Cal’s green eyes gave me a very thorough once-over before he dramatically clutched his hands to his chest. “Wow.”
I turned with a smile, and yeah, a hint of a blush at his words.
“Thanks, Cal. What’s up?”
He dropped down on the bed, all casual like, and stared at me. “What’s up? That’s what I’m trying to figure out.”
I sighed, knowing he wouldn’t let up until I gave him a few breadcrumbs. “I have a date.”
“With?”
“Jameson.”
“Ellison? Charlie’s kid brother?”
When I nodded without giving him anything else, he said, “But I thought you guys were just friends?”
“We are. We were, I guess. But he asked me out on a real date.”
“Good job, girl. Jameson is a good man.” His words sounded right, but his far-off gaze left me wondering if this was jealousy or genuine worry.
“Just be careful, Maddie. People always seem to end up dead or missing when they hang out with the Ashbys and the Bastards.”
I let out a loud, snarky laugh and shook my head.
“He’s not a Bastard, and I’m not an Ashby, so by your logic, we should both be safe.”
I knew Cal’s thoughts were colored by Bonnie’s murder, and I didn’t want to minimize that.
“You know what I mean, Maddie.”
“I do, Cal, and I’m grateful to have someone like you looking out for me. But the truth is that my sister might be dead, likely murdered, and it has nothing at all to do with your family or Jamie’s.”
I was still hopeful that Molly was out there and even more hopeful that I’d run into her on my next trip to the diner, but Calvin was right about one thing. These days, death seemed inevitable.
“Molly isn’t dead, Maddie.”
Without missing a beat, I snapped, “You don’t know that!” I appreciated his hope and optimism, but I had to approach this with a measure of logic, or I’d set myself up for hurt and failure.
“In fact, I do. She’s not at that little diner in the desert anymore. She’s up near Reno under a different name. Polly Bennett.”
My gaze landed on Cal’s satisfied smile as the shock turned my stomach. “How do you know this? Are you for real?”
Before he could answer, I wrapped my arms around him and squeezed tight. “I can’t believe you did this! It’s amazing. Thank you, thank you, thank you!”
Uncomfortable with all the praise and affection, especially after telling him I’d rip his balls off, Cal peeled me off of him and took a step back.
“You’ve been a really good friend to me, Madison. Better than I deserve, and I wanted you to have some answers about your sister. So I kept digging. I wrote a quick algo on facial recognition and hacked into all the cameras on the west coast. And I found her.”
“You did what? Algo? What?”
“Computer shit. Just, don’t expect perfect, Maddie. She’s been through a lot and chances are she won’t be the same girl you remember. Bonnie, the way you knew her, wasn’t the same woman I met at first. Not even close.”
His words brought me up short, like a big fat safety pin that was slowly letting all the air out of a balloon. I nodded. “I’ll figure it out. But I’m so fucking grateful to you for this, dude. Truly. Fucking. Grateful.”
“Friends look out for one another.” He pressed a brotherly kiss to my forehead and smiled. “Have fun on your date tonight.”
“Oh, I plan to,” I called back with a smile.
I gave myself one final glance in the mirror, touched up my lips, and made my way to Jameson’s place. I didn’t know what I was more excited about, having a new lead on Molly or my date with Jameson.
It was a tossup, at least until Jamie opened the door and set my panties on fire. “Hot damn, Jamie, you look good enough to eat.”
His lips curled into a sexy grin as he took in my appearance, starting with the beachy waves that took an hour to achieve. He worked his way down, so slowly that his gaze was like a soft, lover’s caress all over my body.
“You look beautiful, Madison.” The words came out on a growl that made me feel beautiful for the first time in my life. Before I could come up with some sarcastic comment, Jamie pulled me in close and devoured my mouth for several long, hot minutes. “So fucking gorgeous.”
“Well, thanks.” I took a step closer and Jameson put a hand on my shoulder.
“Nope. Not now. If you come inside now, we won’t leave until morning, and we have a date.”
Bummer. “Lead the way, handsome.”
Jamie adjusted the impressive erection trying to break free of his slacks and put a hand to my lower back, guiding me right back to my car.
“Nice ride.”
“Thanks.”
“Can’t wait to drive it.”
He slid behind the wheel and steered us into light traffic. “Feels good, right, Madds?”