Stealing Hearts (Wild at Heart #1)(80)

Because I made her feel like shit.

I made her feel like I didn’t care whether she stayed or left.

How could I have said those things to her?

I make a slow circle, my eyes falling on her scattered clothes. A sock here. A t-shirt there. Would she have left so many things behind if she was gone for good?

Then my attention lands on her sewing machine on the small table in the corner that I set up for her projects.

That gives me a glimmer of hope.

Maybe she just went to Baylee’s.

Paige couldn’t have caught a flight overnight, could she? That would require her to drive to Austin.

There wasn’t time for all that.

I don’t think.

Fuck.

I rush to the living room, where my brothers look as grim as I do. It’s late for us, and the fact that we’re all loitering in the house at sunrise tells me they’re just as fucked up about our financial situation as I am.

The only difference is they didn’t just douse their marriage in kerosene and light a match.

From the couch in the living room, Gabriel hops up. “Hi, Dad.”

“Hi, buddy.” I spot Austin with him, playing Legos. “Did y’all eat breakfast?”

He bounces a ball on the ground, and it lands with a thud that makes my temple throb. “Uncle Beau fed us.”

“Good.” I turn back to my brothers and lower my voice. “Have y’all seen Paige this morning?”

Beau shakes his head. “Been waiting for you to wake up. Figured you needed a good night’s rest for once so we can make a plan.”

“A plan?”

I’ve never seen defeat in my brother’s eyes, but it’s there now. “Yeah. To liquidate.”

Liquidate. He means sell our ranch.

Because we can’t fucking afford it.

My throat is thick, and I struggle to suck in a breath. I wander to the front window where I see the empty spot where my wife’s car is always parked.

Nice job, asshole. You ran her off.

The boys start throwing the ball back and forth to each other, but Austin can’t catch that well, and it goes flying against the corner of the living room. I’ve been a big enough dick this week, so I don’t bark that they shouldn’t play ball in the house.

I rub the back of my neck. Everything hangs in the balance. My house, the ranch, our livestock. My relationship with Paige.

And as much as I’ve bled for this ranch, if Paige leaves, she’s taking my heart and soul with her.

I return to my brothers at the kitchen table. “The cattle aren’t the priority right now,” I say for the first time in my life. Because the ranch has always been the most important thing.

Beau and Jace give each other a wary look, and Jace scrubs his stubbled face. “I don’t know how much you drank last night, bro, but the state inspector shut us down indefinitely. Until we can get his damn stamp of approval.”

“I’ll deal with that later. Where’s my phone?”

Just then, it buzzes on the counter by the coffee pot. It’s Baylee.

I don’t get a chance to even say her name before she shouts, “Where’s Paige?”

“I’m not sure. I just realized she wasn’t here.”

“She texted me after midnight that she was coming over, but I was asleep and didn’t see it until just now. I tried calling, but no one answered.”

Fear like I’ve never known spreads like ice through my veins.

All the worries I’ve been carrying around with me for months melt away as it becomes imperative that I find Paige.

Because she’s what matters here. Not this land. Not the wood and brick of this house. Not my family’s stupid legacy.

My wife.

“I’ll find her.” I put her on speakerphone. “Do you think she could’ve driven back to Charming?”

“She would’ve told me she was doing that.” Baylee whimpers. “I’m worried, Rhett.”

That ball goes thudding across the kitchen, and my boys trail after it, laughing like they don’t know my whole world is coming apart at the seams.

I glance at my brothers. “We’ll go look for her.” They immediately nod, concern etched on their faces. “Any idea where she might’ve gone?”

That’s when the ball goes sailing across the room and clatters around in the bathroom. Gabriel streaks in there. “Uh-oh.”

Beau rolls his eyes and pushes out of his chair to wrangle my kids.

Baylee and I agree to check in within an hour. I hang up and shove the phone in my back pocket. “We need to split up and drive around town. Maybe she got a flat tire.” It’s easy enough to do on our country roads.

Beau ushers Gabriel out of the powder room, but he has a box in his hand. “Um. Rhett.”

“Where are my keys?” Jesus, I’m a mess.

“Brother.” The seriousness in his voice makes me freeze.

He holds up a box. I squint until the words come into focus.

It’s a pregnancy test.

There’s only one woman in this house.

“Where’d you find that?”

Beau motions behind him. “The boys knocked over the trash, and it fell out.”

I practically trip over myself to grab that box and shake it. “Where’s the actual test?” I rush into the bathroom and turn over the trash can. Balled-up tissue falls out.