Bait. Samantha Keith

a flat. I drove through the construction across town yesterday. Must have run over something.”

      His piercing blues flashed at her and the lines of his stubble-filled jaw turned as hard as slate. She waited, and tension built in her chest in anticipation he would bring up the note from yesterday.

      “Pop the trunk and I’ll change it.” The words came out clipped, as if it had taken every effort not to say more.

      She pushed to her feet and her lips tremored on a tight smile. Her gaze dragged past the driver’s side window and a folded up piece of paper lay on the black leather seat. Blood roared through her veins and the walls of her throat swelled on a breath.

      Another note.

      No, another threat. This time, with vandalism to her vehicle. A small ripple of fear wound around her heart. She swallowed. This is what she wanted—no, needed in order to find Hanna.

      His attention.

      Stop toying with me, and come and get me you bastard.

      When Ethan had found the note yesterday, she’d had to lie. He was like a big, ferocious bulldog. If he knew another threat had been made against her he wouldn’t stop until she’d confessed everything. And she didn’t want to tell him about Hanna. Keeping Ethan at arm’s length was growing more and more difficult by the day. He had a way of making her want to talk and if she wasn’t careful she’d end up underneath him.

      Because that’d be such a terrible thing, you idiot.

      Ethan stretched his hand out, waiting for her keys. Shit. She couldn’t let him see the paper. She pressed her side against the driver’s side door, blocking his view, and cleared her throat.

      “No, that’s fine. I can call a tow truck.”

      His fingers flexed in the air between them and his dark brows met above his nose in a scowl.

      “C’mon, Rye. That’s a waste of money. You’re not still mad at me are you?”

      She tilted her head to the side and squinted at him. The nickname slipped out of his mouth like smooth brandy. Part of her wanted to correct him, but the endearing short form made her insides tingle. Ethan had the strangest effect on her. On the one hand, he had her belly quivering with desire and on the other, he invoked annoyance or frustration at the drop of a hat. He wasn’t invasive, but he gave the impression that he wanted to get to know her. As much as that piqued the old Riley’s attention, it made her build a stone wall around herself. She couldn’t get involved right now…not with anyone.

      Except him. The sick prick who’d taken Hanna.

      A soft laugh tickled her throat. “No, I’m not mad.”

      “Good. Then let me give you a ride and I’ll come back and change your tire.”

      She dropped her head back, taking in the full height of him, and blew out a breath. Walking wouldn’t make her late, because she always came to work early. It was hotter than hell right now and a ride would sure beat dripping with sweat. But she had to be careful with Ethan. It wouldn’t take much for her to completely lose herself in his cerulean eyes.

      “I can walk. I have lots of time to kill and it’s a nice day.”

      He folded his arms across his chest and lifted his shoulder. “It won’t take me long to fix it if you want to wait.”

      Sitting with Ethan while he changed the tire would only give him more opportunity to talk to her. And she had no doubt he’d bring up the note and pester her about talking to Joe. The detective had already collected the note and her statement yesterday when he came by to listen to the voicemail. Not that it’d do her any good.

      She lifted her key fob and popped the trunk. “I appreciate you changing it, thanks. But I’m going to walk to work. The exercise will do me good.”

      “How will you get home?”

      “Jenny will give me a ride.”

      He shrugged. “Suit yourself. I’m going to change into shorts before I get heatstroke. See you later.” He turned and strode toward his house. The second the screen door banged shut she opened the driver’s side door of her car and pinched the edge of the paper between her thumb and forefinger.

      She’s waiting. Come and get her, Riley.

      * * * *

      The scent of steak and mashed potatoes wafted to her nose as she slipped the plate onto the table of the waiting customer. Her stomach rumbled and a quick glance at the clock showed it was time for her break. She caught Jenny’s eye, tapped her finger to her wrist, and pointed to the back. Jenny nodded and Riley made her way to the kitchen.

      She tugged the apron off and whipped up a plate of food. Sitting at the small dinette table, she reached for her purse. Bile mixed with the mashed potatoes and gravy in her stomach that had smelt so darn good five minutes ago. She swiped her finger over the screen.

      No messages. Thank god. Her spine molded to the plastic chair and she concentrated on slowing her heart rate. After several deep breaths, she lifted her fork and forced down a couple more bites. One threat in one day was more than her nerves could handle. He was getting more and more ballsy. She’s waiting. Come and get her, Riley. He was taunting her, but she didn’t care. Hanna was alive… She had to be. The notes, vandalism, and voicemail reaffirmed her suspicions all along: the person who’d taken Hanna was a local. There was no way he’d been a visitor or someone passing through. He was right here in her hometown and he was watching her.

      She pushed all the threats from her mind and scrolled through social media on her phone. The headline “Beach Bash” caught her eye. She froze. This Saturday night a famous DJ would be hosting a beach party. She took another bite and kept reading. This thing was going to be big. She had to go. Josh leaned past her to grab his water bottle off the table.

      “You going to the Beach Bash this weekend?” He took a swig.

      She grimaced. “I’d like to, but I’d have to take Saturday and Sunday off. Are you going?” She could possibly come into work Sunday but it’d be better to have it off. Who knew how long she could be out looking for Hanna’s kidnapper.

      “Hell yeah. It will be a blast.” He set his bottle back on the table. “See if Ashley wants to switch with you. She mentioned something about needing more hours.” It was a good idea, but she did need the money. That was why she was working after all. Her savings and credit cards could only take her so far. But, she couldn’t forget the reason she was here.

      “Thanks, I’ll ask her.”

      He went back to work, leaving her with her phone. She checked the event status on Facebook, over three hundred people were going, and another two hundred interested. She couldn’t pass up the chance that he could be there. Hundreds of intoxicated young women? No doubt it was on his agenda.

      Riley sent a quick text asking Ashley to cover her shifts on the weekend. She pinged back immediately—no problem.

      The rest of the night flew by, and by the time 10:30 p.m. rolled around, she was ready to drop. She said good-bye to everyone on her way out the door and then stopped dead in her tracks.

      Shit.

      She’d completely forgotten that she didn’t have her car. She lifted her gaze skyward and sucked in the humid night air. The sky was black and clear, revealing every star scattered across its landscape. She could wait for Jenny, but the diner didn’t close for another hour. By that time, she could be in bed and fast asleep.

      That was the only convincing she needed. She hiked her purse on her shoulder and headed toward home. At this late hour, Main Street was quiet, but the odd car whizzed past her. By the time she reached her neighborhood, her senses stood on end like staticky hair.

      She ran her hand over her smoothed back ponytail and scanned the street. Other than the odd lit window, the houses were still. A slight breeze kicked up, swaying the bushes that lined the sidewalk. She was almost home. Around the corner