Maybe she could start walking in the mornings while she was in California. Josh’s dad had mentioned something about a cliff walk not too far from town that had awesome views of the Pacific along with beautiful homes. Riley was more interested in taking a hike through the redwoods, but she hadn’t brought her hiking boots or sneakers with her.
There’s a sports store in town. Just buy a pair. You make good money.
On her last intake of crisp air, Josh laid a hand on Riley’s back and rubbed. Immediately, her body rioted with tingles. “Are you all right?”
Keep rubbing, and I will be. “It seems I need to get back on my workout schedule.” She straightened, and then his touch was gone. She almost pouted.
“Stay with me long enough, and I’ll get you in shape. Not that you’re out of shape,” he was quick to add as he combed rugged fingers through his thick hair.
Riley wanted to run her fingers through that hair.
Stop torturing yourself and do something. You’re two consenting adults.
She let out a flirty laugh at her inner thoughts as she admired how boyish he appeared when he corrected himself. Then, as quickly as he’d flashed those forest-green eyes, he schooled his features and became Josh, the Navy SEAL, scanning the lot and looking at every car as though he sensed an immediate threat. “I don’t see any black SUV.”
Riley redid her messy bun. “Did Taylor say the FBI was driving a black SUV?”
He shook his head. “Come to think of it, no.”
A blue four-door sedan wheeled into the lot and stopped underneath the portico that led to the main entrance.
Riley pointed to the car. “Maybe they’re the FBI?”
A tall man and a short man got out of the car, wearing business suits, which didn’t scream tourist. A valet greeted the tall man, who was the driver.
Josh grasped Riley’s sweaty hand. “Let’s find out.”
Holding hands was becoming the norm for them, and Riley wasn’t complaining. She loved that they had fallen into a somewhat comfortable friendship. Maybe by the time she left California, they would be more than friends.
Kiss Josh again and you might find out.
Actually, his dad was hoping for the same. “Josh is a good man who needs a good woman like you,” his dad had blatantly said.
Riley had had no comeback for that except to agree with the Josh lookalike.
They walked into the Redwood Cove Inn behind the two suits, who stopped to talk to Drake at the front desk.
Drake, who Riley was finding adored Liza, had his cell phone to his ear until he saw Josh. Then he shifted his dark gaze between the men and Josh, trying to tell him the men were there to see him.
Subtlety wasn’t Drake’s strong suit. The men caught on quickly, as they both turned.
The tall man, who had chestnut-colored eyes, pulled out a wallet from the inside of his suit jacket. “Josh Bandon? I’m Special Agent Wallace with the FBI.” He flashed his credentials then stabbed a thumb at his partner. “This is Special Agent Dennison. Can we talk?”
Soft music played overhead in the lobby. A boy who looked to be about three whined to his mom as they came toward Josh.
Josh angled his right side at Wallace. “I’m sorry. I didn’t catch your name. I’m hearing impaired.”
Wallace glanced down at Charlie, who was staring up at the men. “Oh. Wallace and Dennison,” Wallace practically shouted.
Riley would imagine Josh would’ve heard them fine if it weren’t for the cranky boy and other noises in the lobby. He’d also said he was good at reading lips, but the mom and boy had cut a path in between the four of us, apologizing for the intrusion as she and her boy left the inn.
“This is Riley and my dog, Charlie. Let me get Charlie settled. Can you meet us in the restaurant?” Josh waved a hand straight ahead.
The agents took their leave.
While Josh escorted Charlie to his dog bed, Riley ducked into the ladies’ room. She needed to splash cold water on her face to calm the nervous nellies eating her stomach alive. She was eager to hear what the FBI had to say. Yet she was afraid they had bad news.
They hadn’t told Taylor anything bad had happened to Liza. Taylor wasn’t family, though, and Josh was. Riley was assuming too much. It was so like her to think the worst.
She inhaled deeply, going through some quick meditation techniques. She always loved to meditate in the confines of her living room, which had an incredible view of Boston, although she was quickly changing her tune about city life. The ocean and the small town of Redwood were growing on her fast.
With one last deep breath, Riley coated her face with water, patted it dry with a paper towel, and deposited the towel in the trash.
The door squeaked open.
“Riley.” Josh’s husky voice echoed in the sterile room. “Are you in here?”
She giggled. His voice was like warm butter, melting her in all the right places. Yeah, she was falling for him, and if he kept holding her hand and touching her, Mr. Bandon might get his wish.
As soon as Riley met Josh in the lobby, he cupped her elbow. Always the gentleman, she was finding.
Wallace and Dennison were drinking coffee at the table she had commandeered for the last few days in a quiet corner of the restaurant that had a breathtaking view of the ocean. It was mid-afternoon, so only a patron or two hung out at the bar, watching a baseball game on the big-screen TV.
Both agents rose when they laid eyes on Riley. Josh pulled out a chair next to Wallace, the tall agent whose dark hair was cut thick on top and shaved on the sides and back, much like Josh’s. Dennison, on the other hand, had wavy reddish-orange hair that curled around his ears.
As Josh eased down into the chair across from Riley, he said, “Riley is my cousin Liza’s best friend, and she’s in town from Boston. I hope you don’t mind if she joins us. That is, if you’re here to ask about Liza Bandon.”
Dennison had his coffee cup to his lips. “We are. And we’re hoping you can answer some questions.”
Sadly, they weren’t going to get much new information.
Wallace started in. “We’re from the Boston office. Do either of you know where Liza is?”
Riley let out a nervous laugh. “I was hoping you could tell us.”
“The last we both heard from Liza”—Josh wagged a finger between him and Riley—“was last Thursday evening. When I spoke to her, she sounded like something was bothering her. I chalked it up to her working late, which she’s been known to do.”
“She sounded tired to me,” Riley added. “And she and I were supposed to spend a few days together. I’m worried out of my mind. So are you here because of Stefano Moretti?”
Wallace glanced at his partner, but Riley couldn’t tell if he was trying to mind-speak or not. Then he took a sip of his coffee. “I’ve been working the Moretti case for over two years. I was the one who questioned Liza after the raid on his company. Back then, she didn’t have much to tell us, and we hadn’t been able to find any evidence to hold Moretti on anything then. But over a week ago, right before Moretti was arrested again, she left me a message and said she needed to talk and that it was urgent. I’ve tried to reach her, but she’s either had a change of heart, or someone spooked her.”
“Do you have any idea what she wanted to talk about?” Josh asked.
Wallace bit the inside of his cheek. “I wish I did. I’m speculating, though, that she has some information on Moretti. Whether it’s new or old, I don’t know.”
“So you think she’s still in contact with Moretti?” Riley doubted it.
“Maybe, or maybe someone else who works for him,” Dennison piped in.
Riley held one of her nails hostage between her teeth. “If it helps, Liza still talks to a gal by the name of Haley, who worked or maybe still works for Moretti.”
Dennison jotted down some notes on a pad he’d removed from his suit pocket.
Josh rubbed his stubbled jaw. “One of the notes on Liza’s desk was to call Ha
ley and a Monroe.”
“I’m Monroe,” Wallace said.
Maybe the puzzle pieces were falling into place, but Riley didn’t know how yet. It was looking as though Liza had some information to share with the FBI, or maybe Haley did. Come to think of it, maybe Haley was the woman Grayson had heard Liza arguing with.
“Do you have a last name?” Dennison asked.
Riley thought back to conversations she’d had with Liza, but Liza hadn’t mentioned a surname. “I don’t.”
“Liza’s neighbor overheard Liza and a girl arguing,” Josh said. “Maybe that person was Haley. And Liza’s apartment was ransacked. I’m not a detective, but it seems someone is looking for something.”
Liza could’ve been exchanging heated words with Taylor rather than Haley, although Taylor hadn’t mentioned anything of the sort.
Yeah, but you think she’s hiding something. So she wouldn’t tell you.
Both agents whipped their heads to Josh.
Dennison set down his pen. “Wallace, you always suspected Liza was holding something back on Moretti.”
Josh’s eyebrows drew down. “Like what?”
This Riley had to hear. Liza had sworn she didn’t have a darn thing bad to say about Moretti. Maybe Liza was frightened that if she had said something negative, he would’ve had one of his men kill her. After all, she’d told Riley the whole interrogation process had been nerve-racking.
“Hunch,” Wallace replied. “Liza was nervous when I talked to her, and she kept looking over her shoulder as though someone was nearby listening to her.”
Wallace appeared to be an experienced agent, given his forty-something age. Riley would guess that with his tenure, he had seen a ton of crime. Dennison, on the other hand, appeared to be much younger. Still, experience was one thing; intuition was another. Riley always tried to follow hers.
“We were at her apartment a few days ago and found a black SUV with two men watching her place,” Riley said. “I even followed them but lost them in the city. I’m assuming they’re Moretti’s men trying to keep Liza from testifying at his hearing.”
Dennison narrowed his eyes, the expression reminding Riley of her brother’s when she did something Ross didn’t like.
Riley raised her hands off the table a little. “I know. Stupid move. But if it led me to my best friend, then I would’ve called the cops before doing anything dangerous.” At least she hoped that she would have. She had always been the curious one out of Ross and her. She was the twin who took chances no matter the danger. A good example was when her cell phone had fallen into the Boston Harbor. She would have dived in if Ross hadn’t stopped her. But life and work had been on that phone. “Think before you do something” were Ross’s famous words.
Dennison’s pen was poised to write. “Did you get a look at the people inside the SUV?”
“Barely,” Riley said. “The windows were tinted. But the driver might’ve had dark hair. They took off so fast.” Plus, she had been trying to look inconspicuous.
Wallace was still gnawing on the inside of his cheek. “We’ve had surveillance on all of Moretti’s men, and none of them have left Boston. But maybe a couple slipped by. I’ll double-check. We’ll see if we can find a Haley that worked for Moretti. I questioned a lot people the day of the raid, but I don’t recall a Haley.”
Then it dawned on Riley. If Moretti’s men were looking for Liza, that meant they hadn’t kidnapped her. Suddenly, Riley wanted to kick herself in the butt for not connecting those dots. For all Riley knew, Liza had gotten into an accident. After all, she was already late for their meet-up. She could be laid up in a hospital somewhere.
Chapter Fourteen
Riley had her lips mashed together as though she were thinking very hard.
Grinning, Josh slid a hand over the table. She looked adorable with her nose wrinkled. “What is it?” He reached for her, when she brought her fingers up to her mouth.
“Remember Taylor said that Liza was in a hurry because she was late to meet me?” She held a nail between her teeth. “We should check the hospitals.”
His stomach plummeted. They’d been so caught up in Taylor and mafia men that Josh hadn’t even thought about the possibility that Liza could be hurt.
“We’re one step ahead of you,” Dennison said. “We have our team checking with local law enforcement as well as hospitals in the city. We decided to take the step after speaking with Taylor Manning.”
Riley sagged in her chair. Josh sighed as his mind rioted on one thing. Maybe the two men who had shown up to see Liza the previous week were with the FBI too. Wallace had said that none of Moretti’s men had left Boston.
“Are any of your colleagues here from Boston?” Josh asked. “And how long have you guys been in town?”
Dennison regarded Josh. “We flew in earlier today. And we’re the only two agents here from Boston.”
There went that theory. Josh stared down at the wooden table before regarding Wallace. “Taylor mentioned to us that the men who had shown up at her office, asking for Liza, said they were friends of Liza’s.”
Wallace bobbed his head. “We know. Taylor told us. She also gave us their descriptions. We questioned others at Stitches, but no one could tell us anything, although we haven’t talked to Liza’s boss. He wasn’t there.”
Maybe Riley was wrong about Taylor hiding something.
“We have to check in with our team.” Wallace pulled out a business card. “Call me if you think of anything else or hear from Liza. In the meantime, are there any rooms available here for the night?”
Since it was midweek, there should’ve been some availability. “I’ll check.” Josh pushed to his feet.
Riley popped up too, when her phone rang.
Josh held his breath, hoping it was Liza.
“My brother,” she said. “Sorry, I have to take this.” She sashayed out of the restaurant and into the lobby.
Josh tapped on the table. “Hang tight. I’ll be right back.” He wound his way around empty tables, passing a couple of waiters who were setting up for the dinner crowd.
Once Josh reached the lobby, Charlie trotted up, wagging his tail. At the same time, Dad wheeled out from the office that was located around the corner from the front desk.
“Son, what’s going on?” Dad’s voice was so loud, it echoed in the small hallway where the office and restrooms were located.
Josh held up a finger, motioning for his dad to hold on. “Drake, can you set up the agents with two rooms?”
Drake nodded his bald head as he went to work, tapping on keys.
With his finger, Josh motioned to the office. “Come on, Dad.” He didn’t want anyone in the lobby to hear their conversation, and in the confines of the office, Dad wouldn’t have to shout for Josh to hear clearly.
Charlie followed Dad and Josh inside then hopped up on the loveseat that banked the side wall. The office was a modest size with the essential desk, chair, and filing cabinets. At times, the space was claustrophobic for Josh, especially after he closed the door.
Dad wheeled over and parked himself behind the desk where Josh usually sat. “Son, tell me everything.”
Josh began pacing, wearing a hole in the carpet across from Dad.
Josh didn’t want to burden his dad with what-ifs or speculate. Dad had been through enough with his ALS and the loss of Mom. He didn’t need to worry over Liza, who was like a daughter to him.
A knock sounded, then the door opened, and Riley poked her head in.
Man, she was a sight for sore eyes, even though she hadn’t been gone but five minutes. Josh waved her in and had the urge to wrap his arms around her, and inhale her fruity scent.
She gave Josh one of her groin-tightening smiles. “I hope I’m not interrupting.”
“Of course not,” Dad said.
Riley skirted the desk and kissed Dad on the cheek.
Josh wanted to ask where his kiss was.
Dad’s face lit up like a Christmas tree.
The two were becoming quite close, which was good and bad—good in the sense that they were bonding, but bad in the sense that Dad would be heartbroken when she returned to Boston. He was doing his best to push Josh and Riley toward being a couple, getting married, and the whole nine yards.
Hell, Josh wanted her to stay too. He wanted her around permanently. But his relationship status would have to wait. They needed to find Liza.
Riley eased down on the cushion next to Charlie. “It sounds like Taylor has been telling us the truth, but I still claim she’s hiding something about Liza, mainly because she seemed too nervous when we met her at her apartment. I might be wrong, but I don’t think Liza called her that day and said she was on her way to her apartment. If Liza had been, she would’ve called us, Josh.”
Riley was right. Why would Liza talk to Taylor and not them, especially Riley since the two had plans together?
“Are you two going to share?” Dad asked.
Riley and Josh filled him in on the conversation they’d had with the agents, including how Liza could’ve been hurt and in a hospital in the city.
Dad shook his graying-blond head of hair. “She would’ve called if she was in a hospital, or at least someone would’ve called us or her father.” He lifted the receiver of the desk phone. “I’ll call my brother.”
Josh doubted Liza would’ve had anyone call her old man. If Josh had to wager, he doubted Liza carried the man’s phone number in her purse.
Josh sighed as he sat down on the arm of the loveseat with Riley next to him.
Riley rubbed Charlie’s back as the dog laid his head on a pillow. “I know you said rent is expensive in the city, but I can’t help but think that something isn’t right with Taylor. She’s dressed as though she comes from money. The ring on her finger is evidence that at least her fiancé has money, and the rundown apartment doesn’t match up with her persona.”
Rescuing Riley: The Gold Coast Retrievers, Book 2 Page 8