The Do-Over (The Rooftop Crew #5) - Piper Rayne Page 0,72
hurt her. Okay, I do want to hurt her a little because of the hurtful things she said to Kamea and the way she played with my feelings for so long. But mostly I want to stress that Kamea is the one for me and she’s not some fill-in for Leilani.
“Are you trying to hurt me because I left you?” she asks.
I shake my head. “I want you to understand. I actually saw her first.”
She looks away and inhales deeply. “I can’t believe this. I help her not get date-raped in high school, I leave my family because of the bullies, and this is how she repays me—stealing my boyfriend?”
“I wasn’t your boyfriend to steal,” I say.
“You’re more mine than hers.”
I stifle a laugh. “Not true.”
She throws her arms in the air. “So you have no feelings for me anymore?”
I shake my head, one hundred percent confident in my truth.
“That’s it?”
A knock sounds on the door, and I step back to open it. “No.” I open the door and Patrice and her new partner Hank stand in the doorway, dressed in uniform. “You have an outstanding warrant for your arrest.”
“Hey, Leilani, remember me? Patrice.” My partner points at herself. “I know it’s been a while. We can do this the easy way or the hard way.”
Patrice turns Leilani around, and Leilani doesn’t fight the cuffs as I thought she might.
“Yeah, you look nothing like Kamea.” Patrice winks at me and escorts Leilani out of my apartment.
“You cannot be serious? Knox? Fine, we’re over, but you don’t have to turn me in. Knox!” she screams as they take her down the hall.
I put on my shoes, grab my jacket and my keys, and run down the stairs instead of joining them in the elevator. In my texts, I go to the group chat with everyone in it.
Me: Anyone find her?
Seth: Not yet. We’ve checked Riverfront.
Blanca: She’s not at any of the restaurants downtown.
Jax: She’s not at the liquor stores.
Evan: Why would she be at a liquor store?
Jax: That’s where I would be.
Rian: We’ve checked Sweet Infusion and the Cliffton Heights Country Club. Dylan has a place in mind. We’ll let you know.
Me: I’m checking with her old building manager in Peekskil. You find her, call me ASAP.
Seth: Dare I ask about Leilani?
I blow out a breath, sitting in my Bronco and watching the cop car pull away.
Me: It’s done.
I feel as though Kamea should be the first to know that Patrice arrested her.
Five minutes later, right before I get on the highway, a text comes in.
Rian: We found her. 56 N. Wells St.
That address sounds so familiar, but I can’t place it. I put it in my GPS and follow directions to the opposite side of Cliffton Heights. Turns out it’s somewhere I haven’t been in a long damn time.
Chapter Thirty-One
Kamea
Years ago, it was a dive bar for college kids and anyone in their early twenties. Now, it’s a pretend spy bar. The entrance is hidden, and if you don’t know the password to get in, they make you do something wacky to gain entry. Lucky for me, a couple was walking out and I think the woman could tell something was off with me, so she whispered to me, “Sterling Archer,” and the guy with her pointed me in the right direction.
Entering the dark room, I pay my cover charge and give the password to the bouncer, who seems surprised I know it. Maybe he sees my red-rimmed eyes and the pity train of my life continues. He allows me in, and I find a spot in a round booth on the back wall, away from anyone.
Everyone else in the bar seems like regulars or are thrilled to be at a spy bar where you have to answer riddles and complete missions. I’m not quite sure why I even came here. Okay, that’s a lie. He broke me here.
I’ll have to face Knox eventually. With some distance, I feel almost positive that he doesn’t want Leilani anymore, but I couldn’t stand seeing the two of them together in the same room. It felt like a knife going through my heart.
The three of us have come to the point where he can really truly choose between us once again. I guess on some level, I always knew it would come to this, and that’s what always set me on edge whenever Leilani was mentioned. Though I think when I return to the apartment it