Page 67 of Baited

A beat passed and her hands itched to cover her face. Saying her previous actions aloud was enough to make a pit of regret open in her stomach.

Nate lifted his shoulder. “Don’t worry about it. People love talking about sluts.”

She blew a breath through her nose. The need to get out of here and into Ethan’s arms made hives ready to break out over her body.

“Let’s just get this over with.” She nudged his knee under the table and took another much needed sip from her drink.

“Tell me you aren’t serious about that guy. I thought we were working on things?” Nate’s voice boomed over the crowd.

Shit. She hadn’t been ready. Fire blazed from her toes to her cheeks. Her hand tightened on her glass. “Of course it’s not serious. I care about you, Damon. But I need some time.” She pressed her fingers into her temple until it hurt. “Can we talk about this later? How long are you in town?”

“A week. I came to see you, babe. To work this shit out.” His thumbnail caught the edge of the label on the beer bottle and he peeled it down.

“Okay, we can talk. But can it wait until tomorrow? I really want to get home.”

He lifted a shoulder. “All right, I can get you a cab if you want.”

She nodded. God, she wanted to get out of here more than anything in the world. She slammed back the remainder of her drink and Nate led her through the bar, his hand on her waist.

Jenny’s tall form stepped into view, her eyes wide as she mouthed,what the hell?

She caught Jenny’s hand as Nate propelled her through the crowd. “I’ll text you when I get home,” she told her.

Jenny shot her a pointed look and dropped Riley’s fingers.

The warm night air forced its way into her lungs as they stepped outside. Nate kept her close to him, and she gripped his arm for support.

At the curb, he pulled out his phone and placed a call for a cab. When he hung up, he turned back to her. “You okay? You’re looking a little pale.”

“That was more overwhelming than I had expected.” She let go of him and folded her arms tightly across her chest.

He kept his arm around her shoulders to keep up the ruse for any onlookers. As much as she liked Nate, he stirred nothing inside her. He was attractive and built like Ethan, though not nearly as big. Ethan was massive, yet gentle, persistent, but kind, and menacing, yet loving. He was the best of every world and his charm drew her like no one ever had. A few minutes later, the cab rolled up and Nate opened the door for her.

He leaned in, and pulled her into a hug. “Text me when you get home, okay?”

She nodded and pulled out of his embrace, then slid into the cab and gave the driver her address. Nate shut the door and waved as they pulled away from the curb. She watched as he retreated to the bar. It wouldn’t help for people to think she’d left with another man. If this was going to work, the culprit had to assume she was at home alone.

She pinched her fingers together in her lap as the car moved through the dark streets but it did nothing to ease the compression on her chest. This was it. Tonight, the perp would come for her… he had to.

CHAPTER 19

Ethan moved throughhis backyard, his head down, and his hands shoved in his pockets. The warm metal from the switchblade he’d brought to the bar grazed his fingers. The baseball cap he’d grabbed from his house hugged his brow. No one had followed him from the bar, of that he was certain. But it paid to be cautious.

He’d parked his truck in his driveway and had gone inside for a bit, and then snuck out the back. He wouldn’t be able to simply skip across the lawn and go to Riley’s. He’d have to enter the alley and then let himself into her backyard. If the perpetrator was watching them, they had to cover their bases. This way if he went by Ethan’s house, he’d see his truck in the driveway and assume Ethan was in for the night. Getting out of Riley’s unseen would be tricky in the morning, but there was no help for it.

His phone buzzed against his thigh. He pulled it out of his pocket and glanced at the screen.

Cal.

His finger hovered over the ignore button. But Lana was pregnant, and he’d be a shitty friend if he wasn’t on call.

“Yeah,” he answered. “Hey dude, how’s things?”

“Good, I’m heading to Riley’s place now. She’s on her way so I need to check things out before she gets there. How’s Lana doing?” Cal had been good at checking in and staying abreast of the plan, always offering a way to help. Though he wouldn’t leave Lana’s side, it was evident expecting the baby had him on eggshells and more than a little stir-crazy.

“She’s great. She started having contractions this morning but it was a false alarm. Still have seven weeks to go.”

A smile tugged at his lips. “Were you shitting?”

---