She headed for the bedroom and admired the beautiful handmade quilt on the bed. She’d already changed into sweats earlier that evening. Her duffel was in the room with Nora. So she simply pulled back the covers and climbed into the crisp sheets.

A soft knock came at the door, and she sat up. Nora couldn’t sleep? “Come in.”

The door opened wide, but it wasn’t Nora. Alex’s broad-shouldered silhouette filled the doorway.

“What happened?” She started throwing the covers off, grateful she slept in sweats.

He stepped forward. “No, stay.”

“What’s wrong?”

He approached the bed. “The timing is just . . . all wrong. I’m sorry, Mackenzie. But I can’t wait any longer. I need to tell you.”

She touched her feet to the area rug. “You’re scaring me.”

He sat next to her on the bed. “I’m sorry if this makes you uncomfortable, but I couldn’t talk to you in front of Nora. I didn’t want her to overhear either.”

“Just spit it out.” A million terrible scenarios ran through her mind.

“I told you I would help you, Mackenzie. But at some point, you had to know that I couldn’t keep this to myself.”

She stood and skewered him with an accusing glare. “You betrayed me?”

“No . . . no, no.” He stood too and shook his head, stepping forward.

He’d pinned her between the bed and the wall. Light spilled from the main room into the bedroom, but his face was still in shadows. Even so, she felt those intense eyes on her. Imagined the stern set of his jaw. Her heart palpitated at his nearness.

“Betrayal is a strong word.” His voice sounded breathy. Desperate.

He could probably hear her pounding heart.

“It’s not like that,” he added.

Her breathing had kicked up, and emotions choked her throat, her words. She found them, though. “Then what is it like? Tell me who you told. What you did.”

“Alright, I’ll tell you what you already know. You’re in over your head. We’re in over our heads. We can’t keep it to ourselves when other lives could be in danger. This could be a matter of national security. I called my SSA to let him know what’s been happening. I’m pretty sure I crossed a line last night. Still, I’ve been given permission to continue while he makes his own calls.”

Pressing his hand against the wall, he leaned even closer, hung his head and sighed. “Me calling someone doesn’t mean I betrayed you. I’m with you until the end, no matter what. You know this guy like no one else, and no one . . . no one could have found him already. And you’re the person to stop him. I can . . .”