Chapter 16
“I’m not letting Dakota run from me.” ~ Rhett
Rhett
I reach for Dakota and meet air. “Dakota?”
When she doesn’t answer, I open my eyes to discover she isn’t in the bed. Guessing by how cold the sheets are, she hasn’t been for a while.
“Dakota?” I holler again.
I climb out of bed to search for her. The bathroom door is ajar. I peek inside. She’s not in there. I turn away but notice her bag is missing from the closet. I swear underneath my breath. I can’t believe she fled.
Hold on. We still have a plane to catch. She couldn’t have gone far. A quick call to the airline confirms she switched her reservation to an earlier flight.
I growl. She’s running from me.
I should probably let her go. But my stomach sinks to the floor at the idea. I don’t want to let her go. And, after last night, I don’t need to. Not after I found out what secrets she’s keeping.
But why is she running from me?
I will find out. I pack up all of my things, plus the suitcases with the samples we brought for Velvet Blossom to try. We concluded our business with them a day early. I had planned to spend today showing Dakota Atlanta, but she shot those plans to shit.
I smile at the receptionist when I reach the desk to check out. “I’m checking out a day early.”
The receptionist doesn’t smile in return. She keeps her gaze focused on the computer.
“Here you are.” She slaps the invoice down on the counter.
I don’t bother to review it. “It’s fine,” I say and hand her my credit card.
She swipes it and hands it back to me. “Your payment is successful.”
“Have a nice day.”
She grunts at me. Someone is not in a good mood this morning. I don’t say anything since I’m not a happy camper now either.
“I need help with my bags,” I say when the porter doesn’t come over to assist me.
She motions for him to help. The man scowls at me as he walks over. Is everyone in Atlanta grumpy this morning?
I follow as the porter rolls my bags to a waiting taxi. When I try to tip him for his help, he holds up a hand.
“No, thank you.”
I frown. “Is something wrong?”
“Why don’t you ask the lovely lady you kicked out of your hotel room this morning?”
“I didn’t…” I don’t get a chance to explain before he’s gone.
Damnit. What kind of state was Dakota in when she left?
Time crawls by as I travel to the airport, wait for my flight, and fly back home. Worry for Dakota pounds at me as I drive back to Smuggler’s Hideaway. I phone Eli.
“Is Dakota at the office?” I ask.
“Why would she be at the office? Aren’t you supposed to be in Atlanta for another day?”
“We concluded our business early.”
“Didn’t Dakota fly home with you?”
“She took an earlier flight.”
He groans. “What did you do to her?”
Nothing except taste and touch her all night long. My cock springs to life as the memories assail me.
“Nothing,” I croak out.
“If she quits because you were being an asshole, I’m firing your ass.”
“You can’t fire me. I’m your brother.”
“Try me.”
I palm my neck and squeeze as I search for calm. Getting into a fight with my brother will not help resolve things now.
“Can you message me Dakota’s address?”
“Why?”
“I have some of her things with me.” The lie rolls off my tongue.
“I’ll message it but do not mess with my assistant. I’m not kidding, Rhett. She’s the best assistant I’ve ever had. I won’t lose her because you’re an asshole who goes into over-protective mode whenever anyone comes close to the family.”
“Thanks.” I ring off before Eli asks any more questions.
My phone beeps with a message and I hit a button on my console to read the address. It’s a street near the downtown of Smuggler’s Rest. I drive to the address. This can’t be right.
I’m at the Mermaid Motel. Dakota can’t possibly live here. But I spot her piece of shit car in the back of the lot. What is she doing here?
I park in front of the reception and march inside to investigate. The bell above the door chimes when I enter and the receptionist glances over with a smile on her face. Her smile disappears when she realizes it’s me.
“What the hell are you doing here, Dakota?”
“Um...I…Do I hear the phone?” She whirls around and runs toward the office but slams into the wall instead.
I rush to catch her before she falls. She bats my arms away.
“I’m fine.”
I lift a brow. “But the wall came out to attack you?”
“Yes.” She nods. “Exactly.”
I step closer to crowd her and her eyes flare before she clears her throat and glances away. “What are you doing here, Havoc?” She doesn’t answer and I continue to push her. “Do you work here?”
“It’s none of your business.”
“Wrong.” I tuck one of her curls behind her ear. “Everything about you is my business.”
She scowls. “Stop trying to control me.”
“I’m not trying to control you. Wanting to know everything about you, isn’t controlling you.”
She rolls her eyes. “You don’t want to know everything about me.”
“Yes, I do, Havoc. Every single thing there is to know.”
The bell over the door chimes again. “Ay caramba!” A woman shouts. “Hot. Hot. Hot.”
“Who are you?” I ask her.
Dakota pushes past me. “Don’t be rude. This is Sadie. She’s the manager of the motel.”
Sadie bows. “Manager and bringer of caffeine goodness at your service.”
She holds up a cup of coffee from Pirates Pastries and Dakota snatches it from her.
“Thank you,” Dakota mutters before downing half of the cup in one go.
“Thank you,” Sadie says as she rounds the receptionist desk to stand behind it. “I was going to lose my mind if I didn’t get out of here for an hour. Thanks for covering for me. You can go now.”
My brow wrinkles. “You don’t work here?” I ask Dakota.
“She works the night shift,” Sadie answers and Dakota glares at her.
“What?” Sadie widens her eyes. “It’s not a secret. Everyone in town knows.”
I don’t. Unlike my brothers, I’ve ignored the Smuggler’s Hideaway rumor mill ever since Dad left us. The rumors people spread about what happened to our family turned me off small town gossip forever. While we were trying to survive, the islanders couldn’t stop speculating about the woman my dad left his family for.
“Come on.” I hold out my hand to Dakota. “We should discuss this in a more private location.”
Sadie waggles her eyebrows. “Good thing Dakota lives here.”
Dakota throws her arms in the air. “Give away all my secrets now, why don’t you?”
Sadie bites her bottom lip. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know it was a secret.”
Dakota sighs. “I should be the one apologizing. I’m being a brat.”
“Brats should be spanked.” Sadie winks at me. “Now, get out of here. I have work to do.”
I place my hand on Dakota’s lower back to escort her out of the motel. I don’t miss the way she shivers in response. But I’m not a complete idiot. I keep my mouth shut.
As soon as we’re outside, she whirls around on me and retreats a few steps. “I’ll see you at work tomorrow.”
I chuckle. “Nice try. You aren’t running away from me. Again.”
Her shoulders slump and guilt tries to worm its way into my consciousness. I ignore it. I have nothing to feel guilty about. Dakota’s the one who ran off on me without an explanation.
“Do you want to stand out here and discuss our private business?”
Her eyes narrow on me. “No.”
I lift a brow and wait. She grunts before stomping away from me. I enjoy how her ass jiggles as she walks for a while before rushing to catch up to her.
She unlocks a door marked ‘owner’s suite’ and I follow her inside. I scan the room and frown. The suite is dated with worn carpets, cracked countertops, and over-used furniture.
“You live here?”
“Don’t you dare make fun of my home.”
I hold up my hands. “I wasn’t going to.”
“Not everyone is a millionaire.” She pokes me in the chest and I capture her hand.
“I know, Havoc.” I place her hand against my heart and hold it there. “What I don’t know is why you ran from me.”
“Ran from you?” She yanks her hand away. “What difference does it make?”
“What difference does it make?”
“Yes.” She nods. “What difference does it make? The last time I thought we were becoming friendly, you reminded me the next day about how we weren’t friends. There’s no need to send a message this time. I get it.”
“You don’t get anything,” I grumble. “We’re more than friends.”
“Just because we had sex doesn’t mean anything changed.”
“Wrong. Everything changed.”
She shakes her head. “Not for me.”
I approach her and she retreats until her back hits the wall. I plant my hands on the wall on either side of her. Her breath quickens, and her eyes flare in response to my proximity.
“Everything changed. I know you feel this connection between us, too.”
“It doesn’t matter what I feel. It’s too risky. You could get me fired. I’m not letting a man ruin my life again.”
“A man ruined your life? Who? How?”
She ducks her chin. “Never mind.”
I pinch her chin and lift until her gaze meets mine. Her green eyes are filled with pain. I can’t bear to see her in pain.
“Tell me everything.”