How could he joke at this situation? Although they needed inside the house, Rowan didn’t want to spend time behind bars. How would she explain to Alexa that her aunt had spent time in the pokey? Talk about setting a bad example.
“Sweetheart, it will be all right.” Brent laced his fingers through hers. “We’ll go in from the back. If we’re careful, no one will know we’re inside the house. We have to know what the kidnappers want. This is the easiest, fastest way. If we’re lucky, we’ll find what we need here. If not, we’ll move on to Maxwell’s business.”
She sighed. “Sorry. I’m just worried. I don’t know where to start or what I’m looking for. How will I know if I’m seeing the right thing?”
“We’ll figure it out. The kidnapper must think you’ll recognize the importance of what you find. Try to remember places where Heather might hide things of importance.”
“Why not places Jay might hide something? He’s the one who hid the records.” Heather wasn’t known for her bravery when it came to defying her husband’s orders. If she had been, Rowan would have been able to talk her sister into leaving her abusive husband before it was too late.
“She might have left something for you explaining the file. Jay didn’t know she’d left a copy of the file with you and neither did the kidnapper. You wouldn’t know what to do with the file unless you’ve been holding out on me about your code-cracking abilities.”
Rowan gave a short laugh. “Heather was the one into codes and the key to crack them. I might have figured it out eventually, but I still wouldn’t have known what the information meant.” In her view, Adam Walker was amazing. To crack Heather’s code in a day was nothing less than a miracle as far as she was concerned and made her wonder in passing about the operative’s background.
Brent was silent a moment. “You’re an intelligent woman, Rowan. Heather trusted you to find out the truth and know how to handle it.”
Maybe. Heather questioned her about her friends and co-workers, asking about everything imaginable. The one person Heather showed the most interest in was Brent. Rowan’s cheeks burned. Her sister must have known Rowan had a crush on the sexy operative. Heather had been her confidant. Now who would she share secrets with? “She likely expected me to ask you for help.”
Brent’s hand squeezed hers. “Why would she assume that? We haven’t even been on a date yet, something I plan to remedy as soon as we have Alexa home safe, by the way.”
“I’ll keep my social calendar free.” Her heart skipped a beat at his use of the plural pronoun. Alexa wasn’t related to him, yet he appeared as concerned about the girl as Rowan. “Because Jay wouldn’t let Heather spend time with many people, the people in my life interested her. Co-workers, friends, you.”
He sent a grin her way. “Talked about me, huh? All good, I hope.”
“Couldn’t be anything except good. I told her your name and my impressions of you, the small snippets of information you let slip in our conversations over the past year.” Rowan’s heart leaped into her throat as a horrible thought crossed her mind. “Oh, Brent. If Heather knew I might share the file with you, then she must have researched you on the Internet. I’m so sorry. She might have led the wrong people to your doorstep.” She groaned. “Maybe that’s why someone broke into your house.”
Another hand squeeze. “I know who broke into my house. I have surveillance footage of him. He used to be on my payroll. Beyond that, I’m the face of Fortress, Rowan. While I keep a low profile, my name is out there along with basic information. Perhaps Heather found enough in her research to convince her you’d be safe with me and that I had the resources to help.”
Her sister was smart, with the exception of her marriage to Jay Maxwell. “The only thing I regret is that she didn’t meet you. Heather would have liked you.”
“What about you?”
Rowan twisted in her seat. “What do you mean?” she hedged.
“How do you feel about me, sweetheart?”
Her free hand clenched the door handle. “You first.”
“Fair enough. I’m crazy about you, Rowan Scott. I’ve called you my girlfriend for the past twenty-four hours. I like the label and if feels right to me. I’d like for the label to be real. I know I’m asking a lot, Rowan, given the circumstances we’re in and my job. I’m asking you to give us a chance as a couple anyway. Will you take the risk?”
With him driving, Rowan couldn’t unbuckle her seat belt, leap into his arms, and kiss him senseless. For such a smart man, Brent Maddox didn’t know how to read her. “I wouldn’t want to make you a liar.”
Brent’s head whipped her direction. “You’re serious? You’ll agree to an exclusive relationship while we see where this is going?”
A soft laugh escaped. “Brent, I’m crazy about you, too. Dating you won’t be a hardship, believe me.”
“Despite knowing what I do for a living and the danger in being associated with me?”
Rowan decided it was time to own up to her feelings. “You’re worth every risk. I’ve been hoping for months you would ask me out. If you had waited much longer, I would have asked you myself.”
“Thank goodness,” he muttered. “Didn’t want to make a fool of myself assuming you felt the same as I did.”
“You don’t have to wonder any more, Brent. The answer is yes.” Enough mush for now. Time to refocus on the job at hand. “So what’s the plan for breaking into Heather’s house?”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s a big house. With only two of us, it will take forever to look in
