Page 19 of Baited

Jenny toyed with the notepad in her hands. “She would kill me if she knew I was talking to you about this.”

His heart stalled. He clamped his teeth together, forcing himself not to respond. He had to know.

She took a deep, shaky breath. “Hanna is Riley’s best friend from childhood. When she went missing, Riley moved back here from Boston.” She shrugged. “She’s determined to find her.”

Ethan’s senses prickled to life. “How the hell is she planning to do that?”

Jenny smirked. “You’ll need to ask Riley that. Look, I have to get back to work. Let me know if you need anything.”

His fist clenched so tight his knuckles ached. He’d talked to Jenny hoping to find answers, and all he’d succeeded in doing was getting a shitload more questions.

One thing was for sure, he couldn’t let her go to the Beach Bash alone.

CHAPTER 6

The bass vibratedthe sand beneath Riley’s feet. Music blasted around her before getting swallowed into the dark sky. She’d been meandering around on the beach, moving slowly to the music for two hours. She hadn’t even bumped into Josh even through he’d said he’d be here. It was after ten o’clock and the party would go until two a.m. God, she hoped this wasn’t for nothing, and that it didn’t take until the end of the night to find the bastard—if he was even here. She took a long sip of the bright colored drink, a combination of liquor, one of which was the sweet tropical taste of coconut rum.

No. He was here.

He had to be. She could feel him. Her eyes glided over every man’s face in search of him…as if she knew exactly what he looked like. She would know. For one thing, he’d be Hanna’s type. Tall, dark haired, and assertive. He would have to be in his late twenties to early thirties, and definitely not older or younger. Cowboy attire had also been a thing for her. If he was out and on the prowl, he’d likely be alone, and inconspicuous. Maybe not such a long shot after all.

After the attack the other night, Joe had informed her that they hadn’t been able to trace the voicemail. He was smart, and he thought he could toy with her. But she would catch him.

A warm body slammed into hers. Her tropical drink splashed down her chest, coating her bare stomach and soaking into her denim shorts.

“Sorry,” a young man mumbled before turning back into the crowd.

Ugh. Well, good thing it was dark, her bikini top was black, and her shorts were denim and not the white ones she’d considered. The sickly sweet liquid stuck to her skin. The humidity made it worse. Screams filled the air around her. She jumped and turned her attention to the stage.

“Give it up for DJ Romeo!” The MC extended his arm to the turntables on the stage and the DJ greeted the crowd.

“Oh my god, it’s him!” A young woman who looked to be barely twenty-one screamed in her ear.

Riley grimaced. At twenty-seven she was getting too old for this crap. She’d rather be at home, curled up on the couch in her pajamas watching a movie or reading. A wild night for her meant a smidge more than a glass of wine and chocolate. Maybe pizza. Her life was as far from this crowd as it could get, yet here she was—hunting.

What was Hanna doing? Sharp fear tightened its grip around her heart. She pushed her thoughts away as she had a million times over the last few weeks. Not now. She had to stay focused. She was Hanna’s only hope. The police had all but given up on finding new leads. Everyone else seemed to believe she’d up and left rather than acknowledge that she’d been taken from the safety of their town.

Anger burned the back of her throat. Hanna wouldn’t up and leave. She loved her family, her job, and was the most considerate person on the planet. She would never put those she cared about into turmoil.

She held her slim shoulder bag close to her hip as she moved through the crowd. Her feet sunk into the divots in the sand, the terrain uneven and slippery. She needed another drink and a bottle of water to wash herself off. “Can I have a water and another one of these, please?”

The young bartender who had served her the cocktail smiled, passed her a cup of water, and began making her drink. Whenhe was done, she paid him, accepted the blue drink, and stepped outside the crowd. She dumped the ice-cold water down her chest and rinsed away what she could of the sticky residue. A chill raced over her until the hot air warmed her skin again.

“That hot?”

She whipped around at the deep southern drawl. She took in the tall man with his hands shoved in his pockets. He wore a plaid button-down shirt, red baseball cap, and cargo shorts with flip-flops. The corners of her mouth tugged into a smile. Bingo.

She laughed. “It’s so hot out.” She brought the cocktail to her lips and sipped leisurely. God, if Hanna could see her now, she’d be screaming “slut!” jokingly in her ear.

The man’s grin spread to his eyes, the color was unclear in the darkness, but they were dark. His jaw was freshly shaven without a hint of stubble. Light-haired? It was hard to tell with the hat over his head.

He held his hand out to her. “My name’s Greg. What’s yours?”

She slipped her fingers into his warm, moist palm. “Angie.” She stepped closer to him, letting her thigh brush against his hip. He leaned down toward her mouth, while his hand hovered on the small of her back.

“Want to dance?” she croaked.

His fingers moved over her bare skin suggestively. Goose bumps raced over her. Not good goose bumps. Not like the ones Ethan gave her.

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