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Blocked?
Rafe’s phone call went straight to Hope’s voicemail again. She had a compassionate heart, and there was no way she would be able to swipe through every one of his relentless calls on the first ring. Which meant she must have cut herself off from him.
He alternated between anger, frustration, and despair. Goddamn it, this woman got to him to the point of obsession.
“Hey, Rafe. We might have something.”
He scrubbed a hand across the stubble on his cheek. How long since he’d shaved? Showered? Slept? What day was it? Wednesday? Thursday?
“Rafe?” Travers prompted.
“Yeah. Coming.” He grabbed a cup of coffee, then went out on the deck. The sun was much higher than he’d expected, and it burned his blurry eyes. He’d spent hours last night poring through video captured by a camera outside the restaurant at the dock. He’d seen Lillibet leave about thirty minutes after Theodore. A big floppy hat had been pulled low over her forehead, shielding her face. What it hadn’t hidden, oversize sunglasses had. She’d been carrying a designer tote that was big enough to hold all that cash and jewelry.
“About ten minutes ago, we intercepted a friend of Lillibet’s using a set of keys to get into her apartment.”
“Go on.”
“Elizabeth’s real name is Brianna Gibbons. They talked almost every day. But Brianna hasn’t called her friend since Friday.”
What fucking phone did they use?
“We’ve got a number and we’re on it,” Travers said, as if reading Rafe’s mind. “Our guy went in with her. There’s no sign of Brianna. We’re debriefing the friend now.”
He wasn’t sure what his next step should be. And he wanted to bounce ideas and tactics off someone. Hope. He wanted Hope.
On a ridiculous impulse, he grabbed his phone and pushed redial next to her number. When her cheery voice filled the void, he slammed the device onto the railing.
“Problem?” Travers asked.
“Wondering how long I should stay here.” His dad was a mess, drinking too much, sitting up all night on the deck so he could watch for Lillibet walking down the wooden planks toward him.
“Not much you can do,” Travers said.
As best he could, Rafe was running Sterling Worldwide from here. But given his dad’s absence, Rafe was needed in Houston. Jeanine had informed him that Noah was making himself indispensable to the employees.
Rafe went back into the galley, refilled his coffee, poured a second cup, then went up top with the offering. “I’m going home.” Rafe extended the drink to his father. “You should come with me. Take your mind off this.”
“I’m waiting for her.”
“If she shows up, Celeste’s team will notify you.”
“You want me to trust them?”
They’d had this conversation a dozen times. “The police, then.” Two days ago, they’d contacted the local authorities. Since there didn’t seem to be foul play, they’d taken an obligatory report but not much action.
“I’m staying,” Theodore insisted.
With great reluctance, Rafe nodded.
For the first time, he understood his dad’s obsession with the woman he still thought of as Lillibet.
If something happened to Hope, Rafe wasn’t sure he’d be able to survive. At first, he’d pursued her because he needed a wife, and she was a good fit. He wasn’t sure when it had become something deeper, essential.
More than anything, he wished he were returning to her. Would there be anything sweeter than pulling her into his arms, onto his lap, reconnecting and exploring deeper?
Christ.
His soul ached from the pain of missing her.
He was wrecked, with no damn idea how to make it right. But he vowed to never stop trying.
Belowdecks, he contacted Jeanine to make arrangements for his plane and asked her to have a vehicle waiting when he arrived in Houston.
Rafe packed up the few things he’d brought with him, then spoke with his father and Travers. Within an hour, Rafe was on the way to the regional airport.
“Florida’s a popular destination for your family this week, Mr. Sterling,” the flight attendant noted when he was seated with coffee.
He scowled. “How so?”
