Page 44 of Still A Cowboy
They all sat around the table, phones open, food abandoned as they dove into the search.
Willa did not argue anymore, but Cal could see it written all over her face. She still wasn’t sold on this notion of fighting.
Mason leaned forward, drumming his fingers on the table. “What about Misty, Lark and Sawyer’s assistant? Has anyone considered that she might be the masked woman?” That got everyone’s attention, and they all shifted toward him. “I’ve heard things. Brent’s been seeing her, yeah, but I’ve also heard he’s just using her.”
Delia’s eyes narrowed. “Using her how?”
“Word is Brent’s trying to get Misty to push Sawyer and Lark into featuring his rental properties more,” Mason spelled out. “He wants them to tie his name to their vlog, boost his bookings. It would be huge for his business if they started recommending his places across their platform.”
“And Misty has access to their social accounts, right?” Fia asked. “She could have leakedboth videos.”
Mason nodded. “Exactly. If Brent convinced her it would somehow help him, she might’ve done it.”
Cal’s stomach tightened. “So Brent could be stringing her along, feeding her promises, and letting her take the fall if this backfires.”
“Sounds like him,” Willa muttered.
Delia set her wine glass with a thud. “That snake.”
Fia tapped her phone quickly. “I can ask around, see if Misty’s been bragging about Brent or dropping hints about boosting his business. If she’s been playing both sides, someone might have caught wind of it.”
Cal leaned back, his gaze sliding to Willa. “It’s starting to make sense.”
She didn’t say anything, but she wasn’t arguing anymore either. She was in this now, whether she wanted to be or not.
Cal pulled out his phone and quickly searched Misty’s social media profiles. There were plenty of photos, more than enough to get a solid look at her. Most were selfies with Lark and Sawyer, some behind-the-scenes shots of their vlog setups, and a few full-length pictures of Misty standing with other people for scale.
His stomach sank as he swiped through.
“Well, hell,” he muttered.
Willa glanced over at him. “What?”
Cal turned the phone so everyone could see. “Misty’s tall. Probably a couple inches taller than me in heels. She’s got a solid, muscular build. There’s no way she’s the woman in that video.”
That brought on a variety of grumblings from around the table.
Mason rubbed the back of his neck. “So if it wasn’t Misty, we’re back to square one?”
Cal’s jaw tightened. “Not quite. I still think Brent’s involved with it somehow. Even if Misty wasn’t in the video, Brent could have found someone else.”
“Someone willing to help him stir up this much trouble?” Willa asked.
“Yeah,” Cal agreed. “Someone who had a reason to want to hurt you.”
Willa’s eyes flicked up to his. “You’re talking about Eden.”
Cal nodded. “I am now.” He pushed back from the table and stood. “I’m going to see her.”
The others immediately stood with him, like they were ready to storm the gates.
He held up his hand. “No. I should do this solo. If all of us show up, she’ll get defensive, probably play the victim, and I’ll get nothing out of her.”
Delia frowned, shook her head but muttered an agreement and added, “I still don’t like it.”
“I don’t either,” Fia said. “You sure you don’t want backup?”
Cal smiled at her. “If I’m not back in an hour, you can come charging in, maybe with a drone. Orwith Edgar, the seagull.”
