If anything, Peyton had tried texting and calling her more often than normal since leaving on the trip.
She took her coffee back to the bedroom and stared at her phone for a long moment before calling Peyton.
It rang through to his voicemail immediately, like his phone was off…
Or he’d thumbed the end button to send it there.
Gillian knew she shouldn’t rip into him like this, but, as she stared at their baby, after Peyton’s short message played, Gillian lambasted him.
“I love you, you sonofabitch, but you should be here. There’s no reason someone else couldn’t have gone. Adair’s lying here asleep and where’s her daddy during her first days of life? Fucking off on a damned snipe hunt. Come home, Peyton.”
She hung up, trembling, and dropped her phone onto the bed.
No, she shouldn’t have done that.
And yes, she could log into his account and delete it, because she had all the passwords—they both did for each other—but…
The longer she thought about it, the angrier she grew.
Asia had been able to have Trent at her side for all of her babies, and hell, they were on pup number five!
Adair was their first baby, and now Gillian was forced to shoulder this on her own without him.
And it fucking sucked.
Not to mention it borderline scared her.
She’d built it up in her mind that their first few weeks as new parents would involve lots of family time, snuggling together, enjoying Adair’s birth, letting a bit of joy fill this damned house that had seen so much darkness, and finally, finally start to put the metaphorical ghosts to rest once and for all.
And she couldn’t even have that bit of normalcy.
After a moment, she picked up her phone again and shot him another angry text. Then, while the baby still slept, Gillian took a quick shower, emerging just in time for Adair to awaken, ready to nurse and be changed. It was after seven when Gillian finally emerged from the bedroom with the baby sound asleep on her shoulder, the empty coffee mug in the other hand, and headed to the kitchen for breakfast.
Still no response from Peyton, either.
Ken took one look at her and walked over, motioning. “Gimme.” She started to hand him the coffee mug but he smiled, shaking his head. “Give her to me so you can eat with both hands. I’ve already had breakfast and there’s still plenty left. I told Asia’s piranha pups to leave at least one of the steaks for you.”
“Did I mention I love you?”
He was already a natural, exhibiting no awkwardness as he took Adair and gently settled her on his shoulder, almost exactly as Gillian held her.
“I might be a grazer, but I’m a quick study and like to keep my hide intact, thank you very much.” He leaned against the counter as Gillian piled food on her plate. Halfway through nursing the baby, her own stomach had started roaring with a fury. Something else Asia had playfully warned her about—nearly insatiable hunger during the nursing stage.
“Where’s your little piranha?” Gillian asked as she licked a dollop of sausage gravy off her thumb where it’d landed while she was ladling it over a fresh biscuit.
“You mean Dewi or Lyssa?” he teased.
“Yes.” Which made Ken laugh. Still, Gillian’s anxiety tried to claw its way back into her mind, and she viciously shoved it down.
I will not let myself worry!
“Dewi ate already. She grabbed Badger’s rental car and took the baby with her to visit Beck’s family,” Ken said. “Then she’ll stop by and see Joaquin’s family, along with a few others.”
Gillian eased herself onto one of the barstools along part of the counter to eat there. “And you didn’t go with her?”
He arched an eyebrow at her, and for a moment, it reminded her of how Peyton and Trent and other wolves looked. More than mere human, and yet?—
“I told her I have work I need to do. Pack business. I might have hinted I was taking point handling a few tasks that you and Trent normally do. She understood. Plus, if Dewi’s not around, it’s easier for me to relax while I’m working. With Peyton gone, I still need to manage that…special project we’re dealing with.”
