Fever (Breathless #2)(21)

She trudged after the volunteer and frowned as she took in the occupants. There seemed to be more women today than there had been the last time Bethany had come seeking shelter. And there hadn’t been room for her then. Had they expanded? Gotten more beds?

“I’m Kate,” the woman said just as she stopped by a chair pulled off to the side of the others. “Have a seat right here. I’ll get your cocoa and then we’ll work on getting you something to eat. You’ll need to have those cuts looked at.”

“Thank you, Kate,” Bethany said huskily. “I really appreciate this.”

Kate urged her down and then patted her on the hand. “I’ll be right back. Everything is going to be all right, honey.”

Perplexed by the strange promise, Bethany sank into the chair and promptly sagged, all her strength gone. Her hands shook and she curled them into her thin shirt, trying to warm them faster. The cuts stung but they weren’t serious.

Her gaze found Kate as she bustled around the kitchenette preparing the cocoa. She was on her cell phone and it was obvious that whatever she was talking about was urgent. After a moment, she shoved the phone back into her pocket and took a cup from the microwave. After stirring, she brought the steaming mug over to where Bethany sat, and gently placed it in her hands.

“Here you are, dear. Sip it. It’s hot. Everything is going to be all right now. I don’t want you to worry.”

It was the second time she’d offered the blind assurance to Bethany but Bethany was too tired to dig any deeper. If she weren’t so hungry and cold she’d just curl up in one of the cots and sleep for the next twenty-four hours. Or whenever they kicked her out again.

• • •

Jace sat in his office staring broodingly at the pile of documents in front of him. It had been two f**king weeks since Bethany had slipped away and he was no closer to finding her now than he had been that first morning. It was not for lack of trying on his part.

Work was suffering. Most of the employees avoided him. Even Gabe and Ash had been keeping their distance. Thankfully, Mia was so wrapped up in her wedding plans that she seemed oblivious to Jace’s preoccupation and surliness.

Christmas was a mere week away and he couldn’t stand the thought of Bethany cold and alone, no bed, no food. Nothing.

He curled his hand into a fist and was tempted to punch a hole in his desk.

His door opened and he was about to snarl out a dismissal to whoever intruded on his privacy when he saw Ash walk in. Something in his friend’s expression stopped his retort.

Ash was . . . well, he was typical Ash. Irreverent. Didn’t give a f**k. Was rarely serious. Today, though, he looked . . . serious. Like he had something on his mind.

“Fuck, is your family harassing you about Christmas?” Jace growled.

There was really only one thing that ever got under Ash’s skin. His family. Ash spent most of his time—and holidays—with Jace and Mia. They’d taken Mia to the Caribbean at Thanksgiving just a few weeks ago to help nurse her broken heart when Gabe had pushed her away—thank God that rejection had been short-lived—but it was true that Ash spent far more time with Gabe, Jace and Mia than he ever had with his own family.

“There’s something you should see,” Ash said in a quiet, serious tone that wasn’t typical for him.

Alarm skittered up Jace’s spine and circled his neck in a chokehold.

“Is something up with Gabe and Mia?” he demanded. He’d kill the bastard if he broke Mia’s heart again.

Ash flopped a folder down on Jace’s desk. “You’ll probably be pissed at me over this, but I’m your friend and this is what friends do. You’d do the same damn thing for me.”

Jace’s eyes narrowed. “What the f**k are you talking about, Ash?”

“While you’ve spent the last two weeks looking for Bethany Willis, I’ve been looking for information about her. You need to let this go, man. Walk away now. She’s bad news.”

Heat washed through his veins as he stared back at Ash. “I’m going to pretend you didn’t just say that I should forget about a homeless woman we f**ked. A woman we clearly took advantage of, whether we knew it at the time or not. A woman who has no shelter, no food, no damn coat to keep her warm.”

Ash held up his hand. “Just read the goddamn report, Jace.”

“Why don’t you just tell me why you think she’s bad news,” Jace said acidly.

Ash sighed. “She has a prior for drug possession. She hasn’t held a steady job. Ever. She was in foster care most of her life. Graduated high school but never went on to college.”

Jace’s jaw ticked and he stared down at the folder on his desk. Then he lifted his gaze back to Ash, who stood there staring at him. “And you don’t think those are very good reasons to help her now?”

“If you were only helping her, no,” Ash said. “But you and I both know you aren’t just helping her. You’re f**king obsessed with her, Jace. I’ve never seen you like this. You need to snap the f**k out of it. We f**ked her, yeah. We’ve f**ked a lot of women. Not sure why this one stands out from the rest.”

Jace surged upward, ready to take Ash’s head off when his cell phone rang. He yanked it up, checking the incoming number, but it wasn’t familiar and wasn’t tagged in his contacts. Normally he’d ignore it, but he hadn’t ignored a single call since he’d been searching for Bethany.