A long moment of silence followed, while the television’s light flashed over his ripped body.
She sighed and rested her head on his shoulder. “Have you put ice on these?” When he didn’t answer, she said, “I guess it’s kinda late for that, huh? Do you want me to get you more ibuprofen?”
When he still didn’t answer, Everly lifted her head and looked at him. He was asleep. She started laughing.
His lashes fluttered, and his lids cracked. “What are you laughing at?”
“You,” she said, poking him between the ribs in one of the few uninjured areas of his chest. “Falling asleep on me.”
He groaned and forced himself to his elbows.
“Go clean up,” she told him. “When you get back, I’ll have a pillow waiting.”
“Sounds perfect.” He tried to sit up, grimaced, and fell back. “Easier said than done.” He rolled to his side and finally made it to a seat on the edge of the bed. “Girl, you wipe me out.”
“Might have something to do with half a dozen bullets kicking your ass.” Smiling, she gave him a push. Then watched that gorgeous ass as he wandered into the bathroom. “And set the alarm on your watch for five a.m. You have to be out of here before Bella wakes up.”
When Austin returned to bed, Everly turned off the television and propped herself up on an elbow to watch him drift into sleep with the moonlight floating over him. Even once she was sure he was completely out, she lingered there, drinking in the sight.
All sorts of emotions spun inside her. Strange, foreign, and rare emotions that both scared and confused her. He was a good man. She’d known enough men in her life to know the good from the bad. And this man was exceptional—as a father, as a businessman, as a lover. He was also a loyal friend to his men and a generous, respectful employer. There was so much she wanted to know. So many stories about his past she wanted to hear.
But they wouldn’t have time for that.
All the emotions wound down in the pit of her stomach, and that nagging ache she’d been feeling kicked up again.
Everly forced herself from bed. She pulled on her clothes and picked up her phone before she slipped silently from the room.
On bare feet, she made her way up the stairs. She found the office door standing open a few inches, and excitement pumped through her chest. Before she ventured there, Everly paused in Bella’s doorway. She was in a deep sleep, her arm locked around Pauli, her stuffed monkey.
Affection swamped Everly, and she smiled. But it was time to move on, both physically and emotionally. This family wasn’t hers, and not only would she have to let go any day now, she had to find a way to deal with the inevitable hate they would hold toward her. And she knew that even if she never saw them again, she’d still regret every moment she’d spent deceiving them.
Everly pried her gaze from Bella and crossed the hall toward the office. She pushed the door open and hurried straight to the bookcase. She had to investigate this secret room behind the wall and get back to Austin before he woke.
Without turning the light on, she ran her hand over the edge of the bookcase. When her fingers found the nearly imperceptible notch in the wood, her stomach jumped. She took a deep breath, let it out, and pushed the button.
A quiet click sounded, and the bookcase barely moved forward an inch.
“That was anticlimactic,” she murmured.
Stepping aside, she slowly pulled the bookcase open and peered into the darkness. She stepped in, and cold concrete met her feet. The space echoed, and her heart skipped. This was more than just a secret room.
Her heartbeat quickened and Everly turned on the flashlight on her phone. The beam illuminated a long concrete staircase and more darkness. But there were lightbulbs placed at intervals. She located a switch near the opening and flipped the lights on. She could see only a couple dozen steps down before the stairs curved.
She glanced over her shoulder, took a breath, and started down. She was at the curve in ten seconds. Another turn in ten more. As she continued down, she felt the moment the stairs moved underground. The pressu
re in the stairwell increased. A damp, earthy scent permeated the air. And in another fifty feet, the stairs transitioned into a tunnel hewn from rock.
Everly hurried down the length of the tunnel, searching all the shadows with her flashlight before moving on. She already knew the tunnel would end at the beach, and her stomach clenched in anticipation of finding the location of the exit. Her mind leapt from thought to thought. Had Austin built this tunnel? Or had it already been here when he’d bought the house? Was that why he’d bought the house? Because it already had an escape hatch built in?
A new sound scraped her ears, and she halted. She had to focus on slowing her breath to hear. It took her a second to identify the sound—waves brushing the shore.
She picked up her pace, jogging down the tunnel’s twists and turns. After taking what had to be the last turn, she came to a quick halt. The end of the tunnel housed a boat. A relatively modern speedboat. Inboard motor. Tiny cabin. Mounted on a trailer.
Her heart knocked against her ribs as she ran a hand over the side of the boat, inspecting the dashboard. Modern equipment. Digital screens. She moved around the front of the boat to the double steel doors built into the mouth of the tunnel. Sleek design. New metal. They were secured by a simple but effective metal bar.
Everly tested the bar and the doors for movement but didn’t fully open them for fear the sound would travel and wake Austin. She was encouraged by the fact that the bar moved easily and the hinges rotated freely.
Securing the doors, she turned her attention to the trailer and found a motor attached with a basic start-and-stop switch. “Wow,” she whispered, realizing the trailer could be moved without the use of a vehicle. “That is slick, Mr. Hix.”