“Dylan?” Dakota says. “Where are you?”
“At the gym.” I step away from the machine, frowning. “What is it? Are the kids okay?”
“Yes, they’re fine, although they keep asking for Tessa.” She sounds miffed, and I grin before I remember Tessa is off limits and not coming back.
“Then what?”
“Has she called you? Do you know where she is?”
A cold feeling starts in the pit of my stomach. “What do you mean? I thought she’s staying with Audrey and Asher.”
“Did she call you, yes or no?”
“No, she didn’t call me.”
“Crap.”
My heart is hammering so hard it might crack a rib, and my head pounds. “Dakota, spill. Why the hell are you worried? What do you know?”
“She wanted to go back to her apartment, grab some important papers. Audrey and Asher couldn’t go with her, and it seems she really needed to have those papers for her job, so…”
“So you think she went alone?” I’m already moving, gesturing at Jim that I have to go and ignoring his what-the-fuck-now expression. “Dammit, Dakota, I’m going to go find her.”
I expect her to tell me not to go, to keep away from Tessa, but maybe she’s just as worried as I am, because that’s not what comes out of her mouth.
Instead she says, “When you do find her, give me a call, okay?”
“Sure.” I disconnect, call a cab, grab my bag from the locker and step out into the cold. A violent shiver goes through me, and I zip up my jacket.
Be okay, Tess.
The cab arrives and I jump in, directing the driver to the fancy neighborhood Tessa used to live. Or maybe she wants to move back there?
There’s nothing I can give her…
The cab drops me in front of her building, and I jog to the entrance. I ring the intercom, but I get no reply. So I pull out my cell and call her.
Please, Tess, answer. Please.
“Dylan?” Her surprise comes through, loud and clear over the line. “Hey.”
“Hey.” I lean against the huge glass doors of the building, weak with relief. “You’re okay.”
“Yes, I’m okay. Why shouldn’t I be?”
“Where are you, Tess?”
“At work, I stayed late. Why? What’s going on?”
“Nothing. I thought…” I close my eyes. “Well, the others thought you’d gone back to your apartment to get some things, and we were worried you’d run into your ex. You weren’t answering your phone.”
Silence ticks by. “I didn’t hear it,” she whispers. “Must have put it on silent by mistake. Where are you?”
“Outside your building.” I blink and push off the door, try to remember if there’s a bus stop nearby. “Glad you’re okay. Didn’t mean to bother you.”
“You’re not bothering me.” She sounds like she’s smiling, and I have no idea why, but I’m still reeling with relief at the fact she’s okay. “I wouldn’t go back alone. I promise.”
“Good,” I say gruffly. “That’s good.”
“Look, I’m finished here. I can come pick you up and take you home.”
“You don’t have to.”
“No, but I want to.”
I chew on that. She’s being polite. And I should say no. She’s made her position clear, and Zane pounded it home. But I want so see her so much it’s like a physical ache, and let’s be honest, now that the adrenaline is fading, I feel like I’m hung over to hell and like my skin is stretched too tight over my bones.
“Dylan? Are you still there?”
“Yeah, I am. Thanks. I’ll wait for you.”
“Great. Be there in ten.”
She disconnects, and I stare out into the gathering darkness. Yeah, I’ll wait for as long as it takes.
***
“You always work late?” I lean back on the leather seat of Tessa’s jeep and try not to shiver too hard. It’s warm inside the car. Compared to the icy wind blowing outside, it’s like sitting inside a furnace. And I’m still cold.
“No. I wanted to finish writing a funding request letter, so I could send it.”
“Funding request letter… What do you do there exactly?”
Her eyes brighten as she starts talking about her new job—the significance of the archaeological site, the social aspects, her part in it.
“You’re amazing,” I say when she stops to take a breath. A smile tugs at my lips. “I mean it.”
Her cheeks flush. “Thanks. I adore this job. I don’t think I’ve ever been this interested in my college classes.”
“So you’re dropping out of college?”