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“Do you want anything from town?”
She shook her head quickly before pausing, as if to rethink. “Actually, yeah. Will you bring me back a croissant from Maria’s?”
“Chocolate?”
“Yes, please.”
I nodded at her. “Coming up.”
I grabbed my keys and Bucky and went down into town.
* * *
When I got to Maria’s café, I saw that the asshole was still there with his computer, the way he’d been every day I’d been by.
I tried my best to ignore him as I walked up and placed my order, getting a bag with two chocolate croissants to go. Nodding at Maria, I went and sat down at the usual table that I took next to Alex, waiting to see if he made contact, either with me or with anyone else.
There was something about doing this that made me feel right, as though I was getting back to what I’d always been meant for. It felt like the old days.
I pulled out the contract for the newest job I was about to take and started looking it over, reading all the details so that I could get a feel for what I would be doing. It was an interesting new gig, and the company was a brand-new identity protection firm. Not only was I going to be shoring up the security of the website itself, but I would also be testing and troubleshooting the actual software. It was an extremely lucrative gig, and I knew that if I got a couple more like this, I’d be set for at least a few more years.
I was so engrossed in the contract that I didn’t even notice when Alex had left, but when I looked up a few minutes later, he was gone.
“Shit,” I said, grabbing my stuff and heading out the door. I couldn’t see him anywhere on the street, so I figured I might as well just go home.
But there was still one more stop I wanted to make before I left town for the day.
I went to the little general store on Main Street and walked in, looking around fairly quickly before finding what I was looking for and going up to pay. I was through pretty quickly, and I headed out the door and back to my truck, anxious to get back home to the woman I’d started thinking of as mine against my better judgment.
As I walked out, though, I knocked into a guy who’d been walking down the street and felt the wind go out of him.
“Sorry, man,” I said quickly, reaching out to help him up and realizing before I was able to avoid it that the man I’d knocked into was none other than Alex.
“It’s alright,” he said, wheezing a little. I stood him up quickly, barely managing to avoid wiping my hand on my jeans.
“Well, if you’re okay…” I said, turning away from him.
“Actually, I was wondering if you could help me with something,” he said, following me. I paused, shutting my eyes quickly, before turning back to him with raised eyebrows. He pulled out a picture, and I had to forcibly keep myself from sucking in a breath at the picture. “Have you seen this woman? I think she might be staying somewhere around here.”
It was Macy, dressed in a pair of work slacks and a blazer in front of an office door. Her head was tilted to the side, and she was pointing happily to the little plaque on the door that said, “Dr. Macy Wallace”.
I had to force down the fury that rushed through me at the sight of the photo. How dare this piece of shit show her off like that when she’d been forced to give it all up because of him? How dare he use this picture of her seeming so happy when he’d done so much to hurt her?
I flicked my eyes from him to the photo, keeping casual. “Sorry, I haven’t seen her.”
“You sure? Look harder,” he said, shoving the picture into my face.
I backed away, raising my eyebrow at him. “Believe me, if I’d seen that woman, I’d remember her.”
I didn’t know what made me say it. It had been an idiotic comment to make, but the fury on his face had made it all the more satisfying. The asshole still thought he owned her.
I turned away from him, heading down to my truck. “Take it easy buddy.”
“Actually,” he said, coming up to walk next to me, “I overheard someone saying a couple days ago that you used to be a cop. If that’s true, I could really use your help in finding her. I’d be more than happy to make it worth your while.”
“Well, you just said it, dude,” I said, keeping my voice curt. “I used to be a cop. I’m retired, no interest in the work anymore.”
He came around to stand in front of me, blocking my path. “Again, I’m good for it. I just really want to find my fiancé. I’m really worried about her getting hurt.”
