Business as Usual (Off The Subject) (31 page)

“I think we should skip everything today and just focus on finding Reed.”

I pull my head back. “What?”

His jaw is tight and determination fills his eyes. “I think he’s in trouble and we don’t have time to waste.”

“But you don’t even like Reed very much.” He starts to protest, but I place my fingertips on his lips. “Don’t argue. I just want to know why you want to help him.”

He offers me a grim smile. “Reed and I aren’t best friends. Hell, we aren’t even friends, but of course I want to help him. He’s trying to help you. And he’s your brother.”

I look up at the intensity in his eyes and I shake my head. “Ben, you hardly know me.”

“It’s like I told you last night—I might not have known you for a long time, but I
do
know you. Are you telling me that you aren’t the person I think you are?”

I was embarrassed when he listed my traits to me last night, but I have to admit that everything he said was true. “Okay, but I don’t think you should skip anything. We’ll both go to our nine o’clock classes first. Then we can go to the math lab.”

“Do you have a test in your first class or anything you can’t miss?”

“Well, no…” I can always get notes from Sylvia.

“Then let’s get started right away. I have a really bad feeling about this.”

He’s serious.

“So we skip our first classes to get started, we don’t need to skip the entire day.”

He starts to say something, but then he gives me a soft kiss. “We’ll see how it goes.” He grabs his coffee off the counter and drains it. “I’m going to grab a quick shower, and then we can get started. We’ll start in Reed’s room.”

“Okay.”

He starts down the hall, then stops and turns. “Don’t leave the apartment, okay?”

My eyes narrow in confusion. “Why?”

His mouth parts and he hesitates. “You said the guy tried to call you last night and I’d rather err on the side of safety. Just humor me, okay?”

“Okay.”

I make a cup of coffee and am starting to clean up the kitchen from last night when I notice the paper Ben was huddled over. I lean over the counter and realize he’s created a list of things to look for, along with places to look. He’s thought of things I haven’t, like a sequence of numbers and binary code. I’m still studying the paper when he comes back into the kitchen, his hair dripping wet.

“Anything to add?” he asks, swiping his empty cup from the counter and putting it under the coffee maker.

“No, in fact, I would never have come up with some of these.”

He grins, but it’s not as playful as usual. “I was trying to think like him. He’s a computer geek, though. I’m more a trig and calculus guy.”

“Do you think we’ll find anything in the lab?”

He takes a deep breath and releases it. “Honestly, I don’t know. Like I said, he doesn’t seem like the kind of guy who would leave evidence lying around. He’s meticulous to a fault. I think he’s going to have done a damn good job of covering his tracks.”

I nod, trying to hide my disappointment.

“Hey,” he says, trying to sound lighter. “No one’s perfect, though, so maybe he fucked up somewhere.”

I shake my head and laugh. “I’m not sure which one to hope for.”

“Yeah, I know.”

“I’m going to make eggs for breakfast,” I say and open the refrigerator to pull out the carton. “How do you like your eggs?”

His eyebrows lift and a grin spreads across his face as he takes a sip of his coffee. “Why do I think this sounds like a test?”

“It’s not. It’s a simple question. Fried? Sunny side up? Scrambled?”

“What if I want eggs Benedict?”

I put a hand on my hip. “Then you’re out of luck.”

“Scrambled,” he mutters over the rim of his mug. “And I’m more than a little afraid of what that says about me.”

I walk over and pull a bowl from the cabinet. “It means you like scrambled eggs.”

He holds his cup out and away from his body but snags his free arm around my waist, pulling me to him. His face lowers until it’s just inches from mine, and he stares into my eyes. “And how do you like your eggs, Ms. Pendergraft?”

“Scrambled. Just like you.”

His grin spreads, lighting up his eyes. “See? The stars have aligned. We were meant to be together.”

I kiss him again and then pull out of his grasp. “On a planet with nearly seven billion people, what
are
the odds of finding someone else who likes scrambled eggs?”

He tilts his head to the side with a smirk. “Mock me if you’d like, but I notice you’re barefoot and working in the kitchen again, so who gets the last laugh?”

I’m happy to see his lightheartedness has returned. When I’m done, we sit side by side at the bar as we eat and there’s a familiarity I don’t expect. The beginning of a relationship is usually full of awkward moments and pauses, but I realize I’ve never experienced that with him.

I find myself staring at him for lengthy stretches of time and he notices. He leans forward and gives me the most gentle of kisses, butterfly soft. “Let’s get moving.”

I put the plates in the dishwasher as Ben reads his list. “Ideally, I’d love to crack his passwords, but I think we have a better chance of a meteorite striking the earth and sending us into an ice age.”

“I could ask Caroline, but I’m worried she’ll ask questions. It’s a suspicious request.”

His eyebrows lift in surprise. “Do you think he would have told her?”

“I don’t know.” I give a half shrug. “They were really, really close. They spent almost every spare moment together until Reed started pulling away when this whole mess started.”

“That’s pretty sad.”

“Yeah.” The guilt eats at me.

He leans across the counter and grabs my hand. “Alexa, don’t do that. You are not responsible for your brother’s relationship.”

“Aren’t I? If it weren’t for me, they’d still be together.”

“If it weren’t for you, there’s a good chance they wouldn’t have been together at all. Does that make you responsible for the health of their relationship for the rest of your life?”

“No, but they split up because of me. Because Reed is trying to protect
me
.”

“No, they split up because Reed kept secrets from Caroline. Granted, he did it to protect you both, but that’s the real reason.”

I stare into his eyes. “Don’t keep secrets from me, okay? Even if you think they’ll hurt me.”

He hesitates, and then a goofy grin spreads across his face. “My heart is laid bare for you, Alexa.”

I shake my head. “Come on. Let’s get started.”

We start searching Reed and Caroline’s room. When Ben opens a drawer full of Caroline’s lingerie, he takes a step back and lifts his hands in the air. “Whoa. Nothing makes you feel more like a creeper than going through your boss-slash-girlfriend’s-brother’s-fiancée’s lingerie. You look through it.”

“I don’t want to go through it. I don’t want to think about her wearing it with my brother.”

“Well,
someone
has to and it’s not going to be me.”

I realize what he’s just said. “You called me your girlfriend.”

He looks up from the next drawer he’s begun searching and then straightens to standing. “Do you like me?”

I shudder in surprise. “Of course. How can you even ask that?”

“Do you want to be with me?”

“You know I do.”

“You know how I feel about you, so what’s the big deal?” He shrugs. “It’s a title. A label.”

I can’t help but chuckle. “You have no idea how much you sounded like Reed just now. I’m going to chalk it up to left brain domination.”

He cringes. “Wow. I’m not sure whether to feel horrified or flattered.”

I smile and wrap my hands around the back of his neck. “Shut up and kiss me.”

“You are a demanding woman. Is this what I have to look forward too? You ordering me to kiss you?”

“I guess you’ll have to stick around and find out.” I cock an eyebrow. “And you still haven’t kissed me.”

His mouth lowers to mine, hovering less than an inch away. “Like this?”

“No.”

His mouth moves to the corner of my mouth. His lips brush along my cheek, his warm breath sending shivers up my spine. “Like this?”

“No,” I say, breathless.

His mouth returns to mine, his tongue barely outlining my lips. “Like this?”

A jolt of desire spreads through my abdomen and my knees weaken. “No,” I moan.

His mouth finds mine, hard and demanding as one hand grips the back of my head, the other pressing firmly on my back.

I cling to him, wanting more.

“I have absolutely no will power with you,” he murmurs when he lifts his head. “You have no idea how much I want to take you to your room and strip you naked. All from just a kiss.”

A shiver of desire spreads across my skin.

He stares into my eyes. “But we have to find clues about Reed.” His arms drop and he places a chaste kiss on my lips. “So no seducing me, you siren.”

“Ever?” I ask, mischievously.

“No, just the next hour or so.”

We spend about forty-five minutes searching without finding anything. Ben shakes his head as he takes a final look around the room. “This isn’t a good sign. I’d expect any clues to be in here.”

“But we’re still going to look at the math lab, right?”

“Of course, just don’t get your hopes up.” He pauses. “Maybe it’s time to call Caroline.”

“Yeah.” I know he’s right. But I did such a bad job of deflecting her questions the last time we spoke that I worry how I’ll manage now. “I need to get my cell phone. I think I left it in my purse.”

Ben follows me to the kitchen.

My phone is at the top and I check the screen for any missed calls, finding none. The last call received was Todd’s number. I have Caroline’s number on speed dial, so it only takes a second to make the call. “Hey, Lex. Is everything okay?”

“Yeah,” I hedge. “I have an unusual request.”

She answers hesitantly, “Okay.”

“You’ll want to ask questions, but I’m begging you to wait until later for an explanation.”

“No, Lexi.” Her voice is firm. “Enough secrets.”

My shoulders sag with disappointment and I look up at Ben.

“Tell her,” he says.

My eyes widen and I cover the mouthpiece. “I can’t! What if she’s called to testify?”

“Hopefully, we’ll stop Reed before he does anything. Tell her. She still won’t really know anything and she deserves to know.”

“Lexi?” Caroline asks in my ear.

“Okay,” I sigh. “I’ll tell you what’s going on.”

“
You will
?”

“Yes, but I want to do this in person.”

“Meet me at Panera in fifteen minutes.”

“Okay.”

I hang up and look up at Ben and tell him when and where I’m meeting her.

He looks grim. “Okay. Do you need to do anything else before leaving?”

“I need to do something to my hair. I’m sure it’s a mess.”

“It’s perfect.”

I laugh and kiss him before heading to the bathroom. “You just want to get laid later.”

“That too.”

We take Ben’s car to Panera. He pulls into the parking lot and turns off the engine. “Is it okay if I come in with you?”

I turn to him in surprise. “Of course. I need your help.”

“Okay.” He gets out of the car and comes around to the passenger side. “Are you going to start off by telling Caroline what’s going on? That’s probably the best way to handle it, since she’ll probably be more on board with helping us.”

“Yeah, good idea.”

Caroline is sitting at a table with a coffee cup in front of her. She looks up as we approach, her eyes widening with surprise when they land on Ben.

“Hey, Caroline.” I put my arm around Ben’s back. “This is Ben Masterson.”

She’s still staring.

“We’ve been seeing each other,” I add.

Ben steps forward and shakes her hand. “Nice to meet you, Caroline. If you want references, I work with Scarlett in the math lab,” he teases. “I’m pretty sure she’ll vouch for me.”

Recognition spreads over her face. “Yeah, Scarlett’s mentioned you. She likes you, especially after the Tina freak-out on Monday.”

Ben leans down and kisses my cheek. “I’m going to get a coffee. Do you want anything?”

I look up at him and smile. “No. I’m good.” My voice softens. “Thank you.”

He nods and heads toward the counter.

Caroline’s gaze follows him and then shifts to me as I sit across from her. “He’s in love with you.”

“
What
?” I watch him at the counter. He turns around to check on me and when he sees me watching, he lifts his hand and waves, a grin spreading across his face.

Caroline is watching too. “Yep, he’s a total goner.”

I shake my head. “No, he can’t be in love with me. We haven’t been together for very long.”

“Maybe not, but it didn’t take Reed very long either.” She laughs as she gives him another look before returning her gaze to me. “Well, the boy is smitten, we’ll leave it at that.”

I blush. “Fair enough.”

“For the record, Scarlett really does sing his praises. What does Reed think about this?”

My smile falls. “He doesn’t know. Yet.”

“Understood,” she says. “Sorry I haven’t been there to run interference.”

“That’s not why I miss you, Caroline. I miss
you
.” A lump fills my throat and I try to swallow it.

“I miss you too, Lex.” She grabs her coffee cup with both hands and her eyes turn serious. “So, you said you were going to tell me what’s going on.”

I nod. “Reed’s going to be furious, but Ben agrees that you need to know.”

Her mouth lifts on one side. “I like this Ben already.”

I tell her everything about Reed and what I know. Somewhere in the course of my explanation, I decide to tell her
everything
, including going out with Tina and Ben helping me when I was drugged. She’s furious with Tina, but grateful that Ben was there to help me. And when I finally finish, she grabs my hand, tears in her eyes. “Why didn’t you and Reed tell me?”

“I told you. Reed was trying to protect you. He was worried that you’d get in trouble with the cops if you knew everything.”

Anger fills her eyes. “Damn him and his need to protect everyone. I’m not some delicate flower that’s easily crushed!”