Page 116 of Green Flag
For so long, I’d had nothing.
I didn’t really have him either.
Why was it so hard to swallow? I suddenly couldn’t breathe through the plastic nose or my mouth.
And when I looked up to Luca to call for help because I might be dying, the way he was filtering through the papers had me second-guessing.
Because he wasn’t enthusiastic at all.
It was like a chore to him. Did he feel the same as me?
“We’re not finding much,” I sighed and sat on the desk.
He shrugged, turning his back to me. “We don’t have to.”
Because he liked spending time with me? Surely, with him coming to the house with no ulterior motive, he must like me a little.
“Because I’ve hired a PI.”
For a second, I was still as my ears rang. I must have misheard him. Did he say PI? As in, private investigator?
He looked over his shoulder with a sheepish smile. Or grimace.
What if the PI found details that meant he went to the police? What if Dad had no choice but to quit? My heart was thundering as panic built in my chest, echoing in my throat. I knew I’d started this… but the only reason I wanted to continue it was because of Luca.
“Shouldn’t we have discussed this… together?”
With two strides, he stood before me and removed my disguise, brushing the rogue hairs back behind my ears. “Everly, we’re not really cut out for this,” he laughed weakly.
This? Us?
My thoughts scattered, scrambled, tumbling over each other in a rush of ‘What did he mean? Why would he say that?’
And a deep concern climbed my spine. I couldn’t lose him.
“We haven’t found anything,” he said and gestured around the room. “It’s been months of nothing and this is probably what we need.”
“We’ve got that interview,” I said quickly. “The couple interview.”
He cupped my elbows, his thumbs brushing my arms. “We’ll still do this. It’s a good cover for us, but… we’re running out of time. The last race of the season is in two weeks.”
I nodded, trying to swallow the lump in my throat.
When my phone chimed.
I jerked out of his hold to grab it from Dad’s desk.
It was Instagram.
@PVThrowaway: Merry Christmas. See you soon.
I practically shoved the phone in Luca’s face. “See? I’m getting somewhere. I’ve been strategically posting things to get his attention.”
“See you soon?” Luca repeated. “You’re not meeting him alone, are you?”
“No,” I said, shaking my head. He’d been right when he said I shouldn’t meet him alone. “I don’t know what he’s on about. I haven’t texted him like… not like that since…”
Luca braced the back of my neck with his hand, running gentle strokes into my hairline. “Everly, you don’t need him. I hired this guy so you never have to speak to him again. He hurt you.”
