Was Courtney suddenly so aware of him because they were alone? Now that she thought about it, she’d never actually been alone with him until he’d finagled his way into her car today.
“Okay...well, okay,” she said.
If Marc wanted to stay, there was no reason he couldn’t. She didn’t use this place, and more of his attention would be given to finding Araceli if he was away from family distractions. That worked for her.
“I’ll need my things.” His expression was inscrutable, just intense eyes and that hint of defiance.
Did he really expect her to deny him?
“We can swing by your mom’s.”
“You go. Tell her to throw my stuff in my suitcase. There’s only one. Bring that and my laptop case.”
He should probably tell his own mother to pack his things, but his defiance was instigating hers. She needed his help. If he wanted to stay in her empty guest cottage and bum rides, then her guest cottage wouldn’t be empty anymore. No problem.
But she wouldn’t run interference for Mama, who had bullied Marc in the first place. Mama had pushed the issue, and she deserved what she got. If Marc decided to temporarily move out, then Courtney wasn’t about to feel bad.
“Sounds like you travel light,” she said. “I’ll go now then. Will you look through the file while I’m gone? We can work out the details of our arrangement when I get back.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
She slipped the cottage key from her pocket and handed it to him. “Make yourself at home.”
Then she headed to the door, so very aware of each step, the measured length of her strides, the whisper of her shoes on the floor, the way her hands dangled at her sides as if she was suddenly unsure what to do with them. As if his dark gaze followed her every step. When she finally pulled the door shut, she inhaled deeply, apparently her first real breath in a while because she felt light-headed.
What was wrong with her?
She had way more important things to deal with than physical awareness of a man who was an idiot. Taking another deep breath, she walked briskly to her car. Anxiety must be getting the better of her or else her emotions wouldn’t be all over the place.
Marc DiLeo? No way.
But even Courtney’s dismissal of her haywire reactions didn’t stop her from obsessing.
She bypassed Mama’s house. Instead, she drove onto the expressway and headed out of metro New Orleans for her brother’s house. She needed some time to wrestle her racing thoughts under control so she could effectively deal with Mama the bully.
By the time the security guard logged her tag number at her brother’s subdivision, Courtney was grateful for every mile she had put between her and the man she’d left in the cottage. Mac and Harley’s place bordered a conservation lot, and winding through the subdivision felt like driving into another world. The streets were shaded with old cypresses and oaks. The homes were set far back from the street.
Pulling into the driveway, she parked and peeked inside the garage to see if her brother’s car was there. It wasn’t, so she used her key to let herself in, calling out, “Harley, it’s me. Do not get up.”
There was no reply, so Courtney took the stairs two at a time and found her sister-in-law scowling when she walked into the bedroom.
Harley was such a beautiful woman, exquisitely feminine with big blue eyes and a cloud of red hair. She sat propped up with pillows, fully dressed in a comfy-looking shorts ensemble and strappy sandals.
“You look like you’re going somewhere.”
“I am,” Harley said. “Insane. Just a heads-up.”
“No worries. I can take you.” A first since Harley had been Damon’s protégé at martial arts from the time they’d been kids. She must surely have a black belt or two by now.
Harley narrowed her gaze and folded her arms. “Just kick me when I’m down, why don’t you?”
“I would never.”
“Why are you here? I know you didn’t come to visit, because Mac wouldn’t have left had he known you were on the way.”
“Where is everyone? It’s Sunday. Am I missing some performance I wasn’t made aware of?”
“Mac and Toni are with your parents,” Harley said. “Your dad is taking everyone out for dinner. Except me.”
“I’m sure they’d have gotten takeout and picnicked with you, though. They’re just looking for things to do that get Grandpa out of the house.”
“No picnics. Dinner out works for all of us. I can’t cook, and they’ve been hovering, trying to cheer me up. I’m so grumpy even I feel bad.”
“Humph.” Courtney sank onto the bed, careful not to jar the pregnant lady and the new little niece or nephew. “Now I’m sorry I didn’t go to dinner, too. I went to Mama’s instead.”
Of course Courtney had declined her parents’ dinner invitation specifically because she didn’t want to get into the details about why she was on leave.
“Mama mentioned that you’d been there today.”
“That was fast.” Not a surprise, as Mama and Harley were mother and daughter in so many ways. “Did you hear that Mama bullied Marc into helping me sort out my little work problem?”
Harley narrowed a no-nonsense gaze. “What I heard was that your work problem wasn’t as little as you said it was. Mama was tripping over herself to tell me what was going on without actually telling me what was going on. That was my first clue I might not have all the information.”
Courtney attempted nonchalance. “I wanted to pick Marc’s brain. I wasn’t sure if I should, given his convalescence, so I went to Mama first.”
Involving Marc even in a peripheral way would get back to Harley, so Courtney had known to have an explanation ready. Of course, her explanation didn’t fit so neatly now that the situation had taken an unexpected turn, and she was here for the explicit purpose of swapping cars to chauffeur Marc.
Harley arched a delicate eyebrow as if silently chiding, Is that really the best you can do?
This day was turning out to be a mixed bag in so many ways. Courtney’s only defense would be an offense, so she launched into one, explaining what she’d told Mama earlier without as many details.
Harley was positively scowling by the time Courtney finished. “There are children missing, an FBI investigation and you’re on administrative leave. Did I get that right?”
Courtney nodded.
“I get why you didn’t involve Nic, but why wouldn’t you be up-front with your brother and me? We have some experience with this sort of thing, you know. Just a little.”
“Sarcasm doesn’t become you.” Which was a joke, since Harley could wield sarcasm without even opening her mouth. “From where I’m standing, you and my brother have your hands full. Mom and Dad have their hands full with Grandpa, too. I’m trying to help everyone, not give you all more to worry about. Why on earth would I burden you?”
“Because you care about me enough to give me something to do while I’m languishing in this bed going insane.”
“You’re not languishing. You’re baking my new little niece or nephew, keeping the oven all nice and toasty so she or he rises like a perfect little biscuit.”
Harley practically growled, which forced Courtney to bite back a smile. Smiling would have been a mistake right now.
“Harley,