“I want to be actively involved in finding my niece. We’re losing time and she’s already been missing two weeks. I asked to be informed of any developments in her case and I can’t thank you enough for signing on to help,” she said. Her singsong voice traveled over his body, eliciting a physical reaction that caused his danger flares to fire.
“Whoa. Hold on right there. I never agreed to anything,” he countered. “And I sure as hell won’t be railroaded into taking on a case.”
Clara’s river-blue eyes shot toward Jaden with a shocked look.
“You said he was onboard,” she stated with obvious disappointment.
“I said he was here. That’s not the same thing,” Jaden corrected.
Daniel pushed to his feet.
“This meeting is over.”
Chapter 6
“Hold on,” Clara said to Daniel. She put her hand on his muscled arm to stop him from walking out of the room. He paused and his muscles chorded after she made contact. He spun around to face her, his gaze zeroed in on her hand where her fingers gripped him.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” His voice was a low rumble of a growl that sent ripples of inappropriate shivers across her skin. Her reaction to him was out of line.
“Please hear me out.” In one snap, he shook free of her grasp and stalked out the door.
Clara spun around to Jaden, who was standing.
“Do something,” she pleaded. “Stop him from leaving.”
“I’m sorry. I’ll see if I can contact someone else,” was all Jaden offered along with an apologetic shrug. “I told you we might be stabbing in the dark with him.”
“The minute I got Lauren’s text that he was here I had a feeling he was the right person for the job. He came,” she said, snatching the photo of her niece from the island. “That says he wants to help.”
“It’s complicated with Daniel,” Jaden said as she bolted out the door.
Clara didn’t care. She was desperate and he might be her only hope to find Ashlyn.
Daniel was already in the driver’s seat of the truck. The engine roared to life.
“Wait,” Clara shouted. The windows were up and she doubted he could hear her. The ex-soldier didn’t so much as glance in her direction.
“Please,” she begged. Jaden had been clear that he couldn’t leave his pregnant wife in order to find her niece. Clara respected his decision but she was losing hope. Ashlyn had been missing for two weeks already. Everyone seemed content with the explanation that she was a runaway and would turn up. Clara knew better. There was no reason for Ashlyn to run away from her aunt. Besides, Clara’s birthday had come and gone two weeks ago and the two had a sweet ritual—a series of texts they sent every year without fail—that Ashlyn wouldn’t have missed on her own accord.
As her best hope for finding Ashlyn started backing out of his parking spot, Clara panicked. Instincts kicked in and she bolted around the back of the truck. She thumped her balled fist on the tailgate as it came dangerously close to knocking her in the chest.
Thankfully, brake lights flicked on.
Daniel’s dark angry eyes glared at her through the rearview mirror.
“Hear me out,” she shouted. She was losing all sense of dignity but she no longer cared. The American Embassy could only do so much for a girl they seemed to believe didn’t want to be found.
Ashlyn’s social media account had played against Clara’s hand. Documenting every emotion that came with being forced to leave her friends after her life had been turned upside down with a divorce gave the impression Ashlyn wasn’t coming home. The fact that her mother had remarried almost immediately after the divorce didn’t help, either. Ashlyn made her frustrations clear. There were too many posts venting about how awful her life had become and that she wasn’t coming back from vacation.
Even though Clara had convinced investigators to talk to her, they seemed to have little hope of finding Ashlyn until the girl was ready to turn up. The investigators started mentioning their caseload being too heavy but Clara sensed that they’d checked out of what they figured was a lost cause. Ashlyn’s disappearance on the last night of vacation had been one of many indicators to them that she would turn up when she was darn good and ready. Authorities had claimed to interview a resort worker who’d said that Ashlyn and her best friend, Makayla, had had a fight and the blond girl had said she wasn’t going home.
Clara knew better. She knew that wasn’t her niece’s behavior. And if Clara’s sister and brother-in-law hadn’t been so busy fighting all the time they would see it, too.
But then wasn’t Clara always the one sitting on the sidelines, watching other people’s lives unfold and giving them advice? What about her life? Her past had made it impossible to move forward, to push past the darkness that made her question everything, that made her too frightened to push out of her comfort zone and take a risk. She always stayed back, played it safe.
But now Ashlyn was in trouble. There’d be no more sitting on the sidelines this time. Time was ticking and answers were nowhere in sight.
Clara couldn’t care what her involvement in the case would do to her relationship with her sister at this point. Clara couldn’t play this one safe. She had to act because Ashlyn might be lost forever.
The truck engine idled.
“Please, help me.”
The sound of the gear shifting into park lit the first spark of hope that her best and only hope wouldn’t drive off without a backward glance. She hadn’t once questioned the man would run her over but he was strong enough to get out of the vehicle, pick her up and toss her aside if he wanted to.
As the driver’s side door opened, Clara rounded the side of the truck.
“You’ll
