Nolan
You managed to unlock it? That’s great! So how does this work? Should I courier your laptop back to you, and you’ll send mine?
Me
Nice of you to finally join the conversation.
Nolan
Sorry, I lost my phone.
He should have asked me. I could have told him exactly where it was.
Me
You realize this app is also installed on your laptop?
Nolan
It is?
Oh yeah. Never noticed that before.
He really didn’t know? Or was it just an excuse for leaving me hanging all afternoon?
Nolan
There’s way more apps on here than I’m used to, and I haven’t worked out what half of them do.
Huh. At least he’d never find the tracking software.
Me
I’ll show you tomorrow.
Nolan
???
Me
We’ll be there mid-morning. Sweet dreams.
When I saw the three dots that meant he was typing a reply, I turned my phone onto silent and placed it face down on the nightstand. See how he liked shouting into the void. Plus he might try to talk me out of coming, and I didn’t need an argument when I was tired.
My mind was made up.
I was going to California, and Marielle could start showering in her own damn house.
CHAPTER 13
NOLAN
“Boss, there’s a problem,” Teo told Nolan.
Too damn right there was a problem. Right now, Alexa was probably in the air en route to Amador County, and she wasn’t answering her phone. No way had she lost it. She’d always been surgically attached to the thing.
A couple from Wisconsin were gushing over the decor in Guest Cottage Number One, aka Beldi, because Marielle had taken it upon herself to help with the marketing, and her artfully lit photos had ensured the place was booked solid for the next month. Cottage Number Two was still a ways off being finished, which meant the only place to put Alexa—assuming she was staying—was in the house, in one of the guest rooms he used for potential buyers who wanted to learn more about the wine they’d be investing in.
