Page 90 of The Blackmail of Denise Randall

Keaton: Not sure I follow

Me: I hate to cockblock you but I think my intruder is here.

Keaton: Here? Which one is he?

Me: ???

My breathing hitches when a low, gravelly voice comes from above me. “Where?”

I slowly lift my eyes from my phone to find Keaton standing in front of our table. I allow my eyes to enjoy the journey from his waist to his piercing, heated blue eyes. He gestures toward the bar area. “Let’s go up to the bar and I’ll buy you a drink.”

“But-”

“Let’s go to the bar,” he insists.

The light bulb comes on; he wants to speak in private. I gesture for Alice to let me out of the booth again. We make our way to the bar, and I ease closer to him, so he can hear me.

“He’s the big—”

“Shh. We don’t want to announce it to the entire bar. Act casual.”

He orders a Shirly Temple and a beer. I scan the room for Charlee and her giant. Keaton hands me my drink. Still feeling annoyed and jealous that he left with Jennifer, I snarl at him. “What makes you think this is what I wanted? You didn’t even ask.”

“Isn’t this your non-alcoholic drink of choice?” It is. As if reading my mind, he arches a single brow. “I pay attention. Just like I paid attention to you grinding your teeth during dinner.” He leans closer to my ear and whispers, “I’m not interested in your friend.” He leans back and winks at me.

I roll my eyes, while finally accepting my drink. I go back to scanning the area. I also begin telling Keaton about all the details of my encounter with my suspected intruder and Charlee. When I’ve finished, I ask, “Do you think she could be behind this?”

“Charlee is cruel, spiteful and jealous. However, I don’t see her going through so much effort on your account. No offense. She probably thinks she could have me back with the snap of her fingers.”

I remember what everybody had told me about Keaton. He has had other relationships, but he always returns to Charlee. It hurts to think about. He’s charming, good-natured, and extremely handsome, but would he ever be completely mine? “Is she right? Would you?”

He frowns. “Go back to her? No. Of course not. She’s a terrible person.”

“Then why did you keep going back?”

He shrugs and takes a long drink from his bottle of beer. He licks his lips and then stares down into my eyes. “This is a small town. I’ve been bored and lonely. But,” he takes a step closer, completely invading my personal space, “I may have found someone new to occupy my time.”

I give him a shove. “I’m not here for your entertainment.”

He takes another drink of his beer but keeps his eyes on me. Before I can argue about other ways he can find entertainment, like playing in traffic, I spot Charlee strolling toward the restrooms. I grab his chin and turn his head in her direction, just as she opens the door.

“That means he has to be around here somewhere. We can wait for her to walk back out and follow her.” He takes my hand from his chin and entwines our fingers.

I stare at our linked hands through narrowed eyes. “Whatcha doing there?”

“Let’s not get our hopes up too much. We’ll find him, I promise. But with Charlee, it doesn’t mean he’s still here. Likely, yes. But he could’ve left, and she’s moved on to fresh meat. Keep in mind, she was with Wyatt not too long ago.”

“Have you been with anyone…since…”

“I’ve not been with anyone for a while. You seem very interested in my love life…” He uses our entwined hands to jerk me against his chest. “Interested in becoming a part of it?”

I release a humorless laugh. “Hardly.”

We stare into each other’s eyes. I can feel the rise and fall of his chest against mine. The rest of the room fades away as I focus solely on his handsome face coming closer to mine. Suddenly, he cuts his eyes to the right and releases me. “She’s on the move.”

He grabs my elbow and gently, but firmly, leads me in Charlee’s direction. We follow her to a corner booth. There, we find the man from earlier, along with two other women and another man. I recognize the ladies from my first night meeting her. The other guy is scrawny and homely in appearance. Keaton maintains a safe distance from them. He moves around the room until he finds a position where he can get a clear view of everyone at the table.

“You were right. That’s him. He was wearing a ski mask, but I recognize the tattoo on his wrist.”

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