"Because ifyoucall, he'll answer."
Somehow, I wasn't so sure. For all I knew, Jake had blocked my number.
Okay, I didn't really believe that, but after this morning, Jake wouldn't be jumping to take a call fromme– at least not until he cooled down.
But Joel didn't need my problems on top of his own, so I summoned up a smile and said, "He'd answer for you, too."
"Except he didn't."
"Well, I'm sure he's just tied up or something."
"Yeah? Prove it." With slow precision, he added, "Go get your phone, and give him a call."
Stalling, I said, "You mean now?"
"Yeah.Now. I'll wait."
I tried to make a joke of it. "I'm afraid you'd be waiting a long time." When he said nothing, I added, "Because actually, my phone is kind of missing."
He stared down at me, obviously not believing a single word I was saying.
When he finally did speak, his voice had a bitter edge that hurt to hear. "Yeah, I bet."
"It is," I insisted, glancing around. "But you know what? It's gotta be around here somewhere."
In truth, I wasn't so sure. But Iwasdesperate. I gave Joel a hopeful look. "Wanna help me look for it?"
"Nice try."
"I’m not 'trying' anything. I'm telling you the truth. And if we had a landline—"
"But you don't." He glanced toward the still-open penthouse door. "This is such bullshit."
"It is not," I insisted.
"Uh-huh." He eyed me with obvious loathing. "When you call him, as in the minute I walk out the door, you tell him that I'm looking for him."
And with that, he turned away and strode out of the penthouse, heading toward the elevator.
Desperately, I called after him. "Wait! At least give me a minute to look for it."
But he didn't wait. And he didn't look back. Already, he was pushing the down button.
Watching, I didn't know what to do.
Unless I was willing – and let's face it, able – to physically restrain him, I had no way to make him stop. And, in more frustrating news, I also had no way to contact Jake.
After the elevator carried Joel away, I tore through the condo, frantically looking for my phone. I doubted that I'd find it, but Ihadto try.
Turns out, it was all for nothing. After fifteen frantic minutes, I gave up. All I was doing was wasting time.
I bolted out the condo, took the elevator down to the lobby, and found Pete at his usual station. "Can I borrow your phone?" I asked, pointing to the landline on his desk.
A moment later, I was standing alone behind his station, gripping the receiver as I punched in Jake's number.
It rang once, twice, and then –damn it– went to voicemail. When Jake's greeting ended, I spoke into the receiver. "Jake, listen. Joel was here, and he's really upset. I don't know where you are, but youreallyneed to get ahold of him."
After a brief pause, I heard my voice soften. "And wherever you are, I hope you're okay." I bit my lip. "See you Monday?"
I was just hanging up the receiver when I looked up and spotted a familiar male figure striding through the building's glass double doors.
Unfortunately, it wasn't Jake.
It was Bishop. And right behind him was, of all the people Ididn'twant to see, Bianca.
