a gun back to the penthouse under the radar, without Baz or Dan knowing, but I’m going to try. I’m not taking any more chances. I can’t trust anyone, and this is the only thing I can trust. This gun will keep me alive.
Just as I’m putting the dangerous thing in my purse, my cell shrills, echoing around us, and I jump. Jack and I share a look. Surprise turns to worry as I look down at the caller ID. It’s Baz. We haven’t talked in days. He hasn’t even so much as checked in on me. What could he possibly want now? Does he know where I am and what I’m doing?
“Don’t answer it. He could be tracking you,” Jack blurts. I shoot him a dry look.
“He’s a businessman, not the goddamn FBI.”
Still uncertain, I decide to let the call go to voicemail. I wait to see if he leaves a message. He doesn’t, but he does send a text.
Baz: Be ready by eight p.m. Dan will be picking you up and driving you.
Mackenzie: Driving me where?
I wait for a response, but I’m not all that surprised when I don’t get one. Uncertainty pools in my belly as I say goodbye to Jack. We eye each other with fear when he drops me off. I know he’s worried about me, especially now that I have a gun, but I do my best to remain calm on the outside, for his sake at least.
Keeping my purse close to my body, too afraid to let it out of my sight, I enter the resort, feeling like a spotlight shines on me with each step I take. I’m just on my way to the elevator, thinking I’ve made it through okay, when the doors glide open and there stands Dan. With his arms crossed in front of him, he nods his head at me.
“Ms. Wright.”
“Dan,” I say, my voice too high-pitched and breathy. “I wasn’t expecting you.”
“Mr. King thought it best I show you what you’re expected to wear tonight.”
I tighten my grip on my purse and shift anxiously on my feet the entire way up to the penthouse level. I feel the sweat beading on my forehead. I worry that my purse looks too bulky. He’s a bodyguard of sorts. Does he know how to detect if someone has a gun on them?
“There a problem?” he asks, noticing my fidgeting.
I jerk violently. “What? No. No, of course not!” I all but shout, feeling jumpy. Dan’s eyes narrow, but he doesn’t say anything to me. The elevator dings once we’re on the penthouse level, and I all but book it to the door, swiping my key, forgetting that Dan still has to explain.
“Your dress for tonight is laid out on your bed. Please be in the lobby by eight p.m., so we can be on time.”
I nod jerkily and swallow, sweating through my clothes, wishing he would just leave already. Once he starts heading for the door, I blow out a sigh of relief, but freeze when he turns back to me.
“You sure you’re okay, Ms. Wright?”
“Mm-hmm. I just need a warm shower is all.”
He eyes me for a few solid beats before he lets himself out, and I all but collapse with relief. I head into my bedroom, careful not to open my purse until I’m safely inside. I don’t know if Baz has cameras in here, but if he does, I need to do this where he won’t see me.
I climb on the bed and pull back the sheets and slide under them. With the comforter covering me, I take the weapon out of my bag, and my heart jerks unsteadily at its weight. I hide it under my pillow for now, until I can find a better, safer place for it.
That’ll have to do.
I step back from the mirror, taking in the entirety of my reflection. After a warm shower, I started getting ready for tonight with Baz and whatever that entailed. But by the looks of what he left me to wear, I can imagine just fine what’s going to happen tonight. I just can’t seem to wrap my head around why he’s making it such a big deal.
If it’s just sex, why aren’t we doing it here? Why are we going somewhere else, like this is some big occasion?
The dress Baz left on the bed is fancy, but not as fancy as the one I wore to the gala. It’s obvious we aren’t going to an event