Chapter 17 1147 p.m.
Chapter seventeen
Rose
The darkness of the elevator hums as the flashlight from Cal’s phone illuminates brightly at his side. Light floods the room in a harsh white glare, bleaching the surrounding walls. The air in this box is thick and hot as the fine hairs stick to my neck.
With those two phone calls, the mood in this closed-in box becomes so heavy with despair that you could almost taste it.
Cal’s standing near the control panel with his hand braced against the wall and his jaw tight.
I haven’t moved from the floor, arms wrapped around my legs.
He’s been quiet since the call with Maggie ended.
We both have.
“Something’s off,” he finally says.
My pulse quickens. “What do you mean?” I ask, but I’m pretty sure we are both thinking the same thing. Something about Maggie doesn’t sit right. It’s not just that strange phone call. She’s been … weird. Ever since I told her Mom was missing, it’s like she’s been holding back.
“There was no reaction,” he mutters. “You told her we were stuck in here, and she didn’t ask if you were okay. Not once.”
I blink, frowning. “You’re right.”
Nothing makes sense right now. Because the person on the phone … that wasn’t my Maggie. The girl who held me upright when I got drunk at Derek O’Malley’s grad party. The girl who helped me stuff my bra when I went on my first date. And helped me pass trig so that I could graduate.
My Maggie. My best friend. My cousin. My confidant.
He turns toward me, eyes sharp in the dim light as his fingers drum a rhythm on his thigh. “I mean, doesn’t she know you’re claustrophobic?”
Dreads slices through me. “She does. She’s known since we were kids.”
He nods grimly. “Then why wasn’t there any hint of worry in her voice? She should’ve been panicking for you. I mean, I barely know you, and all I wanted to do was”—he turns back to the control panel—“help you.”
Biting my lip, I replay the call. Her flat tone, the quick way she hung up, the outburst. Maggie always worries about me. Always. But not this time.
No matter how hard I attempt to breathe, this pressure coiling around me won’t pass. And the worst part? I know exactly why. Maggie’s acting guarded.
Because she's hiding something from me. And admitting that to myself is like betraying everything I thought we had.
Cal runs a hand over his hair, the wheels turning as he attempts to figure all this out. “She knows something, Rose. I’m sure of it.”
Tears press at the back of my eyes, choking my words. “You think she’s what? Like involved?” I’m sure I didn’t hear that right. And I get where he’s coming from; she’s not being truthful, that much I’m sure of. But to imply that she’s involved with my mom’s disappearance.
Impossible. “Cal, Maggie isn’t involved with my mom vanishing. There has to be another explanation.”
Hopefully, saying it out loud will make it true.
Because if I’m being honest, the possibility slides into my mind quicker than I would like.
And the thought makes me sick. Digging my palms against my knees, I attempt to steady the tremor that comes with not wanting to believe the sense Cal is making.
He says nothing right away, as he interlocks his fingers and rests them along the base of his neck. He peers at the ceiling, as if any answers to this absolute crap show lay there. I watch him, wanting more than anything to be inside his head right now to know what he’s thinking.
Then, with determination coupled with desperation, he bolts and presses the emergency button again, his words firm and controlled when he speaks into the panel. “Hello? We’re still stuck in here. We need maintenance now. Is anyone there?”
Static crackles back at us, and then a voice. We both jolt in surprise. “Yes, sir. We hear you. We were made aware of the situation and ask for your patience while we work on this. There are two of you in there correct?”
Cal exhales hard, the muscle in his jaw twitching. “Yes. My name is Detective Cal Masters, and I’m stuck in here with Rose Sheridan. We are currently working on a case, and you need to work your magic and get us out of here as quickly as possible. Now! Do I make myself clear?”
“Yes, sir. We are doing our best. We should have you out shortly.” The line goes dead.
I stand slowly, brushing off my jeans. The elevator is unexpectedly small, but my eyes stay on him. The worry etched on his face, the frustration in his movements. It’s all for me. And my mom. It pulls me toward him like gravity.
Plus, the urge to be near him floods through me. Swamped with doubt and fear, my mind is a relentless tide. I miss the security of him all around me. And I know this is a fleeting hot moment, yet the weight of him in my arms lingers. I know I want to have this again. Forever.
“Cal,” I plead. “Come here.”
He turns, and before he can say anything, I close the distance. My hand finds his chest, steady, sure. His heart thunders beneath my palm. “Rose—”
I wrap my arms around his waist, turning my gaze to meet his. The longing I saw earlier is still there, but it’s accompanied by a flash of something else. Fear, worry, or maybe doubt. “You’re stuck in here with me, huh?” I joke, trying to lift the mood. We need that right now.
He chuckles, pulling me closer. Our foreheads connect, and his breath skates along my face. “There is no one else in the world I would rather be stuck with.” His promise stirs something in me.
I arch on my toes, angling my neck as my desire lands on his lips.
“Please,” I beg softly. “Before we leave this box and my world falls apart again.” Because right now, it’s only us.
As soon as those doors open, my mom is gone, Maggie’s weird behavior looms large, and the storm continues to rage outside.
For a few more minutes, I want it just to be us again.
As his gaze sweeps over my face, his eyes darken, the war raging inside of him written all over his features. Torn between reason and something deeper. The crease in his brow sends my heart plummeting.
Without warning, I’m catapulted back to the sidewalk outside a restaurant a year ago, waiting for a kiss that never came. That same feeling of rejection I felt that night floods my whole body once again.
He exhales, stepping back slightly, uncoiling my arms from his waist. With gentle pressure, he holds on to both of my wrists. “We can’t. Not right now.”
The words hit harder than they should. I deflate. “Because of the case,” I say flatly.
“Yes, staying focused is really important, Rose.”
I nod, pretending that doesn’t sting. “Sure, focused.”
Was that kiss, which happened barely minutes ago, a strategy? A way to steady me, to get me to trust him? Suddenly, Maggie’s words come flooding back: Please be careful. Something seems off about him. Then add in how he treated you the last time. I don’t know … just some food for thought.
But that’s not what my gut is telling me.
Cal is trustworthy; I know it. Maybe it should’ve felt like he was using me to get in his good graces.
But it didn’t. There’d been something underneath it, something real.
The memory still burns on my lips. The warmth of his touch, tender yet possessive, hums beneath my skin.
It couldn’t have been meaningless. It wasn’t a fleeting moment.
His face softens, breaking me from my internal musings. “It’s not rejection, Rose. This isn’t like last year.”
“Are you sure?” I ask as a war of doubt and hope swirls around me.
He lets go of my wrists and cups both of my cheeks. “As soon as this is all over, I promise to kiss you in the way that you deserve. When we aren’t trapped and scared.” His plump lips hover over my ear, his hot breath tickling my skin as he whispers. “And in a way you will always remember.”
Well, okay then.
“I don’t think I’ll forget that last one,” I confess.
He traces the curve of my neck with his fingertips. His lips follow, peppering sweet kisses on my skin. “I don’t want to lose this,” he promises, meeting my eyes. “You and me, Rose … I’m not going anywhere. I’m done running away. Hell, I think I’ve been running toward you all along.”
As I listen to his words, the promise within them wraps around me like a soft blanket. Words that are impossible to forget.
So I make one of my own.
With the slightest graze, I run my nose over his. “We won’t lose this.”
The green in his eyes comes alive with our promises. Because that is exactly what I want.
Silence hangs charged with a future we are both envisioning.
Oh, how I could fall in love with this man.
His thumb traces small circles on my skin. “We have all the time in the world to prove that to each other. But after—”
CLANK!
The metallic clang echoes above us, breaking up our moment. Cal grabs my hand and steps closer to the doors, pressing his ear against the seam. “Hang on,” he mutters. “We’re getting out of here.” The elevator jerks, and we are moving down. Cal steps back, shielding me with his arm across my body.
I watch the numbers descend above our heads.
We pass L for Lobby.
And stop at Level A.