Blind Attraction (13 page)

His grip dropped from her wrist. “Not a problem.”

Then he was gone. And she was left alone.

She closed her eyes, took a deep breath and tried to gain her bearings. The building stood tall behind her. She could take a step back, walk herself around to another entrance and ask for help. Or she could do what she should’ve done in the first place.

Being Mitchell Davies’ mistress wasn’t a role she should be playing. Once she found somewhere quiet to rest, she would call Kate and get out of here.

She let the air seep from her lungs, pivoted on her toes and glanced up at the dark shadow of the wall. She inched closer to the building, taking small steps so she wouldn’t trip. Reaching out, she touched the cold glass window and trailed her fingers forward. Slowly she advanced until her hand slid off the edge and into air.

She suppressed a squeal as her steps faltered. “Goddamn it.” Vertigo threatened to drag her to her knees, but she settled into the building, bowing her head until she caught her breath.

Once the threat of tears and the pulse of dizziness subsided, she moved around the corner. Her palms grated against something rough–cement or stone, no longer glass. When the noise around her lessened, she leaned her back against the wall and slid to the ground. Her ass hit the hard cement with a jolt. She closed her eyes, rested her elbows on her knees, and covered her face to ward off the nervous breakdown.

Her chest heaved, the constriction tightening with each breath. Something wasn’t right. Her mind kept going over the couple’s reactions. How they didn’t flinch when she mentioned the rape. How they remained adamant about the family connection.

What if he wasn’t a con artist, and the words he spoke were true?

She shook her head, determined to stay strong. Dropping her hands, she leaned to the side and removed her cell from her pants pocket. Kate would cheer her up. She always did. There couldn’t be much time before her friend finished work either. Then they would go home together and relax over a few cocktails like they’d planned to do since last month.

Alana cupped the device in her hand, her heart beating harder with each second she stared at the black blur. Why hadn’t she set up the voice recognition application? She could see the dark hues of her jeans, the cream fuzz of her arm, and only a big black spot where her phone should be.

Closing her eyes, she unlocked the screen by touch. That part was easy, she’d done it a thousand times before without thought or sight. The next step would be harder. There weren’t many contacts in her address book, but she had no way of knowing where Kate’s name sat or how far to scroll to get to it.

She placed her finger in the bottom left corner, where the book icon would take her to the numbers stored. With a deep breath she started to slowly scroll, trying to recount each person listed and what size each icon made. When she reached the position she thought would be close, she pressed her screen, and pressed again where she thought the connect button would be.

Raising the phone to her ear she waited.

Nothing.

She lowered the phone again, lifted the device right before her eyes and tried to see where she needed to press, but it was no use. Again, she blindly pressed her screen and placed it to her ear.

She held her breath and sighed when the ringing started.

One ring, two.

“Alana.”

Shit.

“Mom?”

So close. Kate’s name sat directly above her mothers.

“What’s going on?” A hint of panic came from the other end of the line. “I got off the phone to Kate’s mom not long ago, and she told me you were on the second page of the Richmond newspaper.”

“Umm.” Alana had nothing to say that her mother would approve of.

“I promised you I wouldn’t call and check up on you, so Patty looked it up on the Internet. We’ve been listening to the Richmond radio station and the man spoke about you on-air, Alana. He mentioned your name.”

Mitch talked about her during his interview? Through the panic and vulnerability, her chest sparked with an emotion far more palpable than she’d ever experienced before. She wanted to ask her mother what he said, but staying on the topic wouldn’t be safe.

“How did my grandparents die, mom?”

“What? Please Alana, the man said you were hurt, and he’d taken care of you all night. What does that mean? Are you OK? Did he hurt you?”

She couldn’t tell if her mother’s panic increased from Alana not answering the questions or because she’d mentioned her deceased grandparents. “I met an elderly couple not long ago. They tried to convince me they were my father’s parents.”

Silence.

“Mom?”

“You should come home.”

No. Apart from being visually impaired, she loved the freedom of being away from the retreat. She’d already learned a lot from her experiences. Men weren’t horrible creatures. Well, most anyway. She realized she wasn’t a lesbian which was a bonus, and truth be told, she contemplated staying in Richmond for longer than her return flight date. Much longer.

“How did my grandparents die?” She clutched the phone, praying for an honest answer.

“I don’t want to discuss this over the phone. When you get home we can sit down and talk about it.” Her mother was adamant, the previous panic overridden by determination.

“Mom...” Alana swallowed over the gravel in her throat. “Just tell me this. Are my grandparents still alive?”

She heard nothing but the rush of cars and people talking in the distance as she waited.

“I don’t know,” her mother whispered.

“You don’t know?” she echoed in a soft voice. All the years she’d hoped for family to connect with, something outside of the secluded life on the retreat, and she’d been told they were alone. That the only person she had in her life was her mother. “You don’t know?” she repeated louder. “You told me they died. You told me since childhood that I had no family.”

“Alana, please. Come home and we can discuss it.”

Home? Home wasn’t a place surrounded with lies and deceit.

“No.” She rubbed her forehead to relieve some of the tension. “I don’t think I’m coming home at all.” Alana had her own money. Not a lot, but it would be enough to keep her in Richmond for a while and give her the opportunity to figure out what she wanted for her future. “I’ll speak to you later.”

“No! Wait.”

Right now she didn’t think her mother deserved a hearing. “Bye, Mom.” She removed the phone from her ear and pressed at the screen numerous times hoping to hit the disconnect button. Now she had no way of getting in contact with Kate and didn’t know how to find Mitchell.

Fantastic.

Pushing against the wall to her feet, she shook her hands, trying to dislodge the vulnerability that caused her limbs to shake. She could do this.

A male cleared his throat a few yards away, the closest sound she’d heard since hiding around this side of the building. On alert, she snapped her head in the direction it came from.

“Alana, I’m sorry.”

She released the breath restricting her lungs. The elderly man had more determination than she anticipated.

“I didn’t realize you were visually impaired when we first approached you in the coffee shop. I didn’t mean to scare you into fleeing. I just followed you to make sure you were all right.”

“It’s fine.” She tried to smile. The man who may very well be her grandfather was her only ally in finding Mitchell or getting in contact with Kate. Thank you, fate.

In the distance, the women screamed louder, more hysterical, chanting a mass of indecipherable words. Her panic returned. Reckless Beat’s interview must be finished and the band was probably in the lobby or leaving, causing the crowd to go wild.

“Can I help you get to where you need to be?” His voice approached.

She nodded and blindly stepped forward. Mitchell couldn’t come outside to search for her. It would be suicide…by groping. His bodyguards may even encourage him to leave and go back to the hotel without her.

She knew he cared. He’d already made that obvious. He just wouldn’t be able to roam the streets when there were screaming women and fans willing to push him to the ground in an effort to touch him.

“Yes. Please. I need to hurry.”

* * *

“Mitch, I couldn’t find her.”

Leah’s eyes held a hint of panic that seeped under his skin and kicked his heart into overdrive.

“What do you mean, you couldn’t find her? She’s in the coffee shop downstairs.”

She swallowed and shook her head. “Alana’s not there.”

He increased his pace down the radio station’s hall, and Leah struggled to keep up.

“What’s going on?” Blake asked from behind.

“Alana’s gone,” he spoke over his shoulder, not stopping his momentum. “I’m going to find her.”

“You can’t just walk around, Mitch.” Leah grabbed his upper arm, trying to slow his progression, but he didn’t stop until he reached the elevator. “There’s a crowd outside. They’ll eat you alive.”

He smacked his fingers against the Down button and turned to face Blake’s worried expression. In the background Mason, Sean, Ryan, and Tony strode toward them meeting up with the other two bodyguards who had been waiting in the reception area.

“What’s the rush?” Ryan stopped beside him.

“Alana’s not in the coffee shop. I don’t know where she is.”

“Maybe she got a better offer,” Mason chuckled, then wiped the smirk off his face when Mitch glared at him. “Sorry,” Mason mumbled and broke eye contact.

“What are you going to do?” Sean asked.

“I’m going to find her.” He turned back to the elevator and slammed his fingers into the Down button again and again and again.

“You can’t,” Leah’s voice rose.

“Watch me,” he snapped and uncomfortable silence settled over them.

“Hold up, pussy-whipped.” Mason broke the discomfort. “Why don’t I get Dan and Pete—” he motioned to the two other bodyguards, “—to step outside with me, Sean, and Ryan. Building security is already out there, so the hype should be controllable.” Mason glanced at Leah as she shook her head, but he ignored her disapproval. “We’ll chat with the fans, sign some autographs and keep them occupied while you, Blake, and Tony go search for her. She couldn’t have gone far walking around like Stevie Wonder.”

The elevator dinged. Mitch didn’t wait for the doors to fully open before he stepped forward and pushed them apart. “That’d help, but with or without you, I’m going to find her.”

“Settle down, Maverick, this isn’t the danger zone.” Sean smirked as he followed everyone into the elevator. “She might still be in the building.”

Mitch’s finger would get a cramp if he gave the bird every time he felt the urge.

“Well, his safety will definitely be in jeopardy,” Leah grumbled.

They descended in silence while his blood ran cold. Where was she? “Did you check the bathrooms?”

“Yes,” Leah replied. “I checked the bathroom stalls. I glanced outside, I double checked the lobby.”

Shit.

When the elevator dinged its arrival on ground level, he bit his lip waiting for everyone in front of him to move out.

“We’ll go do our thing.” Mason stated as a chorus of screams sounded outside. “Meet back inside in fifteen minutes.”

“I won’t be coming back until I find her,” Mitch replied and pivoted from their makeshift circle to begin the search. A firm hand grabbed his upper arm.

“We’ll meet back here in fifteen minutes and re–evaluate if you haven’t found her.” Mason looked at him in concern. “Don’t do anything stupid, Mitch. She’ll be fine.”

Mitch inclined his head and Mason’s hand fell from his arm. “See you in fifteen minutes.”

He checked every inch of the lobby before he pushed through the inside entrance to the coffee shop, Blake and Tony in tow. Tony spoke to the barista while simultaneously giving death stares to anyone who came within a yard of Mitch and Blake. He even held back the gasping fans who begged for an autograph with a firm shake of his head. The guy had a soft and gooey center, but on the outside he was one scary mo-fo.

“She left a while ago.” The lady behind the counter said with a worried look on her face. “I think there was an issue—”

“Issue?” Mitch hadn’t meant to yell.

The woman’s face fell. “I’m sorry, we were busy, and I didn’t have the opportunity to check if she needed help. She walked out the front doors while telling an elderly gentleman to leave her alone. I haven’t seen them both since.”

Panic filled thoughts flashed through Mitch’s mind. What would an old man want with Alana?

“He followed her?” Blake asked.

The woman nodded. “I think so.” She wrung her hands. “Look, I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault,” Mitch added and began to head for the front doors.

“Wait!”

He stopped and pivoted back around. Blake and Tony did the same. The woman stood on her tiptoes, glancing over their heads. “I think the lady over there was with him.”

The three of them followed her gaze. In the third table back from the window sat a woman with gray hair, her head bowed, her hands resting in front of her.

Without a backward glance he headed for her, ignoring the excited stares that followed wherever he went.

“Excuse me.” Mitch knelt beside the table, and her reddened eyes turned to face him. “Have you seen a young woman, chocolate brown hair, green eyes? She would’ve had trouble with her vision.”

The woman’s gaze became distracted with something behind him, outside the window. He began again. “I’m sorry to bother you, but—”

“Mitch.” Tony tapped him on the shoulder.

He peered up at Tony, who was staring in the same direction out the window. His heart skipped a beat as he turned and moved to his feet.

There she was, bathed in a halo of sunshine, her hand clasped around the crook of an elderly man’s elbow as they walked past the coffee shop windows.

“Thank fuck for that,” Blake muttered.

Mitch held back from running to her. He didn’t mind being called pussy whipped, or under the thumb, or whatever his friends wanted to classify him as. The thing that settled uncomfortably in his chest was the addiction clawing his insides. After only one night together, the thought of losing her had turned his limbs into shaking clumps of lead.