Page 91 of What Remains

“No, you asked me to behave today, and I declined,” I whisper against his palm.

“Then promise me you will tonight if I watch a movie with you.” His voice is deep and silky, and despite his request, something tells me we’ve officially crossed the line of innocent flirting to “dangerous.” But is it really bad if it makes us both feel good?

“Why are you so afraid of me?” I accidentally ask what’s on my mind instead of what I meant to tease: Why do you want me to behave?

He quietly stares at me, little lines forming around his eyes and mouth. “I’m not afraid of you,” he says hoarsely. He leans in so close the tips of our noses touch as he rasps, “I’m terrified.”

CHAPTER 30

Easton

“Looks like you need this.” Inside the living room of my sister’s suite, she offers me a glass of bourbon—Legacy Ridge, her dad’s brand.

I accept the tumbler, unsure if I should be drinking. My phone is burning a hole in my pocket, and alcohol tends to make me text first and think later.

Gwen sent me a follow-up text asking if I’m going to come over and watch the movie. Instead of answering her, I wandered to Juliette’s room, hoping she’ll talk some sense into me. The problem is, I’ve yet to tell her what’s wrong so she can do that.

“Remember that time I snuck out my window and went to the party my mom told me I couldn’t go to?” she muses while returning the bottle to the bar cart.

“Hard to forget.” Miss Rule-Follower rarely did anything wrong whenever she stayed with us in Kansas City.

I take a sip of the drink, and it settles nicely down my throat and into my chest.

“That’s how we discovered you can’t hold your liquor for shit,” I joke. Though, it’s a fact. My sister’s low tolerance is slightly comical given her father runs a liquor company, and she now owns a Scotch business with her husband.

“No lies detected,” she answers with a light laugh. “But that night was also the first time you had to protect me from some jerk who wouldn’t stop bothering me, and you’ve been protecting people ever since.”

I set the glass on the coffee table, deciding I can’t have my senses dulled in case I do lose my mind and find my way to Gwen’s room.

After she kissed the inside of my hand earlier—and that’s still stuck in my head when it shouldn’t be—we spent the rest of the day apart chasing leads. Well, more like our tails. I needed to breathe in air that wasn’t shared by her. Find a place I could think straight. That wound up being Carter’s suite, where I spent most of my afternoon and evening working alongside him and Griffin. We ended the day about thirty minutes ago with absolutely nothing helpful to go on.

Even if the mission Sebastian pulled Nash in on is tied to this, we haven’t been able to prove it. Someone already cut whatever strings there might have been.

And as for the hotel traitor theory, all the staff and security reporting to Malachi checked out. No red flags. Hell, the only red flag is that there aren’t any when there has to be one.

Oh, and Zoey’s source? Carter hesitantly gave the go-ahead for Zoey and the others to leave for London, but Molly’s still MIA.

“You’re lost in your head. Are you okay?” Juliette sits next to me and pats my knee. Such a mother, I swear.

“I’m frustrated that we have some of the best minds working the case and still have no clue what’s going on, other than someone knows us well and has been playing us hard.”

“Your team will get to the bottom of it,” she says without hesitation, then offers me a small, but reassuring smile. “Maybe get some rest, though? Start fresh tomorrow.”

I check the time on my watch. 22:35. “Too early to sleep.” I’ll just toss and turn, and if I do manage to pass out, I’ll startle awake from a nightmare and spend the next ten minutes checking my hands to ensure they’re not soaked in blood. Just one more lovely souvenir from hell island.

I look over at her closed bedroom door where Constantine is now. I accidentally woke their daughter when I showed up, so he went into the room to help get her back to sleep.

I glance over at the second bedroom door. “No way Colin’s already asleep, is he?”

“On the phone with his girlfriend, I’m sure.” She shrugs. “Or he hooked up his PS5 to the TV in his room and has the volume low.”

Kid’s got the right idea. Find a good distraction. One I can handle on my own.

“Well, I know you’re not here for Daddy’s bourbon.” Juliette waits for me to look at her. “I assume you’re here for advice.”

I inhale deeply through my nose and slowly let the breath go from my mouth, hoping some of my restless energy will leave with it. “Gwen kicked Wyatt out of her suite so she can be alone.”

“I know. I saw Jesse and Ella switch suites earlier.” She angles her head, waiting for me to continue getting to the point of what I don’t want to say out loud.