Lone Wolf (Wilde Brothers Ranch #6)- Scarlett Grove Page 0,15

end. You know that.”

“I can't have faith in something that has never proven itself to me. All I know is that she’s gone, and she took everything with her.”

“Why don't you take some time off from the warehouse? I’ll take over some of your responsibilities and fast-track that new employee. We'll get somebody in here who can take over your job completely so that there’s always someone you can fall back on. I realize I've been putting too much responsibility on you alone. Because you've always been able to handle it. But now I can see that that was selfish. And I'm willing to remedy the situation.”

Dylan collapsed into a chair at the kitchen table and ran his finger over the damp green glass of his bottle. Without looking up at his brother, he muttered halfheartedly, “Thanks.”

This time, when Austin gripped his shoulder and squeezed, Dylan didn't push him away. He didn't feel anything but a deep hole of sadness.

“I'm sure if you think about it, you can find a way to locate her.” Austin turned away and started toward the door. “Just don't give up.”

9

Annie posted to one of her client’s social media accounts then tapped over to her calendar, looking over the appointments she had coming up. Noticing a red X on her calendar for two weeks ago, she realized she was two weeks late for her cycle. In her need to forget what had happened in Fate Rock, she’d buried herself in her work and completely lost track.

She pushed her chair away from her desk, a cold sweat breaking out on her brow. She stood and began pacing her office. Annie was never late for her cycle. It came like clockwork every twenty-eight days. There was only one thing that could mean. She walked out of the office and collapsed onto her couch, covering her face with her hands. Panic brewed in her gut, and she crossed her arms over her stomach and grimaced.

What if she was pregnant with Dylan's baby? This can’t be happening. This can’t be happening. They'd only been together that one time—that single magical night where the stars had aligned and they'd made love in a way that she had never believed possible. But now what would she do?

She couldn't just jump to conclusions. Maybe she was just stressed out and her body was responding. She bolted from the couch and grabbed her purse before charging out the door and down the stairs of her apartment building. Out on the street, the sun was high and bright overhead. People sat at café tables on the sidewalk and walked in and out of stores. Everyone seemed happy and content with the autumn sunshine. Laughter rose on the air as she passed people drinking coffee and eating sandwiches. Their happiness just contributed to the dark spiral inside her own mind.

She made it to the corner drugstore, her arms crossed tightly over her chest. She felt so embarrassed, she couldn't bring herself to go directly to the pregnancy tests. She threw vitamins and electrolyte water into her basket. She passed the feminine hygiene products, wishing that that was what she was shopping for, on her way to the end of the aisle.

On one side, there were condoms, and on the other side were pregnancy tests. If she had just remembered to use the products from one side of the aisle, she wouldn't be staring at the products on the other side.

“Stupid, stupid, stupid,” she said to herself.

She had sweated through her shirt from anxiety. Her hands were clammy, and her face was damp. She reached out toward the pregnancy test in front of her as if moving through water. Her fingers closed around the box. They felt numb from lack of blood circulation. She held her breath as she dropped the box into the basket. Then she grabbed three more. She needed to be sure. As she wound her way back to the checkout, she threw some feminine hygiene products into her basket for good measure.

She set her basket on the counter in front of a middle-aged woman in a blue smock with a name tag that said Nancy. She smiled at Annie as she rang up her items. She looked down at the pregnancy test then up at Annie’s face and dropped them into the bag without a word. Annie paid, and the woman handed her the bag.

“Good luck,” the woman said.

“Thanks,” Annie muttered, heading to the door.

She practically sprinted back to her apartment and