the hospital, to be there for their friend, Matt had volunteered to stay behind and act as a liaison between them and the investigators.
No question the site had been crawling with cops and emergency personnel from the moment the explosion occurred.
Colt’s expression turned hard, and Ryder’s body tensed next to hers.
“Son of a bitch. I knew it had to be something like that. Murph—” His voice caught, and he closed his eyes. Susan already knew him well enough to understand he had to reach deep to suppress the emotion running through him.
He cared so much about her after such a short time together. How much more would he care for a man he considered his father?
“Murphy’s middle name is ‘safety,’” Colt continued. Then he listened, nodding his head. “If you could, I’d appreciate it. Thanks, Benedict. I owe you one.”
“Sabotage?” Ryder’s one word sent a chill down Susan’s spine.
“Looks like. The investigation is still in the early stages, but one of the firemen combing the scene found evidence of an explosive device. From what they see so far, they think it was set to go at a specific time, and it was right there in the manager’s trailer.”
“A bomb? Someone set a bomb at your work site?” Outrage warred with fear inside her. Ryder held her hand tighter, and Colt squatted in front of her.
“That’s what it looks like. Matt said the fire department investigators were notifying federal authorities.”
“Who would do such a thing?” She wanted to ask other questions but didn’t. She wondered if their company had been the target or if Mr. Murphy had been the intended victim of the blast.
Colt stroked her cheek, bringing her gaze back to him.
“That’s the question, and until we have some answers, I think it would be a good idea if you went home.”
Everything inside Susan went still. “I beg your pardon?”
The men proved they were adept at reading her mood. She could tell they knew she was pissed by the look that passed between them and the gentleness with which they each touched her.
“Sweetheart, we were supposed to be there today, the both of us. We changed our plans a couple of days ago—more or less at the last minute—and sent Mike in our place.”
“I’m sorry your friend has been hurt. But you don’t have to feel guilty about that. It’s not your fault. It’s the fault of whoever did this. Sending me away might feel like a just penance, but…”
“Susan.” Ryder squeezed her hand. “Sweetheart, we’re not asking you to go home as penance, and certainly not because we want to be without you.”
Then she got it. She shook her head, because usually, she wasn’t quite that slow. “You’re sending me away because you think someone’s out to get you—the two of you.”
“Damn right. There’s no way in hell we’ll tolerate your being in the line of fire.” Colt’s voice was as hard as she’d ever heard it. “There is no doubt at all. That trailer is where we go each morning at the start of the day, where we go over whatever analysis came in overnight, where we have our first cup of joe and set the game plan for the day.”
“And you think it would be a good idea for me to disappear? I’m not some delicate miss to be set off to the side just because there might be danger about.” She folded her arms and gave them each a good stare so they would know she was serious.
“There’s no ‘might’ about it,” Colt said. “Most people tend to agree bombs are dangerous. It appears that Ryder and I have an enemy. An unseen, unknown enemy. The first thing we need to do is take you someplace where you’ll be safe.”
“Well, then, wildcatter, we have a problem because there is no way in hell I’m leaving either one of you. I’m here. I’m staying. Deal with it.”
“God damn it.” Colt got to his feet and likely would have given her a blast if the door to the waiting room hadn’t opened just then.
Colt spun on his heels, and Ryder got
No question the site had been crawling with cops and emergency personnel from the moment the explosion occurred.
Colt’s expression turned hard, and Ryder’s body tensed next to hers.
“Son of a bitch. I knew it had to be something like that. Murph—” His voice caught, and he closed his eyes. Susan already knew him well enough to understand he had to reach deep to suppress the emotion running through him.
He cared so much about her after such a short time together. How much more would he care for a man he considered his father?
“Murphy’s middle name is ‘safety,’” Colt continued. Then he listened, nodding his head. “If you could, I’d appreciate it. Thanks, Benedict. I owe you one.”
“Sabotage?” Ryder’s one word sent a chill down Susan’s spine.
“Looks like. The investigation is still in the early stages, but one of the firemen combing the scene found evidence of an explosive device. From what they see so far, they think it was set to go at a specific time, and it was right there in the manager’s trailer.”
“A bomb? Someone set a bomb at your work site?” Outrage warred with fear inside her. Ryder held her hand tighter, and Colt squatted in front of her.
“That’s what it looks like. Matt said the fire department investigators were notifying federal authorities.”
“Who would do such a thing?” She wanted to ask other questions but didn’t. She wondered if their company had been the target or if Mr. Murphy had been the intended victim of the blast.
Colt stroked her cheek, bringing her gaze back to him.
“That’s the question, and until we have some answers, I think it would be a good idea if you went home.”
Everything inside Susan went still. “I beg your pardon?”
The men proved they were adept at reading her mood. She could tell they knew she was pissed by the look that passed between them and the gentleness with which they each touched her.
“Sweetheart, we were supposed to be there today, the both of us. We changed our plans a couple of days ago—more or less at the last minute—and sent Mike in our place.”
“I’m sorry your friend has been hurt. But you don’t have to feel guilty about that. It’s not your fault. It’s the fault of whoever did this. Sending me away might feel like a just penance, but…”
“Susan.” Ryder squeezed her hand. “Sweetheart, we’re not asking you to go home as penance, and certainly not because we want to be without you.”
Then she got it. She shook her head, because usually, she wasn’t quite that slow. “You’re sending me away because you think someone’s out to get you—the two of you.”
“Damn right. There’s no way in hell we’ll tolerate your being in the line of fire.” Colt’s voice was as hard as she’d ever heard it. “There is no doubt at all. That trailer is where we go each morning at the start of the day, where we go over whatever analysis came in overnight, where we have our first cup of joe and set the game plan for the day.”
“And you think it would be a good idea for me to disappear? I’m not some delicate miss to be set off to the side just because there might be danger about.” She folded her arms and gave them each a good stare so they would know she was serious.
“There’s no ‘might’ about it,” Colt said. “Most people tend to agree bombs are dangerous. It appears that Ryder and I have an enemy. An unseen, unknown enemy. The first thing we need to do is take you someplace where you’ll be safe.”
“Well, then, wildcatter, we have a problem because there is no way in hell I’m leaving either one of you. I’m here. I’m staying. Deal with it.”
“God damn it.” Colt got to his feet and likely would have given her a blast if the door to the waiting room hadn’t opened just then.
Colt spun on his heels, and Ryder got
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