Chapter 29
Ava watched in surprise as Sloane strode across the lobby and out the front door into the waning sunlight.
She made her way to the front desk, smiled warmly at Maggy, who she knew had a crush on her husband. She’d been young and dumb at one time too, had fallen for that charm. “Afternoon, Maggy. Was that Sloane Gala I saw leaving?”
Maggy nodded, her expression pleasant and professional. “Yes, ma’am. She stopped by about half an hour ago and Ryan— Mr. Chatelain approved her.”
Ava nodded, returning the smile before she headed for the elevators. Why was Sloane here? And seeing Ryan, of all people?
For a brief moment she wondered if Cara’s younger sister was screwing him too? God knew the man wouldn’t say no to someone like her. Or any woman, really.
Annoyed at more than just that, she called her boss.
He was supposed to have met her at the testing facility a couple hours ago but hadn’t shown up.
Then Milo had ignored her last couple of calls.
She was getting sick of the runaround, but there were things they needed to discuss. Problems they had to fix.
If they didn’t, they couldn’t roll out the new prototype. Or if they rolled it out the way it was, they’d risk getting sued. And worse. People could die. Lots of people.
She called him again.
He finally picked up this time. “Hey, everything okay?”
“No, it’s not. You were supposed to meet me—”
“I know, I know. I’m just leaving the police station, but I’ll call you back in ten. Don’t leave the office.” He hung up before she could respond.
What. The. Hell. The police station? What had that moron gotten into now?
She clenched her fingers around her phone as she stepped off the elevator, and forced a smile when she saw Ryan heading down the hallway. She wanted to know what was going on with Milo, but would wait for his call. She had no other choice.
Her husband smiled when he saw her, but something was definitely off. Maybe he had been screwing Sloane. “Hey, didn’t expect you here today.”
“I’ve been trying to get a hold of Milo.” She didn’t bother keeping the frustration out of her voice. Their boss annoyed both of them.
“I thought you two were at the testing center today. He told me he was going to be at the club early this morning, then head right over.”
Milo had been going to the country club more and more—and drinking more and more. It was starting to piss Ava off. But it was also starting to worry her. She liked to get high in the evenings, so she wasn’t judging, but Milo was letting his bullshit affect his work.
And that was unacceptable, considering the deadline they were on. They were supposed to be rolling out the new marketing campaign for the self-driving air taxis in a week. And they weren’t even close to ready. Their investors wouldn’t be happy if they had to push things back.
“Clearly that didn’t happen,” she muttered. “I’ll be working late tonight,” she added so he wouldn’t bother her on her phone. “I’ll probably just sleep here.” They had a couple offices converted into bedrooms for when they pulled all-nighters.
“Anything I can help with?”
“Maybe. I’ll let you know.” She glanced down when her phone buzzed, saw the name Nina and her heart rate kicked up. Nina was the alias for Marcus’s number. “I’ve gotta take this,” she murmured, already striding away from Ryan as she answered the call.
“Hey, you busy?” Marcus asked.
“Yeah, but I can make time for you.” She glanced over her shoulder, but Ryan was already gone. She knew she shouldn’t leave to see Marcus, not when so much was on the line, but she needed to see him.
He was the only bright spot in her life right now. The big project she’d been working on for the better part of the year had way too many issues, her best friend was dead, her marriage was in the toilet and…Marcus was the only thing she cared about.