Page 17 of Destined
Despite the dire circumstances of his father’s health, he couldn’t help but be grateful for this chance to put some distance between them. The opportunity to gain some perspective.
Still, he felt gutted that he’d not said goodbye before leaving, not had an opportunity to hold her one more time. And, if he were being honest, he was disappointed that he wouldn’t get to spend the special evening he’d been planning, with her. This see-saw of emotion irritated him. He rubbed frustratedly at eyes gritty with tiredness.
The captain’s voice broke through his reverie, informing him they’d be landing shortly. Shaking off his unhappy thoughts, he strapped himself in. Thoughts of Serena would have to wait. His dying father and his family needed him now.
22
Serena
Where the hellhad the bloody man disappeared to? Serena had been searching for Sebastian for at least thirty minutes, and the man was proving impossible to find. In exasperation, she reached into her clutch for her cell phone. Exasperation turned to full-blown irritation when she discovered the damn thing had died.
She scanned the room, yet again, in search of either Sabastian or Ginny, who seemed to have disappeared too. Thankfully, she finally spotted Ginny. Hurrying over to where her assistant stood, Serena huffed, “Where have you been? I’ve been searching for you for the last half hour.”
The smile on Ginny’s face slipped at Serena’s words. “Sorry, Serena. I was helping out in the crèche area. What’s up? You seem a bit stressed.”
“Have you seen Sebastian recently?”
“No, now that you mention it. Not since before I went to help out with the babies. Why? Is there a problem?”
“Not a problem, per se. I just can’t find the dratted man. It’s like he’s vanished into thin air.”
“Have you tried his cell phone?”
“I can’t.” Serena gave a sheepish look.
“Why ca— You did it again, didn’t you? The battery’s gone flat again, hasn’t it?”
“Yeah.” Sighing, she could only shake her head. “You know how bad I am with this thing. I don’t know why I’m so bad at keeping it charged. Thank god, it only goes flat in the evenings. I’d be doomed if it kept running flat during the day.”
“All right, hang tight. I’ll just go get mine, and you can give him a call.”
“Thanks, Ginny. You’re the best. You know that, right?”
“Damn right, I’m the best.” Ginny snorted out a laugh as she went off to retrieve her phone.
Cell phone in hand, Serena saw Ginny making her way back across the room before being stopped by a young woman holding a small boy’s hand. She saw Ginny point her way. Then they all started in Serena’s direction.
“Serena, this is Carissa Young. Her husband was a traffic officer lost in the line of duty. She just wanted to thank Sebastian for this evening.”
Serena smiled at the woman. “Ms Young, it’s lovely to meet you. Unfortunately, Mr Marino had to leave unexpectedly, but I’ll be happy to pass on your thanks.”
“Thank you so much. You guys really did a wonderful job this year. These events are usually lovely. This one, though? It’s the best one by far. Mr Marino does such a wonderful job of supporting the foundation. We wouldn’t be able to do the work we do without him. The foundation will send a formal letter of thanks. I just wanted to thank him personally.”
“I’ll be sure to give him your message.”
The woman took her leave, and Ginny turned to face Serena, holding the phone out to her.
“I’ll be right back. I’m just going to find somewhere a little quieter.”
“No problem. I’ve got this.”
Serena left the ballroom, heading to a small courtyard that seemed deserted. She dialled the number Sebastian had written on the back of his business card. Putting the phone to her ear, she listened to it dialling. It went directly to voicemail. Trying again yielded the same results.
Her blood boiled.How could the man just up and leave his own function without so much as a word to her?Not knowing what else to do, she tried one more time. When her call went directly to voicemail for the third time, she gave up.
Serena returned to the ballroom, her posture stiff with anger. Ginny never said a word as she handed the phone back. But her thoughts were stamped on her expressive face.
“I can’t get hold of Sebastian,” Serena bit out through gritted teeth. Checking her watch, she continued, “People are starting to leave now, so I guess we should just wrap things up here and get this disaster cleared up in the morning.”
