Ride: Hearts Wild Series

Until they were both lost in the abyss… together.

Eight

The next morning, Ian slipped out the door and went to grab coffee and bagels, half because there was no food in the house and half to clear his mind after everything that had happened the night before.

Between Quinn calling and finally having Zoe in his bed, he wasn't sure how to feel about anything, and the more he thought about it, the more conflicted he became.

It would be wrong of him to keep anything from Zoe, especially now that they'd been together. But he knew both Zoe and Quinn well enough to understand that they were women of their word. Zoe was genuinely concerned about Quinn, and Quinn genuinely did not want to be found.

Briefly, he considered telling Zoe that he'd heard from Quinn, but not that she told him where she was. But what would happen if Zoe wanted to hear the message? Would it be odd for him to delete it? And what if she figured it out regardless?

He took a deep breath then sipped his coffee and swished in his mouth, deciding.

Of course, now that he and Zoe had been together last night, she might have changed her mind about Quinn, too. After everything they'd talked about in the last few days—and all the changes they'd made together—it seemed almost impossible that she'd be just as gung-ho as she'd been when they first started.

Slipping back inside the house, he resolved to find Zoe and tell her what had happened last night with Quinn and the phone call. He heard her voice in the kitchen and followed the sound to find her sitting at the table, talking on her phone.

"Paul," she mouthed to him. He gave her a little nod as he set her coffee on the table in front of her.

"No, no, no," she was saying. "I'm sure she'll be back soon, and we can work everything out. Don't worry abou

t it. I'm sure she's fine."

Ian blinked, watching as Zoe nodded at something he couldn't hear.

What the hell did she mean "she'd come back and everything would be fine?" Didn't she know her sister at all? Hadn't she learned a single damn thing in the last few days?

He toasted a bagel and sat it on the table in front of her just as she said her goodbyes, and when she rang off, he turned to her, trying to decide the most delicate way to phrase his utter confusion.

He opted for "What was all that about?"

She shrugged. "Paul wanted to talk about Quinn. He hasn't heard from her either, and he's worried."

Ian's stomach twisted with a tinge of guilt. Paul wasn't a bad guy, and he didn't deserve to be strung along or left at the altar. He just wasn't right for Quinn. He'd thought after all of this, that was a point he and Zoe agreed on. But now…

"So what did you tell him?"

She sipped her coffee. "I told him I haven't heard from her and I'm trying to figure out where to go from here. I was thinking we could head back to Connecticut and hit the major cities on the way. You know, New York, Philadelphia. She might have gone there. She loves the city."

"She does, but the odds of finding her in a place that big are astronomical." Ian wondered how to phrase his question, but decided there was no delicate way to put it. "So, are you still trying to convince Quinn that she should stay with Paul?"

"Of course." She blinked, startled. "Absolutely."

"Really?" He said the word flatly, and she glanced at him again.

"What do you mean?"

He shook his head. After all that, after everything that had happened last night, she still wasn't going to allow Quinn to take a leap.

"Nothing. Forget it."

He chewed on his bagel, and Zoe frowned up at him, her gaze distant. He knew she was formulating her newest plan, her next action that might trap Quinn into making the most logical choice possible. That look alone made Ian realize what he needed to do.

In spite of everything that had happened between them, he couldn't allow Zoe to interfere with Quinn's life—not this time.

Which meant this was the one last chance for him to sabotage her.

"You know, I don't know what to do," she said.