CHAPTER NINE
“HOW DO YOU propose to do that, short of following him around?” Tara asked from the seat next to Jeff, gracefully draping one lean leg over the other.
She looked like a rose in the desert, out of place in her drab surroundings, and the memory of their white-hot kiss seared his memory. A mistake, but…damn.
He fully got why so many men wanted her in their beds. Whathe didn’t understand was why they didn’t want to keep her there longer. Or was the short-term nature of her past relationshipsherdoing? Maybe she hadn’t wanted anything serious.
But that wasn’t the vibe he’d gotten from their conversation.
Still, it was another reason to keep his distance. He wasn’t looking for any kind of romantic relationship right now, but when he was ready, he wantedsomeone he could envision as a mom. Someone who could commit to both himandhis son.
“I haven’t thought that far ahead yet,” he said. Even if they were in DC and could stalk this Luciano ass-hat, Jeff wouldn’t relish coming face to face with one of her former lovers. A generous term for someone she’d admittedly spent “a few hours” with. He had no desire to imagine her with another man, letalone put a face to the fucker.
He could, however, acknowledge the courage it had taken to share her past with him. She’d looked about as happy as a root canal patient, but she’d sucked it up and laid out all her dirty laundry for Jeff to see. Laundry that was only considered stained because she was a woman.
Sometimes the world sucked.
“What if we could find the pictures?” she asked.
“I think the police confiscated all that stuff.”
“Sure, thedrive, but not the cloud.” She sat up, her dark eyes sparkling with excitement and intelligence, a potent combination. “What if Mars backed up his work online? A pro like him wouldn’t take the chance of losing any of his images, but an external drive runs the same risk of being stolen or destroyed as his camera and storage cards.”
Forcing his gaze back to the road, Jeff nodded. “And we have access to a master hacker.”
“Exactly.” The excitement in her voice made his heart race. Or maybe that was the prospect of getting proof of Luciano’s depravity so they could end this. “If there’s a way to find it, Valerie can. I was thinking we might be able to move things along if we knew where he kept his files.” She tapped her fingerson the armrest.
“I’m listening.”
“We could start with Emily.” Tara took a deep breath. “According to her journal, she went through with the shoot. Maybe she got her photos before the police confiscated everything.”
“Do you know her password?”
“No, but I’ll bet Valerie can find a way in.” Tara tapped her phone.
How did she bounce back like that? Jeff didn’t think he was clinically depressed,but the last few months had sapped so much of his emotional energy, he hardly had any left for optimism. Tara brought light into his self-imposed darkness. She made him laugh. She reminded him that there could still be joy in the world, and even briefly distracted him from Evan’s disappearance and Bridget’s death.
But did he deserve a reprieve when his son was out there somewhere—Jeff refusedto believe otherwise—probably scared and helpless, waiting to be found?
Tara spoke into her phone, interrupting his spiraling thoughts. “You up for some work?” She absently ran a hand through her hair.
His hands itched with the memory of the silken strands skimming over his fingers. He’d wanted women before, but this craving was next level. Maybe it was the forced proximity or the heightenedemotions of the past two days. Whatever it was, he had to shelve it.
Special ops training had been far tougher than this—and eighty percent mental. Ignoring his attraction to one woman should be trivial.
“Sending now,” Tara said, tapping on her phone’s screen. “Call me at this number if you find anything.” She listened for a moment. “I appreciate it. When you’re ready, I owe you and Scotta night of babysitting.” Tara glanced at Jeff, her smile fading. “Okay, will do. Thanks!”
She ended the call. “I sent her all of Emily’s old contact info and social media accounts, and everything I could think of that might help with a password. Chloe won’t go down for a nap until after lunch, so Valerie can’t start right away.”
“Okay.” Outside, a semi used its engine to brake, emitting aloud rumble. Inside, all Jeff could hear was the beat of his heart. “You like kids?” The words popped out of his mouth without thought.
“I love them.” Her animated voice tugged at something in his chest. “The world always looks better through their eyes. They’re playful and innocent, they love unconditionally, and they ask the best questions. ”
Jeff could only nod, his body tight with theneed to find Evan, and no outlet for his fear and frustration.
“Like when my friend Jenna came to visit just before Christmas, her son asked me why I didn’t have any real cats.” Tara shifted in her seat, folding one leg under her. “He didn’t understand what I meant when I said I was allergic to a cat’s dander.” She laughed lightly. “When I explained it was their skin, Robbie wrinkled his noseand asked, ‘Would you like cats better if they didn’t have skin?’”
In spite of himself, Jeff chuckled. She was right. Kids taught you to see everything differently. That was part of the joy of being a dad. “Last time I saw Evan, he showed me a picture he’d drawn of Bridget. It was basically a stick figure, but with a half-circle on each side of her stick body. I asked what the semi-circles were,assuming they were supposed to represent her…uh, chest.” Jeff’s mood lifted at the memory, even as the ache of missing his little boy sharpened to a fine point. “Evan said, ‘It’s her big butt getting into the shower.’”
