“Good game, Captain,” he said in my ear.
My stomach flipped.We still need to talk, I reminded myself.
Cade grabbed us both bottles of water from the kitchen, and we heard the first rumble of thunder. He met my gaze.
“What do you think? Time to show off our Pictionary skills next?” he asked.
“Let’s do it.”
We wandered down to the basement and found the large post-it note with the Pictionary sign-up sheet. I added mine and Cade’s names to the list as a team. There was a rowdy table of beer pong in progress in one corner of the basement, and I was relieved to see that Pictionary was set up on the complete opposite end.
The game began, and my heart continued to swell as we took our turns. We were so perfectly coordinated, and could read each other perfectly. We made a great team. Our impending talk was still niggling at the back of my mind, but I tried my best to stay present in the moment.
The storm was raging fully now, but we were insulated in the cabin’s basement. Still, I jumped a few times from a particularly loud clap of thunder, and Cade gently set a hand on my waist or my shoulder to settle me. As always, his touch and his presence were a soothing balm for my frazzled nerves.
After the third round of Pictionary, Cade’s phone rang. He pulled it from his pocket.
“I’ve gotta take this,” he said, squeezing my hand quickly and walking away.
“Adler—” I heard him say into the phone.
He came back a few minutes later, his body radiating with a different kind of energy. He pulled me away from the crowd and into a quiet area of the basement.
“I’m on call,” he explained, gesturing to the phone still in his hand. “There’s a missing kid, out in River Bend. There was a car accident. A woman—a mom—her car slid in the rain and collided with a truck. She got knocked unconscious by the air bag. When she came to, she couldn’t find her four-year-old. He might’ve climbed out of the car. They think he could be in the park.” I pictured Ivy, and my heart gripped in fear. “They need me on it,” he explained. “I have to run home, get my gear and Echo.”
“You’re—leaving?” I asked, hating how uncertain my voice sounded. “I mean of course, you need to go.”Don’t be selfish, Brooke, I chastised internally.
His lips brushed my forehead. “You and me—we’re not done. I’ll be back.”
He paused, reading my reaction, and then his lips met mine, just a soft brush.
Zing, that electricity coursed through my veins.
The roughness of his short beard scratched my cheek in a new and not-unpleasant way. My heart gave a few extra beats in response.
“You’ll wait for me?” he asked, vulnerability suddenly showing in his expression.
“Promise,” I told him softly. “No more running.”
Since his calls didn’t have a specific timeline, he told me he’d call me when he finished, even if it was late. I’d wait out the storm here at the cabin until it was safe enough to drive.
We had a plan, but I still hated to see him go.
My heart thumped as he walked away—partly in pride for this man and his important job. Partly in pain at seeing him walk away from me again.
“Hey, Brooke!” Jace yelled from the beer pong table. “Get over here!”
I rolled my eyes in his direction.
“I’m good.”
“I need a rematch,” he challenged. “That was luck out on the volleyball court. I bet you can’t beat me twice.” Zach lurked at his side, clearly relishing the challenge as well.
The rational part of my brain said I didn’t need to rise to this asshole’s challenge. But the revenge-seeking former tomboy buried deep inside me still wanted to wipe the floor with this Neanderthal.
Bryan and Nic came up beside me as I stepped up to respond.
“Need a team?” Bryan asked, seeing the glint of competitiveness in my stare.
