Page 41 of T-Bone
But why kill Ashley if she didn’t give them Gemma’s whereabouts? And where’s the woman who was taking care of Gemma with Ashley—presumably Rachel Grey—gone?” I had more question than answers and I knew with absolute fucking certainty that the answers were up in Shiloh Valley. That’s where I needed to go, no matter what T-Bone thought. I had to get to that cabin, to get the answers I craved and to rescue my niece.Whoever had her would have my undying gratitude forever, but I could take care of her better.
I was family.
***
I drove around for hours, lost in thought, working through problems while I burned through a tank of gas. Hours later and I still had no answers to go along with an empty belly. I spotted a painfully hip diner that sold real bacon and vegan bacon, whatever that was, and found a booth in the corner to take care of one problem while I worked on the other.
If I had to go back to up Shiloh Valley without T-Bone, I would, but he’d brought up some good points last night and I needed to come up with a plan along with several backup plans just in case. I had to be careful to make sure nothing bad happened to Gemma during the rescue.
A shadow crossed the table, and I reached for the steak knife instinctively before the deep, angry voice sounded. “All that talk about trust, and you fucking run off and decide to do the work yourself? Now I’m wondering if I can trust you.” T-Bone sat, angry and scowling.
Expecting answers.
Chapter Twenty-Four
T-Bone
“Ididn’t run off, and I left you a note.” After staring at me for at least two full minutes, that was what Faith had to say. Her gaze was steady and there wasn’t one hint of betrayal or guilt in those green eyes. “I couldn’t sleep because my mind was racing, so I decided to go out and clear my mind.” She watched me carefully and I knew I needed to keep my anger in check.
“And I should believe you?” I folded my arms and met her glare with one of my own, trying like hell to ignore the anger and worry that pulsed through me.
“Yeah,” she answered easily. “If I wanted to leave, I’d be halfway to Shiloh Valley by now.”
Which was exactly where I’d assumed she’d gone when I woke up to an empty bed and a note saying she needed to go and speak to someone. Though I’d also wondered if that was just an excuse, and what had happened—again—between the two of us had freaked her out. “Did you leave because of last night?” That was the hottest, most intense fuck of my life and I wondered how she felt about it.
Faith took a long time to answer, too damn long but eventually her green eyes locked onto mine and she sighed heavily. “No, I didn’t leave because of last night. It was great. Incredible, actually. I left because I couldn’t sleep and just lying there awake was making my mind race too much.”
That was just another thing I liked about her. She was plainspoken and honest. Her words weren’t flirtatious, and shedidn’t say shit just to stroke my cock. She meant what she said and that was damned attractive. “So where did you go because I know you haven’t been here for six hours.”
She shook her head, a small smile on her full lips. “First you tell me how you found me?”
And she didn’t give one damn inch, which I should’ve found annoying, but I liked a woman who didn’t give in easily. “I had Slate track your phone.”
“Once you realized I didn’t go to Shiloh Valley or after?”
I shrugged. “Who knows? It’s your turn now.”
“That’s illegal, you know?” She was on her way to a full lecture but thankfully, the waitress chose that moment to deliver her food. “Oh damn that looks even better than it sounds.” Her excitement was palpable. “Please tell me you have warm maple syrup?”
“We do, honey,” the woman replied with a matching smile. “I’ll bring it out in a sec.” She turned to me with a smile. “Anything for you?”
Before I could answer, Faith did. “Steak and eggs with hash browns.”
“How would you like the eggs,” she asked with a twitch of her lips.
I looked at Faith. “Tell her, since you know me so well.”
Her gaze bore into mine and she never looked away as she answered. “Scrambled. Fluffy with extra black pepper.” She watched for any sign that wasn’t right and when she saw what she was looking for, she smiled and smacked her hands together. “Yep, that’s it. Thank you.”
“Smart ass,” I grumbled. “How’d you know?”
“At the diner where Nate showed up. You added a ton of black pepper, and you said the eggs were too hard.”
“Impressive,” I conceded reluctantly.
“I know.” She flashed a proud grin as she cut her waffle bacon burger into four wedges. “I went back to Red Rock today.”
My smile faded immediately. “You went alone.” Did the woman have no sense of survival? “If the Ghost Riders had caught up to you then, you would’ve been fucked.”
