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“Jealous you weren’t the one Shi called hot today,” Creed baited him.
Keelan turned around and leaned against the sink with a superior expression.
Before he could say something smart, I said, “Keelan’s ego is big enough. Actually, all four of you know what you got going on and don’t need reminding.” When I was done speaking, I realized what I’d said may have come out a little harsher than I intended. “Sorry. That was rude, but true.”
Creed snorted. “That was a terrible apology.”
“Don’t mind her. She’s upset because she still hasn’t heard from Logan,” Knox said as he scooped up my plate and put it in the sink.
“I’m sure he’ll call soon, babe,” Colt said.
I didn’t believe him, but I forced myself to nod anyway.
* * *
Keelan and Colt came with me to town. It was an easier trip and a little less stressful than the last one. I wasn’t exhausted this time and I’d made a physical list of things we’d need to last us another couple of weeks. But the thought of being at the cabin another couple of weeks only added to the stress I was feeling about not hearing from Logan.
“Still thinking about Logan?” Keelan asked as the two of us loaded up my 4Runner with our purchases. Colt was currently in a cute coffee shop next door to the grocery store we’d just finished shopping in, getting us drinks.
“I can’t help but think about Desert Stone and your lives back in Arizona. What if we have to be here for a few more weeks? Or a month?”
“Please don’t stress about that, baby,” Keelan pleaded, looking directly at me. “We got everything taken care of back home. Katrina is taking care of Desert Stone and if we’re not back in a month, we left her everything Micah would need to keep things running at the gym and take care of our house.”
My shoulders sank a little. That did make me feel better.
Just as we finished loading everything, Colt exited the coffee shop with our drinks. Right away, I knew something wasn’t right. His expression was tight and he was walking fast. “Get in the car, babe,” he ordered. The sharpness and slight panic in his tone made me get in the car without question.
Colt didn’t explain until we were pulled out of the parking lot and on the road back toward the cabin. “Your picture was on the news.”
“What?” Keelan asked from the backseat.
“As I was waiting for our order, I watched the TV they had in there. The news was on. I was hoping to hear about the weather forecast and then they started talking about the daughter of an Arizona sheriff and her missing friends. Cassy, Gabe, and Amber’s pictures popped up. And right next to them was your picture, babe. They listed your name, age, height, and what you were last seen wearing. There was also a fifty-thousand-dollar reward to whoever found the four of you.”
Out of all the things he’d told us, I could only focus on one. “Cassy is missing?”
Colt let out a curse as he rubbed the back of his neck. “Before you showed up at Desert Stone to save me, I was in and out of consciousness, but I think I heard the sheriff talking to X or leaving him a message. I think he said X had Cassy and if he didn’t give her back, he would kill you. I think he used me as a trap so he could give you to X in exchange for Cassy.”
“If Mr. X is the reason Cassy is missing, she’s dead. Gabe and Amber are undoubtedly dead, too,” I said.
“Why kill them?” Keelan asked.
“Because he loves me, and they were a threat to me, and he’s crazy.”
That seemed to be a good enough answer, because the conversation moved on.
“So what are we going to do with you being on the news?” Colt asked.
I sighed, at a total loss. “I can’t come back to town.”
Colt reached over to put a comforting hand on my thigh.
Keelan leaned forward between my seat and Colt’s to grab his coffee from the drink carrier Colt was holding in his lap. “Do you think anyone recognized you while we were inside the store?”
“I kept my head down,” I said. That didn’t guarantee anything, though. “I’ll try calling Logan again when we get back.”
* * *
After we got home and put away almost everything we had bought, I took what needed to go in my room. I had bought everything to bleach my hair again, among a few other toiletries. I set the bags with my purchases inside on my dresser. I intended to put them away after I made my call to Logan.
