Page 27 of Love in the Wild

A text vibrated the phone in his pocket–the one he kept hidden. Checking over his shoulders, he pulled out the phone and read the text from Brett.

Brett: Call me.

Geez, this guy was worse than a stage-five clinger.

Gage: Give me 10.

Gage closed down the bookkeeping program and walked out. He was the only one in the garage, but he wasn’t dumb enough to think Bruce or Tommy wouldn’t bug the room.

Once he was on the road, he called Brett.

“City Morgue. You kill ‘em, we chill ‘em.”

Gage huffed. “Now that’s a partnership I can get behind.”

“Of course you would. Don’t tell me if you’ve killed someone. I can’t guarantee I can keep that secret from Thea.”

“How is she?” Gage asked.

“As far as I know, she’s good. I have an offer for you.”

“I’m not partnering up with you, man. If Thea is gone, I think our temporary ceasefire is over.”

“I told you about the woman Thea made friends with while she was here. Well, Thea wants to have some communication with you, but talking with you directly–”

“Puts her in danger.”

“Exactly. Hadley has agreed to be a go-between, so to speak. She’ll be in touch with Thea, so she can give you updates on Thea’s recovery.”

“I appreciate that, but any association with me isn’t advised,” Gage said.

“That we can agree on. I’m not a huge fan of this idea because Hadley is a good friend, and she’s ten million times better than you.”

“If she has a conscience, that’s probably true,” Gage said. No sense in denying it.

“But Hadley knows the risks, and she wants to help. Also, Thea wants updates about your mom.”

Gage stared at the dark road ahead. Leaving Thea out of the loop had brought her back here. Maybe this was a way to keep her far away and safe. “Okay. I can do that.”

“I’m texting you Hadley’s number. I told her to reach out to you first so she can choose when she’s ready to get this started.”

Fair enough. Gage couldn’t imagine someone being overly excited to step into the lion’s den.

“I can’t talk while I’m at Bruce’s place. I don’t trust them not to overhear.”

“For the love of all things good, please keep her away from your family.”

“Beau is giving me more hours, so we can meet there,” Gage said. “I don’t want to text much. It’s too big of a risk if someone finds my phone.”

“Just be careful with her. If she’s in trouble, let me know, and I’ll help.”

Gage was living in a dream world. No, a nightmare. Why was he teaming up with Brett Patton again?

“I don’t need your help. I can handle it.”

“Easy, big dog. No need to burn your bridges. Just be good to Hadley. She even said she’d pretend to be your girlfriend and bring you lunch.”

Gage let out a bellowing laugh. “I’m sorry, but I don’t have girlfriends.”

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