Page 39 of Reclaiming Chaos
Carlee picked up the paper, and her heart clenched tight. Someone had told the shooter about their secret. Someone knew the truth. Had Russell hired another person like her? “You realize what this means?”
“Either he’s found someone to replace you, or there’s a mole in your group. Either way, Russell is going to see us coming.”
Her stomach rolled at the thought. There wouldn’t be a surprise. Russell would probably have someone waiting at the party to arrest them both. Her for the arrest warrant and Ridge for not taking her in.
“How do we fight someone who knows our next move?” she asked.
Ridge shrugged. “If I knew that answer, I would have caught you a month earlier.”
“I need to go back,” she said, rising from her seat. She headed to her room.
He was quick to follow on her heels. “What do you mean, you’re going back?”
“Maybe I can salvage things if I can convince him that I’m back for good and that running has been a mistake.”
She grabbed the bag of clothes and glanced around the room, dropping the manilla folder with ID and cash on the dresser.
“No,” Ridge said. “Russell will use that against you, and what’s to say that he’s even going to trust you?”
“I have to try,” she said, trying to sidestep him.
Ridge blocked her exit. “We do this together or not at all.”
She rested her hand over his heart. The strong beat was a constant reminder of what she’d been fighting for. And the main reason she had to leave now. Running had been right. Exposing Russell was the only way to make it all stop. “Saving you was the one thing I did right.”
He pressed his lips to hers as if he’d needed the kiss to breathe. She dropped her things and fisted his shirt, pulling him closer. There was a momentary hesitation in his touch, as if he were unsure she wanted this.
She stepped into him, removing any doubt.
