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Chapter Fifteen
Three days passed. Beck was at Eve’s gym every day, working out and praying she’d appear. He’d called, texted, FaceTimed, stalked her house, begged her employees to tell him where she was, tried to get phone numbers or addresses for her family members, which was proving to be more difficult than he’d foreseen. He’d even debated hiring a private investigator to track Eve down. Nothing. Eve had disappeared from his life and he hurt like he hadn’t hurt since his parents had died.
He finished his workout, showered, and was walking through the parking lot and almost to his car when a large man approached from the side. Beck looked over and his jaw dropped. “Caleb?” Was this an answer to his prayers?
Caleb stormed his direction. Beck should’ve recognized the look of a man who was ready to clean his clock but he was too shocked, and excited, to see Caleb. Eve’s brother would have some answers for him.
When Caleb’s greeting was a fist to his face, Beck’s head snapped back and his eyes widened in surprise.
Beck instinctively shoved Caleb away from him. Caleb knocked into Beck’s Bugatti and lifted his eyebrows, giving him a smile that said he wanted to brawl. “You think you’re so tough and smooth, famous hockey player with your million-dollar car and all the redheads flocking to you?”
Beck was confused. He’d liked Caleb when he met him. Yeah, the guy had attitude and had given him a hard time about dating Eve but he’d seemed like a good guy and Beck thought Caleb had accepted him. Apparently not.
“What are you talking about? Where is Eve?”
“You think I’d tell you?” Caleb stepped up closer and Beck’s muscles tightened, ready for whatever punches the guy decided to lob at him. “What did you do to her?”
“Me?” Beck shook his head. “We had a little misunderstanding and she took off, didn’t even give me a chance to explain.”
Caleb’s eyes narrowed. “You hurt my sister, and now you’re going to pay.”
Beck thought he was ready, but Caleb plowed into him quick and hard. They knocked to the ground and were trading punches, rolling around, grappling for the upper hand, grunting and tossing out belittling remarks at each other, and in his mind really living. He hadn’t had a good fight since last hockey season; pummeling Eve’s loser ex didn’t count as the man hadn’t fought back. This evenly matched slugfest was exactly what Beck needed. All the worry over Eve and the frustration over not being able to find her, talk to her, love her, poured out as he executed hard, vicious hits at her brother’s face and upper body, and received his own fair share of future bruises. Caleb was one of the toughest guys he’d ever fought. He loved the battle.
He was breathing heavy and relaxed onto his back for half a second when Caleb grabbed his head and slammed it so hard into the asphalt Beck saw black for a second.
Caleb sat back and scowled at him. “You had enough?”
Beck groaned and rolled up to a seated position. He noticed a small crowd had gathered. He waved and said, “No worries. We’re having fun.”
“Fun?” Caleb looked like he wanted to brawl all over again. “Messing with my sister is fun for you?”
Beck jumped to his feet and offered Caleb a hand up. Caleb batted it away and stood, glowering at him. Beck wondered if he looked as bad as Caleb—scratched, dirty, and ready to do it all over again.
“No, the fight was fun,” Beck said.
Caleb chuckled as he knuckled a cut at the corner of his lip. “I do like some things about you.”
Beck lifted his hands. “Hey, I don’t mind slugging it out again if you want, but I need Eve. Can you please tell me where she’s gone?”
Caleb appraised him. “What happened?”
Beck pushed out a breath, glancing around but luckily the people had dispersed. Where to start? “We fell in love and I thought everything was good, but then her ex showed up.”
Caleb straightened so fast his back popped. “Her ex? Did you kill him? Oh, why wasn’t I here?” he bemoaned. “I want to thump him so bad.”
“She hasn’t told youanything?”
Caleb shook his head tightly. “That girl is an expert at staying quiet and thinking she can do it all herself. Dang youngest child syndrome, right? Tougher than anyone in the family.”
Beck had no clue about that. “Only child.”
“Let’s walk over to the river,” Caleb suggested.
They walked the block and settled onto one of the park benches in the shade, watching Clear Creek dance by.
“Did you at least dismantle the ex for me?” Caleb asked.
“Mark,” Beck said. “Yeah, I beat him up pretty good.”
