“You’ll probably be on a flight home tonight,” he muttered to himself.
The hardest part, though, was lying to his parents, especially his mom. She thought he and Sawyer had made plans for him to go visit since he was so busy, and also because Sawyer needed him to be in New York to sign some important papers regarding the new contractors. It seemed like a logical explanation, and it didn’t occur to her that Sawyer could have signed, scanned, and emailed them to him. Although his dad had given him the side eye, thankfully he hadn’t said anything.
The one time it would have paid for a flight to be delayed, they actually came in early—tailwinds or whatever—so he arrived in New York at one o’clock in the afternoon. He’d only brought along a carry on, so it didn’t take long to get out of the airport. There was a bit of a line to get a cab, but when it was finally his turn, Ford got in and said a prayer he didn’t end up like one of those people on an episode of Criminal Minds.
“Where to, sir?” the driver asked.
Ford rattled Sawyer’s office address—it was the only one he knew—to the cab driver. He’d looked at it almost the whole flight, so he knew it by heart. The driver nodded.
He stared out the window as the driver pulled away from the curb and headed in the direction of the address.
This definitely wasn’t how I thought I would be seeing his office for the first time.
To say he was nervous was an understatement. He didn’t have butterflies in his stomach, more like fucking birds, but showing up unannounced would do that to a guy. Still, the element of surprise was key here.
The driver pulled up at the curb, letting him out right at the front door of the building. The minute Ford got there, the urge to tell the driver to take him back to the airport was overwhelming.
But he shoved it down and handed the man cash. “Keep the change.”
Ford looked up at the building and his heart rate quickened. He considered his options as the cab pulled away. He could stick around the building until Sawyer was done with work. But fuck knew how long that would be.
I could call Sawyer to come down… He shook his head. Nope. That wouldn’t work either since it would have defeated the purpose of him coming in stealth.
Someone bumped into him on the sidewalk and that got him moving.
He walked towards the door, and it slid open automatically. There was a large desk to the side of the pristine lobby, and he walked over to it. The security guard was sitting behind the desk, eyes down, probably playing on his phone or something.
Ford cleared his throat, and he looked up. “How may I help you, sir?”
“I’m here to see Sawyer Lancaster.” He wiped his hand on his coat.
“Is he expecting you?” The man asked.
“My name is Ford, Ford Erickson, and I work for him at his Amber Falls, Colorado project.” Before he could figure out where he was going, a tall man came up behind him.
“Ford?” he asked.
Ford looked up and frowned. He didn’t recognize the man, but he nodded anyway. “Yeah?”
The man’s eyes widened, and his face widened in a grin. “How are you doing?”
Ford arched a brow. “I’m sorry, but do I know you?”
The man laughed. “Not really. But I feel like I know you,” he said. “Sawyer has told me so much about you.” The man looked him up and down, although not in a mean way.
“Do you know this man, Mr. Parker?” The security man looked him up and down.
“I do.” The man who still hadn’t introduced himself said.
“Good, because I was about to tell him that Mr. Lancaster was not at work today.”
Ford’s stomach dropped at his words. That was not something he considered. Then again, why would he since Sawyer made it sound like he was basically living at the office. But of course he’s not here. He’s cheating on me.
His shoulders sagged. Guess it was back to Colorado for him.
Which could be for the best, that pesky voice whispered. He could end it for real without embarrassing himself.
“I’ll just get going.” Ford was about to turn when the other man spoke up.
“I can take you to Sawyer’s place.”
Ford looked at the other man. He still didn’t know who on earth he was.
“Come with me,” he said.
Ford wasn’t going anywhere with a stranger. That was how you ended up dead in the big city. Nope. “I don’t mean to sound like a jerk,” Ford started. “But I don’t know you from Adam, so why would I go anywhere with you?”
The man laughed and shook his head. “Of course, don’t mind me. I tend to get ahead of myself. I’m Nate. I’m a good friend of Sawyer’s, and I also work here. I can’t believe you’re here. I have heard so much about you.”
So he kept saying, but Ford was almost certain he’d never heard of Nate. “And why isn’t Sawyer at work? Is he sick?”
Nate shook his head. “Nope… nothing like that. He just needed the last few days off. He’s been off more than on, lately, but that’s to be expected. It’s a lot for him.”
So Sawyer had been lying. He wasn’t working.
“Come on. I can take you to him.”
When he didn’t budge, Nate—if that was even his name—took his wallet out, then got his license and held it out to Ford.
“You can send it to someone you trust. If anything happens, the police know my name and face.”
Ford considered his options. He doubted the security guy would hand out Sawyer’s address if he asked.
“Fine.” He took the license from Nate and got his phone out, taking a picture. He also took a picture of Nate and sent it off to Owen.
