Page 69 of Blind Trust
She had no idea how those words had impacted him. Where they landed deep within his chest. Or the way they led him back to the painful memories with Brittany.
After rubbing his eyes, Nic refocused on his computer screen. It was better to stay on task than to let his mind wander where it didn’t need to go.
Why does facing the Baron of Death seem safer?
It wasn’t. At least not when he looked over what he found on the man the Irish called Barún an bháis. It wasn’t R.D.’s article that had him on edge but rather the facts weaved into the narrative that matched multiple news sources. The worst of it was what Nic was staring at now.
“She’s gone.”
Nic glanced up to find Lyla stalking out of Kekoa’s office. “What?”
“R.D. or Randy Darryl.” Lyla waved her hand in the air. “Or whatever fake name she gave us is gone. Ghosted us.”
“She didn’t ghost us,” Kekoa said, coming up behind her. “Technically, someone who ghosts you doesn’t tell you they’re going off the grid. They just disappear. Like a ghost.”
Lyla shot daggers at Kekoa, and the man had either all the courage of a bull or the awareness of a fly, because he smiled.
“I know what ghosting is,” she said through gritted teeth. “What I don’t know is how you, our cyber genius, allowed her to disappear.”
The sting of her comment drew Kekoa’s brows together. He turned on his heel and went back to his office.
Lyla blew out a breath and sat. “Ugh, I wasn’t trying to be short.”
“Have you taken any more pain medicine?”
“Have you?”
Nic looked down at his hands. The numbness had gotten betterin his left hand but not in the right, and pain medicine didn’t help. “I’m fine.” He met Lyla’s aquamarine gaze. “Your goodies helped.”
“They did?” A deep smile wiped away the fatigue for a few seconds. “Do you know how hard it is to find things with armadillos on them in DC?”
He chuckled, thinking about the stuffed armadillo and armadillo socks that had been waiting for him in a basket with protein bars and a note from Lyla about his head being as tough as an armadillo shell. He was trying really hard not to read into the gesture, but he’d be lying to himself if he didn’t admit it only stoked the flame he was feeling for her.
“Are you sure you’re okay?”
“Yeah.” She took a deep breath. “Just frustrated.”
And likely exhausted and in pain, no matter what you say.
“Here.” Emerging from his office, Kekoa slid a handful of Dove chocolates across the table. “I’ve got more if you need it.”
Lyla looked down at the offering, then burst into a mixture of laughter and groaning as she clutched her side.
Kekoa looked confused. “What?”
A tear trickled down Lyla’s cheek as she reached for a piece, her laughter softening. “You can’t just throw chocolate at women to calm them down.”
“Dr. Patel said chocolate or coffee or spa day. I’m not touching your machine, and I wasn’t here for tiny bubbles.” Kekoa returned to his seat. “I had chocolate.”
“Good chocolate too.” Lyla gave a sigh of contentment. “Thank you.”
Nic shifted in his chair, hating that he was once more envious of Kekoa and Lyla’s friendship. Or that he hadn’t thought to offer Lyla something more than pain meds.
“You good?” Kekoa asked Lyla. She unwrapped another piece of chocolate, ate it, and nodded. “R.D. was smart and knew what she was doing. Randy Darryl Leto is a unique name, and at leastthree flights were booked under that name, but she never made it past TSA or to her gate.”
“Where’d she go?”
“Ghosted, Nicolás.” Lyla chewed another piece of chocolate. “Disappeared.”
