CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

It wasn't a fight this time. Hammer made clear to Mick that Amelia was going to his house in Canada until they got more intel. "She'll be safest there," he said bluntly.

But Amelia, knowing her brother, waited for the fight to commence.

But it never happened. Mick simply nodded his head, said "I agree," and that settled it.

And that was how Amelia ended up in Montreal at Hammer's house, in one of his oversized (for her) dress shirts, standing at the entrance into his parlor with a coffee mug in her hand. Hammer was lying on the floor with a pillow beneath his head, in jeans and an unbuttoned shirt, staring at the fire that glowed inside his gorgeous fireplace. Amelia stood at the entrance: staring at him.

She could not recall the last time she'd seen him dressed so casually. Even around the house he was usually dressed like he was ready to hit the road as soon as those DC honchos gave him the word. But even in his casual clothing, Amelia could still feel the intensity radiating from his body as he stared into that fire. He wanted the puzzle solved and he wanted it solved badly. But to what end, she wondered. So that he could go back to his unrelentingly busy life? Or start anew with her in her life? Because there was no denying, with their separate houses and separate schedules, they lived separate lives.

She pushed away from the doorframe, went into the parlor, and sat on the floor beside Hammer. Hammer had already sensed her presence without bothering to look and see, and when she sat beside him, he felt that sense of warmth, of home, that only she was able to make him feel. And to see her in his shirt, and smell her always sweet, fresh scent, made his dick throb. He placed his hand beneath the back of the shirt she wore and began massaging her bare back.

Amelia felt his touch to the roots of her hair the way she always did. Even in their darkest hours, he still knew how to turn her on. It was the only thing that consistently worked in their marriage. Which, to Amelia, said all anybody needed to know about their marriage.

She sipped the last of her coffee and then sat the mug aside. "Feels good in here," she said to him.

Hammer pulled her down beside him. Although he was lying on his back, she turned sideways so she could see his face. His hand moved from rubbing her bare back beneath the shirt she wore to rubbing her bare ass. Which had both of them feeling good. "What have you been up to?" he asked her.

"Long bathe. And I called JoJo. Did you know while we were in Florida, Charles went to Boston and got him and took him to Mick's house with him?"

Hammer nodded. "Yes, I know."

"On your orders?"

"Charles Sinatra doesn't answer to my orders or anybody else's, but yes."

Amelia exhaled. "Why am I always the last to know what's going on with my son? That's got to change, Hammer."

"It will," Hammer said, nodding his head.

But Amelia looked at him skeptically. He said that too damn fast. That shit wasn't about to change.

But she'd deal with that after she got that cloud from over her head. "I was also watching the news. More commentators are calling for me to be re-arrested. They believe the only reason I'm walking free is because I'm yours."

Hammer loved the sound of that.

"It's going to only get worse."

"That's why we've got to get this resolved. Because you aren't going to sit in anybody's filthy jail ever again." Hammer seemed certain of that.

Which made Amelia feel better. She moved her head from the pillow and laid it on his broad shoulder. "What have you been up to?" she asked him.

"Double-checking every level of every operation I have ongoing in the field right now to ensure there are no security lapses."

This interested her. She looked up at him. "Are there?"

He shook his head. "None. A few places needed some tightening, but there was nothing breach-worthy. Every sector is in overall good shape."

Amelia wasn't sure if that was good news or bad. Because that led them nowhere to figuring anything out. "Why did Beth Kucinich say I was next? Next for what? Were they going to try to traffic me?"

"You're my wife," Hammer said as he squeezed her butt and pulled her closer against him. "Their asses know better than that."

"But if we believe what Beth Kucinich said, their ringleader was the man that broke into my house and tried to kill me. And he was also the man that had gotten naked while he was in my house. Why would he get naked?"

"You're a man's fantasy," Hammer said. "It could have been as simple as that."

Amelia didn't respond to that. Hammer was always claiming stuff like that, but she knew better. She wasn't anybody's fantasy because of who she was. It was always because of whose she was. Her black ass was the legendary Hammer Reese's woman and some limp-dick Willies wanted to know what the legend found so incredible about her that he would marry her. It had to be between her legs because that was the second thing Hammer was known for: his player rep. But that had nothing to do with her either. Everything to do with Hammer. But he always rejected that notion out of hand whenever she suggested it. So she didn't go there.

And silence overtook them.

Which, after a few minutes, surprised Amelia. "It's awfully quiet around here," she finally said. "No ringing phones. No texts. Nothing. Your phone's usually ringing off the hook. Why not now?"

"Perhaps nobody's calling."

Amelia rejected that. "Not possible."

"It is possible. They know I'm dealing with your situation."

"When has that ever stopped them? The President was practically screaming at you when you told her you couldn't hop a plane for DC right away."

"You're overthinking it," Hammer said.

Which only got Amelia riled up. She got on top of him, straddling him and facing him. And then, when he thought she was getting sexy on him, she grabbed his phone out of his pocket before he could stop her. Then she smiled. "It's hard to get calls when the phone is off," she said as she turned it on and then typed in his password.

Which surprised Hammer. "How did you know my password?"

"You aren't the only wise guy around here," she said. Then she looked at his phone log. "You have eighty-four missed calls, Hammer." She looked at him amazed. "Eighty-four. And no telling how many on that secure phone of yours."

"I'm very popular, what can I say?"

Amelia knew it too. And that part saddened her. "Popular with?" she asked him.

"DC. The powers that be."

"Are you also popular with the ladies?" She asked this as if it was a joke, but she looked at him as if it was heart-attack serious. Because, for her, it was.

Hammer hesitated, which didn't help her insecurity any. "Yes," he ultimately said. "I'm very popular with women. But at night, when you aren't in my bed, I get so lonely it's not even funny. You light up my life, Millie. Not that shit I do for a living. Not some random female. You and JoJo."

"But what about all those women?" she asked. "They come on to you?"

"Yes, they do."

"And you've been tempted?"

"Sometimes," Hammer admitted.

"And you've yielded to that temptation sometimes too," Amelia asked. "Haven't you?"

The sad way she said haven't you broke his heart. She truly believed the rumors and lies and innuendos. "You're too hot to handle as it is," he decided to say. "What would I do with another one?"

She smiled, but he could tell it wasn't enough. She got off of him and laid down on her back beside him.

Which immediately made him feel lonely again. He placed his arm around her shoulder as an anguished look appeared on his face. "What do you want me to say, Millie? What must I say to win you back?"

Amelia looked over at him. "Do you want me back?"

Hammer wasn't going to beg. It was hard enough admitting that he'd failed their marriage. "Yes."

"You can't say anything to get us to where we need to be. You have to show me."

"Show you what? That I love you? That I don't say it to you enough?"

Amelia didn't respond to that. Because he wasn't hearing her. It had nothing to do with words. She decided to change the subject. Their failed marriage was still too hurtful to just talk about. Especially when Hammer was looking for some simple solution that words could solve. "I just want us to find out why Senator Darby Reiner was in my house. We figure that out, we figure out everything else."

Hammer wasn't mad at her for changing the subject. He already felt emotionally exposed, and didn't like the feeling. "We'll have some answers by morning," he said. "But I'll get you out of this maze you're in."

Amelia looked at him. She'd never deny that he was her protector. "Promise?" she asked him as if she was expecting more from him than any human being could give.

But Hammer didn't flinch as he looked into her big, green, anxious eyes. "I promise," he said to her.

And Amelia, satisfied because she had to be, snuggled against him and fell asleep on his promise.