in reassurance and support, and for his part, he had to admit. ..

He loved her.

God , do you hear that? I love this woman. Please help me protect her. Help us find the truth.

She stepped away and looked into his eyes, and in hers, he saw longing. His brain shut down, and his heart took over. She was in his arms again, her lips pressed against his.

Cole’s heart soared to places he’d never been.

And ached ... Jo’s life was in danger. He couldn’t afford this distraction.

She pulled back, and her content sigh nearly undid him. He could hear Hawk’s voice, to add to his own in his head. What are you doing , man?

Turmoil surged in her gaze, as if she realized her mistake—that she never should have kissed him. And now that she had, could either of them stop what was happening between them again, as if picking up where they had left off before?

A knock came at the back door, then someone stepped right inside. Cole had his gun out, ready to take down the threat.

Hawk stepped into view. Behind him, Remi.

Heart pounding, Cole lowered his weapon. He’d been caught off guard. See? This thing between him and Jo wasn’t good. This wasn’t the time.

“Whoa, bro. You knew we were coming.” Hawk looked between Cole and Jo, then irritation flashed in his gaze.

Remi emerged from behind Hawk carrying a couple of bags of food. “Brought your favorite. General Tso’s chicken.”

Jo gasped. “Really? Did Brad make it?”

“Yeah. He cooked it up, especially for you.” Remi looked at Cole. “Kitchen staff. We just hired him on a few months ago, so you probably haven’t met him.”

Was her comment meant as a jab at Cole? Hawk had said Remi wasn’t happy with him, believing he had hurt Jo.

Jo’s smile faded. She must have been thinking the same thing—he had been about to tell her that he loved her and ask for another chance when Hawk and Remi showed up.

Remi rushed forward and hugged her. Hawk gave Cole a look that he wasn’t sure how to read.

Cole decided it was best not to second-guess his brother, trusting that Hawk would speak his mind sooner or later.

Cole opened the sacks of food and pulled out the aluminum containers. “Smells great.”

Jo got out the dishes. “Thanks for coming all this way.”

Having visitors wasn’t normally a good idea, but one, Jo needed the support from her friend, and two, Cole needed the support of his brother. After the day they’d had, Hawk and Remi had come to the house intending to stay tonight. Hawk would assist Cole in providing extra security detail.

Jo and Remi moved to the living area and spoke in too low a tone for Cole to make out what they were saying, but they effectively left Hawk and Cole to finish setting up dinner. Cole plated the Asian chicken and noodles and vegetables for each of them, then set the plates on the table.

Hawk grabbed enough bottled water for everyone out of the fridge.

“Have you learned anything more about today?” Hawk kept his voice down.

“No. I’m letting Allison dig into it. She has the image.

Jo mentioned trying to complete the sketch, but she’s been through so much already.

I can’t ask her to do that.” But he had a feeling she might attempt it on her own.

She had the ability to create extraordinarily accurate images, so maybe he should encourage her to complete the image.

He suspected she might attempt to combine the eyes she’d drawn with the lower half of the gunman’s face.

He’d considered that as well. Allison would reach out to her forensic artist contacts and send Cole something soon.

Hawk’s gaze narrowed as he scrutinized his brother. “But there is something else you haven’t told me. What is it?”

Cole and Hawk weren’t twins, but Hawk’s ability to read Cole always surprised him. It shouldn’t.

“Naomi told us that Mason knew Jo’s mother before.”

“Before? Before what?”

“That’s what we want to figure out. She then tried to tell us to look something up, but she was incoherent, and we couldn’t make out the words. But Jo and I are on the same page in that we think her father’s intentional disappearance is related to her mother’s murder.”

“Wait. You don’t think he—”

“No. Not that he murdered her. But that something happened. Mason was on that ferry to talk to Jo, and he was murdered. It’s even possible the attack today was meant for Naomi. She and Mason could have been the ones targeted.” Cole detailed the rest.

“But the bomb,” Hawk said.

“Jo could be in the crossfire of whatever this is. Whatever is going on, I think it’s possible that Jo could be her father’s kryptonite.”

Brows furrowed, Hawk nodded. “I think you’re right. She is her father’s weakness. She could be used against him, if that’s what is going on here.”

“She remains in danger no matter the reason.”

His back to Jo and Remi, Cole ran his hand down his face. Remi approached and slid her hand around Hawk’s arm. Cole couldn’t help that he was a little jealous of his brother’s ability to finally move forward in a relationship.

Cole wanted that too, but at this moment, he couldn’t see a way forward, even on the other side of this danger, especially after the debacle moments earlier. Jo sat at the table, and Cole focused on this moment in time with Hawk and Remi and Jo—the people to whom he was closest in this world.

“I appreciate you bringing dinner,” she said. “But ... honestly, I’m not all that hungry.”

“You need to eat,” Cole, Hawk, and Remi said simultaneously.

Eyes wide, Jo stared at them. “Well, I’d better try. I get the feeling someone might shove the food down my throat if I don’t.”

“You’re too thin as it is, Jo.” Remi smiled. “I figured you wouldn’t have an appetite, and I told Brad.”

Cole watched her as Remi and Hawk talked about their day—anything to avoid talking about Cole and Jo’s day.

Remi shared that the storm system coming through had brought spectacular displays at the storm-watching lodge.

Then Jo told Remi the best way to fix the door that always got stuck in Cabin 8.

But behind all the conversation, Cole suspected they all tried to ignore the growing sense of dread.

After dinner, Hawk and Cole cleaned up the dishes while Remi and Jo sat on the sofa and drank tea.

“Sheriff Thatcher wants to stop by tomorrow and bring his new detective, Braden Sanders.”

Cole shook his head. “I don’t know about one more person involved or coming to the house, Hawk. Today, after everything else, was over the top. Besides, we already have too many agencies with the proverbial finger in this pie.”

“I already told him to come.”

“You did that without talking to me first. I’m running this protective detail.” Cole dried his hands, then snapped the towel.

“The other option is we go out in the world to meet them.”

“Why does he need to meet?” Cole asked.

“Come on, Cole. You’re in his county. Jo’s house was bombed. Raymond Dodge, a.k.a. Ransom Driscoll, lived here right under everyone’s nose. You’ll like the detective. He was a DSS agent. In case you’re not familiar, that’s Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service.”

I know what it is. That news perked Cole up. “Really? What in the world is he doing here, then, as a detective in an isolated place?”

“For that matter, what am I doing here? What are you doing here?” Hawk asked. “You didn’t think you’d end up here, did you?”

He hadn’t ended up here. Not yet. He was here right now for Jo. But he didn’t point that out to Hawk. “I just don’t know if we have the bandwidth to answer any questions and talk more about what’s going on.”

“I get that,” Hawk said. “Is all this as confusing to you as it is to me? My head is spinning, to be honest. And my head doesn’t usually spin.”

Cole gave him a smirk that said otherwise.

Hawk only frowned at him. “How’s she doing?”

“She’s traumatized. Who wouldn’t be? And she wants to go to Michigan.”

Cole got a text and tugged out his cell.

“What? Why?” Hawk asked. “How are you going to keep her safe if you do?”

“Let’s just say, while we’re here, this is a safe place. But for how long? The quicker we find out who is behind the attacks on her, the faster she’ll be safe. She won’t have to look over her shoulder again.”

“And then maybe you can figure out how to be with her. I see how you look at her. It’s obvious that—”

“What’s obvious?” Jo moved into the kitchen, Remi on her heels.

“That we need to know more about the reason behind your mother’s death,” Cole said.

“I’d like to know under what name she knew my father. How and when they met. Naomi said Mason knew my mother before. Before she came to Michigan? Before what?”

“I might have an answer to that.” Cole read through Allison’s text. “Mason Hyde spent the last fifteen years working as an engineer at GMC in Detroit, but before that, he worked at Gemini Aerospace. Among other things, they build rocket boosters for space flight.”

He watched Jo’s reaction.

“So, my father, a mechanical engineer, visited Advanced Technologies, which is involved in various industries, including aerospace. Aerospace, meaning aviation and space flight. And Mason, the aerospace engineer, knew my mother ... ‘before.’ Could the past and the present finally be coming together, pointing us in a direction?”