Ryan turns on his side, his cheek resting on the seat, his eyes on me. “I’m not bailing him out again. Nope. I’m done. He’s her problem now.”
I drag our joined hands into my lap, squeezing gently. He smiles a loopy smile and I’m hoping this entire conversation is fuzzy tomorrow. “Hmm . . . you like that bikini, huh?” I untangle my fingers from his but keep his hand on my thigh.
He perks up, his eyes sweeping from my face down my body. I slide his hand under the hem of my dress, dragging his fingers against the lace top of my thigh highs. His eyes get big, surprised to find what I’m hiding underneath, but he wastes no time latching on to the straps holding them up.
Not many women wear stockings anymore, and I agree they were invented by the devil, but I’ve yet to find a man who could resist the garters, and you never know when you’ll need a guaranteed distraction.
And what I need more than anything right now is to ensure that when Ryan thinks back to this car ride home, the memory that crystallizes clearer than all the others will not include Lucca Marino.
Chapter 9
Present Day
I hate coming here during off hours but after yesterday this visit couldn’t wait. The UPS store is closed to the public on Sunday mornings, so I enter my code on the keypad to gain entrance, then make my way to the back as quickly as possible.
As much as I try to predict what everyone will do, the one thing that is completely unpredictable is what I will find in the mailbox.
Every job is different, and the only way my boss can control the job—and me—is by keeping me in the dark as long as possible. I’m fed just enough to move forward but not so much that I can get ahead or change the game.
And of course, I’m never told who the client is because, you know . . . control.
The first piece of information I get is the location. I learn everything there is to know about the town where I’ll be sent.
The name of the mark comes next.
I’m one of those lucky people who read something once and it’s forever filed away in one of those deep corners of my brain. Because of that, it’s easy to recall the typed piece of paper that introduced me to Ryan.
Subject: Ryan Sumner Ryan is a 30-year-old single white male who resides at 378 Birch Dr., Lake Forbing, Louisiana. At 22, he graduated from LSU with a degree in business and a minor in finance then passed the Series 7 exam six months post-graduation and currently works as a financial planner.
Early life: Ryan has one sister, Natalie, who is three years older. Father, Scott Sumner, was involved in a vehicular accident and died from his injuries when Ryan was ten years old. Ryan’s mother, Meredith Sumner （now Meredith Donaldson）， remarried within the year. Ryan moved in with his paternal grandparents, Ingrid and William Sumner, when he was twelve due to his inability to get along with his new stepfather. Ingrid passed away six years ago from a short battle with cancer. William passed away a year later from a brain aneurysm that burst while he was at home in his bed. Ryan was the one to find him. Grandparents left house and furnishings to Ryan and monetary assets were split between Ryan and Natalie.
Ryan currently resides in the grandparents’ house. That house was a sanctuary for him so tread lightly there. If Ryan feels secure bringing you into his home, you’re set.
Ryan’s dating history suggests he is heterosexual. His longest relationship was with a woman named Courtney Banning during his sophomore and junior year at LSU. The relationship terminated when Courtney left to spend her senior year studying abroad in Italy. When Ryan moved back to Lake Forbing, he rekindled his relationship with high school sweetheart Amelia Rodriguez, but it only lasted five months. Since then, Ryan has dated in a casual manner, mostly when he needs a plus-one for social or work events. Some female companionship results from chance meetings in a bar or nightclub but those are one-time events that do not repeat. Do not recommend initiating contact in that environment. Ryan is part of an extremely close-knit friend group and will go out of his way to help them. Friends find him highly trustworthy and dependable. Damsel in Distress seems the best approach.
I ate, slept, and breathed everything Ryan in the weeks before we met. Watched the highlights from his high school football games, stalked his family’s social media accounts, and watched hours and hours of daily comings and goings both in person and from video surveillance. And Damsel in Distress was absolutely the right approach.
After the location, I’m given the identity I will use for the job. A name. A backstory. All carefully crafted with the supporting documentation I will need to sell it. I had studied the pictures of Courtney and Amelia that were included in the report. Both have long dark hair, so for this job, Evie Porter would have the same style and shade—but that’s where the similarities would end. Because while Ryan may have a certain type he’s attracted to, neither of those relationships lasted. Evie would dress to stand out, to be remembered. Her style would be a little bit bohemian, a little bit hippie. Minimal makeup but lots of necklaces and bracelets. Just the thing a preppy golden boy needs to shake things up.