The woman was either one hell of an actress or she was telling him the truth. He’d find out soon enough.
But as he sat there, looking at her from across his desk, Archer didn’t see a soulless, emotionless killer. When he gave himself permission to get drawn into those big, blue eyes—just for a moment—he didn’t see a woman looking for him to help her get away with murder.
He saw a beautiful, desperate woman willing to put her future—herlife—in the hands of a stranger. And wasn’t that the reason the others had started Eagle’s Nest in the first place?
Protect the innocent no matter the cost.
It was far too soon to know whether Cassie Montgomery was telling him the truth. For now, Archer chose to ignore the evidence that had been shared by the media and follow his gut instead.
He reached for his phone and picked up the receiver. After entering a three-digit extension, he held the receiver to his ear and waited.
Two rings later, he heard…
“Boyer.”
“It’s me. You busy?”
“Not really,” Chase Boyer drawled. “Both of my afternoon appointments had to reschedule, so I’m just usin’ the time to catch up on some paperwork. Why? What’s up?”
“It’s me. Can you cover walk-ins for a couple hours? There’s…” He kept his gaze on Cassie’s. “…something I need to look into.”
“Beats the hell out of paperwork. So yeah, man. No problem.”
“Thanks, brother. I’ll let Hannah know on my way out.”
“Sounds good. But hey…is everything good? ’Cause Lucky still owes me one for covering one of his days, and I’m pretty sure he’s back from that system install. I could get him to cover, then I could go with you. You know…in case you needed backup or anything.”
“No, it’s nothing like that.” He hoped. “Just need to check out a few things, and the sooner I can, the better.”
“Say no more, my friend. You change your mind; you’ve got my number.”
“Thanks.”
“Sure thing.”
One soft click later, and the line went dead.
Archer returned the receiver to its cradle and looked across the desk to Cassie. “Are you hungry?”
Those big, round eyes blinked from the unexpected question. Lifting her arms from his desk, her spine straightened once again. “I’m sorry?”
He raised a palm, sending her a quick grin. “Let me rephrase. There’s still a lot we need to discuss.” A. Lot. “I skipped breakfast, and it’s almost lunchtime, so I was thinking…if you were hungry…we could go over the basics of how this whole thing’s going to work while also grabbing a bite to eat.”
Something he’d learned during his time working for Uncle Sam…people tended to drop their guard while sharing a meal and casual conversation. If Cassie was holding something back, then lunch at a cozy, comfortable diner was as good a place to start as any.
“Oh.” The sexy blonde gave a surprised, widened blink. “Um…I haven’t really had much of an appetite. Not since…” Sadness mixed with uncertainty, and she broke eye contact for the first time since sitting down. “But yeah. I guess…” Those eyes came back to his. “I guess I probably should eat something.” The tip of her tongue darted out with a quick swipe of her full, bottom lip. “Plus, like you said, there’s still a lot to go over.” A flicker of hope sparked behind those guarded eyes just then. “Wait. Does this mean you’ve decided to take my case?”
He should consult with the others. That was how they’d agreed to do things. But before Archer could keep from it, heheard himself say, “My team and I will keep you safe, Cassie. And we will find the person who killed your husband.”
Even if that person is you.
In a very not-guilty-like move, Cassie shot to her feet and returned the gesture with a firm handshake of her own. “Thank you, Mr. Nash. You have no idea how relieved I am to know someone like you has my back.”
Oh, I’ve got your back, sweetheart. And your?—
He dropped that hand and cleared his throat as he rounded his desk and started for the door. “I’ll walk you back up to Hannah. She’ll uh…she’ll get you in our system and give you the paperwork you need.”
Remember why she’s here, dipshit.