Page 113 of Joker in the Pack

“Nothing?” Nye asked.

“Not yet. I’ll start checking the wardrobe itself.”

I tapped the panels and checked the joints, but there was no Narnia-like realm hidden away at the back, or even space for Ronnie’s envelope. I was about to ask Nye to double-check when I heard a low whistle from behind.

“Tell me these aren’t Eleanor’s.”

I looked around and saw him holding up a pair of the lacy knickers I’d bought in a vain attempt to keep Edward happy. A barely there pale-pink thong with tiny bows at the top.

I gasped, conflicted over whether to grab them off him or die of embarrassment as a blush rose up my cheeks.

“I wish you’d warned me,” he said, dropping the offending item back into a drawer. “How can I concentrate on the job now?”

“Maybe you could take a break?”

And stop rooting through my flipping underwear drawer.

“Good plan.”

He shoved Aunt Ellie’s clothes off the bed, and before I realised what was happening, I was lying on top of it. Nye knelt astride me, giving me an eye-level view of the bulge in his jeans. Not quite what I had in mind, but that didn’t matter anymore.

“Liv, you’re so fucking sweet. A proper English rose.”

Mr. Tall, Dark, and Dangerous was always calling me sweet, but he could be quite sugary himself.

I was just about to have a taste when my phone rang. Why now? Why couldn’t I have a teensy bit of fun in my life?

“Ignore it,” Nye said.

“I can’t. I hardly ever get calls. It might be important.”

It was.

A whispered voice sent shivers through me. “I know what you’re doing. Call off the search, or you’ll regret it.”

“Who is this?” My voice came out as a squeak.

“You know who this is—your worst nightmare.”

Nye snatched the phone off me. “Leave her alone, or you’ll fucking regret it.” He threw the phone down in disgust. “Asshole hung up.”

“You heard what he said?”

Nye nodded as he pulled out his own phone and began muttering into it about monitoring and traces. Now this was getting more personal, and I couldn’t stop shaking as I stared through the window at the drizzle outside. Would this game ever end? Every move we made, the mystery man seemed to be a step ahead.

“Are you okay?” Nye asked, dropping his phone onto the bed.

No, but I didn’t want to look weak, so I shrugged. “At least he didn’t come into the house this time.”

It seemed I wasn’t the only one affected by Nye’s presence.

“We’ll find him, Liv. I won’t let anything happen to you.”

“How did he even get my number?”

“It’s on your website.”

Oh. Yeah. “What do we do now? Should we stop searching?”

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