She was going to have to be cleverer than that. She considered checking in with some of his friends, but that felt wrong. If she was pissed at him about involving the kids, she didn’t want to loop everyone they knew into their problems. That wasn’t her style. Until a few hours ago, she would have said it wasn’t Ben’s either.
The good news was that Ben was a creature of habit. He wasn’t likely to stray far from his comfort zone. Hilary guessed that he had probably opted for a hotel close to downtown.
Or would he have gone for a temporary rental? Ben loved to cook. It was his stress relief. She also couldn’t picture him eating takeout in a lonely hotel.
There was a boutique hotel near Drake Park where each room was outfitted with a small kitchenette.
That has to be it.
Hilary left the club and kept her chin up as she weaved through the throng of shoppers downtown. She didn’t want to risk bumping into a Chamber member and looking grim. After all, this was the happiest time of the year, and she was “the face” of Bend.
Her thoughts were mired in self-doubt as she headed toward the hotel. This was her fault. It wasn’t fair that Ben had used the twins as leverage, but she was ultimately responsible. Like always, she was responsible for everything. Why had she shut Ben out? Why couldn’t she give him a chance?
He hadn’t asked for much.
It was the baseline for any marriage to ask your partner to show up, but she couldn’t give him that. And she didn’t have the answers as to why.
How messed up is that?
At the boutique hotel, she struck out again. No one named Ben had checked in in the last week.
Could he be using an alias?
Hilary shook her head.
That was ridiculous. This was Ben.HerBen.
The Ben who wore goofy hats to parties, baked homemade cinnamon rolls on the weekend, and had a daily dad joke at the ready.
An alias?
Get it together, Hilary.
At a loss for what to do next, she opted to return to the downtown hotel, get her Chamber supplies, and head to the office. She needed to double-check today’s contestant logs and had promised the mayor that she would keep a strict eye on any unusual team activity. He had been breathing down her neck for updates. Every text message that buzzed on her phone had been from the mayor, not her husband.
Hopefully, Ben would listen to his messages and return her call.
Another thought invaded as she retraced her steps. What if something had happened to him? What if he had decided to escape into nature to clear his head? That would be a Ben move.
Maybe he’d gone snowshoeing or cross-country skiing and had had an accident. How long ago had he talked to Bella?
The swirling feeling in her stomach returned.
She would give it an hour. If she didn’t hear from him by then, she would call Bella and have her try. If he didn’t answer their daughter’s calls, she would know he was in trouble.
Hilary barely noticed anyone as she squeezed through the lobby. The ballroom was being set up for the next event. It never ceased to amaze Hilary how quickly a staff could change out the massive rooms. Since taking the position at the Chamber, she had been to her fair share of corporate breakfasts and was stunned when she would return to the same ballroom mere hours later for a luncheon or cocktail party with a completely different arrangement.
Her things were waiting where she’d left them. She waved to a staffer to let them know she was retrieving her stuff.
She balanced the boxes and started for the lobby when someone bumped into her, causing her to nearly drop the boxes. She clutched them tightly and regained her composure.
But her composure quickly vanished when she looked up to see her husband staring at her with disbelief. He looked tired and sad. His typically messy blond hair was disheveled like he’d tossed and turned all night. Scruffy stubble lined his cheeks, and bags sagged under his eyes.
“Ben, what are you doing here?”
THIRTY-FOUR
DARBY
