Anonymous(48)

Owen shakes his head. “No, what’s going on?”

He nods toward the house. “Let’s go inside and I’ll tell you all about it.”

“First,” I say, grabbing one of his bags, “I’m going to help you carry your stuff upstairs. You should see our room. It’s gorgeous.”

Jake winks and kisses me again. “Sounds good.” He pats Owen’s arm when we get onto the porch. “Thank you for keeping her safe, brother. I don’t know what we would’ve done without you.”

Owen opens the door. “Anything for Ellie.”

We get inside, and Jake follows me up to the bedroom. I open the door and rush to the window. “Can you believe this view? And guess what . . . Owen bought this place. He was going to surprise us this Christmas by bringing us up here.” Jake’s gaze narrows as he looks out the window. I can’t help but think something’s wrong. “Jake, you okay?”

He glances at me over his shoulder, before turning back to the window. “I’m fine. Just looking outside. We’re out in the middle of nowhere out here.”

I sit in the windowsill, so I can see his face. “Forty acres is more like it. Owen plans on getting horses and a whole barn full of animals. I can take you for a tour.”

A small smile spreads across his face. “I’d like that. First, I need to tell Owen what’s going on.”

We go back downstairs, and Owen is by the front door, his vigilant gaze on the road. “Everything okay?” I ask him.

He jerks his head toward us. “Yeah. Just waiting on you two to get back down.” We follow him into the living room and I sit on the couch, while both guys stand by the fireplace. They look so serious, which makes me nervous to hear the news.

Jake sighs. “Before I left for the airport, I received word that the two phone numbers used to text you with have been traced.”

“To where?” Owen blurts out.

Jake turns his focus to Owen. “Tennessee. The police were on their way to investigate right before I left. So far, I haven’t heard anything yet.”

“Tennessee?” I say. “I don’t know anyone there.”

Jake shrugs. “Not unless they’re hiding out right now. Hopefully, we’ll know something soon. Have you found anything on your end?” he asks Owen.

Owen shakes his head. “Not yet. I’ll do more searching tonight. It’d be helpful if we could see the video of Snyder’s abduction. There has to be clues in there somewhere.”

Jake takes a seat beside me on the couch. “I watched it and didn’t see a thing. You can’t see the guy’s face.”

I lean my head against his shoulder. “Hopefully, they’ll have some answers for us soon. As much as I love this place, it’d be nice to get back home.”

He kisses the top of my head. “I agree, cupcake.”

Taking his hand, I stand and pull him up. “How about I take you for that tour? You should see the view out back.”

“Sounds good. Lead the way.”

I turn to Owen. “Want to join us?”

He waves us on. “Nah, you two go ahead. I’m heading out in a few to work in the barn.”

“Okay,” I say, grabbing my coat off the rack. Once Jake puts on his thick coat, we’re good to go. With his arm around my shoulders, we walk around the house and I fill him in on everything I’ve done the past couple of days. He listens intently, but I can tell there’s something troubling him.

“You haven’t taken the pregnancy test, have you?” he asks, leaning against the fence.

I stand in front of him and he folds me into his arms. “Not yet. I told you I’d wait on you.” Closing my eyes, I breathe him in and lay my head on his chest. “Do you want me to take it tonight?”

He rubs my back. “Hell yeah, I do. I just wish we were at home and alone. If you are, I’ll feel bad rubbing it in Owen’s face, especially since he’s not with Kimberly anymore.”

I point at the small mountain and smile. “Want to hike it? Owen cleared a trail around it yesterday.”

Eyes narrowed, he studies the mountain. “What’s on the other side of it?”

“A small town. Why?”

Sighing, he looks around at the land. “Just trying to see if anyone can do a sneak attack. The main road is pretty visible . . . you can see someone coming from a mile away. But this,” he says, nodding at the mountain, “is a different story. Someone could easily hike over it and be near the house in a matter of minutes.”

I grab his hand. “You worry too much. No one’s going to find me here.”

By the look on his face, he doesn’t seem too sure. “I’ll hike it tomorrow and see what it’s like. Anyone could be hiding in the woods.”

A shiver runs up my spine. “You sure do know how to scare me.”

He pulls me into his arms. “That’s not my intention. All I care about is keeping you safe. Now that I’m here with you, I feel much better.”

I squeeze him tight. “I feel better too. Come on, I’ll take you to the barn. Owen’s been working like crazy in there.”

We walk toward the barn and his phone rings. He pulls it out and his eyes widen. “It’s the detective.” I step away from him, so I can watch his reaction.