Candy Halliday - Are Men From Mars?

“Of course, it matters. Tell me where you are and I’ll come and get you. Then we can both talk to the press. Don’t you realize we’re celebrities now, Maddie? There’s no telling where we could go with this. Think about it. Identical twin sisters? The media will love us. You could get a book deal. Maybe I could even get a picture out of this.”

“Have you gone crazy?” Maddie said through clenched teeth. “You have to call off the media, Mary Beth! Do it first thing tomorrow.”

“And if I don’t?”

“Just do it, Mary Beth.”

“Why? What’s really going on, Maddie? Tell me.”

“I can’t,” Maddie admitted, sending an anxious look in Hawk’s direction.

“What do you mean, you can’t tell me? You mean you’re being held against your will? By our own damn government?”

Maddie took a deep breath. “Something like that,” she said, but a warning look from Hawk told her she was already skating on thin ice.

“Then you can tell those camouflage-wearing morons for me that I’ll call off the media when I get my sister back!”

Maddie saw red. “Dammit, Mary Beth. My entire career is on the line here!”

“It’s always about your precious career, isn’t it?” Mary Beth accused.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“What about my career? Have you stopped to consider the exposure I’m getting right now?”

“Exposure?”

“Yes, exposure. This is finally the big time for me. I’ve had calls from Larry King. From Letter-man. Even Oprah’s people have been ringing my agent’s phone off the hook.”

Maddie didn’t answer.

“Don’t you see what this can mean to me? When all of this is over, you’ll still be Dr. Madeline Morgan and you’ll still have that impressive Ph.D. flowing behind your name. But what about me? If I don’t make the most of this opportunity right now, I’ll slip back into obscurity and spend the rest of my life scrambling around for occasional two-bit commercials.”

When Maddie still didn’t answer, Mary Beth said softly, “Don’t hate me for putting my career first, just this once. I’ve never hated you for always doing the same thing.”

“You know I could never hate you, Mary Beth.” Maddie let out a long sigh. “No matter what you did.”

“Then tell me the truth, Maddie. Are you really safe? Are you really going to be okay?”

Maddie took another look at the man who made her pulse race every time he looked in her direction. “I’ll be fine,” she lied. “I should be back at the hotel by the end of the week. Wait for me there. I’ll explain everything then.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll be here. My agent wants me here in Roswell where I’ll draw the most attention. He’s even working out details for satellite interviews he plans to sell to the highest bidder. Can you believe this, Maddie? Me? Being interviewed by…”

Mary Beth was still rambling when Brad reached out and took the phone, then disconnected the call. He then promptly removed the battery and slipped it into his pants pocket before he placed the now useless cell phone on top of the bookcase. Maddie watched every move he made, but she never said a word.

He leveled a look in her direction. “What about your parents?”

Maddie shrugged a shoulder. “They’re up at our family cabin in the mountains. My father insists on total solitude when they’re up there. But since Mary Beth won’t call off the search, it’s only a matter of time until someone from Morgan City heads up to the cabin to find them.”

“Any connection between the name of your hometown and your family?”

“Afraid so,” Maddie said with a sigh. “My ancestors founded Morgan City. My father’s the mayor. Of course, in a town the size of Morgan City, being mayor is more of an honorary title than anything else.”

His look was sympathetic. “And this sister of yours? She would really jeopardize your career and never give it a second thought?”

Maddie walked back to the love seat and flopped down with her head in her hands, the events of the day finally catching up with her. “I’m too exhausted to even think about that right now,” she told him truthfully. “But thanks for letting me at least try to talk some sense into her.”

She could tell he had hoped she could convince Mary Beth to call off the media. Without the media figuring into the situation, his helicopter would have been safe and his commander would have had less reason to keep her there. And he had to be just as eager to get rid of her as she was to leave. They couldn’t get along for more than five minutes at a time, mainly Maddie suspected, because they both liked being in control.

Well, I’m not giving in, Maddie vowed as she massaged her throbbing temples. But now that she had attempted to escape and he knew Mary Beth wasn’t calling off the bogus search, what would he do?

“How do you usually sleep? On your back? Or on your side?”

Maddie’s head came up to look at him. “I beg your pardon?”

“Do you sleep on your back? Or do you sleep on your side?” he repeated.

“Why on earth would you want to know that?” Maddie’s mouth dropped open when he reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out the handcuffs. “Don’t even think about it,” she warned, but he quickly cut her off.

“I’ve already thought about it,” he said with a frown. “After that stunt you pulled with Baker, I’m not taking any chances. And now that you know your sister isn’t going to cooperate, you have even a bigger reason to run. But I’m worn-out, and so are you. We’re both two mature adults, so let’s simply walk calmly into the bedroom and try to get a little sleep.”

“You can’t be serious.”

“I’m dead serious.” And the expression on his face confirmed it. “Now, answer my question. Do you sleep on your back or do you sleep on your side?”

“I sleep on my side,” Maddie admitted, sending him an icy look.

“Right side or left?”

“Left,” she finally answered after a second to ponder.

“Good. I sleep on my left side, too,” he said. “This should be easy.”

He took a step in her direction, but Maddie moved farther away. It was the wrong thing to do. When she saw the muscles flex in his jaw, Maddie worried she may have pushed him a little too far.

“Are you purposely trying to be a pain in the ass? Or is this normal for you?” he asked with a grim expression. “I’ve gone out of my way to make you as comfortable as possible. I’ve seen that you have food. I’ve made sure you have clean clothes. And, against my better judgment, I even let you call your crazy sister. Now, I don’t know about you, but I think it’s your turn to do a little compromising. After all, I’m not the one who climbed that fence and set this whole fiasco in motion. You are.”

The flush of shame crept up her neck. “I don’t suppose you would take my word if I said I wouldn’t try to escape again?”

He threw his head back to laugh.

“And I guess it doesn’t matter that you’ve already taken away my boots?”

“It doesn’t matter in the least.”

“And you wouldn’t consider sleeping on the love seat, maybe? We could push it in front of the door. You’d be sure to wake up if I tried to climb over you.”

He looked over at the love seat and back at her. “I’m six foot two. How much rest do you think I could get on a four-foot love seat?”

“Well, you’re crazy if you think I’m taking off my clothes,” Maddie sputtered.

His grin was as wicked as his laugh had been nasty. “Suit yourself, but I’m taking off mine.”

“Fine. I’ll sleep on top of the covers.”

“It gets chilly out here in the desert at night,” he warned.

“Not that chilly.”