Max
Chapter 15
Max slept in one of the spare bedrooms in Carter’s house. After Petunia mentioned having an older friend, he couldn’t leave. Anger had stirred in his gut. How had they all been so clueless? And Amelia. What the hell had she been thinking? Petunia was only five years old. She wasn’t big enough to take care of herself; she needed constant supervision. Maybe this was just as much his and Carter’s fault as it was Amelia’s. Maybe Carter had it right from the beginning, knowing that Amelia and Petunia needed better security.
Max stood at the kitchen sink sipping his blackcoffee and watching Gwen take charge outside as a security team followed her around. She was pointing in various directions. Focus and determination were etched into the delicate lines onher face. This was the working Gwen. The professional sideshe let others see. Max was starting to understand why Ms. Delany and Carter had called her a chameleon. Gwen was a mixture of a thousand different personalities, and Max was just understanding the extent of that.
“I take it you’ve already slept with her?” Carter asked, stepping up beside Max.
“That’s none of your business,” he answered.
“If she catches the two of you talking about her, you better run,” Cassandra said as she and Petunia walked into the kitchen. Cassandra pulled out a chair for Petunia and helped her up into it. “What do you normally eat for breakfast?”
“Frosty cereal,” Petunia said.
Both Carter and Max glanced at Petunia with a disapproving stare.
“Pet, what did we tell you about lying?” Max said.
Petunia frowned and puffed out her bottom lip. “The chef just fixes me oatmeal and eggs. Every day eggs, eggs, eggs. I want something different.”
Cassandra was making herself at home, checking the cabinets. She might havesquealed when she pulled out a box of pancake mix. “How about pancakes?”
“You don’t have to cook for her,” Carter said. “Chef Robin can cook anything you’d like.”
“I can manage just fine. Besides, does your chef know how to put a smiley face on pancakes?” Cassandra asked.
“I have no idea,” Carter said. “But you shouldreally stick to Chef Robin’s nutritional plan for her. She’ll be here any minute. She lives in the pool house.”
“Oh, live a little, Carter,” Cassandra said.
Max let their voices drift away as he returned his gaze back to watching Gwen. Her phone rang, and she answered while holding his gaze. She frowned, turning so he couldn’t see her face.
Interesting.
“Don’t you have something better to do than ogle the security?” Carter asked.
“If it weren’t for me, she wouldn’t be here,” Max said.
“Actually, if it weren’t for her need to get on your island, she wouldn’t be here. There’s something you two should understand about Gwen. She’s got a heart of gold, but she’s a hard nut to crack. She doesn’t do relationships.”
“Neither does Max,” Carter said. “Now I, on the other hand, enjoy breaking down barriers.”
Cassandra rolled her eyes. “It’s hopeless when she’s working. She’s laser focused, doesn’t drink, and doesn’t get distracted. She works.”
“I see that,” Max said. “But tell me, Cassandra, you know her so well, who the heck is she yelling at on the phone?”
Cassandra peeked out the window and chuckled. “She only gets that upset when a mission goes south or she’s pissed at one of her sisters. Seeing how the job just started, I’d guess the latter.”
“She has more thanone sister?” Max pried.
“She has several but one died when Gwen was younger. I’ve only met the rest of them once, by mistake. I dropped off work stuff at her home, and they were there. She doesn’t mix her personal and professional life like other agents we work with. There are only a few people she lets see both worlds.”
“Sounds like Max,” Carter said.
“She’s told me,” Max said, turning back to the window to find Gwen gone.
Gwen was a mystery he wanted to solve. And he would. If he had to dig a tunnel underneath her shell to get to the woman inside, he would find her.
