Page 14 of His to Love
Chapter Seven
Patton
My sweating palms had my hands slipping on the steering wheel. I’d never been so worried about anyone in my life. If Alexa weren’t so innocent and naïve, I wouldn’t have been this anxious. But my mind kept running away from me.
What if someone has abducted her? What if she’s fallen for some shady man who’s talked her into running away with him? What if I never see her again?
My cell phone dinged, and I looked at the screen to find that Luci had sent me a text message. Grabbing the phone, I read it quickly as I sat at a red light:
“I found her in California. She’s coming home. She said she’ll be back in Austin in three days. I told her to go to your place. Can you send me the address of your new house? I’ll come tomorrow to tell you more.”
“California?” I began driving again, breathing a lot better now that I knew she was okay and coming home. “To my home?”
I’d moved into my new house a couple of weeks ago. There was ample room for Alexa to stay with me but I had to wonder why Luci would want her to. Something had to have gone on at the Soliz residence.
I’d seen the deacon call his son that very morning, and he’d said that he hadn’t seen Alexa. I had no idea who else she knew in California. If not Alejandro, then who? And why run off without telling a soul what she was doing?
My guess was that Alejandro had lied to his father. Thank God Luci had scared Alexa into telling him where she was. She had to have run away to be with Alejandro.
But if that was the case, then why had she agreed to come back? And why wasn’t she going to be staying with Alejandro’s family if they were a couple? And why was I so wrapped up in what she was doing?
Nosing around in someone else’s business wasn’t like me. I didn’t give unsolicited advice. I didn’t stick my nose in where it wasn’t wanted. And I knew for a fact that Alexa didn’t want my nose in her business, or she would’ve told me where she was going.
Pulling into the parking garage at work, I thought about how she’d had a stomachache the day she left.Was that just a lie to be able to leave work early to head out to California?
She could’ve told me what she was going to do. It wasn’t like I would try to stop her or anything. It must’ve been because she hadn’t wanted her brother to know her plans.
I would have to have a serious talk with my friend about how his over-protective ways only made Alexa feel like she had to lie to so many people just to be able to have a boyfriend. She and Alejandro had obviously lied to the deacon and his wife as well. I didn’t know if that was because Alexa wanted it that way or if it was Alejandro’s doing, but they’d hid their relationship well from his parents.
As I got out of the truck, I shook my head, trying to rid it of my thoughts. I had no evidence at all to support my speculation about Alexa and Alejandro’s relationship. I was jumping to conclusions—another thing that was nothing like me.
As I walked into the building, I saw Hailey and waved at her. “I’ve got news on Alexa.”
She came toward me. “Oh, yeah?”
“Yeah. She’s not at home. She’s not sick.” Luci hadn’t told me that part, so I corrected myself. “Well, I don’t know if she’s sick or not. But I highly doubt it since her brother found out she’s in California.”
“What’s she doing there?” she asked with a frown. “And why did she think she had to lie to me? If she wanted to take a vacation all she had to do was ask for one. Do you think she wasn’t aware of that, Patton?”
“I really don’t know. But I do know that she’s due back in Austin in three days, and Iwillfind out. Are you cool with me letting her come back to work if that’s something she wants to do? As her supervisor, it’s your call to make.
“She’s been great up until now. I’d hate to fire her.” Her furrowed brow told me she had to give it some thought.
“Well, you think about it and let me know. You’ve got three days to make a decision.” I didn’t want to play favorites with Alexa, especially if she was going to be lying and disappearing again. “I’ve got work to get to.”
“Me too.” She turned to leave. “I’ll let you know what I decide before she gets back. I don’t think firing her is the right thing to do, I can tell you that right now. But this shouldn’t go without some type of reprimand.”
“I agree.” I wasn’t going to let Alexa get away with being so deceitful. Mostly because there just wasn’t any reason for her to deceive me or her supervisor. But she’d never had a job before, so I didn’t know what she thought she had to do in order to get some time off.
The next evening, I sat at home watching football on television when my doorbell rang. I’d been expecting Luci to show up at any time, so I jogged to the door to answer it. “Hey, old friend.”
“Hey, Patton.” He came in, shoulders sagging, and I’d never seen such a haggard expression on his face. “Please tell me that you’ve got some scotch here. I need a drink like I’ve never needed one in my life.”
“I happen to have a bottle.” I went to the bar off the living room and made him a drink as he sank into a chair. “You look awful.” I handed him the glass then went to take a seat on the couch. “Is your mother doing okay?” His hang-dog expression couldn’t possibly be over his sister. She was coming back, after all.
He took a long drink before answering me. “Mother is doing okay at the moment. She had the appointment with the cardiologist yesterday. There are still some tests that have to come in, but the general diagnosis is heart failure.”
“That sounds bad, Luciano.” I wasn’t sure what exactly that diagnosis entailed, but the idea of one’s heart failing sounded just about as unhealthy as it could get.
