GONE - Part Two (The GONE Series Book 2) by Deborah Bladon Read Free Book Online

here."
    "I know."
    "Why are you here?" I know the customary thing to say would be to invite him in. I don't want that. I want Ben to appear behind Clive for moral support.
    "Can I come in?" His gaze darts behind me to the barren space that will eventually be my living room. Right now, all that is there is the one armchair and side table that the landlord believes justifies the furnished apartment rate he's charging me for.
    "I'm expecting someone." I move to look past his shoulder towards the staircase that leads up to the third floor. I don't see Ben even though it's more than thirty minutes after he promised he'd be here. Having an emergency room doctor as your only friend comes with a lot of concessions including spur of the moment cancellations.
    "I'll leave when she gets here."
    I don't correct him because it's none of his business who I'm expecting. "Fine," I spit out through clenched teeth.
    He turns on his heel the moment I close the door behind him. "Rowan told me that she saw you today."
    "That's why you're here." I don't present it as a question because it's not worth wasting my time trying to gain insight into what he discussed with her. "How do you know where I live?"
    He scratches his head right above his ear. "You called the doorman at Rebecca's building yesterday to get your mail forwarded here."
"Why would the doorman tell you that?" I push my back into the door. I wish I would have left it open. My apartment feels too small and confined for the two of us.
    "He didn't tell me that." He pushes his hands into the pockets of his pants. "He told Rebecca. She was standing in the lobby when you called."
    I had debated that decision over and over in my mind, before finally deciding that I had no choice. I thought I'd live with Rebecca for at least several months so I'd given her address to all the companies I still have to deal with regarding my parent's house. I couldn't have known that when I called the doorman there to ask him to send me the mail I hadn't collected yet, that he'd share all those details with my former roommate.
    "Lilly." His eyes dart around the empty space. "Would you like to go somewhere else to talk? I'd prefer to sit down."
    I feel a surge of relief at the words. "There's a coffee shop across the street. I can meet you there."
    He glances down at his wristwatch as he closes the space between us. "What about the person you're expecting? I can wait if you need to see her first."
    I step out of his way, holding open the door to let him walk through. "I'll see my friend another time. I'll be down in ten minutes."
     

Chapter 12
     
    "How do you expect me to believe you?" I try to keep my voice at an even and controllable pitch. "You must have saved the files. I don't believe that you walked away from my laptop without saving a copy of them."
    He hangs his head in his hands. "I didn't save the files, Lilly."
"How do I know you're telling the truth?" I clench my hands tightly together before pulling them into my lap.
    His finger traces a trail around the lid of the paper coffee cup sitting on the table in front of him. "I'm not going to lie to you. Ask me anything. I won't lie."
    I stare at the untouched cup of coffee he bought for me. I have a million questions for him but not one of them seems relevant now. I've moved on from what happened in his office and in his bed. I'm forging ahead with a new life for myself that includes an apartment and a job I never realized I wanted. Delving back into why he did anything doesn't carry any weight in the world I'm living in now. "I don't want to ask you anything, Clive. I just want your assurance that you didn't save anything you saw on my computer."
    "I told you that I didn't go to Rebecca's apartment with the intention of looking at your computer. It just happened."
    "It just happened?" I parrot back. "Just like when you called me to your office during the mixer and touched me? That just happened too, right?"
    "No." His eyes catch mine over the table.