Blown Away (5 page)

“Okay. Try not to break any furniture, children. I’ll be downstairs.” Then he looked at Nic. His brother knew exactly what he was thinking.
Freaking lucky. Don’t screw it up
. “Don’t make me say it.”

Nic’s expression never changed but he nodded. “I’ll talk to you later.”

Jimmy took the paper. He didn’t think it had anything to do with Merri.
Charlie
had probably already talked to his mom and knew she was here. More likely
Charlie
wanted an answer. Jimmy didn’t have time to disappoint the man again. Right now, he needed to get downstairs so he could make sure no one could make a weapon of destruction out of the compound he meant only to save lives.

* * * * *

“So, Merri, I know we haven’t talked much, but Mal and Janey speak about you so often, I feel I know you.”

Merri sat at the DeMarcos’ kitchen table, sipping homemade lemonade, feeling her walls about to tumble and the tears start to gather.

Grace wasn’t just good, she was spooky good. She’d loosened Merri’s tongue with just a sentence, and Merri said the first thing that came to her mind.

“How do you do that?”

The minute the words left her mouth, she tried to wish them back but Grace just laughed, her green eyes closing and delicately pretty features scrunching in amusement.

“Honey, I’ve been in the game a long time.” Grace reached for a glass and poured herself a drink. “I’ve had years of practice.”

“So you know what happened yesterday?”

Grace’s smile softened. “Not all of it. I did speak to your boss. Charles called me when he couldn’t reach Mal. He’s very worried about you.”

Merri snorted. “Sure he is. Did he also tell you he’s going to fire me?”

“He’s not going to fire you. He’s worried that you’re going to burn yourself out. And I know from experience that’s a very real possibility in your position.”

Now Grace had her full attention. “Did you work for the NSA?”

Grace’s smile would rival the Cheshire Cat’s. “Let’s just say I know what it’s like to be a woman in your position. And at your age, I think you’re doing remarkably well. Charles has no qualms about your ability to do the job, Merri. He’s worried about other parts of your life.”

“What life?”

Grace’s smile held no traces of smugness. “There, you do see the problem. Charles thinks you need a vacation. Would you like to go home? Spend a little time with your family?”

She snorted. “Yeah, right. That’s just what I need. ‘Merri, I swear you never want to talk to me.’ ” She mimicked her mother. “‘Why don’t you use that big brain of yours to figure out why you don’t have a husband?’” That was her younger sister. “‘I swear, girl, you don’t have the common sense of a newt.’” And that was her brother. “No, thanks. I don’t think I want to go home.”

“Sounds like you don’t get along well with your family.”

Sighing, Merri shook her head. “No, it’s not that. I don’t mean to make them sound bad. It’s just that they don’t understand.”

Grace nodded sympathetically. “Must have been hard growing up with an IQ the size of yours in a small town.”

She shrugged. She hated to talk about her childhood. It’d been tough, but wasn’t everyone’s? She’d survived. Actually, she’d done more than survive. She’d made a pretty decent life for herself. One she loved.

“So,” Grace moved on. “Would you like to stay here with us? I have to admit, with Janey gone so much, it would be nice for Annie and I to have another female around to balance all the testosterone, even if it is only for a little while. If you’d like, Janey and Mal have a few cases they could use a hand with. Nothing earth-shattering, but they might be interesting to you. And since she and Mal
have several cases on their plate,
we could use your help. Are you game?”

Just the thought made her blood fizz with excitement. Grace and Frank DeMarco were legends in military intelligence, their names spoken with reverence around Fort Meade.

When she’d mentioned that she’d met Grace and Frank, her team had hounded her for information about what the couple was like.

She’d said very nice and meant it. Her team had thought she was holding out on them, but honestly, Grace and Frank had seemed…normal. Gracious, welcoming, warm.

Which was why Merri was so tempted, even though she knew Grace was only being kind.

Spend time with the DeMarcos, the Ozzie and Harriet family of the investigative world? Spend time with Grace, one of the most revered female agents in intelligence?

Merri only had one question. “Why?”

Grace’s expression was now as enigmatic as the Mona Lisa. “Because I think we need you.”

* * * * *

When the intercom beeped, Jimmy only answered because the tone meant it was from his mom.

And he knew she wouldn’t stop calling until he answered.

He flashed a glance at his watch and grimaced when he realized he’d forgotten to check in with his dad.

He pressed the button. “Yeah, Mom, I’m on my way. I’ll just stop upstairs and get Dad.”

His mom laughed. “Never mind, honey. Merri and I will be in and we’ll pick up sandwiches on the way. Tell Annie and Nic. See you in a few.”

In
Momspeak
, that meant
stop what you’re doing now and come upstairs
.

Jimmy forced himself to turn away from his table. He knew himself well enough to know he’d be engrossed again in two seconds flat.

Although… he didn’t know if he could concentrate now. Merri was on her way.

Up two flights of stairs to the second floor, Jimmy found his dad propped in the leather recliner in his office, eyes focused on a file.

Frank’s steady gaze lit on him the moment he entered the room. “Hey, Jim. Your mom’s on the way with lunch. I was just about to roust you.”

Standing and stretching, Frank rubbed a hand over his chest. Jimmy knew he’d gotten a clean bill of health from his doctors just last week. He hated to think what might have happened if the doctor hadn’t caught the blockages in time.

“Dad, you okay?” The question was out before he could stop it.

Frank laughed and clapped him on the back, hard enough to make him skip a step. “Just stiff. I hear we have company.”

Jimmy nodded and let his gaze fall on the file his dad had put down. Something marked Top Secret in bright red. “Yeah. Showed up last night. She was pretty drunk. I, ah, took her home and let her sleep it off.”

His dad nodded as he moved out of the office and down the hall to the large conference room. The table there would hold all of them for lunch. “Good. How’s that new project of yours coming?”

What? No more questions about Merri? Jimmy couldn’t believe it. Still he took it as a gift and talked about his progress as they cleared files off the mahogany table.

“So you decided to go with the Army lab.”

Jimmy nodded. “Learned my lesson last time. I should’ve known what Beecham was going to do with that formula.”

“Hey, Jim. You can’t control the world. You did what you thought was right at the time. Hell, we all thought that was the right way to go.”

That formula had never been meant to be used as a weapon. He’d intended it to be the next-generation laughing gas. Not a potential
weaponized
delivery system for certain airborne pathogens.

The government had shut Beecham down before he’d bastardized Jimmy’s work, but it’d been a major fiasco. He’d had enough of those in his life. “So, is Mom going to let you go back to work?”

His father’s eyebrows shot up. “Let me?”

Jimmy grinned. “Oh, come on.
 
Everybody knows who wears the pants in this family.”

“And who would that be, James Robert?”

His mom breezed into the room, carrying two large bags, followed closely by Merri. Jimmy straightened and took a step back before he realized what he was doing.

Merri wasn’t smiling, but she looked a little better than she had that morning, not as pale and definitely not as glum. Looked like his mom had done her job.

Speaking of his mom, she was giving him the look. Jimmy grinned. “That would be you.”

Her left brow lifted. “Then you learned nothing from your father and me.”

“What’s for lunch?”Nic walked through the door, followed closely by Annie. “Hey, Merri, how’s it going?”

“Dominic, I swear you have no manners at all.” Annie gave Nic a scathing glance then gave Merri a bright, welcoming grin. “It’s nice to see you again. Are you visiting for the day?”

“Thanks. Actually,” her glance fleetingly passed by him, “I’m going to be staying for a while.”

Grace relieved Merri of the bags she was clutching. “She’s agreed to give us a hand with a few cases while she’s
visiting
.”

“
So you’re staying
?” Jimmy pulled out a chair on the opposite side of the table. “
For how long
?”

She didn’t meet his gaze. “I
’m not sure. I just
decided I needed the time off.”

He nodded but didn’t say anything else as the others took over the conversation and they all started eating.

So, she’d be sticking around for a little while. Okay. That was okay. Maybe.

She’d be one hell of a distraction, but he was between projects at the moment. Sure, he had a few dozen ideas to work on but none that had a due date.

And with temptation sitting one floor above him, that was probably a good thing. Not that he planned to make a move on Merri. Not while she was so distracted.

“And,” Grace continued, “since Frank and I have to go to that conference in Paris next week, I thought Merri could stay in your cottage, Jimmy.”

Oh hell.

He glanced at Merri’s deer-in-the-headlights expression then shot his mother a look she should have recognized. She’d certainly looked at him like this enough when she thought he was being insane.

He opened his mouth to speak, but Merri beat him to it. “No, really, Grace. I don’t want to impose. I’ll get a hotel
ro
—”

“No, you will not.” His mother’s voice brooked no refusal. “You’ll have privacy and silence and a chance to relax out at Jimmy’s.” Grace turned her falsely innocent gaze his way. “You’ve barely been home lately. And the cottage is completely separate from the house. You’ll never know she’s there.”

Yeah, right. Like he’d be able to forget.

Damn, his mom was good. There was no way he could say no and
,
for all intents and purposes, it
was
the best idea. He knew Merri would be more comfortable at the cottage. He knew she lived alone in Maryland and would be uncomfortable staying at his parents’ home.

And she needed the break. He could see it in the dark smudges under her eyes and the way her clothes hung on her. She looked fragile. He’d be damned if she went back to Maryland like this.

“Yeah, that’s fine.” Jimmy shifted his attention to Merri. “The cottage isn’t big, but it’s not rustic. I lived there myself for a few months while I renovated the house.”