someone who would happily tear the throats out of every person in this place. Dante didn’t think Kyle, or the singer, were killers; if they were, they would probably be choosing their victims from here as it was the easiest thing to do. If that were the case, the police force and the media would have heard about people going missing from Adler’s.
However, Kyle didn’t know if he was here to start killing people. And if Kyle and the singer weren’t using this place as hunting grounds for victims, that meant they were here because they liked it and it was their place. They would protect it.
“Who’s the girl in the photo?” Kyle asked.
Dante pushed the photo toward him. “Julie Abbott. Have you seen her?”
Kyle rested his fingers against the bottom of the photo and pulled it toward him. He stared at it before pushing it back toward Dante. “No. She’s young.”
“Only sixteen.”
Kyle’s eyes shone with hostility when they returned to Dante. “What do you want with a sixteen-year-old?”
“Her mother hired me to find her.”
“The mother hired you to find her?”
“That’s what I said.”
Kyle’s brow furrowed, but before he could say anything more, Tammy waved frantically at him. “Kyle! I have to go.”
Kyle gave him a suspicious glance before pushing away from the bar and walking toward Tammy. She was biting her bottom lip as she frantically searched her purse.
“Is everything okay?” Kyle asked her.
“Yeah, yeah,” Tammy said distractedly. “My kid’s sick. My ex is flipping out, and I gotta get home.”
Dante was about to lift his drink when he felt another presence at his side, the scent of cherry filled his nose, and he realized the music had stopped. He turned to discover the woman standing nearby and leaning forward to peer at the picture.
When she lifted her head, those beautiful midnight blue eyes met his. “She’s not the same woman who was in the last photo you showed me.”
Dante had replayed the last time they spoke a thousand different times in his mind. It was only a brief exchange, and there had been something panicked in her eyes, but they were also openly curious. He’d detected the increased beat of her heart and watched as her eyes fell to his lips before flitting away.
Now, when she lifted her eyes to his, he saw curiosity mingled with her uncertainty.
“I found her and brought her home. She’s doing good.” Dante couldn’t keep the hint of pride from his voice, but he was proud that she was in rehab and sticking it out this time. On occasion, he would look up those he found in the past; most of them were still doing well.
“That’s good,” the woman murmured, and like before, her eyes fell to his lips before darting toward the bartender as he returned.
“What did you do to her after you found her?” Kyle asked as he set a glass of water in front of the woman.
“Kyle,” the woman said in a low, warning voice.
Kyle barely glanced at her before focusing on Dante again.
“I returned her to her family,” Dante said as he tapped Julie’s picture and focused on the woman. “Have you seen her?”
The woman bit her lip as she studied the picture. “I’m sorry, but no.”
Cassidy tucked a wayward strand of hair behind her ear as she restrained herself from leaning closer to inhale the tantalizing scent of leather Dante emitted. Her reaction to him wasn’t normal; nothing had been normal since he walked into the bar two weeks ago.
Cassidy had spent every night of the past two weeks dreaming about him, and now he was here again. She’d yearned for his return, but she was torn between running and leaning closer to learn if he felt as good as he smelled. The idea of doing it caused her nipples to harden and her mouth watered.
Before he could sense her reaction to him, she tore her attention away and took a sip of water as she reined in her turbulent emotions. Now was not the time.
“We’re supposed to believe you returned her to her family?” Kyle asked.
“Kyle!” Cassidy hissed. “Don’t you have customers to attend to?”
Kyle glanced down the bar at all the nearly full drinks. “Nope.”
“I’m sure you have coolers to restock.”
“Already done.”
Dante didn’t know what these two were to each other, but it was more than a working relationship. But that was obvious the first time he saw them. Kyle hadn’t liked him talking to her, and neither had the other male with them.
A ball of