you didn't hang out with your friend group as much. Not that I've been that serious," he said with a laugh. "But I've seen it with other people. It's normal, I think."
"We were pretty serious, but we ended up apart. I think we both needed to grow up."
"From what I've seen Ryan is pretty damn adult. Scarily responsible."
"That's good news," Mariah laughed. "I hope I've grown up a little, too."
"I think you both are going to do fine. You've got to believe."
"That's good advice, Knox. Have you ever thought about becoming a relationship counselor?"
Knox threw back his head and laughed. "Fuck, no. I don't know shit about relationships. But I do know when two people can't take their eyes off of one another. That's you and Ryan. I have a feeling I'll be seeing you in Seattle before too long."
Seattle. Chicago. Did it matter where in the world they were?
As long as she was with Ryan, she was at home.
Fifty minutes and counting. Ryan had ten more minutes to get here or Mariah was going to go back to the apartment and drag him out. Her fingers itched to grab her phone and give him a call, but then she'd stop. She had to trust that he'd show. He wasn't the stubborn, always right-never wrong man that she'd dated years ago. He wouldn't break his word, and he wouldn't hurt his mother.
In the meantime, Mariah had posted herself close to the buffet and had already eaten through one plate of food and was contemplating a second trip. There was a carving station that she hadn't visited yet and the roast beef looked delicious.
I definitely need to have some of that. But I need to save room for cake, too.
As predicted, Knox was the hit of the party with any female under the age of eighty. He was a charmer, for sure, and flirted with everyone. At first, he'd tried to stick close to her, but she'd happily waved him off to the dance floor. She'd whispered in his ear that she'd be fine and to go have fun. These were people she'd known her whole life so she felt extremely comfortable without a date.
"If my brother doesn't show up tonight, I'm going to kill him," Liza declared, sidling up next to Mariah. "And I'll enjoy every single minute of it, too."
"You'll have to wait in line because he swore up and down that he'd be here."
"He'd better. Mom and Dad have already asked about him."
"He'll be here." Mariah smiled as she remembered Knox's words in the car. "You have to believe."
"Mariah, where is Ryan?" Skip Harrington asked, entering the dining room. Ryan's dad Jack was with him. "I haven't seen him tonight."
"He had some work to do but he should be here any minute."
"That's my boy," Jack said with a smile. "Nose to the grindstone. He was always that way even when he was a kid."
"A good hard worker," Skip said with a nod. "Ambitious and motivated."
"Where's Seb?" Mariah queried, her gaze running over the room. "I hope he and his wife were able to make it tonight."
She'd already greeted Lilly earlier when they both on the verandah getting some fresh air.
"I'm not sure," Skip replied. "He's around here somewhere. Maybe he's outside."
"I didn't see him arrive," Liza said. "And I thought I'd greeted all the guests personally."
"He was a little late," Skip said. "But he's definitely here. Sandy, too. They might be dancing."
"They're definitely not dancing,"
That statement came from a deep voice behind Mariah.
Ryan. He'd made it in less than an hour. Just as he'd promised.
"Then they're probably outside," Skip said. "This is a big house and grounds. They could be anywhere."
"I really need to talk to Seb," Ryan pressed. He had a strange, intense look on his face and he'd barely acknowledged Mariah. His attention was firmly on Skip. "Can you send him a text and ask him to meet me here in the dining room? It's important."
Something flickered across Skip's expression that Mariah couldn't quite identify. Fear? Anger? Perhaps something else. Either way, Skip didn't look too happy.
"It's a party, Ryan. Can it wait?" Jack asked. "You can talk to Seb tomorrow."
"No, I need to talk to him tonight. It's important. It's about the investigation."
There was an awkward silence between them as the party went on around them. Ryan didn't waver for a moment, his gaze never leaving Skip. Jack kept looking between his son and best friend, frowning the whole time. It looked like he wanted