Page 148 of Penny For Your Thoughts
“I’m doing the same.”
I quirked a brow.Interesting, I thought. Out loud, I said, “I thought you were single.”
Aaron shrugged. “I am. Mostly. I’m a convenient secret. If he can have a girlfriend when it suits his image. I can have a hookup. All’s fair in love and war. I don’t feel sorry for either of our men. Mine’s a liar, and yours is a jackass.”
Somehow,somehow, I refrained from hitting him, but it was close. I was more interested in exploring his statement. A liar? Was that disguised hostility? A relationship with Lukyan? He’d signed off one of his texts with a kiss. It had to be. I had so many questions.
Instead, I found an appropriate grin that didn’t show my rage and put some much-needed distance between us.
At the door, with my hand on the knob, I made a show of rearranging my junk—which had not been aroused in the slightest—and gave Aaron a wink. “See you later?”
“Can’t wait.”
I speed walked from the building. Running might have raised suspicion. It was a matter of time before Aaron figured out that I didn’t leave my number and was instead browsing his text exchange with Lukyan.
The second I hit the parking lot, I darted for the Jetta while connecting a call to Diem.
He answered as I fell into the driver’s seat, huffing and puffing.
“Are you running again?”
“The universe hates me.” I shoved the key into the ignition and frantically glanced back toward the building to see if Aaron had followed. No sign of him.
Yet.
“Are you in trouble? Did you discover anything?” Diem asked.
“No trouble yet. Ask me again in thirty seconds. I need to know where this Luke fucker keeps his boat? I wrote it down. It’s a dry storage something or other. A marina. Fuck. I can’t remember. He rents a slip at the same location. My notebook, Guns. Get my notebook.”
I peered around the parking lot, certain someone was watching and waiting. Diem’s theory made sense, but what if Lukyan was out there? Waiting. Watching. We’d threatened his business. His prosperity. His freedom. Would he run or retaliate? What if he kidnapped me? Used me for leverage to force Diem to keep his mouth shut? What if he…
“Diem! The boat. What is taking so long?” Panic set in. Sweat peppered my temples despite the cool day. I groaned. I didn’t want to get shot again. It made for a great story, but it really fucking hurt, and Attitude Armor was not the same as a Kevlar vest. This outfit was expensive, and I didn’t want to ruin it for a guy like Lukyan.
“Hang on… I’m looking. A marina?”
“Yes. I wrote it down. That’s where Lukyan is. I’m sure of it. The boat is in storage, but he’s putting it in the water at noon today and taking off. If he takes the Welland Canal, he can get to Lake Erie. If he gets to Lake Erie, he can get to the States. Once he’s out of the country, he won’t come back.”
“We have an extradition treaty with the US.”
“He won’t stay there. He’ll jump on a plane and be in fucking Australia by dinner.”
“It’s over twenty hours to fly to Australia.”
“Oh my god. Now is not the time to get technical.”
I checked the time on the dash. 11:27.Shit.How long did it take to put a boat in the water? Even with Sunday traffic, I might not make it on time.
“Diem—”
“Got it.” Diem relayed the address for the marina as I punched it into Maps. “I’ll head there now,” he said.
“No. I’m closer and already in the car.”
“Tallus—”
“I can— Oh shit.” Aaron appeared at the front door to Evergreen, his phone pressed to his ear, fury blazing in his eyes.
Time was up.
