She sat back, scooting to the wall and locking her knees against her chest.
I twisted enough to face her, my hand resting behind me to prop me up. “Would you like some good news to cheer you up?”
Her head tilted, a slight smile invading her face. “Are you quitting?”
I deadpanned. “What do you think?”
She rolled her eyes, and I couldn’t help but hold back my smile as I watched her settle into the Cora she rarely ever showed me.
“Alright then, Romano. What’s this good news?” She asked, leaning her head against the wall, eyes raking over me.
Was it hot in here, or was the sun getting closer?
I shook my head. “Oscar was able to trace where those texts you’ve been getting are coming from.” She sat up at that. “And it’s an address in Chelsea.”
She tucked a strand of hair behind her ears and crossed her legs. “Chelsea?”
I nodded. “It’s where most of them have been sent from. Meaning whoever it is is probably hacking into the cameras from the safety of their couch, most likely.”
I watched the cogs turning in her head, suspicion fogging up her eyes. “Whereabouts in Chelsea?”
I slipped my phone out of my pocket and clicked on the saved address Oscar had sent, scrolling until the street came into view. I handed my phone over to Cora, her face hovering over the screen. And in that moment, it was like all evidence of the sun vanished from the world. Her already pale skin getting even paler.
“That’s Jamie’s place.” She barely whispered.
My brows tugged. “No, no, Jamie lives in Kips Bay. I dropped him off there once.” Her eyes met mine. “His wife and their baby girl came out to meet him.”
Her head shook, that scared look invading her face. “That’s impossible.” She looked back at the screen, her finger tapping vigorously. “No, he stopped by here nearly every time he was escorting me somewhere. He’d always point it out.”
Clever. Probably so she never sought out his wife after everything happened.
Her head shook, crumbles of words coming out of her gaping mouth, like she was speechless. Her eyes rolled as her head sank back into the wall. “I don’t know why I’m surprised. It’s not like he was ever actually honest with me.”
My head tilted. “If you start making any of this your fault again, I’ll hide every single teabag in that mess of a kitchen.”
That made her laugh. “You know me far too well.” She sat up with a groan. “Do we have a plan? I mean, how are we going to deal with this?”
I pulled my head back, a small laugh escaping me. “Ihave a plan. Where Jamie Radcliffe is concerned,youare to be nowhere near him.”
She moved towards the end of her bed, her feet dangling off the edge. “I can’t think of a better way to fight this thing than to face it.” Her eyes narrowed. “Or would you rather have me rot away and throw more paint around?”
I laughed. “Not these paints anyway, they’re too expensive.” That earned me another giggle from her, one that made herdimples pop out. And then the wordadorablefloated through my mind.
Enough of that, you loser.
“What was your plan, anyway?” She asked, hand under her chin.
I shrugged. “Scope the place out, wait until he comes by and then, depending on if he has company or not, pounce.”
Her brows lifted. “Like a stakeout?”
“I suppose.” I didn’t like the suspicion in her voice. “But this has nothing to do with you.”
She flailed her arms. “It has everything to do with me. This guy isliterallystalking me. Because it was me who’d turned him down. And it was me who made this thing a media circus. The guy wants revenge, and he’s made it clear that he’s willing to go to extreme lengths to get it.”
Before I could stop her, her hand covered mine, and my eyes shot to hers. “I chose to fight, remember.” Her shoulder lifted. “So let me fight.”
I shook my head. There was no way I was going to let this girl within ten miles of the man who’d hurt her, let alone have her sit with me on the stakeout.
