Page 174 of Theirs to Tempt: The Marriage Claim

Caleb looks at the row of empty glasses.

“This is pathetic.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

I turn enough to glare at him. “You tracked me.”

“You weren’t difficult to find.”

“I wasn’t trying to be.”

“That’s how I knew it was bad.”

I would smile if anything were remotely funny.

Instead, I stare at the amber remaining in my glass.

“Is she safe?”

“Yes.”

The answer comes immediately.

Something clenched inside me loosens by a fraction.

“Derek watched her enter the building. She told him she didn’t need him to wait.”

“And?”

“He waited until her lights came on.”

The bartender arrives with coffee and discreetly removes my whiskey.

I consider objecting but decide the effort isn’t worth it.

Caleb pushes one of the cups toward me.

“You need to come home.”

“She isn’t there.”

“No.”

The simple answer guts me.

I look away.

For a while, the noises of the club wash around us. Glasses. Conversation. The muted announcer on the television. Ordinary people continuing ordinary lives.

Finally Caleb speaks.

“You know what the problem is.”

I laugh once. “Please enlighten me.”

“You think this is another problem to solve.”