Sharpe nodded and followed him inside the house. “This is my father, Vincent Walker. He lives next door.”
Ryan pulled out his cell phone and dialed Bailey while his dad made small talk with the FBI agent. When Bailey didn’t pick up, he dialed the number for the shop.
“Bailey Mae’s,” Mae nearly shouted into the phone.
“Hey, it’s Ryan. Can you put Bailey on?”
“Jesus, yes, if she were here. She took off for the bank to make a deposit over an hour ago and hasn’t returned. I was just getting ready to call her cell. We’re stupid busy today, and I really need her to get back here.”
“You said she left an hour ago?”
“Over an hour ago. Probably closer to ninety minutes now.”
“All right, crap, okay. I’ll hunt her down and let you know,” Ryan said, looking at his watch. He didn’t wait for Mae to say goodbye. He hung up and tried Bailey’s cell again. It went to voicemail after ringing several times. He disconnected and dialed her again. Where the hell was she? When a woman’s voice answered, he said, “Bailey, where are you?”
“Um, I’m sorry, I just found this phone in a parking lot.”
Ryan pulled the phone from his face and looked to see that he’d dialed the correct number then said, “I’m sorry, who’re you?”
“My name is Maya, and I just found this phone in the parking lot at the Village Plaza.”
“Oh, sorry. That’s my girlfriend’s phone. She must’ve dropped it. She works at Bailey Mae’s in the plaza. Can you drop it off there for her?”
“Oh, sure, that’s easy. I’m only two doors down.”
“Thank you so much,” Ryan said. He disconnected then tried the shop again. When Mae answered, he said. “Mae, she lost her phone. Someone is dropping it off to you there at the shop. When Bailey returns, please ask her to call me. It’s important.”
“Will do, Ryan. But if you hear from her first, tell her to get her ass back here. I can’t imagine why a trip to the bank is taking so long.”
“It’s Friday. The bank must be just as busy as you are.”
Mae hummed into the phone and said, “Even so, that’s still a long time.”
“So, we’ll give her ten more minutes, and then I’ll go look for her.”
“Thank you,” Mae sang into the phone before hanging up.
Ryan disconnected and turned to see Agent Sharpe watching him. “She stepped out to drop a deposit at the bank. Mae’s going to have her call as soon as she returns.”
His dad offered Sharpe a cold drink as Ryan stood staring out the picture window. Where the hell could she be? He looked at his watch again, then his phone. Where else would she have gone?
* * *
Bailey didn’t like walking to the bank with the store deposit under her arm, but on a Friday, the traffic was ridiculous. The tourists were flocking in by the thousands to spend the weekend on the lake. She knew she’d get there faster if she just walked the six blocks instead of trying to drive down Lake Tahoe Boulevard at this time of day. She’d dropped off the deposit without incident and was already on her way back when she realized she didn’t have her phone. With an eye roll, she tried to remember if she’d left it at the shop, and prayed she hadn’t dropped it during her walk.
When a truck pulled in front of her and stopped on the side of the road, she moved to walk around it but stopped suddenly when she realized who it was.
“Hey, Bailey.” Dex grinned at her from the driver’s seat. “Please tell me you didn’t walk to the bank again.”
She hesitantly walked over to his window. “Of course I did. It’d take me an hour to get up and down Lake Tahoe Boulevard in this traffic.” She glanced into the truck and said, “How are you?”
“I’m doing okay. Hop in.” He nodded toward the passenger seat. “I’ll take you back to the shop.”
“Oh.” She smiled. “You don’t have to.” She really didn’t want to talk to him, and she especially didn’t want to talk to him about her relationship with Ryan
He sighed and avoided looking at her for a moment, but then met her eyes. “I was actually planning on coming to El Lago tonight to talk to you. I feel like I owe you an apology.” He looked a little sheepish when he said it.
She tilted her head and said, “Wow, okay. Well…”
“Bailey, I’m not after anything. I just want to apologize and end on good terms. I don’t feel right about how we left things.”
She felt a little flutter in her stomach and realized the least she could do was hear him out. She nodded. “Okay, I guess.” She looked at the traffic. “I guess it won’t take too long. Things are clearing up a little.”
She walked around to get the passenger door, but, to her surprise, Dex got out of the truck. “Hold on, that door’s been sticking again. I’ll help you get it open.”
Bailey turned to get out of his way, but a second later, stars exploded from the back of her head. She felt her knees smack the ground before everything went black.
* * *
Ryan circled back again to cruise down Lake Tahoe Boulevard. He stopped every hundred yards or so to look around and call out to Bailey. Wade and Lucas were doing the same thing, taking turns driving the side streets. Mae was meeting with the police. Agent Sharpe had waited a full hour for Bailey before giving up. He was planning to return tomorrow to talk to Bailey, but Ryan couldn’t think about that right now. He couldn’t think about the fact that the FBI had found a match on Bailey’s DNA. Sharpe was now in Sacramento meeting with the family member—Bailey’s family member. Ryan hadn’t gotten the full story, but he didn’t really care. All he cared about was finding her.
He was fighting to maintain what
