Page 68 of Secondhand Secrets

Encode presentation now over, he pushed through his front door and plonked his leather laptop bag to the nearby ornate upholstered chair, quick to make his way to the kitchen in search of more food. Even if his thoughts did run full speed over each minor detail of this morning’s meeting.

The Encode board would see the other candidates today, then set about critiquing and searching for any reason the code he’d provided wouldn’t work. A lot of money rode on this decision, so he couldn’t blame them. Still, he’d got a feeling from the board members that something wasn’t right this morning, and his nerves wouldn’t settle until he knew the result.

He rubbed the strain at the back of his neck and stepped into the kitchen, the room’s familiar brightness a small relief until he spotted Kelly and his dad staring back at him from their seats at the large, white marble island.

Their faces tight and wary, his dad’s arm wrapped around Kelly’s shoulder in an unusual show of support. They looked as though they’d been waiting in this room a long time.

“What’s happened?” He darted his gaze between the two, his heartbeat thudding loud in his ears.

Kelly peered at his dad again, seeming to seek support before her focus landed on Chip with a pained sort of grimace. “Ally’s gone.”

His world stilled, and he fought to decipher her full meaning, although the twisting sensation in his gut offered instant understanding. “As in, back to Harlow?”

A long silence hung in the air before Kelly’s grimace deepened and she nodded. “We’re sorry, Chip.”

His limbs turned instantly cold and numb, and he looked to his father, expecting to see a happy smirk there since Ally had done exactly as he’d wanted. But his dad’s lips held a firm line, the deepened wrinkles around his mouth denoting a man not at all pleased.

Never the sort to withhold a stare, his dad’s gaze fell to the counter, the action corroborating Kelly’s claim. “She left this morning. She asked me to lie to you about going sightseeing, although I didn’t lie about her not wanting to distract from your opportunity today.”

Despite the angry heat rushing his body, plus his desire to lay into his dad, Chip spun away and raced up the stairs. He needed proof. Needed to see his empty bedroom without the hurried eyes of a man hurtling toward his once-in-a-lifetime chance.

Screw opportunity.

Grief and panic swallowed him, and he swung his bedroom door open and stormed across the cream carpet to his wardrobe, indeed emptier than last night. Her suitcase, missing. The shelves he’d cleared for her, once again bare. He dug his phone out of his pocket. No messages there. No missed calls. She’d left. Just left.

As though she’d never been here to begin with.

The skin over his cheekbones turned impossibly taut, and he ran his hand over his mouth, sifting through his racing thoughts. He wanted to yell. He wanted to hate her. But yelling and hate were a cheap cover for pain. So he’d find something more useful, something to deal with the tidal wave of emotion crushing him now.

Ally rarely left Harlow and would be traveling alone. The phone still sat in his hand, so he’d focus on making sure she was okay.

His stomach churned as he pressed CALL on her number. Her silent exit hinted at not wanting to hear from him, but they’d known each other in ways that ran far deeper than being just lovers. They had history. Had grown up together. He couldn’t end their relationship on silence.

But she didn’t answer.

Spots flashed in his eyes over what that could mean, but he told himself that she was on her flight home already and had simply put her phone on airplane mode. She couldn’t take calls. Not that she wouldn’t take his call.

How did we get to this?

He paced the area beside his bed and refused to answer that question. He’d make another call. His sister. Maybe Sarah would know if Ally had arrived back in town.

Only, he got no answer there, either, so he tried calling Dean next.

“Hey, what’s up?” Dean’s distinct and always-easy baritone didn’t give Chip much hope he knew anything.

“Is Ally there?”

“What?” A few rustling sounds, like he had Dean’s full attention now. “Shouldn’t she be with you?”

“She left and isn’t answering her phone.”

Silence. Dean didn’t seem like the type to muse on emotions, so maybe Chip couldn’t be surprised at the man’s prolonged pause and lack of condolences. “Do you know when she left?”

Bless Dean for not asking for details on why she’d left, only for the practical facts to find her now.

“At least six hours.” Since she’d slipped out before he’d even woken that morning. “Enough time to board a plane, I guess. Maybe even catch the bus from the airport back to town.”

“Hmmm…” Dean paused, seeming to take a moment to think. “All right. Leave this with me. I’ll chat with the Egans, see if she’s there. If not, I’ll check if she’s just blocking your calls and may be willing to speak with her parents. Hey, wasn’t your big presentation today? Hell of a time for a lover’s tiff.”

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