Taking Passion by Storm Read Free Page B

discussing.
    The
tabloids had a field day every time one of them who wasn’t now engaged or
married was seen in public with a different woman. Although Addison knew every
single one of them had brought down that publicity on their own heads, the
stories now read more like they were pathetic middle-aged men than eligible
billionaires.
    It
was time to stop acting like a horny teen. Addison wanted to get to know Nadine
as more than the daughter of one of his best friends, but the likelihood of
anything developing in that direction seemed as far away as their old lives on
the surface.
    Or,
it seemed unlikely until they found Dixon. Dead
or alive. Yes. Exactly. Dead or alive, although Addison prayed it would be
the latter. If anyone could survive a tornado it was Dixon Jarvis.
    Addison
headed for the downtown area, past his office building, to his home on Western
Pine Lane. Only five houses lined this street, and each one was surrounded by
five to ten acres of land.
    Addison
knew the other homeowners but rarely saw them. This particular piece of land
had originally been earmarked for a planned park near the downtown area, but
Addison had snatched it up before the papers could be finalized by the city
commissioner because he wanted one of the plots for his home. He’d sold the
others to people he knew could afford them, and would value their privacy as
much as he valued his.
    The
park commission had been pissed off as hell, and had then wasted no time in
buying the land around this little enclave for their own. They’d stayed quite
pissed off at Addison for several years afterward, but he didn’t care. He had
his retreat, and that’s all he’d wanted. The park commission could take a
flying leap as far as he was concerned.
    Addison
had known they’d buy up the land surrounding his plot. He had wanted it that
way. To be surrounded by protected park lands instead of more housing or office
complexes was perfect for him.
    Every
other Weatherman had an apartment in a high rise, most of them close to where
the men worked, but not Addison. He’d been born and raised on Mercer Island,
and he still needed space and a view of the water, even if it was a manmade
lake.
    From
his bedroom on the third floor, Addison had a clear view of the largest lake in NorthWest . It never hurt to pretend, after all. They
all had dreams of taking back their planet and returning the surface to its
former glory. Maybe this time around they’d do a few things the right way, and
make sure nothing like this could ever happen again. Maybe.
    He
glanced toward the bed and imagined Nadine lying there, as he did often, her
lush body glistening with sweat and the aftereffects of their lovemaking. Would
it ever happen? Doubtful, especially now. He’d promised her he wouldn’t stop
until he found her father, and that’s what he needed to pour his energy into.
Not because it would make him a hero in her eyes, but because Dixon was an old
friend and it was the right thing to do.
    Yeah. Right. You’re not doing this
for her one little bit.
    He
sighed. Of course he was doing it for her as well, but he did want to find his
friend. Even if all he could do was give him a proper burial.
    ****
    Nadine
tried all day to find something to take her mind off her father, but she might
as well have tried to forget how to breathe. When Merrill had emailed her back,
he told her that Addison was putting together a second team that would go in
search of her father. Since she already knew that, she let Merrill know that
Addison had come over to tell her in person. Nadine was so grateful her father
had friends and team members who were willing to put themselves out there and
find him, because she couldn’t imagine doing it herself.
    She
busied herself by reading about the Storm Troopers online again, even though
she found nothing she hadn’t read a million times. Then she went to the Carlyle
Imports website and read about some of the adventures his procurement teams
had. There