Maggie Undercover (20 page)

She avoided looking at Jared. Sunday she'd
broken her promise to help finish up the sets and costumes for
Alex's play. He hadn't called and offered her a ride, so she
figured he wasn't any more eager to see her than she was to face
him. Aside from not having her car she couldn't bear the thought of
spending time in his company. Being this near to him and unable to
tell him how she felt was difficult enough. Though it might be
hopeless she loved him.

If she lost her last gamble the sooner this
was over and she was back in L.A. the better. But she couldn't
leave without trying. Daniel always told her, "If you don't ask,
the answer is always no." The question was, was she brave enough to
face the answer if it was no?

"Ms. McCade, Jared, would you like some
coffee while we wait?" Mr. Reed asked. In his mid-fifties Jackson
Reed was a handsome man with silvered gold blond hair, intelligent
blue eyes and tanned skin. Out in California his good looks and
sexy voice would have made him a box office idol. Here in Council
Falls he was a happily married father of three.

"No, thank you."

"Yes, please."

Maggie and Jared answered together.

"How would you like it?"

"Black, please. Thank you, Mr. Reed," Maggie
said.

"No need to be formal. Call me Jackson." He
spoke into the intercom and a few minutes later his assistant
brought in a tray with coffee.

Maggie sipped the hot liquid gratefully,
letting the warmth and caffeine flood through her body. Daniel
should be here, but another case in L.A. had held him up. In their
brief conversation Sunday night he'd expressed his complete
confidence in her ability to handle the close of the investigation
and his delight in her success. His promise to help her set up her
own office should have left her ecstatic, instead she felt numb.
Somehow even the thought of being back in sunny California didn't
excite her.

If she'd told him the truth of how she'd
screwed things up he'd sing a different tune. Of course, as long as
the client was happy he'd think the job well done. To him the human
element, the people hurt by their investigations were unimportant.
Just part of the job. For a long time Maggie had agreed with him.
Now with her emotions tangled in a case she found herself with a
new perspective. She feared she'd never again be able to approach a
job with the detachment needed.

A heavy silence filled the room as they
waited. Nerves made her shift in her seat and try to avoid meeting
Jared's steady gaze.

The coming confrontation with the hacker
wasn't the cause of her apprehension. She doubted he would put up
much of a fight. The evidence while not overwhelming was enough to
keep the hacker on a short leash in the future.

The intercom buzzed. Mr. Reed spoke into it.
A few seconds later the office door opened and two people walked in
– Bradley Morrison and his father.

Jackson Reed stood and greeted Mr.
Morrison.

"Jackson, I don't understand why you called
my son and me here today. What's this about? Why is Mr. Blake here?
And who is this young woman?" Mr. Morrison asked as he settled into
the seat Jackson indicated. The confusion on his face wasn't
feigned.

"Ms. McCade is from Sterling Securities.
She's been investigating some hacking problems we've been having.
Mr. Blake has been helping her."

It eased Maggie's heart to know that Jackson
Reed planned to stand behind Jared. Maybe when she left town he
wouldn't hate her quite so much.

Bradley shot her a frightened look.

"What does that have to do with my son and
me?" Mr. Morrison asked.

The man was clueless. If Maggie had to guess
she'd say Bradley had hacked into Reed Software in an attempt to
make his absentminded father notice him. Well, it looked like he'd
gotten his wish. Mr. Morrison attention was well and truly
snagged.

"Bradley, would you like to tell your father
why you're here?" Jackson asked.

"How should I know?" The boy looked and
sounded near to panic. He slouched in his chair keeping his eyes on
the floor. Maggie almost felt sorry for him. Almost.

Since it was obvious Bradley wasn't going to
confess without some encouragement, Jackson explained the situation
to Mr. Morrison. The kicker came when Jackson handed him printouts
of the evidence she'd found.

"Oh my," Mr. Morrison breathed.

Him Maggie did feel sorry for.

"Mr. Morrison would you and your son wait for
me in the outer office?" After the two left Jackson stood and held
out his hand to Jared. "Jared, I want you to know that I never
suspected you of being involved. Thank you for your assistance in
resolving this matter."

Then he turned and took Maggie's hand. "Ms.
McCade, though at first I questioned your unorthodox methods, you
and Sterling Securities have done a wonderful job. Thank you. I'll
handle this now. Tell Daniel my check for services rendered is in
the mail." He leaned close and said so only she could hear, "Give
me a call later. I want to discuss your proposal further."

"When you're done with Bradley, tell him to
stop in at Principal Matthews' office. She has a few things to say
to him about using school property for illegal purposes," Jared
said.

Jackson smiled and nodded. "After his father,
the school and I are through with the young man, I doubt he'll
consider doing anything like this again. And when he's straightened
out and through with college I'll just have to employee him to make
sure he stays out of trouble."

She and Jared walked out of the building
together. A blast of cold air hit her. She shivered. Her job here
was over. So why did it feel like her life was over?

"Are you ever going to learn to dress for the
weather?" Jared asked.

Hunching her shoulders inside her thin coat
she shrugged. "It doesn't matter. I'll be headed back to L.A.
tomorrow." The thought of California sunshine no longer appealed to
her. All the warmth she wanted in the world was here in Council
Falls.

"Tomorrow? So soon?"

Did she hear a note of disappointment in his
voice? His next question doused her faint thread of hope.

"What about Alex's play this weekend? She'll
be upset if you're not there." His voice was as cold as the wind
swirling around them.

Her plans, that had seemed so hopeful, now
felt as fragile and fleeting as snow gently falling around her.

And what about you? Will you be disappointed?
She wanted to ask. Instead she said, "I'll be back for the play.
What are you going to tell Alex about me?"

"The truth."

"Is that a good idea?" The thought of Alex
feeling she had been used distressed Maggie.

"This is a small town. Try as Jackson might
to keep the situation quiet, the story is going to come out
eventually."

"I know I don't deserve it, but could you
tell Alex I never meant to deceive her?" Or you, she added
silently. Her teeth started to chatter.

"You're freezing." He took her arm and
hustled her across the parking lot into his SUV. "Where's your
car?"

"Still in the shop. I think the Mid-west
weather has killed it. It's a California girl."

"It's a car, maybe not the right one for the
climate, but just a car. How did you get here?"

"Caught a ride from a friend."

Warmth from the SUV's heater seeped into her
icy flesh but couldn't touch the chill growing in her heart. The
trip to his house went by too fast.

"Do you want me to take you home?" The SUV
idled in the drive. Jared stared straight ahead his face
impassive.

She thought of the empty house sitting cold
and dark under the gray November sky. It would offer no welcome or
warmth to her battered spirit.

If she said yes without telling Jared what
she felt, she'd never have a home. At least not the home she
wanted. His. She either gambled now or lost forever.

"That isn't my home. I've never had a home.
Or a family. Both my parents were drunks. My father abandoned my
mother and me when I was ten. After that my mother tried to be
sober but she failed over and over again until she died. Daniel
rescued me from falling into a life of crime on the streets. He
cared for me, but he couldn't provide me with what I needed – home
and family. I spent a couple years in foster homes until I went off
to college.

"I know my deception hurt you, but can you
find it in your heart to forgive me? Can we start over again?
Explore the feelings growing between us? Give us a chance?"

As he sat silent, Jared watched the hopeful
expression fade from her face. When he spoke he weighed each
word.

"For what it's worth I forgive you. But I
don't know if we can start over. Though your identity will come
out, there are always going to be those people who believe the
worst. I've lived through that once."

"If you want I'll get up during a town
meeting and tell everyone the truth. And anyone who thinks you'd do
anything wrong isn't worth considering."

Like a lioness she jumped to his defense.
Though a bit late in coming her unconditional trust eased the pain
of her deception. Given her background he could accept that trust
came hard for her and valued it all the more. He smiled.

"A public confession won't be necessary. The
problem isn't the town or what people might think."

"Then what is?"

"I ran away from an uncomfortable situation
before. I won't do it again."

"Who's asking you to run away?"

"In effect, you are."

"I don't understand."

"My life is here in Council Falls. Yours is
in L.A. I can forgive you. I can love you. No, I do love you. But I
can't change my life to suit yours. I tried that with Brittany and
failed. And I can't ask you to give up your dreams to suit
mine."

Maggie's heart soared. He loved her. Nothing
else mattered. She caught his face between her palms and turned him
to face her. "Don't you know that a life with you and Alex is my
dream? I'd never ask you to leave and live in L.A."

"What about your home in L.A? Your career
with Sterling Securities?"

"My apartment in L.A. isn't a home; it's just
a place to sleep. I have a better offer from Reed Software - the
contract to handle all their security and the promise of contacts
for more business. No matter what happens between us, I'm staying
in Council Falls. I've decided I like snowbound little towns. I'm
about to open my own security firm here. Do you know where I can
find a home?"

Jared cupped her chilled fingers beneath his
and searched her face. Hope swelled in his heart. "Are you sure
this is what you want?"

"Yes, you dope. I love you! Now kiss me."

She loved him. With a groan he gathered her
into his arms and slanted his lips over hers. Her mouth opened to
his and he delved into her heat. He threaded his fingers into her
hair to hold her close. Her hands burrowed under his jacket to skim
over his back. His body swelled in response.

Minutes or hours later a thumping on the car
door drew them apart. Hot and breathless with frustrated desire,
Jared looked out the fogged window into Alex's smiling face. Like
teenagers caught necking by an angry parent he and Maggie jumped
apart. A different kind of heat flooded his cheeks.

"Aren't you guys ever coming inside?" Alex
asked. Samson's sharp bark echoed her question. Like a
jack-in-the-box his head appeared and disappeared in the window as
he jumped up and down.

Jared switched off the engine and climbed out
of the car. Icy air cooled his passion. He and Maggie still had a
lot to discuss. Alex rushed to his side and pulled him around to
where Maggie stooped to pet Samson. Shoulders shaking, a fall of
hair hid her expression. Was she crying?

A niggle of doubt crept over him. Was she
having second thoughts?

"Come on, Daddy. Maggie. Mrs. Larkins made
chocolate chip cookies to celebrate." Alex grabbed Maggie's arm and
tugged her up.

Jared tried to catch a glimpse of Maggie's
face, but she kept it turned away. "Celebrate what?" he asked.

"You and Maggie getting married, of course.
Mrs. Larkins told me you would. I didn't believe her at first,
'cause teachers can't marry students, but she said this was a
special case. I don't understand it, but I'm glad."

Maggie's shoulders shook harder. He heard her
muffled laughter and the tension riding him eased.

"I think Maggie will be a great mom," Alex
continued. "Don't you, Daddy? And she's still young enough to have
babies. Do you think I could have a baby sister? Daddy?"

Alex's chatter faded from his consciousness.
Married? Maggie his wife? Pregnant with his child. The images
swirled in his mind, both frightening and delightful and so
right.

Her eyes full of love and hope Maggie turned
toward him.

Unmindful of the wet slush covering the
drive, he took her hand in his and went down on one knee. "Will you
marry me?" he asked. "Be my love? Stay by my side forever?"

"Yes, yes and yes!" She lunged into his open
arms knocking him backward into the snow lining the drive. She
rained kisses across his face until he latched onto her mouth with
his own and rolled her beneath him. Neither of them felt the cold
or wet.

Laughing, Alex bounced down beside them. Then
Samson barked in delight and jumped into the fray.

A few minutes later the four of them came
home dripping snow and slush.

~~~~~

EPILOGUE

A bright December sun shone through stain
glass windows as Maggie waited at the back of the church. Garbed in
an elegant winter white gown, a bouquet of blood red roses in her
damp hand, she clutched Daniel's tuxedoed arm. He gave her fingers
a gentle squeeze and smiled at her.

"You'll do fine, Mad Maggie."

People and flowers filled the church.