With Me Now Read online

  “It sounds far more glamorous than it is.”

  “I’m staying in a hotel.”

  “I have to fight Liam to use the shower first. It’s hard to believe that two men with such minimal hair can argue who gets to shower and shampoo first, but there you go.”

  “Meanwhile, I’m sitting alone in a hotel room texting my mother.” She glanced at him. “I’m so out of control, it’s overwhelming.”

  He chuckled and led to her his Jeep, quickly circling around her to open the passenger’s side door. “Try and ignore the mess. I swear, it feels like I live out of my car half the time, especially on digs. In compensation, I bought you coffee.”

  “You didn’t have to do that.” She set her pack on the passenger’s side floor. It wasn’t a typical mess; mess suggested trash and dirty clothes. The back of the Jeep was filled with a sleeping bag, two tool boxes, an olive colored duffle bag, and an assortment of books and notebooks. “But thank you. Thank you that is, unless there’s a body in that duffle bag. It’s ominous, man. Just a bit ominous.”

  “Prepare to be disappointed, because really all that’s in it is dirty clothes and combat boots.” He waited while she sank into the seat. “There might be one of my camouflage jackets in there. At least, there should be. That’s about as exciting as I get.”

  “Allow me to retract the term ominous and replace it with hot.” She froze, horrified she’d actually said the words out loud and not just to herself. Great. “Because…uh…all that’s in my bag is snacks. Well, snacks and a paperback novel, just in case I get bored or something.”

  “I won’t let you get bored.”

  She flushed again—this was becoming an annoying response to his flattery—but before she could muster up some form of witty response, she heard the squeal of tires braking behind them. She groaned as she looked up. Brad. Brad, of all the people to drop by, even after she’d flatly declined him picking her up.

  He rolled down the window. His brow was knitted in a tight frown, his upper lip curled back almost in a snarl. “What the hell? Look, I thought I offered to pick you up. Do you realize you have completely wasted my time this morning? I had to drive out of my way to get here.”

  She exchanged a quick glance with Mike. “Well, I’m sorry you were inconvenienced, but as you may recall when we spoke yesterday, I told you I didn’t need a ride. You said you understood and, in fact, told me what time to be at the Spangler Farm today. So…” She shrugged. “There you go.”

  Recognition seemed to register in his eyes, but he continued to frown. “Yeah, well, I have a meeting with the park superintendent this morning. I wouldn’t have had time to drop you off at the site and get back to headquarters anyway.”

  She stared at him. What was his intention, then? To drag her along to some meeting and make her wait in the car like a puppy?

  Brad dragged his fingers through his hair, then tapped them against the steering wheel. “Okay, so, I’ve got that meeting. I’ll see you guys at the site later, I’m hoping just in an hour or so.”

  “We’ll hold down the fort until then.” Mike closed the passenger’s side door, ending Madison’s participation in the conversation. She was delighted. “Do you want us to split up and start another test pit?”

  “Yeah.” There was a pause. “Put Liam and Madison on the pit by the woods. You and Cianna stay on the barn pit for now.”

  “Whatever you say, man.” Mike clambered into the driver’s seat and jammed his key into the ignition. “Bastard.”

  “We’re like those kids in school who get separated for talking too much.” Madison picked up the coffee cup, breathing in the creamy, spicy smell. “In fact, I’ve always been that kid. My fourth grade report card says, ‘Madison has such potential, if she’d only stop talking’. I wonder if Brad’s report to Dr. Emerson will read in a similar manner.”

  “I have to apologize for that. I’ve known him a long time and I’ve never seen him flip out like that. He’s acting like a jealous prick.”

  “Jealous that I’d rather spend time with you than him?” Madison rolled her eyes. “Look, he got off on the wrong foot when he couldn’t carry on a conversation with me without staring at my boobs. And, get this, he offered to just sign off on my counseling sessions without me going. Because, you know, turning a forged document into the court system sounds like such an awesome idea.”

  “I’m not trying to make excuses for him, but I think the park is really on his back on this dig. They gave us four weeks, but I think they want us out as soon as possible.” The Jeep was manual transmission. He easily moved his foot from clutch to gas as he shifted gears. There was something ridiculously attractive about it, how he moved his legs, easing pressure from on pedal to the other. She had to look away. “He’s devastated this is process and not investigation. Gettysburg never invites archeologists in. They handpicked him.”

  “What’s his background? I’ve honestly never heard of him, which is a bitchy thing to say, but if Gettysburg handpicked him, he’s got to have something going for him. What he do, help find the Titanic or something?”

  “He works a lot with the park system. I worked with him on a dig in Chancellorsville a few years ago that was pretty big. And his notorious discovery of the cartridge rounds, of course. He’s just a digger, like the rest of us, but he’s got connections.” Mike picked up his coffee and took a deep drink. “And what about you, Miss Madison? All I know about you is that you’re an archeology girl with a drinking problem.”

  “I’m a paper archeologist. I have next to no experience, other than working as a volunteer with Fort Pitt and a few small digs around the Pittsburgh area. I’m an overachiever. I’m a notorious underage drinker—I turn twenty-one next week—but my archeological resume is limited to what I’ve published.”

  “You’ve published some amazing things. I’ve read your work, even before I knew you were going to be on the dig with us. Christ, you were just in Archeology Magazine two months ago. The Great Fire of Pittsburgh in 1845? I had no idea that even happened.”

  “People in Pittsburgh don’t even know that happened.” Madison took another drink of coffee. “It was the smallest dig you could have imagined. Pittsburgh has rebuilt since 1845, so there’s virtually no sign of it. There’s a plaque on the side of a building. We only got to do a half day survey when some sidewalk was replaced in front of a local church. We didn’t find anything.”

  “Liar, I read the article. You found scorch marks. That’s something.”

  “It’s tangible evidence. The church only survived the fire because it’s made of stone. There was a wooden cross on the outside wall, but they pushed it into the street to extinguish the flames. But…you knew that from the article.” She ran her fingertip over the cup lid. “I also have a nasty habit of launching into historic soliloquies, as I’ve just demonstrated.”

  “I think smart girls are hot.”

  “It gives me something to fall back on incase this education thing doesn’t work out all that well.” She reached out and put the cup back in the cup holder.

  Mike caught her hand in his and coaxed it over to reveal her tattoo. He ran his forefinger over the curved lines of the fleur de lis. “I still really like this.”

  Her breath caught in her throat. “Do you have any ink?”

  “A couple. Army stuff mostly; you show me yours, I’ll show you mine.”

  “Hmmm, well, although that’s an offer I’d gladly take you up on, mine are rather well hidden by clothes right now. I mean, two alone are covered up by socks.”

  He sucked in a breath through his teeth. “Ah, let down.”

  “You’ll just have to take a rain check.”

  “I’ll hold you to it.”

  She was fairly certain she’d let him hold her to anything: against anything, over anything, on top of anything. Despite the fact she’d only known him two days—not even two days, just one day and roughly fifteen minutes—she liked everything about him. His looks, his physique, his personality, the w
ay his legs moved with every release of the clutch. God damn it, he should just pull the damn Jeep over now. Instead, she said, “So, this is a completely different direction than Brad took yesterday to the site. Are you kidnapping me or something? Because I’m okay with it if you are.”

  “Brad doesn’t know what he’s doing. This is the better way.” He let her wrist go as he turned the wheel around a sharp curve in the road. “I’m just cutting through the park. You said you’ve never been here before, so I’m giving you the full experience.”

  Her eyes drifted to the side of the road. A low stone wall ran parallel to the pavement, encroaching on thick woods. A figure, dressed in a dark blue jacket and dark brown slouch hat, crouched near the wall, a long rifle stretched out in front of him. He edged closer to the wall, his hand dropping to a cartridge box at his hip.

  Madison glanced at Mike. He didn’t seem to notice.

  She looked back out the window. The soldier was gone; there was no sign of him by the wall or near the road. She inwardly shivered, then cleared her throat. “You know this park pretty well.”

  “I came up here a lot when I was finishing my degree. I’d set up my tent at one of the campgrounds and then hike the battlefield during the day. Since I was a combat engineer, I liked walking the terrain and thinking about logistics and tactics and that kind of thing.” He glanced at her and smiled sheepishly. “Sounds kind of weird.”

  “Just the opposite, it’s really cool. Smart guys are hot.” She picked up her coffee cup. “You and I need to sit down for a nerdy history chat sometime. I bet your military knowledge would improve my overall knowledge of the battle here.”

  “Let’s make it a date.”

  “Deal.”

  He turned the Jeep off the park road and onto a more residential looking road. “I promise I’ll take you back the direct route tonight so you aren’t late.”

  “Yeah, because you know it’s going to be a totally awesome meeting.” She groaned. “You know, I was this close to not getting caught. I hid under the bed. I would have stayed under that bed until the sun came up, but my cell phone rang. My damn cell phone, blasting out Mozart louder than I thought my cell phone was even capable of emitting sound.”

  He chuckled, running his hand down his chin. “Your cell phone? Man, that sucks.”

  “Yeah, and worse yet? It was my douche bag ex-boyfriend calling. Just to, you know, check in and see if I was ready to get back together. No. Not interested, not after he turned into a cheating scumbag. I’d rather punch him in the face. Hell, I’d rather someone punch me in the face.”

  “I can’t fathom why someone would want to cheat on you. I mean, Christ, look at you. You’re beautiful, you’re smart. Was he an idiot?”

  She blushed. “He was attractive and he knew it. College, for him, is a playground of hockey and girls. He’s been on academic probation twice. He’s a cheat and a punk, and I got tired of it. So, I kicked him to the curb and he’s been trying to crawl back ever since.” She waved her hand dismissively. “I’m over that shit.”

  “You deserve better than that.” He turned the car down the lane leading to the Spangler Farm. “I’d treat you better than that.”

  She tried to bite back a smile, but failed. He was so sweet and attractive and…there was no way she was going to be able to concentrate on digging. She didn’t even know how to respond to him. Her mind was too much a jumble to come up with even a remotely witty reply. Instead, she motioned down the driveway. “Is that Cianna’s car?”

  “I expected Liam to be here, but not her.” He started laughing. “Liam is going to be pissed if he’s had to sit with her long. Oh my God, he’s going to be furious.”

  He parked the Wrangler next to Cianna’s sporty red car, hesitating before turning off the ignition. “Is it corny to say I’m jealous Liam gets to be with you today?”

  “No. I’m jealous that bitch Cianna gets to be with you.” Madison chewed on her lip as she thought. “Where’s your cell phone?”

  Mike reached into the pocket of his brown hooded sweatshirt and handed her a cell phone. She swiped her finger across the face and located the contacts screen. “Here’s my number. Text me.”

  “Is that offer limited to today or does that go for anytime?”

  She leaned over farther than she actually needed to in order to return his cell phone. “I’ll be disappointed if you don’t text me. And that goes for anytime.”

  She heard him draw in a breath through his teeth as she slid out of the Wrangler. Good, leave him wanting more—and now he had her number.

  Liam was across the parking lot before she even had both her feet on the ground. “Darling, you have no idea how happy I am to see you. I thought I was going to be stuck with that whore all day.”

  “Where is she?” Mike pushed the Jeep door shut behind him. “I’ll be damned if she doesn’t help again today. She’s not going to sit around on her ass drawing pictures all day while the rest of us work.”

  Liam clicked his tongue. “She’s in the summer kitchen. It was raining earlier—bitch will probably melt if she gets wet. Why are you so pissy?”

  “Brad the Enforcer forbids Madison and me from working together.”

  “Bitch, please.”

  “He’s telling the truth.” Madison swung her pack over her shoulder. “His exact words were ‘Put Liam and Madison in the pit by the woods’.”

  “Jealous much? Mikey, now he’s going to hate you because you’re more attractive than him and because she likes you better.” Liam flared his nostrils. “This is just like high school. Which one of us is going to get called first to the principal’s office for a spanking?”

  “He had the foresight to leave me in charge, so the first thing I’m going to do is help you guys set up your sifter and get settled back there.” Mike glanced at Madison. “And approximately the exact time he drives into the farm, I’ll go work on the barn pit. We all know she’s not going to help and we all know she’s going to manipulate Brad into letting her do the least amount possible.”

  Liam stretched his arms over his head and yawned, an exaggerated movement that reflected boredom rather than tiredness. “Maybe it’ll rain all day and we can just leave. Mikey, remember that day it rained at the Baltimore dig? We sat in the cars for like, three hours until it stopped, and then the second we got set up, it poured.”

  “Yeah, that was awesome.” Mike cocked his head toward the summer kitchen. Madison fell into step beside him, while Liam seemed to reluctantly follow. “As I remember it, we had to cover the pits while Cianna sat in Brad’s truck. With Brad.”

  “Lord only knows what she did in that truck to get him to let her sit out the entire dig, and yet, still get paid.” Liam nudged her with his elbow. “Girl, you rode in that truck. I hope you washed your hands afterward.”

  “I showered afterward.”

  “Smart, but probably not enough. That truck, my God. My God, the things it’s probably seen.”

  Mike rolled his eyes and ducked through the narrow door of the summer kitchen. Madison could hear him address Cianna with a scoff and a grunt, but he wasted little time in the stone building, instead pulling the second sifter outside. He hoisted it over his shoulder. “Don’t worry, Liam, I’ve got this.”

  “Look how his biceps bulge.” Liam clicked his tongue again and leaned closer to her. “You like the bulge, don’t you? We all do. Maybe not Brad, but the vast majority of us are colossal fans. That’s why Cianna hates him, because he’s not wooed by her sorry excuse for tits and flat, lumpy ass. He turned her down like a bitch with a peanut allergy turns down a Snickers bar.”

  “Liam, dude, really.” Mike turned his head slightly to the side. “I’m right here.”

  “I know. It’s all things I want you to hear. After you’re safely back on the other side of the farm, Sassy Madison and I will discuss what she really thinks about you. I’ll critique.”

  “Just what she needs.” Mike slung the sifter off his shoulder and to the ground. “Where
you do want this, Liam?”

  “I could care less.”

  Mike turned to Madison and smiled sheepishly. “I should have just asked you first.”

  The wind picked up slightly, ruffling the hair at her neck. She shivered, the strands of hair tickling her flesh like the soft kiss of fingertips. “Put it in the sun. I’m cold again already.”

  “Someone needs to buy you a heavier jacket.” Liam picked at her hoodie with his thumb and index finger. “Mikey, Mikey, take off your shirt and give it to her.”

  “Liam.” Mike adjusted the legs of the sifter until they locked in place and then pushed his weight against it as if testing the sturdiness. “Why don’t you go back to the summer kitchen and get the buckets? Unless you plan on moving dirt with your hands, in which case, get to work.”

  Liam made an unidentifiable noise, but turned and stormed back across the field. “I’d rather dig with my hands than deal with that flat chested, blonde bitch.”

  Mike shook his head and again shook the sifter. “I’ll go get the shovels. I figure I’ll help you guys until Brad gets here.”

  “Sounds good to me. As far as I’m concerned, you can help us after Brad gets here too.”

  He crossed the short space of field between them into two easy steps. Without hesitation, he took her hands in his and brought them to his lips, breathing hot breath on her fingers. “You are cold.”

  “Warm me up, then.”

  His lower lip brushed against her fingertips. “This is probably the first time I’ve ever wished a dig would be called off due to weather.”

  “There’s always later.”

  “Later is a long time to wait.”

  She looked up into his dark eyes, a shade of brown so dark it bordered on black. It was hard to tear her gaze away from his; there was so much she wanted to say, things probably inappropriate if verbalized after knowing someone less than two days. Not that she minded. Two days was better than two hours. “Good things come to those who wait.”

  He squeezed her hands, but didn’t let her go.

  The sifter pitched forward and collapsed into the roped off area of the test pit; the intimacy of the moment shattered. It was as if it had been overturned in a fit of rage, the sifting screen wrenched from the base and flipped across the ground. Madison jumped, panic racing through her limbs like an electric shock. “Jesus Christ, that scared the piss out of me.”