“The plane landed last night. She might’ve stayed in a hotel. Maybe she’ll show up this morning. No problems with you, I take it?”
“None. And Rianne hasn’t contacted Layla. At least not yet. When Layla checked her messages before bed, she had none. And I have her phone now, though I can’t get into it.” Damn passcodes.
“Interesting,” he mumbled. “Sawyer is checking airport cameras.”
“You don’t think Rianne has teamed up with Roman, do you?”
“Where the fuck did that come from?” he asked.
I scratched the back of my head. “Not sure. But she wants me out of the picture. Since she and her asshole cousin couldn’t burn me alive, maybe she’s been taking measures to find someone who can.”
“If that’s true, then Roman is in Boston. Maybe he never left.”
“He wants us to believe he’s not in Boston to throw us off his tail.” That was Roman’s MO. He’d thrown me off before, luring me to Layla’s rental house so I wouldn’t be on the military base when he stormed in.
Silence reigned over the line as seagulls squawked overhead.
“As soon as Layla is up, we’ll get on the road.”
“Did you two talk about plans and what’s to come?” he asked.
Images of us tangled and naked jumped before me. “Negative, dude. But definitely this morning. I should go in case Roman is tracking me.”
“Call George. Have Stan give you a burner cell,” Tripp said. “Check in when you’re on the road.” Then he clicked off.
I took a minute to inhale the salt air. I hated to cut our getaway short. I wanted one more night of unbridled passion.
A seagull swooped in over the calm, serene Atlantic and plucked out what looked to be seaweed. The orange-and-blue hues of dusk grew brighter. In February, the sun didn’t rise until sevenish, which was about an hour away.
I powered down my phone, took one last slow breath, then took off down the beach and toward the house, listening, scanning, and sniffing to make damn sure no one was lurking nearby. There wasn’t another house in sight, but someone could be watching us from high on the cliffs behind me.
When I reached the steps leading up to the deck, I scanned the area one last time. Satisfied, I ran up, punched in the password to unlock the accordion glass doors, and slipped into the house quietly.
Once inside, I downed water then blood. The latter tasted nasty since I had Layla’s. The supply from blood banks sucked ass, although my favorites were anything other than O positive. It tasted like pure metal, and the only ingredients that made it bearable to drink were the different flavors our supplier added on our request.
I tossed the bottle in the trash then made my way up to the guest bedroom. I peeked in before I entered. The bed looked like a cyclone had blown through with the blankets scattered around. But no Layla. I held in the fear that was ready to surge forward as I crossed the plush carpeted room, opening my senses. Aside from the lingering scent of sex, I didn’t detect her. I didn’t even hear her heartbeat. The bathroom was empty. I rushed out, ducking into every room in the house like a crazy motherfucker.
Has Roman found me?I bolted out the front door, scanned the area, sniffed, and listened. Birds chirped, singing their morning tunes, but no Layla. I rushed down the driveway to the road and looked both ways.
“Where are you, Layla?” I said out loud. Shoving one hand through my hair, I pulled out my phone. She couldn’t have gone far. My Jeep was in the driveway.
I jogged back into the house and was about to power on my phone when I spotted Layla on the beach.How the fuck did I miss her?Man, you better get your head out of your ass.
Pocketing my phone, I scaled the steps three at a time.
She must’ve heard me because she spun around, her hair billowing in the wind. “There you are.” She wore her coat zipped up to her neck. Her legs and feet were bare, and she was shivering.
“You’re freezing.” I wrapped her in my body’s warmth.
She flattened her cold hands on my heated bare chest. “And your heart is racing.”
“You scared the fuck out of me.”
“You weren’t there when I woke up. You freaked me out too.”
I kissed her forehead. “Sorry. I went for a run. I didn’t think you would be awake at this hour of the morning after our steamy night.”
She giggled as she slid a hand down to my growing erection. “Seems you’re ready to go round… ten, is it?”
