Chapter 6 #2
“Do you need anything?” Shannon asked. Her tone was normal, but there was a hint of something else there. He looked over at her, but he couldn’t decide if it was wishful thinking.
“No, just some sleep. It was a long drive from Virginia.”
She nodded in understanding.
“This old man needs some sleep if he’s going to see any of New Orleans tomorrow. Been a while since I’ve been here,” Deke said.
“If you need someone to show you around, let me know. I scheduled myself off the rest of the week to spend time with Mal. I’m sure he will get sick of me within six hours,” Shannon said.
Deke smiled at her. “Thanks.”
Kade and Deke made their way to their rooms. The guest room was right by the stairs, and Deke stopped him there.
“You don’t have a problem if I ask Shannon out while I’m here, do you?”
He wanted to tell him to stay the hell away from Shannon. He wasn’t her type. He was too old. And she was his.
But that wasn’t true. None of it.
“No problem, mate.”
He turned and walked into his room, thinking that for the first time in a week, he would be taking the hard meds.
“You want to tell me why you brought this motley crew to my house without warning?”
Mal shook his head. "I didn’t want to say I was bringing them if I couldn’t convince them. Both of them just wanted to spend the week sitting around their quarters. I thought it wasn’t a good idea.”
“That bad?”
He nodded. "Actually, probably worse. We lost Forrester.”
The name brought to mind the young kid that had spent his honeymoon in New Orleans just a year earlier. "Oh, shit.”
“Yeah, Amanda is kind of a wreck.”
“I can imagine. How are you doing?”
“You can see that my beautiful face is just fine.”
She took his hand and tugged on it. "No. I want to know if you are doing okay.”
For once, Mal’s expression turned serious. "Yeah. A few dreams here and there, but no depression. Seriously, I was knocked unconscious and missed the worst of it.”
“I take it Deke and Kade didn’t? They looked a little roughed up.”
“They look amazing compared to what they looked like a few weeks ago. Kade especially. I understand we almost lost him. He was trying to save Forrester.”
Her heart jumped into her throat. "Do Kade’s folks know?”
“Probably not. He’s shut down. He was quiet before, but now he’s damned creepy.”
“Mal,” she admonished. "That’s no way to talk about your best friend.”
“Yeah, I know. But it’s the truth. You saw. He barely talks now. It’s like he’s not there. I thought you might be able to help out.”
She studied her brother’s eyes. "Like how? ”
“He’s always had a crush on you. You have to know that.”
“Yes.”
“Well, he always seems so...relaxed around you. He talks to you more than he talks to any woman I’ve seen him with.”
She dropped his hands. "So you want to act as my pimp?”
He rolled his eyes. "Good God, no. I might have to bleach my brain to get that image out of there.”
“Why don’t you explain what you want from me, Mal?”
“He talks to you. If you could get him to listen, to come back to life, that would be fantastic.”
“So a miracle?”
He chuckled. "No, just a sounding board. Not sure if it will work, but I thought maybe you would bring him out of his shell.”
“I’ll try.”
“That’s all I ask, sis.” He leaned forward and gave her a kiss. "I’m going to go to bed. You need help with the dishes?”
Normally, she would force him to do all the cleaning up. Looking at him though, she saw the dark circles under his eyes and the fatigue weighing him down. He was worried about his friends, and the stress of that and the drive was probably enough to blank any man out, even a SEAL.
“Naw, I got it.”
She went through the motions as she listened to him walk up the stairs.
She couldn’t let him see just how much that affected her.
He knew it hurt for her to hear, but she also knew her brother.
He was worried. Very worried. Kade was usually so self-contained, but now that Mal pointed it out, she realized he was right.
Kade had shut down. She rinsed off the dishes and put them in her dishwasher as she thought of his behavior.
He had always been quiet, just as Mal had said, but dammit, he had always been.
..well, like a guy hiding a secret. A fun secret.
His eyes had always sparkled, and he had always been willing to listen and join in when asked.
Now, it was as if he saw himself as separate from the world. Even from his closest friend.
She started the washer then began cleaning off the table. Was it as simple as guilt? He hadn’t saved Forrester. He had survived. Maybe that was why he was holding back from her, and even Mal?
Did she want to take a chance on helping him?
Getting him to talk, trying to draw him out, would hurt.
Hurt a lot, that was for sure. Being in the same house as him had her aching from the inside out.
Hell, just hearing that funky noise he’d made when she’d touched Deke had sent ribbons of lust streaming through her blood.
She paused and straightened.
He had been cool, at least he’d looked that way. But, in his eyes...her breath caught. "He’s jealous.”
For a second she thought back, tried to debunk the idea. Why would he be jealous of a simple pat? She understood maybe getting upset if she had slept with Deke, but this was nothing. It had to be that he still had feelings for her, yes? Why else would he have growled?
That had her looking at the situation in a different manner. Did she want to put herself out there, take a chance on being hurt again?
Maybe.
Worse, did she want to take the chance of losing him forever?
If he felt guilt for what happened, did he think he wasn’t good enough for her?
That would make sense. She could at least put out feelers, push him a little.
Knowing Mal, he’d been handling his friend with kid gloves.
While her brother was a kickass SEAL, just like every other Dupree man, he had a gooey, soft center.
He hated to see someone he loved hurt and would do anything to protect him or her.
She sat in the chair with a thunk. Well, damn. She had to look at the situation a little differently now. He might be a little rough around the edges now, and she was still pissed at him, but he needed her. He needed more than just a friend, if her suspicions were right.
She would just push some buttons on that damned hardheaded SEAL tomorrow and see what happened.
If there was anything worth the pain, it was Francis McKade. And if he was too stupid to realize she was good for him, she’d smack him upside the head and walk away.
She had to try because she didn’t want to spend the rest of her life regretting it.