Taking a deep breath, he rang her number hoping she wouldn’t answer. He wasn't the actor in the family. He closed his eyes thinking of Declan. What would he do or say?

“Adam? Is that you?”

His stomach roiled at the sound of her voice. It wasn’t just nerves, her voice itself was irritating. How could he have thought her little girl wheezy voice was sexy?

“I read about…you know. I thought you might be having a rough time.” She couldn’t possibly fall for that line, could she? Ashley would run a mile. But then Camilla wasn’t Ashley.

“Jeez, Adam you are so sweet. I was wrong about you.”

Adam rolled his eyes, but Anderson’s glare straightened him out.

“Camilla babe, do you want to meet up?” Adam tried to sound less like someone asking for an execution date. “I’d love to see you. I miss you, babe.”

“Oh Adam, you’re so good to me. When? Where? Is your rental still off limits?”

Adam glanced at Anderson who was nodding his head up and down.

“Yeah babe, it’s still under surveillance.”

“Why don’t you just come to my place?”

“Okay sure, if that’s what you want. But I thought you might want to keep us out of the papers.” Adam hoped she did, but he had underestimated her again.

“No way baby. The best revenge on that idiot I was seeing is to have us back together. Cause we are, aren’t we? I never stopped loving you, babe.”

He was certain he was going to be ill. This was too much. He hesitated so long, Anderson gave him an elbow in the ribs.

“Okay. Give me a couple of hours.”

“I’ll be wearing your favorite outfit. Bye, darling.” She made a kissing sound into the phone before he managed to shut it off. How could he have thought she was his everything?

“So, you are on?”

“Yes, Anderson. So what do you want me to do?”

“Get her trust. We know she’s a bigger player than we first thought.”

“I really underestimated her, didn’t I? I was such a fool.”

“Good job you’re a rock star and not a cop then.”

“Thanks to my stupidity I’m not either really, am I? Not much call for a drummer without a band.”

“Your brothers will be cool once they hear the full story, won’t they?”

“Maybe.” He presumed they’d be fine but would he? All he’d thought about was going around the world on tour with the band, having girls flinging themselves at him, having enough money to treat his parents to whatever they needed. And to look after Skye and Deirdre. But he’d already gotten all of that and more. Yet there was something missing. He didn’t want to go back on stage. He wanted to settle down in the valley they had just left. With Ashley. Only, he might as well dream of seeing Mars up close and personal. Ashley wouldn’t have anything to do with him especially if, no, when, social media blew up with the story of him and Camilla. Whatever else his ex-girlfriend was, she was a master of being the center of attention.

“Why does she seek the attention of the press? Shouldn’t she be keeping a low profile?” Adam asked.

“Ever heard the expression ‘hiding in plain sight’? We think your girlfriend manipulates social media because most people would expect drug smugglers to hide. She’s out in the open so people wouldn’t expect her bag to have a million dollars of drugs in it.”

“A million? Jeez, I thought two hundred grand was a lot.”

“I told you, she’s riding in the big leagues and you’re about to be too.”

“What about when we take down this ring? What happens then?” What Adam really wanted to know was when could he have his life back?

“We have to get them to trial and get them all put away. I get to start over again with a new lot of drug dealing scumbags. You get to go back to your life, kid.”

“Will you quit calling me kid? I’m not a child.”

“Sorry. Once you get to my age, everyone is a kid,” Anderson replied

“Why don’t you give it up? Surely running after drug dealers is a younger man’s game.”

“Cheers for that. I just love being told I’m too old. You’ve been talking to my missus, haven’t you? She wants me to retire, become a sheriff somewhere quiet. As if. I spend an hour in the countryside and I’m bored to death.”

“You don’t know what you’re missing.”

Adam closed his eyes hoping the detective would take the hint. All he wanted to think about was Ashley and the last few months. His life had totally changed since Christmas. All the dreams he had since being a teenager were gone now. He knew what he wanted: to settle down and raise a family on a ranch just like the Double R. With Ashley by his side. Gracie too.

He picked up his cell and started making some calls. There were some things he could do to help. But would they be enough?