Sure enough, within just a couple minutes her curiosity gets the better of her and she takes a deep breath.
“Here it comes,” I murmur, tilting my head toward her when Maddox’s eyebrows rise in question.
“Maddox,” Callie says, drawing out his name in an inquisitive tone. “What’s it like being in a committed relationship with two people? And I’m asking purely from a clinical perspective.”
My brother has the grace to look amused rather than annoyed and just shakes his head when I give him an apologetic look.
“It’s pretty fucking fantastic. Like being with one person, only twice as amazing.”
Of course, Callie doesn’t stop there, and Maddox humors her, so I’m privy to a more detailed recounting of my brother’s journey to winding up with his two lovers than I’ve ever heard. He doesn’t skimp on detail, either, and to be honest, some of the more explicit topics he shares make me subtly excuse myself to go take a piss, retreating to the lavatory that kicked off the whole snowball of a conversation to start with.
I take my time admiring how cushy the small bathroom is, but I don’t think I’ll share with my brother that I think it would actually fit three, if the parties were determined enough to make it work. I love the bastard, but really don’t need to know the inner workings of his relationship. As long as he’s happy, what they do in the privacy of their own spaces is their business.
Thankfully they’ve moved past the sex part of the conversation by the time I get back, and he’s telling anecdotes about his relationship with Leo and Celeste since they became an official throuple. This is all new to me, so I listen, more than happy to hear all the details of his life that I’ve missed over the past three years.
An alarm on Callie’s phone goes off partway through, and she feeds me a few pills without breaking stride in the conversation. I recline my seat, and within minutes I conk out to the comforting sounds of both their voices, only vaguely aware of Callie slipping her hand into mine before consciousness fades entirely.
I’m antsy when we land, despite still feeling groggy from the pain meds. I made the call to Zavala last night after settling the final details with the senator while Booth listened in. He didn’t plan to accompany me because there really wasn’t much he could do with his bum shoulder, but he knows how Zavala works as well as I do, so he was crucial in helping negotiate the exchange. As for backup, my brother will be more than enough if I need it. Hopefully it’ll be a quick and easy trade, but I wouldn’t put it past Zavala to unnecessarily complicate things.
We still have a few hours before the meeting, so we check into our hotel. It’s a nice one, again thanks to Flores, and I can’t help but have a strange sense of dejá vù, as if all the tension that’s gathered since my unceremonious arrival outside San Diego is gradually unwinding.
“What time do we leave for the meeting?” Callie asks once we get into our room and the bellboy deposits our bags on the luggage stands.
“Mad and I are leaving at two. I need you to stay here.”
She doesn’t respond for several seconds, and the hair on the back of my neck stands on end. I tip the bellboy and close the door, bracing myself for a confrontation.
Callie’s occupied digging through her bag for something, but her movements are jerky and impatient. I wish like hell I knew what was going through her head. I expected she’d be unhappy with the decision not to bring her, but I didn’t expect the silent treatment.
I settle on the bed beside her bag and reach out, wrapping my fingers around one of her wrists to still her searching. “Look at me, honey. Let’s talk about this, okay?”
When I gently tug on her arm, she relents and allows me to pull her onto my lap. She immediately cringes and tries to pull away, but I hold tight.
“Your back. I shouldn’t . . .”
“Forget about my back for five minutes. Let me hold you, okay?”
Lines of worry deepen between her eyebrows and she’s stiff as iron in my arms. “My mother said something to you, didn’t she? To get you to leave me behind.”
“Maybe she did, but I’d have agreed with her either way. There’s no reason for you to take unnecessary risks. I’d rather Zavala not have you on his radar. Besides, I need you to do me a favor while we’re gone.”
“Whatever it is can wait, can’t it? Isn’t getting Zoe away from that man more important? I can handle myself in a fight. You’re forgetting both my mother and older brother were DEA agents. I know how to use a gun. I know a little hand-to-hand combat too. Not much, but enough to survive if I have to. I can’t . . .”
She cuts herself off as tears spring to her eyes and her jaw spasms with the clench of her teeth. She raises her hands to my cheeks and lets out a shuddering breath. “I’m afraid to let you out of my sight. I know it’s irrational, but I’m afraid if I do, you won’t come back this time.”
“Baby, all I want is to get my daughter and go home. With you. You have to trust that I’ll do every goddamn thing in my power to make that happen.” I wrap my arms around her tighter. “But we need someone to stay back anyway, and of the two of you, I’d prefer to have Mad Dog beside me if things go sideways at the meeting. If that
