Page 36 of Point Blank

Serena’s senses perked up. The job was too big? What was she talking about? Fear wrapped around her heart. Oh, god. Maybe she had a concussion, or was delusional.

“It’s okay. You’ll be home in a couple of days, I swear.”

“I love you. Even though you stole my ex.” She chuckled. Warning bells screamed in Serena’s head. Dani wasn’t making any sense. Saliva saturated her mouth, and vomit inched up her stomach. She swallowed. The last thing she wanted to do was upset Dani further.

“I love you too. Be safe, sis. Don’t piss them off.”

“All right, that’s enough!” The man’s voice crowded her ear. “I’ll send the instructions. One hour. Don’t be late.”

The line went dead.

Chapter

Eight

Serena’s hands shook violently as she lowered the phone to the desk. She drew her knees to her chest.

Even though you stole my ex.

Dani’s words made no sense. They had never shared interest in a man—it had to be a message, but what did it mean? Serena rocked on the seat. Dani had sounded so different. A shell of herself. Yet Serena couldn’t disregard what she’d said. Milo’s and Brock’s voices penetrated her concentration.

“It will take me at least a half hour to get the cash,” Brock said, as he fit his arms through the sleeves of his jacket. “He didn’t give us much fucking time.”

“He doesn’t want to give us the chance to come up with a plan.” Milo dragged his fingers through his hair. “My cash is here. I’ll get it together now. I’ll call you once the directions come through. If you’re too far away, I can meet you on the way to the drop-off location.”

Milo’s gaze swung to her, and he took two long strides to fall next to her chair. “Hey, are you all right?” His palm rested on her cheek and his warm, scrutinizing globes searched her face. “Dani’s okay. They won’t touch her now, honey. This will all be over soon.”

A wave of ice flowed out of her heart, and she forced herself to nod. She couldn’t waste another second dwelling on what Dani had said. After the money had been handed off, she’d tell Milo about her concerns regarding Dani’s mental state.

God, what if they had drugged her? She squeezed her eyes shut.

Please, God, no.

Brock slipped out of the office. Milo moved his thumb over her cheek.

“I’m going to need your help, but I have to grab something from the garage.”

She watched him disappear and then return with a crowbar and a hammer. She stood and met him in the hallway.

He picked up her hand and tucked her fingers into the warm cocoon of his palm. Frantic butterfly wings beat against her breastbone. She fought off the thoughts of what those pesky butterflies meant. Not fear. She’d never feared him.

She feared her reaction to him.

He led her upstairs and into the spare room. She turned in a circle, taking in the space. A double bed was positioned against the far wall, along with a white nightstand and dresser. Simple and tidy, although it was obvious by the thin layer of dust on the dresser and unrumpled green quilt that no one had stayed in the room for a while.

Milo made his way to the corner of the room. “I’ve tackled most of the renos, but there’s still the odd thing I need to do,” he said, gesturing to the peach-colored walls, which didn’t match the rest of the house. He dropped to one knee and faced the wall.

“It’s a big house for a single guy,” she said to the back of his head.

“Yeah, I’ll list it in the spring, maybe. Make a quick buck.” He turned his head. “Maybe you can sell it for me,” he said with a wink.

Warmth tickled her insides, and she gave a small nod. The chances that they’d still be speaking come spring were slim to none, but it was a nice thought.

She frowned and took a few steps closer as he wedged the edge of the crowbar between the baseboard and the wall.

“What are you doing?”

He tapped the hammer on the bottom of the crowbar and the wood loosened from the drywall. He peeled it back and then passed her the crowbar. “Can you pry off the other end of the baseboard? This section needs to come off.”