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“Huh?”
“Daisy Parker. People said you left with her. Where is she?”
“Oh,” he said. “Yeah. She was super drunk. I helped her to her room.”
Noah turned on his heels and left without another word, breaking into a run as soon as he cleared the ballroom doors. Had he overreacted? Was she intoxicated, but safe upstairs?
His feeling of unease hadn’t abated and wouldn’t until he had eyes on Daisy. His impatience mounted as the elevator stopped on three floors before dropping him on the twentieth. He stalked to their room and entered.
Empty, and nothing had been touched. His note was where he’d left it. The bathroom door remained open, the condensation from his shower still hanging on the walls. Damn it! Now what? Lance had lied. And been the last person seen with Daisy.
Fear mounting, Noah double-timed it back downstairs.
“She’s not in the room,” Noah said, grabbing Lance by the arm. “What did you do?”
“What? Nothing,” Lance said. “I swear. I took her to her room and left her there.”
“Which room?”
“I don’t remember. Somewhere on the twentieth floor. Let go of me.”
Noah plowed a hand through his hair in frustration as he walked away. Could she have left again and gone somewhere else? He searched the lobby, called for her in the women’s restroom, and then ran outside, looking up and down the street. If she was wandering the streets of New York, it would take forever to find her. And if she’d gotten a cab, forget it. Sirens wailed in the background, and it took all of Noah’s self-control to remain calm. Sirens in New York City were common. It didn’t mean they were meant for Daisy.
Defeated, he returned to the room and called Edward. “Sir, I’ve got some bad news. Daisy’s missing.”
Edward was calmer than Noah expected. “She ditched you?”
Apparently, he knew his daughter well. “I was only in the shower for a minute. I thought she’d agreed with me that she shouldn’t go out tonight. I misread her.”
“She’s a stubborn one,” Edward said. “I should have warned you about how bull-headed she can be.”
“Any idea where she might go? I’ve already searched the hotel.” He didn’t mention the possible drunkenness.
“Hold on,” Edward said. “I just remembered. Emma can track her phone. I’ll have her call you.”
“Great. That would be a big help.”
“Let me know when you find her,” Edward said before hanging up.
While pacing the room, waiting for Emma’s call, he noticed Daisy’s notebook on the bedside table. He sat on the bed and stared at it. It would be a ginormous violation of her privacy to open it. But what if there was a clue as to where she’d gone? It would be irresponsiblenotto check if that was the case. Desperate to find her, he picked up the book, which fell open naturally to something nestled in its pages.
Noah gawked in amazement at a flattened daisy—the one he’d given her at the beach. She’d kept it. Huh. With Daisy, that didn’t necessarily mean anything, but it still warmed his heart.
He skimmed through the pages, noticing mind maps and bullet lists. Most looked like things pertaining to her business. Guilt washed over him, and he flipped hastily to the back. The last page with writing was a to-do list of things to be done once she returned to New Bern. There was no mention of where she might be, and, feeling all sorts of wrong about snooping in the first place, he slammed it shut and placed it back exactly how it had been on the nightstand.
The two minutes it took for Emma to call him felt like an eternity.
“Hi, Noah,” she greeted. “I show her on West 24th Street between Seventh and Eighth Ave.”
“Damn it,” Noah said. “That’s the hotel, but I’ve looked everywhere. Unless she’s in someone’s room, and I’ll never be able to check each room.”
“Sorry I can’t be more specific,” Emma said. “Daisy’s resourceful. I’m sure she’s fine, but I’ll keep an eye on the tracking and call you again if she leaves the area.”
“Thank you,” Noah said, ending the call. Her family didn’t seem all that worried, but then again, Noah hadn’t been totally forthcoming with all the information he had. If she’d been drugged and Lance had taken her somewhere, she could be anywhere in the building. All clues led to Lance.
Noah raced back to the party, but this time, when he found Gabbi, Lance was no longer by her side.
“Where’d your friend go?” Noah asked.
