Summer Lovin (15 page)

“Hi, Zoe. It's Connor.”

“Hey. Any news?” Since Connor had the emergency rooms on his list, she fervently hoped not.

“Not a thing.”

Zoe let out a deep breath of air. Covering the phone, she glanced at Ryan. “She's not in any of the local hospitals,” she reassured him.

“Thank God.” He lowered himself into the nearest chair, looking too pale for her peace of mind.

“Would it help if I gave her room a cursory glance?” Uncle Russ asked.

Zoe waved him away. Let him do whatever he wanted as long as he stayed out of her way. “Connor, thank you for calling. Let me know if you hear from Quinn.”

“Will do.”

“Thanks.” Zoe hung up the phone and strode over to where Ryan sat. “Are you okay?” She was hesitant to touch him in a way that offered support or comfort.

One minute they were adversaries, the next desperate lovers and after that uncertain allies, both concerned about Sam. Zoe wasn't certain what category they fell into right now.

“Did I ever tell you about the day Faith ran away?” Ryan asked, taking her by surprise.

Zoe shook her head. Until this moment, the parallels hadn't occurred to her. But Zoe understood now that Ryan was reliving a painful time in his life.

She pulled a chair up beside him and covered his hand with hers. “I'm listening.” Not only because she relished details of his life, but because it gave her something to focus on while she manned the house.

“Faith was a typical older sister. She rarely wanted me around. That is, until the night before she left.” His eyes clouded over and Zoe could tell he was remembering vividly.

“Ari and I were twins and sometimes we didn't want each other around,” she said, laughing.

“That's what made that last night so strange. But I didn't know it at the time. She called me into her room and I hung out with her awhile. She paced around the room, talking quickly. I don't know if she was high at the time or completely lucid and just excited, knowing she planned to run away the next day.”

He would never know, but Zoe wasn't about to say so aloud.

“The only thing I really remember was that she kept talking to me about staying true to myself. Being myself. Doing what I wanted with my life and not what was expected of me.”

“She cared.”

He swallowed hard, his eyes damp, visibly shaken by the memories. “It was probably the only time she showed it. The rest of my memories revolve around her fights with my parents, slamming doors to get away from them.”

“Like mother like daughter.” Zoe shook her head. “But it's typical teenage behavior. We expect it.”

“My parents didn't.” His fist clenched at his side. “Whoever told them to expect perfection from children had definitely steered them wrong,” he muttered.

“What happened the morning Faith left?”

“I can answer that.”

Zoe stiffened as Uncle Russ, a man she'd come to view as an intruder, walked back into the room. She wanted time alone with Ryan and he'd taken that from her.

Zoe wondered what else Ryan's family would take away.

Z
OE WAITED FOR
R
YAN'S UNCLE
to speak. The muscles in the back of her neck hurt from nerves and stress and she rolled her head from side to side, trying to ease the tension.

“Faith liked to stir things up,” Russ said at last. “She had obviously planned to run away because she knew I kept petty cash in my briefcase and she stole that money before she took off.”

“From the business?” Zoe asked, surprised any teenager would take that kind of risk.

Russ shook his head. “She stole money from the home office, actually.”

“Uncle Russ lives in a gatehouse on the property,” Ryan explained. “He and my father have an office there. Wasn't that also during the days when there were mob-related truck hijackings?” Ryan asked his uncle. “I remember Dad talking about those days when J.T. was ready to come into the business.”

His uncle nodded slowly. “Yes, yes. Those were chaotic times in every sense of the word,” he said.

“And why is it you never tried to find Faith?” she asked, turning the subject back to what was important. She met the older man's gaze and waited for an answer.

He cleared his throat. “I beg to differ, young lady. I did try to find my niece. Unfortunately her trail grew cold rather quickly.”

Ryan rose from his seat. “Uncle Russ is my main ally and supporter. I've seen his paperwork and the detective I hired worked off of any trail he'd managed to find.”

Zoe glanced at the older man. “Speaking of trails, did you find anything in her room?”

“Beyond all those candles, stuffed animals, magazines and books?” He shook his head laughing softly. “She's obviously been treated well.”

“Here,” Zoe reminded him. “She's been treated well here.” She pointed to the floor of her home. “Before that it was the foster-care shuffle and nobody bought her a damn thing unless she absolutely needed it.”

Ryan placed a calming hand on her arm. “Let's try to hold it together until she comes home, okay?”

Zoe nodded. Another half an hour passed during which she thought she'd go mad, mostly from the feeling that Ryan's uncle was watching her and her actions around his nephew. She hated being under a microscope and this man made studying and examining an art form.

Ryan and his uncle spoke in hushed tones in the corner of the family room, yet every so often she'd catch Ryan's compelling gaze on her and she'd heat up, knowing they still had unspoken feelings and desires between them.

Zoe was lying on the couch nearby with one arm covering her eyes when the phone finally rang. She jumped up and grabbed the receiver. “Hello?”

“Hello, this is Francesca at the spa. I think I have someone here you might be looking for,” the woman said in a lowered voice.

Zoe swallowed hard, her relief so profound her legs began to shake. “How long has Sam been there?”

“I found her outside the entrance this morning and she followed me inside. She said she was wondering if I could fit her in for a manicure.”

She'd been right next door the entire time? Good Lord.

Nobody had thought to check the spa because since they'd opened, Sam had never once shown an interest in beauty treatments of any kind. Manicures, pedicures and facials weren't her thing, she'd often said. Sam was more of a tomboy, so looking for her at the spa had never dawned on any of them who knew her well.

So much still didn't make sense. Even if Sam had changed her mind about more girlie things, why not just ask Elena for an appointment? Why sneak out the window for something so innocent? Especially the morning after she'd received devastating news.

Zoe shook her head. There was much more going on, of that Zoe was certain. “What happened next?” she asked Francesca.

“I told her I was booked for the early appointment, but if she didn't mind waiting an hour or so I could fit her in. She sat and watched me most of the morning. But just now, when I said I needed to check on Elena and see why she hadn't come in today, she freaked out. She begged me not to call and it was obvious something was going on. She thinks I'm in the ladies' room now.”

“Keep her there for me. I'll be right over. And thank you so much for calling.”

Zoe exhaled a huge breath of air.

“Well?” Ryan stood towering over her.

“She's at the spa and please don't ask why we didn't realize it before now. I don't have time to explain.”

“Thank God,” he muttered. “Thank God.”

She wanted to hug him and join in his relief, but she had to stay focused on Sam. Zoe grabbed a pad and jotted down a bunch of cell-phone numbers. “Please call my parents, Quinn and Ari, and Connor, with the news.” She handed the pad to Ryan.

“Sure thing.”

“I'm going next door to get her. And Ryan?”

“Yes?” He gazed at her with those gorgeous brown eyes.

Zoe paused, knowing her next words would sound cruel. She truly wasn't looking to hurt Ryan; she just wanted to look out for Sam. “Could you…could you not be here when we get back? I promise to call you this afternoon. Just let me get Sam here and talk—”

“No.”

Zoe blinked. “Excuse me?” She thought he'd be understanding. Reasonable.

“No, I won't disappear. We'll all deal with Sam together, your family and mine,” he said, his gaze encompassing both Zoe and his uncle.

She could see from his clenched jaw that he wouldn't budge on this issue. Apparently, she didn't know Ryan as well as she'd thought.

 

I
N THE SPA
, Z
OE FOUND
Sam having a grand old time. She sat with her bare feet in a pedicure tub full of bubbling water. Her nails had been freshly done. She had a mud pack spread across her face and she was currently applying the same salve to Ima Pig's skin. When she finished, she lifted the animal's hooves and held them under the dryer along with her own nails.

Zoe stepped closer. Sure enough, Ima's nails, or whatever they were called on a pig, had a bold red color that matched Sam's.

Zoe cleared her throat.

Sam glanced up, saw Zoe and jumped. Her nails hit the fans. She put Ima on the floor, then glanced at her hands and frowned. “You made me mess my manicure.”

“I'm going to mess more than that. Do you realize that everyone in the family is out looking for you? Connor checked all the hospital emergency rooms. Mom and Dad and Ari and Quinn are driving all over creation, knocking on your friends' doors, and you're here having a pampering session!” Zoe yelled, not caring about disturbing other customers.

Sam glanced down, obviously duly chastised. Then without warning, she threw herself at Zoe, sobbing like crazy. “I'm sorry. I was going to run away. I was. And then when I got down the tree by my window, I saw that guy.”

Zoe's nerves went on alert. “What guy?”

“The guy that was in my room the other day. He was lurking in the shadows by the house. Right beneath my window,” she said, eyes wide.

Theatrics aside, Sam had obviously been spooked.

“Are you sure he was the same person?” Zoe asked, then shivered. Because if Sam was right, they'd been searching for someone with a beef against her parents, but maybe someone wanted something from Sam.

“I'm sure. He had dark hair like the guy who was in the kitchen that morning, ugly face with big teeth and everything. I got scared and I hid behind the tree. Even if I wanted to go back, I couldn't. I'm good, but not even I could climb back up that tree as easily as I got down. And I didn't want him to see me and end up following me. I could end up like someone on those
Without a Trace
or
CSI
shows, you know?”

“Heaven forbid!” Zoe said.

“Well there was no place for me to go even if I changed my mind. The alarm was set and I'd forgotten my key, and I couldn't just ring the doorbell and tell you all I was going to run away again, so I just hid, praying that man wouldn't see me,” she said, her voice rising.

“Slow down, okay?”

“Okay.” Sam sniffed and drew a deep breath. “When I looked out from around the tree again, I didn't see him there. So I started to walk, sticking close to the house, and then I saw Francesca opening up the spa and I thought, safety in numbers.”

“So you told her you wanted a manicure.”

Sam nodded. “Besides I didn't want to leave you guys. I really didn't. So I thought I'd hang out with Francesca and maybe by the time Elena came to work, I'd have figured out some story and wouldn't get in any trouble.”

Zoe rolled her eyes. “Trouble is your middle name, missy. Go wash the mud pack off your face. By then let's hope everyone will be back and we can deal with all this.” She prodded Sam's back.

“I'm going,” she muttered. She picked up Ima and they started for the bathroom. Five minutes later, Sam and Ima returned, all cleaned up.

Zoe ushered them to the door, pausing at the front desk where Francesca sat. “Don't you have something to say?” Zoe asked Sam.

“Thanks for this morning,” Sam said. “And I'm sorry that I lied.”

Francesca smiled. “You're a good girl, Samantha. You take care of yourself and that piglet.”

“I will.”

They traipsed back to the house, Sam dragging her feet as they walked. “You called everyone and told them I'm okay?” she asked in a low voice.

Oh boy,
Zoe thought. Now came the fun part. “I didn't call. I came right over to get you. Ryan made the calls for me.”

As Zoe had expected, Sam dug in her heels. “If he's there, I'm not going back.”

“Something tells me you're in no position to be making demands right now. Besides, you can't hate Ryan just because he's related to you.”

“Well where has he been up until now?” Sam pouted like a little girl, but in her eyes Zoe saw the ache deep in her heart.

“I'm sure he can answer that better than I can.” Zoe met Sam's gaze. “But my understanding is that when your mom ran away, he was young, about your age. And by the time he was able to start looking, she'd managed to make herself hard to find. He just found out his sister had a child and he came to find you right away.” Again, she found herself defending Ryan at the expense of her own interests.

“So maybe he can come visit once a year at Christmas,” Sam muttered.

Out of the mouths of babes,
Zoe thought and she couldn't help but laugh dryly.

 

W
HILE
Z
OE HAD GONE
to pick up Sam from the spa, Ryan had talked his uncle into taking his car and making himself scarce. Ryan would have liked him to stay, but the family didn't need an unfamiliar face and more important, neither did Sam.

When she'd returned, he'd waited while Sam had had her reunion with everyone and then sat through the Costases' lectures about running away and letting everyone worry about her. Then Sam had gone to her room while the family had excused themselves to meet alone in the kitchen.

Now Ryan sat with them in the den. Actually, he sat apart from them, as nobody wanted to get within inches of him. They stood united on one side of the room protectively huddled around Sam who'd stomped down from her room. All except Zoe eyed him with distrust and Ryan shifted uncomfortably in his chair.

“We found footprints near the tree where Sam said she saw the intruder,” Quinn said.

“I told you!” Sam raised a victory hand in the air.

Zoe sighed, grabbed Sam's wrist and pulled her arm back down. “Go on,” she said to Quinn.

“We have nothing specific to tell us that this person is targeting Sam, but it's the only conclusion since he was in her room the first time and beneath her window this morning. Add to that she's seen his face and can identify him. If you ask me, Sam's definitely at risk.”

Each family member murmured in agreement, and then Quinn continued. “We talked in the kitchen and we agree that Sam needs to get out of here for a while.”

Ryan hadn't been included in the family discussion, but he remained silent as he listened to their concerns.

Elena rose from her seat. “I'll take her to Greece.” She nodded and folded her arms in front of her, the long flowing sleeves of her outfit hitting Nicholas in the face as she moved.

Ryan stiffened at the suggestion, but before he could react, Quinn shook his head. “Nothing that drastic is necessary and it wouldn't work, anyway. First, you won't get Social Services to approve the trip and second, you can't run away from the other problem.” With that pronouncement, his dark gaze settled on Ryan.

He took that as his cue. Rising from his seat, Ryan faced the family. Their angry stares and hurt gazes weren't easy for him to bear. Zoe and her feelings would be even more of a challenge, but he would have to deal with them later.