Page 40 of Abducted

Cal turned back to Nate. “I don’t want to get you in any kind of trouble.”

Nate shook his head. “Her safety is our main objective. I’ll keep a low profile and help as much as I can.”

Cal nodded and stood from his chair. “I’ll arrange to get my house back together and increase the security so we can stay there.”

“Already got a head start. There’s a team there now fixing the damage,” Ethan said before he stood and downed his coffee. “But you’re not going back there, are you?”

Cal lifted a shoulder. “What else are we supposed to do? I’m not going to keep hiding. All I care about is keeping Lana safe, but at some point, this has to end. Let them come for me, I’m ready.”

Nate made a tsking sound. “Man, that’s not smart. You can stay here.”

“No. I appreciate your hospitality, but—”

“I know where we can go.” Lana’s silky voice sounded from the hallway. Cal jerked his head up, and Ethan swiveled in his chair. Fatigue laced deep shadows beneath her eyes, and guilt spurred in his stomach. The last few days had been rough. He was used to it, but she wasn’t. She crossed her arms over her chest and her lips pursed haughtily. Not that her demeanor showed her fatigue. If he hadn’t been used to studying those unwavering eyes, he’d be convinced she’d been unaffected. He couldn’t take his eyes off her. Her sassy grin spread warmth through his chest. It was all he could do not to cross the kitchen and pull her mouth to his.

“Where?” His gravelly voice belied his train of thought.

“I have a place.” She stepped farther into the kitchen, pulled out one of the stools at the kitchen island, and sat. Ethan’s eyebrows rose, and he looked from Cal to Lana. Cal downed the rest of his coffee and then set the mug on the table, waiting for her to continue.

One slender leg crossed over her knee, and she smiled easily. “My family owns a chalet in Glacier. No one’s used it in years.”

Cal grimaced. With all the arrows pointing to Tanner, using one of her family’s properties was too close to the hornets’ nest. He shook his head. Lana drummed her fingers on her thigh, waiting for his rebuttal.

“Do you have a better idea?”

He swirled the empty white mug in his hands and his mind worked. Dammit, he didn’t. They could go to another hotel, but they had been found at the last one. He could always rent another cabin, but finding one available nearby would be a bitch.

“Well?”

“Sorry, babe. It doesn’t make sense for us to go to a place your family owns. I still think Tanner is behind this. That would bring us right where he wants us.”

Indecision weighed on his shoulders. He had the perfect place to go, but he didn’t want to take Lana there. Not when it was an hour away and he had to keep leaving her behind to solve this shit. If something happened, and he was that far away…

Then again, no one except Ethan and Nate knew about it. Ethan’s eyes met Cal’s, his brow furrowed in consternation.

“Any other options, Cal?”

He let out a deep sigh. Screw it. It was a hell of a lot safer than Lana’s chalet, and he could be certain not another soul knew about it.

“I have a place.”

Lana’s shoulders snapped back and her lips parted. “Why didn’t you say something?”

He rested his elbows on the table and tented his fingers beneath his chin. “Because it’s more than an hour away and I don’t like you being that far. It’s my safe house. No one outside of this room even knows it exists.” He kept his gaze on Lana’s. “What do you think?”

She lifted a shoulder. “It seems the best option to me.”

“All right, we’ll leave tomorrow. But for now, we need to pay a visit to Stamos. I’ll drop off our stuff from the hotel first. You should get some rest, babe.”

On cue, her lips parted with a slight yawn. “You don’t have to tell me twice.” She slipped off the stool and sauntered toward him, and his arm reached out for her as if he were a magnet welcoming metal. His hand looped around her hips as she pressed her mouth to his cheek.

“Be careful.” She squeezed his shoulder and waved to Ethan and Nate before leaving the kitchen. God, he couldn’t wait to be alone with her again.

Tonight.

He turned to Ethan. “Thanks for arranging to have my place cleaned. I wasn’t even thinking straight enough to call anyone today.”

“Don’t worry about it. You had enough on your plate. It should be done late tonight.”

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