“You agreed, that’s what I heard.”
“I certainly did not. You didn’t ask properly.”
“If I’d asked properly you would have said no.”
“Exactly,” she confirmed. “I barely know you.”
“So why would I ever be dumb enough to ask you when you’ve already agreed to be my fiancée? That would be stupid on my part and I assure you, you’re getting an intelligent man.”
“It’s hardly intelligent to want to marry someone you’ve known for a week.”
“We’re past the week.”
She burst out laughing. He loved that laugh. It was crazy how much he loved to hear her laugh. He watched her face, the way it lit up, the way her eyes gleamed like sapphires.
“You’re really serious, aren’t you?”
“Yep. No going back now. It’s off to the swamp we go. I’ll build you a house you’ll love, one all our own where we can raise our children and protect them from anything that might come along.”
She sent him a small smile. “How could I possibly leave Marie?”
“You know already that I’ve arranged for Marie’s debts to be paid and for money to go into a fund for Jacy’s doctor bills. She’ll be able to hire within the Navy community. We’ll reach out to the wives and girlfriends and see if any of them want jobs first. We can even find a general manager, so it frees Marie up to travel with Jacy if she wants to. The bed-and-breakfast makes money. It’s never been a problem. It’s the amount of debt she’s accumulated from hospital bills.”
“How do you do all those things so fast?”
“I haven’t gotten the workers for her yet. I haven’t even had a moment to talk to her about it. And, Amaryllis, this doesn’t hinge on whether or not you go with me. As soon as I got to know Marie, I knew I was going to take the load off her shoulders. There are Ghost-Walkers attached to the Navy. They instantly wanted to help. They’ll go up the chain of command and figure out how best to get her the workers she needs. The right ones.”
She was silent for a long time and then she looked down at her hands. “I wish I could find them. The two others that escaped when I did. Silver and Coral. They were nice girls. Strong. Smart. They would have loved it here and they would have loved Marie and Jacy. I think, given the chance, they would be perfect to run this place.”
Malichai studied her face. No matter how much he reassured her, she was always going to feel responsible for the other women. They were grown, and they’d taken their chances just as she had. Most likely they were grateful to her, whether they’d succeeded or not in their escape.
“I can have the other GhostWalker teams try to find them, if you want. They’ll have to do so very carefully so as not to alert Whitney that anyone is looking,” Malichai offered.
She raised her incredibly blue eyes to his face and there was a look of wonder, of near adoration, which he didn’t deserve but any man would want. “You would really do that for me, wouldn’t you?”
“Anything in the world that I’m capable of giving you, Amaryllis,” he assured.
She shook her head. “It’s better if we leave them alone. Otherwise Whitney might lock on to them. He’s so good at finding us.”
“If you change your mind . . .”
“I know you don’t like me to say so, Malichai, but you’re so incredibly sweet. It’s very hard to resist a man like you.”
“Are you trying to resist me?”
She nodded slowly. “And you make it very, very difficult. I want to be with you, but it’s so dangerous, Malichai. Whitney is so determined to get all of us back and if he finds out I’m with you, he’ll send an army to try to get me. You have those little girls to protect. The wives of your friends. It isn’t fair to them.”
He stroked his fingers over the back of her hand. She had her palm curled around the edge of the table, gripping so hard, her knuckles turned white.
“Baby, we have a real stronghold out in the swamp because Whitney wants every single one of the women back. And the children. No matter what, we would have to protect them. It will be easier for us to protect you and the children if we live there, but if you insist on staying in San Diego, I’ll find a way to protect us here.”
She stared at him for a long time, her gaze moving over his face, studying his expression. The look in his eyes. She swallowed and shook her head as if she couldn’t quite believe him. “You’re serious. You would stay here with me knowing we were completely exposed.”
“If the woman I love is here, then I’m here as well. I can guarantee that the moment Whitney knows you’re here, he’ll find a way to send me off somewhere on a mission to leave you alone. If that happens, I would want you to go to the compound in Louisiana. You would be protected there while I go wherever I’m sent.”