I nod solemnly.
Cara’s eyebrows rise, and then her face pales. “Damn,” she says softly.
Tension leaves my shoulders. This is more like it. My favorite person in the world is no longer harboring ill will against my second favorite person. Or is Jade my third favorite? Because Sorcha has to be pretty high on the list. And then there are my parents. But then again, I have a strong feeling that Jade has the potential to fly up to the very top of that list. Although, I’m not sure ranking that includes potential is fair.
I take a deep breath. Okay. Cara, Sorcha and my parents are joint first. Jade is second, at the moment, with the very real likelihood he could join the joint first-placers.
Cara snaps her fingers in front of my nose. I startle and focus on her.
“Do you think he is okay?” she asks.
My stomach rolls over. “I don’t know.”
He had to disappear before. Maybe he has had to run again? The billionaire who kept him locked up is dead, but other assholes could be after him.
Cara nods decisively. “Alright, give me his number. I know a guy.”
“A guy?” I repeat dumbly.
“A guy that can track the location of phones.”
My eyes widen. “I’m not even going to ask.”
“Good boy,” Cara says with a grin as she pats me on the top of my head.
She really is the worst sister. And the very best.
This is a nice street, in a nice neighborhood. I can’t really get a good view of the house through the trees, especially in the dark, but it looks very nice. Huge and set back from the road, with a long driveway sweeping up to it.
This is the location Cara’s guy said Jade’s phone was, and its most frequent location. Is the mysterious tech guy right? Is this Jade’s home?
My stomach does another queasy thing. What if Jade is being held here against his will?
I take a deep breath. Tech guy didn’t say it was a new location. So, it probably is simply Jade’s home. I can’t know for sure, but that’s why I’m here. To check on Jade. Make sure he is okay. That’s all I am doing. I’m not a stalker, I’m a concerned… friend.
Friend. The word feels strange. Is that what we are, friends? We’ve kissed a couple of times. Exchanged blow jobs, and spent one night cuddling in my bed. That’s more than friends, in my opinion, but is it enough to be anything else?
Sighing, I get out of my car. It’s ten p.m. If I linger any longer, it will be too late to knock on this door without seeming like areal creep. And there is no way I could survive another night not knowing if Jade is okay.
My car beeps softly as I lock it. Here goes nothing.
I stroll up the driveway, trying to look nonchalant. There are a lot of cars crammed in here. Jade did say he lived with a lot of other people, so I guess that makes sense.
Suddenly, a weird tingling sensation races across my chest. What the fuck was that? The sensation is startling enough to stop me in my tracks.
Then I yelp and stagger back a step. There is someone standing right in front of me. Where the hell did they come from?
The stranger is a good head shorter than me, and very slender. They are wearing a white bathrobe that has seen better days. The person’s hair is dark. Long enough to curl around their jaw. Their eyes are dark too. Very, very dark.
I shudder. I think this stranger is a guy, but we haven’t been introduced and I don’t like to assume. Especially since they are so very extraordinarily pretty in a very androgynous way.
I swallow. This person standing in front of me is tiny and pretty, yet I’m feeling incredibly uneasy and I’m acutely aware that I’m all alone in a shadowy driveway at nighttime.
“I… um… I’m looking for Jade?” I stutter.
The scary person tilts their head to the side. I’ve seen dogs do this, but never a human. It’s giving me the creeps.
“Flyn?” rasps a surprisingly deep voice.
