He shrugged. “Oh, well. That’s not the point anyway.”
He crouched in front of her again, too close, the heat of his body cutting through the cold just enough to make her skin prickle. “Don’t worry, Gina. It will all be over soon.”
Her breath hitched.
Over.
The word echoed inside her head, hollow and terrifying.
Over how? As in death? Or as in he’d let her go for real next time?
She feared she knew the answer.
CHAPTER
TWENTY-SIX
The next morning,Andi cradled her coffee mug as she sat on the couch in her hotel room trying to ground herself before her busy schedule kicked in. This was her last day to investigate here in San Francisco before they moved on. She needed to make the most of it.
Mariella and Matthew would continue working on the tour. Ranger and Simmy were spending time with Anastasia. Rupert . . . well, Andi wasn’t sure what Rupert was doing. As long as she didn’t have to be near him, she was happy.
But before everyone got started with their days, they’d decided to do a debrief in Mariella’s room. Andi had exactly ten minutes before she needed to leave, and she planned on enjoying her coffee until then.
The hotel room had a sleek espresso machine with complimentary pods. She’d worked her magic using two creamer packets liberated from the breakfast bar, a drizzle of honey she kept in her bag, and a piece of peppermint candy.
Some habits refused to die, no matter how uncomfortable life became. She’d started making fancy coffee concoctions in college in order to save money. The practice had stuck with her.
She took a sip and closed her eyes. Perfect.
Then guilt flashed through her.
Here she was enjoying coffee. Meanwhile, what was Gina enduring? Was she even still alive?
And why had that woman pulled Andi and her team into this case? It still didn’t make sense.
Her thoughts drifted even farther.
She remembered that text message she’d seen on Duke’s phone—the one from Celeste.
Why hadn’t Duke told her about it?
She didn’t want to seem like an insecure girlfriend. But she had fully expected him to tell her about the fact Celeste had been in touch.
If it was just the text alone, maybe that would be one thing. But he’d also been acting off, and she couldn’t figure out why. What kind of secrets was he hiding?
Duke’s past—as well as hers—was complicated.
The two of them hadn’t even liked each other when they first met.
But once they’d finally admitted their feelings, they’d practically been inseparable.
Now something felt as if it was threatening that.
Andi didn’t like how off-balance that made her feel.
The thoughts brewed in her mind.
Then she realized it was time to meet the team.
