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“Shoes off.” She entered and placed her shoes on the rack.

I did the same. She didn’t know I also took my shoes off at my house. When my mom fell ill, I’d kept the house as clean as possible. Germs weakened her immune system. My dad had complied with the rule when he was sober.

“You want milk and sugar in your coffee?” she asked.

“Black is fine.” I walked to the window and looked outside. “It’s a friendly neighborhood with great potential.”

“I like the quiet here. Make yourself at home.”

“Thanks.” I walked to the living room, sat down, and noticed a Whiz Kidz folder on the coffee table. “You know about Whiz Kidz?”

“My sister Kaylee loves that place. The program funded her trip to Texas.”

A framed picture of Vivian and Kaylee caught my eye. “I didn’t know you have a sister.” I studied their faces. Kaylee was mixed race, whereas Vivian wasn’t.

Vivian handed me the white coffee cup. “I’m her guardian, but we’re much more like sisters. I took her in when her mom died.”

“Have you been to Whiz Kidz?” I asked, wondering if she’d seen me there.

“A few times when I dropped her off or picked her up. Why?”

What should I say? I had to be careful.

“It’s a great place for kids to go after school or on weekends.” I studied more pictures of the two of them. “I wish I had something like Whiz Kidz back then.”

“Kaylee is thrilled there. It’s perfect for her. I’m helping her test out this app that she created.”

Holy fuck.

Tulip.Could Vivian be Tulip? Surprise, excitement, joy, and fear burst in me. I couldn’t believe this.

If I told Vivian that Whiz Kidz was my nonprofit organization, she’d know that I was Bullseye. Kaylee had also asked me to help her test out the app. I’d been flirting with someone who went by the name Tulip, thinking it was just some random woman.

Had Kaylee arranged all of that?

But she couldn’t have known I would connect to her sister, right? The app tugged Vivian based on the data on her profile. Besides, Kaylee didn’t know I liked Vivian. She only knew I was interested in a gorgeous dentist. That was all I told her a while back. Could she have remembered my interest and set us up?

Based on what I knew about the clever girl, she was probably behind this. I’d need a chat with the little brat later. If I had dug deeper, I would have known that Kaylee lived in this building—my property.

I’d been so concentrated on Vivian that I’d missed a few key details. What else had I missed?

Vivian didn’t need to know I’d purchased this apartment building so that I could monitor the cameras within the building and outside of it. It was how I knew she went to get coffee at Sunshine in a Cup and had gone out early to walk alone that morning. I had programmed all the cameras to detect her facial features and alert me when she went out.

Stalker creep.

I wasn’t being creepy. I was beingprotectiveof her after seeing her with Calvin at the wine expo. He was in The Triad, and that spelled trouble with a capital T. Besides, I’d bought this building as an investment when I’d first met her. The camera thing was new.

I’d share everything with Vivian after I talked to her sister.

Vivian sat next to me. Color had returned to her face. I didn’t think she’d appreciate any surprises right now. Especially about a stranger who had flirted with her too many times online.

“You okay?” I asked. “Who’s Aimee?”

“A little girl who’s been missing for nine months now. She’s the reason I’m in Providence. I have to find her.”

“Do the authorities know?”

She told me the story and why she believed Aimee was with The Triad.