“Mmhmm,” I quirked an eye at him. “I’m suspicious.”
Stan laughed out loud. “Really? What do you think my secret plan is?”
I swallowed another bite of the amazing pancakes and grinned. “Clearly this is an attempt to drive up the five-star reviews and then leverage them into a pay raise.”
“You’re on to me,” Stan said solemnly, passing me the cheesy scrambled eggs. “If you’re done with your morning sugar rush, have some protein?”
I laughed and stuck my tongue out but accepted the bowl of eggs. “It’s working,” I assured him after taking a big spoonful. “If I can figure out how, I’m leaving a twenty-star review!”
After a morning of lounging in my favorite spot in front of the picture window, staring out at the sparkling water of the lake, Stan caught me yawning and shooed me back into the guest wing for a nap.
“It’s not like I’ve done anything but veg out,” I protested. “How can I possibly be this tired? I should go out and get some exercise.”
“How about after your nap and lunch I show you my favorite hiking path?” Stan offered.
“We could go now?” I suggested even though the thought of sinking into the fluffy cloud of a bed in my room was very appealing.
“Nope,” Stan said firmly. “I have morning chores to do, and you are creating an entire baby in that tummy and you need your rest.” He aimed surprisingly effective puppy eyes at me. “You wouldn’t want me to get in trouble for not keeping the place clean, would you?”
“Of course not,” I agreed quickly, stifling another yawn. “That was selfish of me, I’m sorry.”
“That’s better,” Stan said with a grin that left me feeling vaguely like I just been played and offered a hand to pull me up from the sofa. “Now, I made your bed and fluffed your pillows earlier, so you should be all set. If you’re not up by one, I’ll come and wake you up so we have time to hike, okay?”
“Perfect,” I agreed with a laugh. “Anyone ever told you that you’re a little pushy?”
Sadness touched his eyes and then left again so quickly that I questioned if it happened when he shrugged and laughed. “Maybe once or twenty times.”
~*~
When I crawled out of my comfy bed at twelve-thirty thoroughly refreshed, the entire first floor was thick with delicious smells. I slipped into the kitchen to claim a stool at the counter and drew in a deep breath.
“That smells amazing. What is it?”
“If we’re going hiking, you’ll need energy so I whipped up a shepherd’s pie,” he said, tossing a friendly smile over his shoulder when he bent to pull the casserole out of the oven. “How was your nap?”
“Amazing.” I accepted the plate he handed me, piled high with the meat mixture topped with mounds of fluffy mashed potatoes. “If that bed is missing when I check out, I definitely didn’t steal it.”
Stan snorted and took his usual seat across from me. “I’ll be sure to note that in your file.”
Starving, I dug into my lunch, barely even breathing until the plate had been scraped clean. “That was amazing.”
“I’m glad you enjoyed it.” Stan stood and collected our dishes. “Now, if you finish your milk and put some shoes on, I’ll load the dishwasher and we can go on that hike.”
I drained the milk glass and set it on the counter with the other dirty dishes. “I’ll be right back.”
Shortly after we were strolling along a beautiful, well-maintained path around the lake I could see from the window, soaking in the warm sunshine and breathing in the fresh air when all Hell broke loose.
~*~
Otto
The three of us piled into Taylor’s sedan for the forty or so minute drive up to the small resort town further up the mountain. With each mile, my mind raced with more and more scenarios for why my Omega was missing, the ball of dread in my chest expanding with each one. As much as I wanted to believe it was nothing, I couldn’t convince myself that Dex would have willingly scared his friends and family by just taking off.
Would he do that to me? Pretty sure that was a yes and, given how I treated him, I couldn’t even blame him. But would he do that to everyone else? Never in a million years.
Taylor pulled up in front of a small log cabin and I was out of the car before he even put it in park. I drew in a deep breath and held it, letting my bear sift through the intricacies of scent layered in the fresh mountain air. Growling when I exhaled, I mounted the steps to the small front porch even though I already knew that wherever Dex was, he nevermade it to this cabin.
Pulling the key from under the planter that Taylor pointed to, I opened the front door. It was empty.
