Page 112 of Date with a Devil
“Oh—um, okay?”
The voice on the other end exhaled. “I’m notaprivate investigator. I’mtheprivate investigator, really. The one who was assigned to detail you and Dane DeHardt.”
Austen’s eyes narrowed. “And why exactly are you contacting me?”
“Listen, I don’t blame you if you hate me. But I was only doing my job. All your boss told me was that two employees were suspected of being romantically involved, which was against company policy.”
“Please get to the point, Harper.Whyare you contacting me?”
Dane’s curiosity was piqued. “What? Who is it?” he mouthed.
Austen held up a finger and mouthed, “wait.”
Harper continued. “I read your story after it came out. I felt awful that that sick fuck used my services to try to coerce you into sex and shut you up.”
“Ah—so you do have a conscience.”
“Listen, I’m not scum, okay? Following people isn’t glamorous, but it’s still a job. And it’s a job I happen to be really, really good at.”
“I’m happy for you. Are you calling me to make yourself feel better? Or to beg for forgiveness or something?”
“No.” Harper sighed. “Maybe this was a mistake, but—look. I just wanted to let you know that I read your story, and all the ones you’ve written since, and I took a little personal interest in it, okay?”
“This call is getting weirder by the minute, Harper.” Paranoid, Austen peeked out her window. It was dark and she couldn’t see a thing. A tingle ran up her spine and made her shiver. She drew the blinds.
“What I’m trying to tell you,” Harper said, “is that I tracked him down.”
“Who?”
“Jack Hathaway. It wasn’t easy, but I think I’ve found him.”
Austen’s jaw dropped. “What? Where is he?”
“If you’re interested, we can meet. I’ll tell you everything I know.”
And with that, Harper hung up.
Austen looked at Dane. “Oh my God, Dane.”
“What’s going on? Who was that?”
“That was the PI that photographed us.”
“The hell did he want?”
“It’s a she. And she says she found Hath.”
“What?”
Epilogue
Three Years Later
“Hi Reavo! Hi Matchbox! Hi Mikey!” Austen greeted the Dallas Devils as they filed into her studio apartment one by one. “Hi Brayden! Hi Jaden! Hi Vaughnsy! …”
It was a hot summer day in Texas, in the middle of the offseason. The athletes, almost all of them wearing tank tops and gym shorts, were already misted with sweat.
Dane was the last Devil to enter. “The cavalry has arrived,” he said.
