Page 16 of Only Her (K2 Team)
Justin Tramore, age seventeen, had politely asked his question, and after the answer was given, he’d pulled a turn-of-the-century Colt Single Action .38 from behind his back, pointing it at the clerk. “I’m sorry,” he’d said on his way out the door, after the clerk had handed over a little under two hundred dollars.
“At least he was polite about robbing the man,” Cody said. He shouldn’t feel sorry for the boy, but he did.
Ryan turned the car toward Storm Lake. “Tell it to the judge.” He glanced at Cody. “What’s your take?”
“Last place he used his dad’s credit card was when they arrived in Fort Dodge, and that was at a burger joint, of all things. I’m guessing it was about that time it occurred to them the card could be traced. They ran out of money, thus the robbery.”
“My thinking, too.”
“They’re probably feeling a little desperate by now, which makes them unpredictable. Don’t like that they have a gun.” Cody scratched at the tingling going on at the back of his neck.
“Yeah, me either.” Ryan slowed the car as they drove into Storm Lake. The sun was setting, and it looked like the town was closing up for the night. “Let’s find a place to get something to eat before they roll up the sidewalk.”
“I could go for a steak and baked potato with the works.”
Ryan put on his blinker and turned into a parking lot. “Ask and ye shall receive.”
Turned out the steak house was open until ten, and the food was good.
After a shower, Cody checked the time. Nine-thirty shouldn’t be too late to call Riley. Wearing his favorite sweatpants, he settled on the motel room’s bed, stuffing the extra pillows behind his back. Phone in hand, he hesitated. Maybe he shouldn’t bother her. Things could get busy tomorrow, though, if they managed to find the kids, and he might not have a chance to check in. He called her.
As he listened to the ring, he realized he wanted to hear her voice. He also admitted to himself that even though he couldn’t classify her as a girlfriend, if his head was in a better place, he’d be interested in a relationship with her. Very interested.
He got her voice mail. Disappointed, he hung up without leaving a message.
Riley washed the conditioner from her hair. The trip to the dog park had turned up nothing, which she hadn’t expected it to, but it was disappointing nevertheless. She had enjoyed playing with Cody’s dogs, while watching them closely to make sure they hadn’t eaten anything. She’d also posted several signs, warning owners to keep an eye on their animals and not to let them eat foods left behind by someone. It wasn’t her desire to panic anyone, but better a warning over seeing their dog get sick, or worse.
A cup of hot tea in hand, she grabbed her latest book, and headed to her bedroom. The cats joined her in bed. Merlin sat on the pillow next to her, where he could keep an eye on things, Arthur made a few turns on her lap before curling up, and Pelli batted a toy mouse across the comforter.
Riley watched Pelli for a few minutes, smiling at his silliness. Her life was coming together finally. It hadn’t been easy. As a child who’d grown up in foster care, bouncing from one family to another, she’d had no one to depend on but herself. Her last family, the one she’d lived with her senior year of high school, had been the best, and she still kept in touch with them. They were the only ones, though, that she had any desire to keep in her life.
Pat and John Haywood had helped her through a rough time, when she’d hated herself and the world. Pat was one of the wisest women Riley had ever known, and had given her Arthur and told her that she could whisper all her secrets to him and he would never tell. There were many secrets she’d shared with him, and once she trusted him, she told him her biggest one. Getting it off her chest had done wonders for beginning the healing process, and her surly attitude began to seem too much trouble to hold on to. Eventually, she’d trusted Pat enough to tell her about Reed.
Seeing that she’d not put her phone in the charger, she picked it up from the night table. When she put the plug into it, it lit up with a missed call, Cody’s name coming up. Her heartbeat picking up, she punched Call. Had something happened to him?
“Lo,” he said, his voice sleep muffled.
“I woke you. I’m sorry. I just now saw that you’d called earlier.”
“Hey, no problem.”
He sounded alert now, and she guessed he was trained to go from zero to sixty at a moment’s notice. “So you’re okay?”
“Yeah, why?”
“When I saw your name on the screen, my first thought was that something had happened. I was worried.”
“That’s damn sweet, Riley. Thank you.”
His voice was sexy, all low and rumbly. She wished she could crawl through the phone and snuggle next to him while he murmured naughty things into her ear. “So, I guess you were calling to check on your dogs?” He chuckled, the sound sending a shiver through her.
“No, darlin’, just wanted to talk to you. Is that okay?”
Oh. “Yeah, sure. Where are you?” She heard the rustling of sheets and imagined him sitting up to rest his back against the headboard and wondered what he wore to bed. Her guess was nothing; he seemed like the kind of man who slept in the nude. That she’d like to see.
“Some little tourist town in Iowa. Storm Lake. Ever heard of it?”
“No. Can you tell me why you’re there?”
