Lost on the Bayou

by Rose Pressey

I had to say no. My desire to say yes was just old memories floating back and skewing my thoughts. Yes, that was it. I was just reminiscing about what could have been. What was done was done and it was time to move on. I didn’t want to hurt his feelings any more, but this was something that I had to do. Surely he would understand that even something as simple as going out for a drink would be the wrong thing to do.

  I was just about to open my mouth to say no when I noticed his gaze slowly rake over my body. A crackle of energy passed between us. Grant had aroused me as no man ever had.

  Then he said, “Someone is coming out of my office.”

  When I turned around I spotted the person too. That was odd—it kind of looked like one of the men I’d seen on the boat. What was he doing in Grant’s office? Apparently, Grant didn’t know the man because he took off for the office door and around the corner. The man hadn’t looked in our direction and I wondered if he knew we were watching him. It sent chills down my spine to know that this stranger could have been watching us.

  Grant took off in a sprint up the hill toward his office. His strong legs powered him up the parking lot. This stranger definitely wasn’t supposed to be in there.

  I didn’t want to be down there near the gators by myself. Besides, the other men from the boat might have been nearby watching me. I shivered at the thought. I glanced over my shoulder toward the water. The boat hadn’t returned, so there was no way it could be the same man. At least I sure didn’t think it could be him. Where would they have docked the boat?

  Pushing my legs hard, I took off in a run uphill. Of course I wasn’t as fast as Grant. My legs weren’t that long and running had never been my strong point. I could do aerobics all day long, but running made me want to surrender instantly.

  Grant had almost reached the office when he cut to his right a little. I figured he was going after the man. What would I do if he took off? I didn’t want to be up there alone. That was just creepy. The bayou had always held a mysterious vibe; it seemed like the perfect place for scary things to lurk.

  By the time I reached the office door, Grant had returned from the side of the building.

  “Did you see anyone?” I asked breathlessly.

  He shook his head. “No, he took off.”

  “Do you have any idea who it was?” I asked.

  “No, I’ve never seen him before. Of course I didn’t get a good look at him from so far away,” he said.

  “You know, he kind of looked like one of the men I saw on the boat,” I said.

  Grant scrunched his brow.

  I knew it sounded crazy, but I was just being honest. “I know it couldn’t have been though since the boat isn’t here,” I added.

  He nodded and said, “I’m going to check inside.”

  I followed him through the door of the small building. So this was where he worked every day. It was a little cramped with a couple of desks and a few chairs scattered around. It was painted in a blah beige color and kind of dimly lit. Not a place I’d want to hang out for very long. He looked around the place and ran his hand through his hair. I started to worry about what if the person came back. Was he looking for something or someone?

  “What did the person from the boat look like?” he asked.

  “Well, a lot like the guy who was up here,” I said. “But like you said he was far away and I didn’t get a good look at him. He had dark hair and he wasn’t very tall, but looked kind of muscular. He was wearing a black shirt. That’s about all I know.”

  Grant stared at me for a moment longer and then nodded. “That’s what I saw too.”

  “Is there anywhere else they could have docked the boat?”

  He motioned with a tilt of his head. “A few miles up the bayou, I suppose.”

  The man could have been driven back up here, but I don’t know why. That didn’t make much sense, but nothing did right now. I looked around the office again.

  “Did he take anything? Does anything seem out of place?” I asked.

  Grant shook his head. “Not at first glance, no.” He stepped over to a desk and moved a few things around. “Nothing seems out of place. My computer is still here. There’s really nothing of value in here other than that. My car is still in the parking lot and so is yours.”

  I looked out the window into the parking lot. Both vehicles were there.

  “So how did he get in?” I asked.

  Grant met my gaze. “That’s a question I don’t have an answer to.”

  “Do you think it was a coworker and you just didn’t recognize him?” That was highly unlikely, but maybe he’d given the key to someone.

  “No, I doubt that. But I’ll have to give them a call and report what happened.”

  The worry was evident on Grant’s face and that made me even more nervous. I hated to leave him alone here, but I felt like it was time for me to get out of there. It was probably best if he didn’t hang around either. The darkness had almost settled in, bringing a vast expanse of black sky.

  He must have read my expression because he said, “We should leave. There’s nothing to do right now.”

  I nodded and stepped outside with Grant right behind me. His nervousness made my stomach flip-flop. He locked the door and turned toward me.

  As I walked along beside him, I said, “I’m sorry this happened.”

  “It’s not your fault,” he said with a little grin. “I’ll walk you to your car. Just let me take one more peek around the building.”

  I nodded, but wanted to hurry up and get out of there before it was completely dark. There were too many places for someone to hide.

  While I waited for Grant to walk around the building, I looked over my shoulder and out toward the water. The boat had to have docked somewhere else like Grant said. Otherwise, I was sure it would have been back by dark. But if my uncle had been on there, then surely he would have called me by now. After all, I’d left a million messages. They went straight to voicemail, which made me wonder if he’d just thrown the phone away. Or if someone had thrown it away for him. I was hoping it wasn’t the later.

  Grant appeared from around the building again and I released a deep breath. I’d never been happier to see him. I had been ready to run to my car. It felt as if eyes were watching me from the darkness surrounding us.

  “Are you ready?” he asked.

  I nodded and turned toward the parking lot. We walked across the lot in silence. I was sure he was wondering about what had just happened. At least this had stopped him from asking me out. I wasn’t sure how happy I was about that though.

  So he had asked me out and I had been about to tell him no. Asking him more questions sounded more and more like a good idea though. Maybe it was a good idea if we went out for that beer. We could go over what I had found out about my uncle’s bank account. What harm could it do to have one beer with him? As long as it didn’t turn into three or four we would be fine. I knew I could leave at any time. Okay, so if he asked again I had decided I would say yes. Maybe I was crazy for it, but I felt like it was the only thing I could do at this point.

  “It’s been a crazy evening, huh?” he asked with a grin.

  I couldn’t hold back a smile. “Yeah, I guess it’s obvious that my boating skills haven’t improved over the years.”

  He chuckled. “No, they haven’t. The water never was really your thing.”

  I leaned against the car and wondered when he would ask me for that beer again. Maybe the moment was gone. I certainly wasn’t going to ask him. A trickle of sweat ran down the side of his face. It was completely sexy. He watched me for a moment and I finally looked down at my feet. After a moment I looked up at him again. “I’m sorry if someone was messing around with your office.”

  He shrugged. “I’m sure it was nothing.”

  I nodded. “I hope so.” I wasn’t waiting around for him to ask any longer so I took out my keys and unlocked the car. I opened the door. “Well, thanks for coming to my rescue.”

  He nodded. “It’s
my job.”

  Yeah, I guessed it had been his job. It wasn’t like he’d made a special trip out onto that water just for me.

  “I’d better go,” I said with a tilt of my head.

  “About that beer…” His sentence was cut off by the ringing of a cell phone. He looked at his phone. “I need to get this.”

  I climbed in the car. “Yeah, I’ll see you around.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Grant won’t let a missed opportunity slip through his fingers again

  As Chloe drove away I couldn’t help but think about the missed opportunity. It would have been the chance we needed to talk. A chance for us to catch up and maybe a chance for me to explain what had happened in the past. If she didn’t want to listen, then at least I could have said that I’d tried.

  My phone was still ringing, so I looked down at the number. That was weird. I’d thought it was a call from a co-worker and sent Chloe away so that I could take the call, but now I realized that the number was different. How stupid of me.

  I answered the call in spite of not recognizing the number. “This is Grant Kenner,” I said.

  I made my way across the parking lot toward my truck. Darkness had completely settled over the area and the stars twinkled overhead, creating a dazzling backdrop.

  “This is Grant?” the soft woman’s voice asked.

  I unlocked the truck’s door and climbed in. “Yes, this is Grant. Who is this?”

  “I didn’t know who else to call.” Her voice was low.

  I adjusted the phone to my ear. Her voice sounded as if she was in distress, but I didn’t recognize her.

  “Okay, if you tell me who this is maybe I can help you,” I said.

  There was a long silence and I wondered if she’d hung up. Finally, the woman said, “This is Gina DeWitt.”

  I hadn’t expected a call from her. “Is something wrong, Gina?” I asked.

  Her voice was barely above a whisper now. “I don’t know.”

  “Why don’t you explain exactly what is going on,” I urged. “I can’t help you if I don’t know.”

  Why couldn’t Gina just be honest? The events of the last few days whirled in my mind. They replayed over and over in my mind. I especially couldn’t help but think about the man I’d seen by my office door and wondered if he was still hanging around. I couldn’t see him if he was because I was surrounded by the darkness. How was I going to get Gina to tell me what was happening? She’d called me, so surely she trusted me, even if we didn’t know each other well.

  “The man approached me as I was going to my car. I had parked across the street from the bank.”

  “Did you know this man?” I asked.

  “No, I don’t know him, but he was asking about Chloe and her uncle. He wanted to know who she was and why she was in town,” Gina said.

  I hadn’t expected her to bring Chloe’s name into this. “What did he look like?”

  The man she described sounded a lot like the man we’d seen at my office door. That couldn’t be a coincidence.

  “What did this man want with Chloe?”

  “I think he wanted to ask about her uncle.” She released a deep breath that sounded loudly through the phone. “What should I do?”

  Whatever Chloe’s uncle did shouldn’t involve her.

  “Where are you now?” I asked.

  “I’m home now,” she said.

  “Are you going out again tonight?”

  “No.” Her voice rose.

  “Okay, I’ll ask around and see if I can find out who this person is,” I said.

  “I appreciate all your help.” Apprehension colored her words.

  “It’s no problem. You’ll call me if you run into this man again?” I asked.

  “Yes, I’ll call you right away.”

  It looked more and more as if Chloe’s uncle hadn’t taken off on his own.

  I had to try to find this guy before he found Chloe. My heart rated increased just thinking about what this guy wanted with Chloe and what he might try if he found her. As much as I was glad she was back in town, I didn’t want her to be in danger. Was she? I had no idea, but I intended on finding out. Chloe was a strong woman and I knew she could take care of herself, but everyone needed a friend in their corner and I wanted to be that friend. I hoped she’d let me.

  “Are you still there?” Gina asked, dragging my attention back to the conversation.

  “Yes, I’m here. Thanks for letting me know what happened, Gina. I’ll find Chloe and see if she’s spoken with this man yet. I’ll let you know what I find out.”

  “Thank you for all your help,” she said. “I just hope that Taylor comes back soon. More than anything I hope that nothing bad happened to him.”

  I sensed the worry in her voice. “I do too.” I tried to comfort her with my words.

  She hung up and I stared out at the darkness. Where had Chloe gone?

  I couldn’t decide if I should tell Chloe about the call from Gina. How would she react? No, I knew that telling her about what had happened was the best thing to do. Besides, Gina would probably tell her anyway. I hadn’t thought to ask if Gina had tried to call Chloe. Maybe Gina had already warned her that someone was asking. Of course that would just make Chloe worry more about her uncle. I couldn’t blame her for that because I was beginning to worry about him too. I didn’t think it was like him to take off without a word for this long.

  After starting the truck and shifting it into gear, I punched the gas. I had to find Chloe and make sure she was okay. I should probably look around one more time before I left, but I was in a hurry.

  The truck’s headlights shone across the lot and into the office. If the guy came back he’d probably wait until I was gone, although he hadn’t let that stop him the first time. What would he want from my office anyway? It wasn’t as if I had a connection to her uncle or to Chloe. Not anymore at least. Nothing moved in front of the lights, so I decided to get out of there.

  Would it be weird if I showed up at her hotel room? Probably a little creepy to her that I knew where she was staying and which room was hers. That would freak any woman out. Of course it was a small town and something like that couldn’t be kept quiet for long. That was why I was worried that the man looking for her would find her. He would find that info too.

  I needed to find this man before he found Chloe. If he was really the one who had been looking around here then at least I’d gotten a look at him and would know what he looked like. I’d call Ty and see if he knew who this man might be. At the very least he could ask around for me. This was looking more and more like something the police should take seriously. Ty knew that, but apparently his hands were tied. If there was just a way I could prove that Taylor Beaumont hadn’t left on his own…

  It was a short drive to the hotel. But I made it in record time without speeding too much. As soon as I pulled into the parking lot I spotted her rental car. I glanced down at the paperback on the seat next to me. Chloe’s latest book. Normally I wouldn’t read a book titled Love’s Sacrifice, but for Chloe I would at least attempt to read it. I wondered if she had a special someone in her life back in Arizona. Was he like the hero in her book? She wrote many characters, but the voice in my head when I read her books was always Chloe… distinctively Chloe.

  I pulled my truck a few spots down from her car and shifted it into park. Turning off the engine, I released a deep breath. With any luck, Chloe wouldn’t slam the door in my face.

  I stepped out of the truck and over to her door. This was crazy, but I was doing it anyway. My fist froze in mid-air. Finally, I gathered up my courage and knocked on the door. I shifted from foot to foot as I waited for her to answer. No lights shone from the windows, but I knocked again, thinking maybe she’d been in the shower. Of course I had to shake that thought out of my mind.

  There was still no answer. I was beginning to worry. What if the guy had been waiting for her when she’d pulled up? I wondered if anyone had seen her. I looked around the
lot, but didn’t notice anything unusual, just a couple of cars and the glow from room windows.

  I spotted the hotel’s office and decided to walk inside. Maybe if I talked to a hotel employee they could tell me if they’d seen Chloe. I stepped into the air-conditioned space. The main desk was in front with a small sitting area to the right. On the left were a couple of vending machines that hummed a little too loudly. No one was behind the desk, but as I approached a woman popped around the corner.

  “May I help you?” She stared for a second and then said, “Oh, hi, Grant. How are you? How are your parents?”

  I’d forgotten that Tina Baldwin had started working at the hotel. She’d worked for my parents for a short time until she found full-time work at the Belle Grove Inn. Tina had short dark hair and wore the hotel’s uniform of white shirt and blue pants. The gold name tag on her shirt read manager.

  “They’re good. I was wondering if you’d noticed Chloe come back. Her car is parked in front of her room.” I gestured over my shoulder.

  “You know I can’t tell you that stuff,” Tina said with a smile. “What are you doing stalking my customers?”

  I shook my head. “I’m not doing anything like that.”

  Tina chuckled. “I spotted her walking down the sidewalk as I was coming in. She said she was going over to the bar for a drink.”

  Had Chloe wanted to go with me to the bar? I had asked and then I’d gotten the phone call.

  Tina leaned her elbows on the counter. “I guess I know where you are headed now.”

  I laughed. “I need to tell her something.”

  She winked. “I bet you do.”

  I waved over my shoulder. “It was good seeing you again.”

  “You too. Don’t be a stranger,” she said.

  I made the short distance to the bar. When I walked inside the door I spotted Chloe right away. She was at the bar, but she wasn’t alone. The inspector and another man were on each side of her. But it looked as if their company wasn’t welcome.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chloe almost let her lust get in the way