Gone (Deadly Secrets #2)(55)

“Wow,” Ethan said through the receiver pressed to his ear, pulling him back to his current conversation. “Have you told Mom and Dad?”

Alec frowned from the couch where he sat, dragging his attention from the hall and the sound of Raegan’s shower running in the bedroom. “What do you think? I wouldn’t be telling you if you hadn’t called to make sure I hadn’t lost my shit with Raegan.”

“And have you?”

Classic Ethan. Always pushing. Alec scraped a hand through his hair. “No. You’ll be thrilled to know she put me in my place the other night.”

“She’s the only woman who ever could. I’m not worried about Raegan. She’s a survivor. I’m more concerned with how you’re handling all this news about Emma.”

“What news? We have no news. All we have is a stuffed animal that may or may not be hers.”

“Come on, Alec.”

He knew what Ethan was getting at. Alec looked down and scratched the back of his head. “I want a drink bad, okay? But I’m not going to have one.”

If he’d heard the news alone, if he’d been out of the country when he’d gotten that call from Bickam, he might have gone straight to an airport bar and gotten tanked. But he wasn’t about to do that now because Raegan needed him.

“I’m glad to hear that.”

The shower shut off, and Alec lifted his head, peering back toward the hall once more. “Look, I gotta go. Raegan and I are heading out in a bit to do some interviews.”

“Okay. I won’t keep you any longer. Just one more thing. How are things between the two of you?”

How were they? Hotter than hell and better than they’d been in three damn years. “Fine.”

“You and your ‘fines.’” Ethan sighed.

“They’re good, okay? We’ve talked some things out.”

That wasn’t a total lie. They had talked a little. And kissed and made love and slept wrapped around each other like neither wanted to let go.

“That’s good to hear. It’s long overdue.”

Alec frowned because he heard the giant “but” coming. “I hate when you use the therapist tone. Just spit it out already.”

“But,” Ethan said, “she’s a trigger for you. I’m just worried about you, that’s all.”

A mixture of appreciation and irritation rolled through Alec. “Well, don’t be. I’m not going to do something reckless.”

“Those have always been your famous last words.”

Footsteps sounded in the hall, distracting Alec, and he looked up to see Raegan striding toward him dressed in slim jeans and a loose gray sweater, her damp hair hanging past her shoulders, and confusion pulling the brows over her gorgeous eyes together. Heat and need and a host of nerves coiled in his belly. “Look, I really gotta go. I’ll call you when I know more.”

“Okay. Stay strong, brother.”

“You too.”

He hit “End” and pushed to his feet, fighting back the burst of arousal he always felt at seeing her. As much as he wanted a repeat of what they’d done last night, now wasn’t the time. “Hey.”

“Hey. Who was that?”

“Ethan. Making sure I’m not driving you batshit crazy already.”

She smiled, a warm, for-him-only smile that made him even hotter. “And what did you tell him?”

“That if I am, I’m sure you’ll tell me.”

Her smiled faded. “At this point, I’m just happy you’re still here.”

So was he.

They stared at each other. He wanted to reach for her, wanted to lose himself in her sweetness and forget everything else for the next three hours, but didn’t. Ethan was right. She was a trigger for him. Not one that might push him to drink, but one that made him crave things he wasn’t sure he was strong enough for. And after the news last night about that stuffed animal, he was already feeling shaky and weak and unsure about everything.

“Well.” She pulled her gaze from his, looked down at his navy Henley, and bit her lip. And in that one small movement he saw that she’d wanted him to pull her in and kiss her just as much. “We should probably get going if we want to catch that social worker before we see the Colemans.”

Yeah. The Colemans.

She moved toward the entry and reached for her coat. His heart contracted with a mix of wants and needs as he watched. For her, for Emma, for them. But mostly it squeezed tight because he realized he was lying to himself.

There was no way he could ever truly believe Emma was dead again. Not without proof. And that realization had nothing to do with what they’d learned last night. It had to do solely with the woman in front of him. With her unfailing belief. With her strength and compassion. With her hope that gave him hope and made him feel alive.



Raegan’s gaze narrowed on the brunette in the red pantsuit walking out of a run-down ranch in Northeast Portland.

“That doesn’t look like Murray,” Alec said in the driver’s seat of his truck, where they were parked on the street.

“Didn’t the receptionist say this was where he was supposed to be today?” Raegan asked from the passenger seat, not taking her eyes off the woman.

Alec checked the notebook where he’d jotted notes. “Yeah, she did. Maybe he switched with someone?”