Read Online Loving Enough (The Enough Series Book 2) by Nikole Bloom - Free Book Online Page B

baffles me how
this guy continues to know everything she does yet stay invisible.
    “OK, so where do you propose we go?”
    I can tell she is giving it some thought before she quietly
asks, “Do you drink?”
    What a strange question. “Sure, I like to have a beer now
and then.”
    Her eyes light up and a wicked smile crosses her lips. “Good,
let's find a bar. I could use a drink after the past few days.”
    No doubt - I would if I was her. I might need more than a
few drinks if I were in her shoes.
    She glances back at me as we make our way to the main
entrance and I can see the trepidation on her face as she leaves the hospital
for the first time since the accident. The glass doors close behind us.
     “Do you know anywhere close?”
    I weigh my options. Rylee probably expects a nice bar with
modern décor and a fancy drink menu. I only know of one bar in this general
vicinity and it does not fit that description. It is more of a grunge and beer
on-tap kind of place.
    “Ry, I only know a small hole in the wall bar in the area.
Where would you like to go?”
    She looks and nods. “Sounds like a perfect place to me. All
I want is a nice cold beer. If they have that, I'm in.”
     Given that I drove Rylee to the hospital that fateful
morning, we are forced to take my old beat up truck down the street to a place aptly
named the Watering Hole. It’s a local haunt frequented by the cops in my
district so I figure that is an extra plus in this situation.
    I am somewhat embarrassed by the state of my ride. It is
free of clutter, but still has that old car smell and hasn’t been properly
cleaned in ages. Rylee doesn’t seem to care, though. She just hops in and pulls
the door shut before rolling down her manual window.
    “What is this, a ’97 model?”
    I am shocked she knows that, but how does she know that? I
nod and oddly it does not prompt her to say anything further.
    My curiosity piqued, I have to ask, “Well are you going to
tell me how you knew that?”
    She smiles and winks. “Oh, Mr. Detective, we all have to have
a few secrets, right?”
    I keep a close eye on my mirrors as we make the short drive.
Nothing appears unusual. I almost wish it did so I could get a line on how this
guy knows her every move.
    We draw a few stares as we make our way through the door of
the Watering Hole. There are several officers enjoying after shift drinks and
shooting pool. Rylee and I settle into a booth in the back corner of the bar
where I still have a clear view of the door and we have a little privacy.
    She orders a beer and a shot of tequila, so I do the same.
After slamming the shot and a quick beer chaser, her eyes meet mine. They are
full of so many things: fear, despair, worry, and a little dash of hope, I
think. Her body language tells me she is nervous, and she is holding her cell
phone like a lifeline.
    I give her a reassuring smile as I take a long pull from my
beer. “OK, Rylee, what’s going on? It looks to me like you are ready to
explode. Tell me what’s up.”
    She takes a deep breath, presumably to calm her very visible
nerves, then starts.
    “So do you remember Micah Jones, the badass linebacker from
the University of Alabama?”
    I nod, thinking what an odd person to bring into this.
    “Well, you see, he and I met before the draft last year…”
    She made her way through the entire story and I can see why
she thinks he is a definite possibility. However, I can’t see a way a person that
size could hide in the shadows.
    “OK, Rylee, that seems a reasonable conclusion, but how do
you think he is pulling this off? He is not a small man.”
    She finishes her beer and signals the waitress for another
after asking if I wanted one. I do, but I think I will wait.
    “See, Ruzek, that is the question I can’t answer. He fits
everything else, but I cannot see how he could stay hidden. He might have
someone working with him, but he told me that he’s basically broke. So I don’t know.
It was just an idea.