Along Came Trouble (Camelot 2)

And that pretty much settled it.

“We could really do that? Tap into their security feed and monitor the entrances from one spot?” Caleb asked.

“Sure,” Sean said. “You could even do it off a laptop.”

The two of them were in a busy hallway in the maternity ward, talking logistics. Caleb liked to bounce these kinds of problems off Sean, who became almost talkative if you gave him something interesting to think about.

“That would be great. If I don’t need a man at every entrance, I can free up four or five guys for other jobs.” Four or five guys he desperately needed. Trying to protect three separate sites on short notice was stretching his resources to the breaking point. “Let me talk to the chief of security here and see what he says.”

Sean nodded agreeably. “I can handle the computer end if you …”

He trailed off, and Caleb looked down the hall to see what had grabbed his attention. Katie was making her way toward them, carrying overstuffed paper grocery sacks in both arms. Two more plastic bags hung from her wrists.

“Hey, guys,” she said. “A little help?”

Caleb stepped toward her, but Sean moved faster, relieving her of the groceries. Then he simply stood there, blank and silent as a robot awaiting his next command. The contrast to the animated guy Caleb had just been conversing with couldn’t have been more dramatic.

It was true, then. Sean didn’t talk to Katie. She’d mentioned it, but Caleb had figured she was exaggerating. Apparently not.

Katie had also said Sean hated her, but he wasn’t picking up any evidence of that. Sean seemed guarded and wary, not disapproving.

Quite the opposite, if Caleb had to guess.

“Food?” Caleb asked.

“Yep. Sandwiches. Thought everybody might be getting hungry.”

“Thanks. Visitor’s lounge is that way.” He pointed to the left.

Katie led the way, with Sean close behind. As she unloaded the sandwiches and set out napkins and bags of chips in the kitchen attached to the lounge, Caleb watched Sean, and Sean watched Katie. When she bent over to put a coffee cake on the lowest shelf of the fridge, he fumbled a two-liter bottle of soda, sending it crashing into a tower of paper cups. For the first time all day, Caleb almost felt like smiling.

“Subtle,” he said under his breath.

The dismay that flashed across Sean’s face confirmed it. Sean had a problem with Katie, but it wasn’t what she thought. Katie had it backward.

With a shake of his head, Sean sighed, grabbed a sandwich, and cleared out, all without risking another glance in her direction.

Katie made up a few plates. She stuck one in his hand and said, “Eat.”

Turkey sandwich in hand, Caleb wandered over to the wall of windows in the lounge and looked out on the lot. He couldn’t see the entrances from here, but off to the side was the line of cars where the hospital guards had been directing the photographers to park. He counted twenty-seven before Katie said, “You okay?”

“Yeah, fine.”

She put her hands on her hips and tipped her head toward the sandwich in his hand, staring until he took a bite. After he swallowed it, she handed him a cup of ice water. “Drink.”

He did as he was told. “I’m fine,” he said, knowing the half-assed reassurance wouldn’t put her mind at ease. “I’ll live.”

He would, too. It would one day be possible for him to lay eyes on Ellen without wanting to plead with her or shake her or kiss the living daylights out of her.

Not today.

“How’d it go at the farm?” he asked, hoping to take Katie’s mind off his problems. She’d visited Levi’s mother this afternoon.

Katie half-sat on the window frame opposite him and fiddled with the ring on her thumb. “Pretty good.”

“You told her about being married?”

Katie nodded.