AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Makes sense.” She nodded. “What if she stays checked out, and continues to distance herself from everyone? Oh, Lord, what if she leaves again?”
“Let’s not go there unless we have to, and if we do, we’ll all be in it together.”
“You sound like Cole.” She chuckled as she wiped a tear away. “Thanks, Ivy. I just needed to get it off my chest.”
“I’m always here to talk, Savi, truly.”
She checked the time. “We have fifteen minutes. Any chance we can chat about something off the record?”
“Sure.” I grinned and put my iPad aside and joined her on the couch. “What’s up?” Scoot moved to my chair and curled up in a ball.
“So, Ty…” Her eyes lit up, and I shook my head with a wry smile.
“You don’t give up, do you?”
“Not when I see something that could be. Just answer me this. Do you find him attractive?”
“Extremely.” I covered my face, feeling fifteen again. I forgot how fun it was to gush over a guy. Sometimes, being an adult, you suppressed the little things in life like having butterflies brought on by the opposite sex. “But look, I have some things going on right now that are making things complicated—”
“I fell in love with Cole while I was being hunted by the Cartel that my own father sent to kill me.”
My face fell at her words. I’d wondered if what I had heard was true. There even had been whispers of a book written about her experience.
“That’s for another conversation and a bottle of wine.” She waved me off. “If I may, can I offer you some advice?”
“Yes, please,” I huffed.
“It’s okay to just lust after someone. That’s the best part. You get to ask yourself those delicious questions like, did he just look at me? Did he just touch me on purpose? Ugh! Those are the best times.” She squeezed her eyes shut with a moan, and I found myself relaxing a bit. “It doesn’t have to be love at first sight, or even at all. You’d be surprised how much just letting it happen can help distract or heal you from other things. Life hands us many wonderful things, sometimes at the worst of times. Ty seems great. Give him a chance, get to know him a little. Lord, if anything, you might get the best sex of your life!”
“I can’t tell you how refreshing it is getting sound advice from another female, but I’ve got to share something with you. Last night at Zack’s, I overheard him talking to someone named Demi. I think he already has someone, or at least has an interest in someone else.”
“Oh,” her face twisted, “I’m sorry. I thought I heard Cole say he was single.”
“It’s all right, but I do think you’re on to something. I do need to get out there and try this dating thing again. If you know of anyone?”
“Oh,” she wiggled her eyebrows, “I’ll start the hunt.”
“Hey, Ivy.” John came walking in but held his hand up when he saw Savi. “I’m sorry. I can come back.”
“No,” Savi jumped to her feet, “I have work to do, and you need to get on with your day.” She winked as she left the room.
“Please, take a seat, John.” I moved off the couch and slipped into work mode.
I spent time in my office after hours sorting through my notes from my talks with Savi, John, and Mike. I appreciated how each had opened up and shared their feelings, concerns, and just random things with me. It really helped to get to know them better. Mike’s story about his troll tattoo nearly had me in tears, and I loved how he and Catalina found one another, especially when you considered her connection to the Cartel. I planned to pick his brain more on that later.
Scoot found a new spot to perch, right up behind my shoulders on the couch. Occasionally, he’d prop his head on one of my shoulders and peer down at my iPad.
I swiped the screen and brought up my notes on Lexi. I read through all the comments I’d typed in from those I’d interviewed.
“Hmm.” I rubbed my forehead as Scoot purred loudly in my ear.
What really stood out and bothered me the most was that each of them truly had tried hard to reach Lexi, in spite of the fact that she’d pushed the limit with the number one house rule, that you couldn’t leave without an escort, more than once. I had a feeling Cole might have bent that rule for her once, and now she pushed the limits with each of her stays by extending them. I was looking forward to hearing Cole’s view on that topic and wondered how open he would be with me.
“You can’t hide in here all night.” Sloane stood in the doorway in her swimsuit. “The littles are back, and we’re all heading down to the lake for an evening swim. You want to join us?”
I unfolded from my chair and thought how nice it would be to stretch my body.
“That sounds like the perfect way to end the day.” I shut my iPad with a snap and followed her out, closing the office door behind me.
