“Okay, let’s do it.” She looked back at Nate, “When?”
“We’ll have to give it until Friday. We want to target as many people as we can at the bar. I’ll pretend like I don’t know you guys for a couple days, catch a tan, and lay low.” He turned his attention back to Ethan. “I’ll run some background checks. You got any potential suspects?”
“Yeah, a couple. Riley’s neighbor and her ex-boyfriend. I’ll text you their names.”
“Sounds good.” Nate took a swig of his drink and rapped his knuckles on the counter. “All right, it’s settled. Friday night, we trap the bastard.”
Riley’s teeth gleamed as a warm smile reached the corners of her eyes. Not giving a shit about Nate, Ethan pressed his mouth to hers. Her sharp intake of breath stirred his blood. In two days, they’d risk it all—and he’d be damned if he let anything happen to Riley.
Chapter 18
Riley rested her hip against the edge of the pool table. She brought the small glass to her lips and sipped. The sharp taste of vodka tingled her taste buds and she sucked her tongue against the flavor. Ethan grinned at her, lined his pool stick on the green felt, and stretched across the table. She swallowed another gulp of the liquid as his T-shirt bunched around his shoulders. He drew the stick back, and shot it forward like a slingshot. The pool balls scattered, the soft clunk of at least two balls sounded over the loud bass of the band as they landed in the pocket.
Riley made a face. “Couldn’t you at least pretend to suck at something?”
He lifted a shoulder. “Sorry, turns out I’m better at winning.”
She pushed her hip off the table and stuck her tongue out. He tweaked her chin as she slid past him, her back to his front. His palm landed on her hip, the end of the stick in his other hand rested on the ground.
“Did I mention I like your dress?” He whispered in her ear. With the screech from the electric guitar that reverberated over the speakers, he could have screamed and no one would have heard him. The scent of whiskey wafted to her nose from his warm breath. A shiver raced over her skin.
“You did as I was trying to put it on, as I got in the car, got out, and just now.” She laughed. He turned her in his arms and lifted her to sit on the edge of the table and heat scorched between her legs. Her eyes raked around the crowded bar. “Ethan, people are watching us,” she whispered.
His eyes darkened. He’d shaven before they had left, so his normally scruffy jaw at this hour was silky smooth. The depths of his baby blues swallowed her up. His knuckle trailed up the outside of her thigh. She pressed her hand against his, stilling it.
“We need to stay focused,” she chastised. Despite her words, her knee moved against the inside of his thigh.
Ethan cursed. “I told you we should have had a quickie before we left.”
Riley jumped off the table and scooped her stick up from the rack. Her skin burned under Ethan’s scorching gaze. His eyes drank her in, lazily trailing over her body. Her nipples tightened in response. She sauntered to the opposite end of the table where the cue ball rested. Ethan folded his arms across his chest and leaned against the table. His black T-shirt made his ice-blue eyes pop, his long, jean-clad legs stretched into the aisle. She leaned onto the table, rested the stick on her thumb, and whooshed it forward. The balls scattered, two landed into the pocket.
Ethan’s eyebrows shot up. “Holy shit.”
A giggle trapped in her throat. She kept her gaze even. “You don’t grow up in small town Beaufort without learning how to play pool. I pretty much spent my weekends at Drew’s. Don’t feel bad, you’ve got a pretty good game.” She winked at him and he narrowed his eyes at her, and then lifted his pool stick.
Drew’s had changed in the last decade. The once dated bar had been expanded, allowing for a stage and enclosed patio off the rear of the building. They’d also added several pool tables and a modern-day jukebox.
He took another shot, this one less impressive than the last. “You misled me, now my ego is bruised.”
Riley snorted and moved toward him. His hands landed on her waist, her legs brushed against his. She tipped her head back to look up at him. Even in stilettos, the top of her head came just below his chin. His teeth flashed at her and his eyes lit like blue fire.
“Now that we’re on the same playing field, we might have to make a little wager.”
“Hmm.” Riley pressed the tip of her finger to the corner of her mouth as ideas rolled through her mind. Ethan leaned forward and nipped the tip of her nose between his teeth.
“You’re trouble, you know that? If we didn’t have an ulterior motive here tonight, I’d—”
“Riley.” The voice, teetering on shrill, came from behind her. Riley whirled around in Ethan’s arms. His hands tightened on her hips, but relaxed as soon as Jenny stepped forward.
She pulled Riley into a fierce hug and Ethan stepped around the pool table to greet Eric, Jenny’s husband. “My god, girl. You need to fill me in.”
She’d checked in with Jenny during the week, but had avoided the topic of the car accident. She hadn’t meant to leave Jenny in the dark, but reliving the accident and the other events was not something she’d wanted to do. After texting Jenny earlier today to let her know she’d be at Drew’s tonight, she’d expected to get the third degree from her. But when Jenny planned on going out for a drink, she often invited a lot of patrons from the restaurant. The more people to witness her and Ethan’s falling out the better.
“I’m sorry. I’ve been a little overwhelmed—”
Jenny pulled away and waved her hand in the air. “Don’t be silly. I’m just glad you’re okay.” The arch of her eyebrow rose and her mouth curved suggestively. “And I think you’re more than okay. You did it, didn’t you? You’re sleeping with Ethan?”
Heat crept into Riley’s cheeks. She scooped her drink up from the edge of the pool table and sipped. The liquor did nothing to calm the tingle in her veins. Jenny bounced on her toes, her brown hair, straightened for once, danced over her shoulders.
“Well?”
“Yes, all right?” She whispered. Her gaze shifted to where Ethan stood. His eyes locked on her despite Eric’s conversation. A lump hardened in her throat and her cheeks burned even more. She turned her back to Ethan and sipped again.
“You lucky little thing,” Jenny hissed. A laugh burst from Riley and she swatted her friend. “But seriously, how do you handle all of that?”
Riley pinched her arm. “Would you stop staring at him? He’s going to know we’re talking about him.”
“Oh I think he knows. He looks kind of pissed.” Jenny lifted her shoulder nonchalantly, and zeroed her blue eyes on Riley. “So?”
“He handles me, okay?” She grinned in response, but if she didn’t change the subject, Ethan’s gaze was going to burn a hole through her back.
Jenny let out a whoop of laughter and she did nothing to stifle the sound. Riley hung her head, and slowly glanced over her shoulder again. Ethan shoved his hands in his pockets, his brow furrowed, and his cheeks dark. Eric shifted his gaze from each of them and scratched his head. At nearly half a foot shorter than Ethan, Eric was lean and slight in comparison. His friendly olive eyes smiled when they landed on Riley and he lifted a hand in a silent wave. Heat spread through her and she waggled her fingers at him.
“You’d better hope Eric doesn’t know what we’re talking about.” She took a big gulp from her cup; its warmth filled her mouth.
Jenny flung her hair over her shoulder. “Are you kidding? He knows Ethan’s a hunk. He admitted to having a man-crush on him.”
Riley snorted and the acrid liquid shot out her nose as she sputtered on a laugh. Jenny snickered and passed her a napkin.
“All right, enough about your sexy boyfriend. You look hot.” Her gaze dropped to the black minidress Riley wore. “Is everything okay?” As if a cloak had been lifted,
Jenny’s teasing tone and smile vanished. Concern creased the corners of her eyes, and her arms folded over her white halter top.
Riley’s fingers tangled in her hair as she pushed it back. Okay as in what? Hanna was still missing, someone had broken into her house more than once and tried to kill her five days ago, she’d found a snake in her bed, and now she was physical bait for a psychopath.
“Yeah, I’m good. I’ll be back to work on Tuesday, I’ve just been–”
Jenny held her hand up. “That’s not what I’m asking. It doesn’t matter to me when you come back, though we all miss you and the place runs smoother when you’re there.” Her eyes shifted away and then came back to meet Riley’s. “I just worry, you know? What happened that night?”
Nausea mixed with vodka roiled in her stomach, threatening to heave onto the floor. Jenny was referring to the night of the car accident. She couldn’t go over that again. She owed it to her friend to tell her what happened, but not now. The last thing she needed to get was cold feet in the midst of catching Hanna’s captor.
The weight of every eye in the room weighed on her back. She took a deep shuddering breath and fought the terror that clawed at her throat. “I can’t talk about it right now, okay? Let’s talk on Tuesday over lunch.”
Warm, hard fingers closed over her upper arm and spun her around. She teetered on a wave from the liquor as her gaze came into focus on Nate’s face.
“Rye, good to see you, babe.” He pulled her into a hug, his hands moved over her back and heat crept up her chest. She backed out of Nate’s reach and looked up into his smiling green eyes.
“Damon, what are you doing here?” The false name rolled off her tongue and her brows pinched together. He’d caught her off guard, but that had also been part of the plan. Her reaction needed to be on point. Out of the corner of her eye, more than a dozen pairs of eyes rested curiously on them. One pair was Ethan’s and curiosity didn’t cover it. His arms folded tightly over his chest, his brows snapped down and his jaw locked. Had this not been entirely fabricated, she’d have been sweating bullets for poor Damon.
Nate coasted the back of his knuckles over her arm. “I missed you. You’ve been gone more than a month, baby. I thought I’d surprise you.” His voice was soft and thick, yet slightly affronted. Riley took a deep breath, the rehearsed words clotted on her tongue.
Jenny moved from behind her. “I’m going to grab a drink with Eric. Catch you later, Riley.” Jenny’s gaze moved over Nate and her eyes narrowed disapprovingly.
Nate smiled and stepped forward, his hand circling her waist. “Let’s go talk, honey.”
Riley opened her mouth, but Ethan’s wide bicep filled her vision. He moved between them, bringing him nose to nose with Nate. Silence fell around the crowd. Every eye that hadn’t been trained on them was now focused on the tension circling the two men.
“Can I help you?” Ethan’s voice was low and menacing, but projected around the room. Riley inched behind Ethan’s broad back, shielding herself from the shocked glares. Ethan’s arm reached behind him and clamped over her wrist. His thumb moved reassuringly across her knuckles.
Nate scratched his head and gave a rude laugh. “For starters, you can move the hell away from my girl.”
When they’d planned the confrontation, Riley hadn’t given a second thought to the onlookers and the spotlight it would put her under. She closed her eyes and pressed the pads of her fingertips between her brows.
It’s not real, get a grip.
She wasn’t one to give a damn about what people thought. But at the moment, fifty sets of eyes thought she was sleeping around.
Ethan’s back bunched beneath his shirt and Riley sunk lower. God, they weren’t going to fight, were they? That hadn’t been in the notes.
“Your girl?” Ethan’s hand fell away from her and slowly, he turned to face Riley. If she could have willed the floor to swallow her up, she would have been long gone. His eyes pinned her to the spot and his hands flexed at his sides. The harsh lines of his face deepened. “Is that true?”
Riley swallowed, her heart slammed against her breastbone as she fought for the words she’d recited twenty times. “Technically. We were on a break and—”
Ethan brushed past her, his shoulder nearly knocking her unsteady legs out from under her. The crowd swallowed him up as he shouldered his way through. A knot formed in her stomach. Nate turned to the people who still lingered around, watching as if her life was a damn sitcom.
“All right, nothing to see here. Everyone mind your own business.” Nate barked. Quickly, people snapped their attention away and the loud drone of voices and music resumed. He turned back to Riley, pulled her against his side, and moved her to a table. “You did good, hon. Need a drink?”
“Oh god, yes.” She slipped onto the stool and rested her head into her hand. Nate signaled the waitress and put in an order. “No one can hear us, so relax. E’s heading to your place now and you can leave soon.”
She nodded and lifted her eyes to his friendly ones. “Why did it feel so real?”
A small smile touched his lips. “Because Ethan’s in pretty deep with you, that’s why.” He paid the waitress when she dropped his beer and Riley’s glass down in front of them. Riley squirmed in her seat. The urge to question Nate about what that meant clawed at her throat. “Get your bearings; we still need to have our little spat.”
Riley shifted her gaze over Nate’s shoulder. Jenny leaned against the wall, a drink in hand, and a deep scowl on her face. Riley’s insides cringed. She had a hell of a lot of explaining to do.
“Don’t worry, it’s good that your friends think you’re an ass right now. It will only help the story spread faster.”
“They already think I’m a slut.”
He winced. “Why is that?”
She sighed and took a swig from her drink. “Because I tried luring men at bars to find Hanna’s kidnapper.”
Nate grimaced and the skin around his mouth creased. “Ah, well that was an unconventional plan.” A beat passed and her hands itched to cover her face. Saying her previous actions aloud was enough to make a pit of regret open in her stomach. Nate lifted his shoulder. “Don’t worry about it. People love talking about sluts.”
She blew a breath through her nose. The need to get out of here and into Ethan’s arms made hives ready to break out over her body.
“Let’s just get this over with.” She nudged his knee under the table and took another much needed sip from her drink.
“Tell me you aren’t serious about that guy. I thought we were working on things?” Nate’s voice boomed over the crowd.
Shit. She hadn’t been ready. Fire blazed from her toes to her cheeks. Her hand tightened on her glass. “Of course it’s not serious. I care about you, Damon. But I need some time.” She pressed her fingers into her temple until it hurt. “Can we talk about this later? How long are you in town?”
“A week. I came to see you, babe. To work this shit out.” His thumbnail caught the edge of the label on the beer bottle and he peeled it down.
“Okay, we can talk. But can it wait until tomorrow? I really want to get home.”
He lifted a shoulder. “All right, I can get you a cab if you want.”
She nodded. God, she wanted to get out of here more than anything in the world. She slammed back the remainder of her drink and Nate led her through the bar, his hand on her waist.
Jenny’s tall form stepped into view, her eyes wide as she mouthed, what the hell?
She caught Jenny’s hand as Nate propelled her through the crowd. “I’ll text you when I get home,” she told her. Jenny shot her a pointed look and dropped Riley’s fingers.
The warm night air forced its way into her lungs as they stepped outside. Nate kept her close to him, and she gripped his arm for support.
At the curb, he pulled out his phone and placed a
call for a cab. When he hung up, he turned back to her. “You okay? You’re looking a little pale.”
“That was more overwhelming than I had expected.” She let go of him and folded her arms tightly across her chest. He kept his arm around her shoulders. As much as she liked Nate, he stirred nothing inside her. He was attractive and built like Ethan, though not nearly as big. Ethan was massive, yet gentle, persistent, but kind, and menacing, yet loving. He was the best of every world and his charm drew her like no one ever had.
A few minutes later, the cab rolled up and Nate opened the door for her. He leaned in, and pulled her into a hug. “Text me when you get home, okay?”
She nodded and pulled out of his embrace, then slid into the cab and gave the driver her address. Nate shut the door and waved as they pulled away from the curb. She watched as he retreated to the bar. It wouldn’t help for people to think she’d left with another man. If this was going to work, the culprit had to assume she was at home alone.
She pinched her fingers together in her lap as the car moved through the dark streets but it did nothing to ease the compression on her chest. This was it. Tonight, the perp would come for her… he had to.
Chapter 19
Ethan moved through his backyard, his head down, and his hands shoved in his pockets. The warm metal from the switchblade he’d brought to the bar grazed his fingers. The baseball cap he’d grabbed from his house hugged his brow. No one had followed him from the bar, of that he was certain. But it paid to be cautious. He’d parked his truck in his driveway and had gone inside for a bit, and then snuck out the back. He wouldn’t be able to simply skip across the lawn and go to Riley’s. He’d have to enter the alley and then let himself into her backyard. If the perpetrator was watching them, they had to cover their bases. This way if he went by Ethan’s house, he’d see his truck in the driveway and assume Ethan was in for the night. Getting out of Riley’s unseen would be tricky in the morning, but there was no help for it.
Bait Page 18
