Crazy Enough

Crazy Enough: Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Alex stared out the window. His mind raced and his heart tightened, thinking about Corkie. She was headstrong, mischievous, and a magnet for trouble...but her soul was pure. And that was what intrigued him. He'd seen evidence of her true nature during their short acquaintance. Those character traits that came straight out of her heart were subtle, but they were there, and she argued with him just now from her heart. It was invigorating. It was captivating. It was enlightening, and it was enough to drive any man crazy with wanting her.

The door behind him creaked, and he sat upright, smoothing out his frown. He had a job to do, and he couldn't allow his growing feelings to show on his face or in his behavior. But Corkie didn't return to the kitchen.

Marta approached him carefully and asked, "Senor Alex...is everything alright?"

"Fine," he answered and stood up to put his plate and coffee mug in the sink. "I think I'm just tired. Thank you for the hospitality, Senora Marta. I'll go up to the room you've offered and sleep a little."

She shifted and glanced through the open doorway, of which she just entered. "I was just up there...I thought I'd make sure you and Corkie had everything you needed before I turn to my own room, but she wasn't there."

"She left here a few minutes ago, to go to her own room."

"Her own room?"

Alex looked carefully at her. "Yes...we have separate rooms, right?"

Her hazel eyes came back to him and they seemed searching and thoughtful. "No, Senor Alex...Corkie said that the two of you will share a room, since it is the only one available."

"And she's not there?"

Marta studied him for a long moment, apparently feeling the tension that had been in the room moments ago. "Maybe she no longer wishes to share a room with you."

Alex stomped out of the kitchen. Where the hell had Corkie run off to? Without him to protect her, she would end up in Espinoza's grasp. He rushed to the front door. It was locked, bolted tight. He pivoted, glanced through a doorway to his right and saw her, lying on a sofa, sound asleep.

Carefully moving over to her, he looked down at her peaceful face. Her hair had fallen across one cheek, and she was curled up as best as she could in the small space, clearly uncomfortable. She had chosen to come in here rather than share a room with him again.

That hurt his pride. All he'd been trying to do was keep her safe. So they had an argument. It wasn't their first, and it sure as hell wouldn't be their last. What was she really mad about? That kiss with Clara, or her assertion that he didn't trust enough. Hell, the woman trusted too easily. He wasn't happy about the events of the last few days, but he believed that his suspicions would keep Corkie out of Espinoza's grasp. That was the only thing that mattered.

The only thing? Jesus, when had his mission become so compromised!

Hibram Espinoza order the hit that took out three Border Patrol officers twenty years ago, the gunfight and massacre that killed Alex's father. And Alex had damn well never forget that again! A bothersome colonel's daughter or not, Alex's main goal was Espinoza. Stopping that bastard before he orphaned another child. What was most important here was learning Corkie's contacts and busting Espinoza for every crime that man committed.

Still...he couldn't leave her like this.

With a heavy sigh—because he had never been this soft-hearted to any other woman who was such a nuisance—Alex bent, scooped her up in his arms and carried her upstairs to their room. She moaned and mewed against his chest, and she wrapped her arms around his neck, but she did not wake up. And to him, that meant she was more exhausted than she would have admitted.