Sebastian had to go into the office today for a meeting he’d forgotten about so that was also another reason why Ramon decided to sleep in his own bed last night.
Traveling downwards in the elevator, Ramon takes hold of my hand and plays with my ring. “So you’re really going to be my sister,” he grins. “You’ll never have to worry about him Carla. I know he’s no saint, but he always used to say he’d stop when he met the woman he wanted to wear grandmother’s ring. He’s done well.” He kisses my hand before pulling me out when the elevator doors open.
“You want your vanilla latte?”
Pushing open the door to Starbucks, I look up to the menu. Doing this when I always end up with the latte is a silly habit. “Yeah.”
Ramon chuckles and goes to place our order while I sit on one of the sofas they have in the window. This Starbucks is larger than the other one, slap-bang in the shopping district, which is purely a take out.
“Here you go.” Ramon puts my drink down onto the table before sitting opposite me trying to ignore the stares he’s getting from three girls in the far corner.
Taking a sip of my latte, I hide my grin finding him amusing. “Do you know them?” I can’t hold my laugh back anymore and have to put my drink back down before it sloshes everywhere. “Ramon,” he blushes as I tease him, “they probably think you’re cute.”
He really is blushing. I never, in a million years, thought Ramon was the blushing type. He always seems self-assured, so this is – sweet. Not that I’d tell him.
Ramon sits forward on the sofa with his elbows resting on the table before finally meeting my eyes.
“I miss your brother, Carla. It’s like he took a piece of me with him when he left.”
This man sitting in front of me isn’t missing my brother as a friend. He’s missing him because he’s in love with him. Reaching out, I take Ramon’s hands between mine. “Are you keeping anything from me? About why he left.” I kiss his knuckles.
He shakes his head. “No. I told you everything. We’d argued the week before, but everything was back to normal by the time he disappeared. Carla, the detective who I have out looking for him has followed a lead down to Florida.”
I freeze then release his hands and sit back. My heart’s pounding with anxiety hearing my brother might be in Florida. What’s down in Florida? Or who?
“Do you know if he has any friends down there? Someone he might have met through work when he was in Canada.”
Shaking my head, I turn to look out of the window trying to think. My brother had a few friends in Canada, but I don’t recall him saying where they were from.
My head’s spinning with all these thoughts running rampant in my head and they make me want to cry.
“If he does then he’s never said.” I take a sip of my latte again before looking through the window, expecting to find my brother walking back into Ramon’s building. Swiping a tear away, I’m about to turn back when I feel as though I’m being watched.
Sitting up straighter on the sofa, I start really looking, taking notice of the cars, which are stationery, the women walking past ushering children along beside them or in strollers, the men in business suits or more casual clothes. Then I spot him.
“Carla, what is it?”
He can’t be there. Not when there are so many people around. Surely not.
Ramon starts to stand as I do and wraps his arm around my waist. “Carla, snap out of it, and talk to me.”
Swallowing, I turn to face him. “I think I saw Gary,” I whisper.
He whips his head around so fast to stare out of the window I’m surprised he doesn’t get whiplash.
“Shit. Are you sure?” He grips both my arms, standing so close.
“I’m sure. It’s a face I wish I could forget, but doubt I ever will.”
Ramon starts pulling me towards the exit. “We need to get back upstairs, then I’ll get security to show me the footage from outside to figure out if he climbed into a car or if someone else was with him.” He presses the elevator call button. “Hopefully it will show what he was up to before you spotted him.”
I can’t stop shaking, which Ramon notices and pulls me straight into his body, holding me tight. “He won’t get to you this time Carla. I promise.” He kisses my head. “I’ll call Sebastian soon okay? He’s in a meeting right now, but when he’s out we’ll tell him and hopefully he won’t be too pissed with me for not telling him now.”
“It’s okay.” I agree, but selfishly want to call him, just to hear his voice or to have him here with me and his arms wrapped around me.
Chapter 38
Sebastian
Jacky is really pissing me off. Before the meeting, I’d been in the office for maybe twenty minutes and each one of those minutes was more-or-less taken up with Jacky parading back and forth through my office door.