Chapter Eight #2
I smile, liking this. Or am I loving this? Like the best of both worlds, the way he flips from The Ghost to Cade to The Ghost again.
The Ghost: And don’t think I don’t know you’re talking to someone else.
Me: What are you going to do? Punish me?
The Ghost: Yes.
Now I really do tuck my phone away. I’m turned on, but now that imminent orgasm’s been edged into anticipation.
By the time I reach the bar, I’m feeling steadier, and I take a seat at the bar, ordering a water and a glass of white wine. I take a sip of the wine and drink my water, waiting for Lia.
She doesn’t take long to get there, and she orders an extra dry dirty martini.
I hug her. “A little early.”
Her gaze falls to the faint line on my throat, and her eyes flash as she takes her seat.
“No, it really isn’t. Not after the day I’ve had.”
I frown. “What happened?”
She waves the question away and slaps down her phone to show me a photo of me and Cade taking down Isaac. Cade and Isaac are clear in this photo and the name at the top of the Instagram account is in Cyrillic.
“This influencer caught you and Cade and Isaac in this pic. I follow her, so that’s the only reason I saw this pic.” She leans in. “Right after this, Isaac was arrested and considering all the things he’s done to you…where is he? Apparently, he’s disappeared, presumed missing.”
My stomach turns, and I desperately try to control my reactions. I take a swallow of the wine. “I don’t know.” Which is true. I don’t know what they did with him. I don’t want to know. “I’m not his keeper.”
“But it is beyond romantic that Cade was there and saved you. Why was he there?”
“I…” I flick my gaze away.
She laughs. “I knew it. Things are fire, aren’t they?”
“Lia!” I give her a hard look, but all she does is down half her drink.
“I’ll let you off the hook…for now. But it’s on the list of conversations we must have, but first let me tell you about my week from hell…”
And I happily lose myself in her tales that have nothing to do with danger or death.
We chat for the next half hour before she has to rush back off to work, and I finish my wine and leave.
There’s a car outside the bar. I don’t know how it got the spot, but it did, and the motor’s humming. I approach, even as the door opens.
“Get in.” The voice sends shivers down my spine.
I slide into the backseat, pulling the door shut behind me.
And right before Cade can kiss me, music blasts loud for a full second before going silent.
Enzo turns in the driver’s seat to face me. “Do you always approach random cars and get in with any old order?”
Cade secures my seatbelt, muttering unkind things about his friend beneath his breath.
“Because I’ve already prepared myself to you calling out my name when you’re with him, and I’m not looking forward to having to get used to another girl…”
Heat burns like radiating fire in my cheeks, and I look at Cade.
He shakes his head. “He’s an ass.”
Enzo snickers to himself. “But one she wants when she’s with you.”
I tick the points off on my fingers, “Number one, I recognized your car. Two, I recognized Cade. Three, I’m not even remotely interested in you.”
“She’s fighting it. Typical…” But he’s laughing as he pulls out into traffic, and Cade finally claims my lips.
He’s mouth is wet, warm, and divine, and the constraints of the belt only add a sprinkling of spice to it as his tongue dances with mine in a way that’s way too intimate and not enough.
I don’t know whether to rip his clothes off or just sink down into him where I can lose myself completely.
But Cade solves that dilemma by ending the kiss.
And I drag myself out of the dreaminess. “You’re following me and my follower?”
Cade’s smile is slow, and my stomach dances.
My heart throbs.
“I sent Adrian back to what he was doing. And no, you don’t want to know.”
I do, but I stay quiet.
“Because we had a meeting in the area, it made sense to pick you up.”
“You know… the subway’s faster.”
Enzo scoffs. “That’s what I said.”
Cade holds my face in his hands. “More time for this.”
And he kisses me all over again.
“What’s her name?”
We walk into Enzo’s, and Cade sits me down to tell me what he found.
Everything. Not much.
“Gianna Walsh.”
My mind goes to that day in that cell. “Where are you, Gianna?”
Later, Cade leans against the door to the bedroom we’re staying in. “You should go to bed. Any luck?”
I’m not really sleeping, so this helps. “Yes and no.”
He comes over and kisses me. Then he smiles. “We’ll find her. I’ll do everything I can to help, I promise.”
I hug him tight. “I’m glad you’re in my corner.”
“Vi, I know what this means to you. I’ll do anything for you.”
My heart flutters.
His hand touches my face. “Just…give yourself some time for you. You’ve been at this day and night.”
“And when you work?”
He smiles. “Point taken.”
When he leaves, I throw myself back into it.
I’m obsessed, I know it. And I learn everything I can about her, which is a lot, just from everything she’s posted online.
She’s been missing a year, though, not the eight months she told me. It shouldn’t matter, but it does.
Gianna was adamant.
So…was she moved?
I decide to read about her going missing, something I avoided because I figured I’d learn more reading about her life than a plea for her.
When I get to a photo of her and her parents, I stop.
Her father… He’s Joseph Walsh, a congressman.
And he’s on my list.
He’s not looking for an intern, but he has had them in the past and—
My breath catches.
I get up.
“Cade?”
Silence. So, I call out again.
“Cade?”
I head down the stairs, calling out, and I finally end up on the bottom floor where I haven’t been. It looks like a waiting area. “Cade?”
From nowhere a door opens, and he appears.
The door’s hidden by faux cupboard drawers.
His glasses are on his head, and he doesn’t move from the doorway. “Yeah?”
“Gianna’s father is Joseph Walsh.”
“Congressman, I know.”
“She worked for him the summer she disappeared.”
He waits.
I bite back my impatience. “We should see about getting me in there as an intern.”
“I’m not sure…”
“I need an internship. And maybe I can find something.”
“I don’t want you in danger.”
“Really?”
He breathes out. “Vi…”
“Come on. It’ll be fine.”
He looks at me for the longest time. “I’ll see what I can do.”
“Thank you.” I hug him and kiss him, my heart melting. “I’ll go get all the things we’ll need.”
I rush off and smile.
The more I get to know Cade, the more perfect he is.
For me.