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Jacob leaned toward me, his brows furrowed in concern. “Angel, are you okay? You don’t look too well.”

Clambering to my feet, my body swayed. “I’m…I’m not feeling too well,” I said, managing to speak without bringing my dinner up. If this was the effect of alcohol, I wasn’t sure I wanted to drink again.

Jacob stood, his chair scraping against the marble floor at his abrupt movement. A second later, my legs buckled, and if it hadn’t been for Jacob moving at lightning speed to catch me, I would have hit the floor.

He swept me into his arms, carrying me bridal style up the two flights of stairs to the bedroom, his brows pulled together in worry.

Lying me down on the bed, his mouth moved like he was talking, but if he was, I didn’t hear his words. The lull of sleep was consuming me, and under the safety of Jacob’s gaze, I closed my eyes as a contented sigh floated from my lips.

Chapter 7

My head pounded fiercely as I cracked my eyes open, wincing against the sun streaming through the open balcony doors. A cool wind floated in, goosebumps pebbling my body.

My naked body.

I bolted upright, confusion streaking through me as I battled against the nausea churning in my stomach and the bedsheets I’d tangled myself in. At discovering I was indeed naked, a spark of panic ignited under my skin, and my gaze whipped around the room in a bid to find my missing pajamas.

In a bid to understand why I wasn’t wearing any clothes, I tried to remember the night before, but a black cloud hovered in my mind, preventing me from putting the pieces together. I recalled having dinner with Jacob, where he’d asked about my friends, but after that, the memories faded into darkness. I couldn’t even remember going to bed.

At that thought, I twisted back around, a lump of dread landing in my stomach at the memory of Jacob implying we would be sharing a bed. But upon finding the bed beside me empty, and the sheets still made as if no one had slept there, relief replaced the apprehension.

It must have been me who’d taken my clothes off, although it would have been unusual; I never slept naked, but that had to be the only logical explanation. Right? It was my first time drinking wine, and maybe I’d just felt unwell and thought it best to remove my clothes in case I was ill in the night.

That had to be the answer; anything else was unthinkable.

Wrapping the bed sheets around me, I dragged my lethargic body out of the bed and stumbled over to the table, only for my heart to sink. Unlike the day before, there were no clothes waiting for me, not even a fresh set of underwear.

I spun around, searching the bedroom for the clothes I had on at dinner, but when it was clear I hadn’t discarded them on the floor, I dashed to the ensuite, panic swirling in the pit of my stomach and growing stronger at not finding them in there either.

My brain raced, struggling to understand why I couldn’t find my clothes. Hoping there was an innocent explanation, I figured I’d borrow clothes from Jacob’s wardrobe and go on the hunt for him to see if he could offer an explanation.

But my plan was scuppered before I could put it into motion. Jacob’s wardrobe had been cleared out of every single item of clothing. For several seconds, I gaped at the empty shelves and hangers, dumbstruck.

What the hell was going on?

Spurred on by the anxiety that was now raging like a storm in my body, I yanked the drawers open inside the wardrobe, my trepidation growing to epic proportions at finding each one empty.

I opened the last drawer—the one where I’d hidden the necklace Jacob had given me for my birthday—and my heart sank all the way to my bare toes when there wasn’t even a speck of dust to be found. I chewed my lip, considering my options, reluctantly acknowledging that I had only one unless I wanted to stay put in the bedroom all day.

Bile climbed up my throat, and I squeezed my eyes closed at the thought of Jacob seeing me in just the sheets. Wallace too. But when hunger grumbled in my stomach, my decision was made.

The situation was ridiculous, and while I was certain there had to be an innocent explanation, a warning bell rang in my head.

How did an entire wardrobe go missing overnight?

Pinching the bridge of my nose, I inhaled a deep breath and forced my legs to move toward the door, ensuring the sheet was tight around my body, my fingers clasping it until they ached.

By the time I reached the foyer, my cheeks were on fire from the embarrassment rushing through me. Soft noises floated from behind the kitchen door, telling me that at least Wallace was in there. Hoping Jacob was too, I swallowed my pride and pushed the door open.

Wallace was alone in the kitchen, busying himself with whatever meal he was making. At my entrance, he didn’t acknowledge me, so gripping the sheet even tighter with one hand, I padded toward him and tapped him on the shoulder.

He spun, his brows lifting, only to pull into a frown when he took in my state of undress. My cheeks burned hotter as humiliation pumped through me, and it took every effort to stay put in front of him and not return to the bedroom and hide from the world.

“I’m sorry to bother you, but where is Jacob?”

Wallace stared at me for several beats with a bored expression on his face before he pointed toward the window. I glanced in that direction, not really understanding what he was trying to tell me, and when I met his cool stare with a raised brow, he pointed again.

I crossed to the window, peering out, but Jacob was nowhere to be seen. As I was about to turn back to him, my gaze caught the outline of the mainland in the distance, and I muttered a curse.