“Of course he did,” Fitz said, laughing. His smile faded, which had Colton pushing away from the counter. “Has anyone seen or heard from him? I texted him four times, but he hasn’t responded.”
“When was that?” Colton asked.
“We had lunch at noon, and then he said something about returning to the reindeer farm?” Fitz shrugged. “I don’t know what that means. Is there an actual reindeer farm here?”
Colton nodded. “Clara and her husband own it.”
“Her husband is the mayor,” Ace offered. “She’s married to the guy who looks like Santa.”
“That’s adorable.” Fitz removed his phone from his pocket and sighed. “Still nothing.”
“Maybe he’s with King?” Red said as he removed a stack of plates from the cabinet.
Ace pulled out his phone and tapped the screen. “King’s not answering.”
“I don’t like this,” Fitz said. “One of themalwaysanswers.”
Ace shot off a text, and soon after, the rest of the crew, minus King and Leo, appeared. “Has anyone seen or talked to King or Leo?”
Everyone looked around.
No one.
Fitz tapped his fingers against his glass. “Maybe they’re just, you know, getting a little sugar.”
Joker scoffed. “King and Leo aren’t the kind of guys who have sex inside a tool shed.”
Gio’s eyes went wide, and Colton cringed. It was like Joker didn’t know his husband. If there were an opportunity to tease his brothers, Ace wouldalwaysnotice even the most subtle signs.
“You mean like you and Gio?” Ace asked, not missing a beat.
Joker blinked at him.
“Ha!” Ace thrust a finger at Joker. “I knew it! You two aresoon the naughty list.”
Jack shook his head and went to stand next to Fitz, wrapping an arm around him and pulling him close. He kissed Fitz’s cheek, and Fitz seemed to relax a little. Just then, the door to the main room opened and shut.
“That’s probably them now,” Jack said, rubbing Fitz’s arm.
Jack was half right.
King blew into the kitchen, bringing a flurry of snow and winter chill. His face was red from the cold, but the worry in his eyes alerted everyone.
“I can’t find Leo.”
CHAPTEREIGHT
Where the heck could he be?
As soon as King told them he couldn’t find Leo, Ace and the rest of the crew bundled up and headed out, splitting into two groups, and taking the SUVs down to town. It had started snowing when they left, and it was really coming down by the time they’d parked.
They quickly devised a plan and split into pairs. Ace and King would check the woods surrounding the tree farm in case Leo tried to return and got lost, while Colton, Jack, and Fitz rechecked the reindeer farm in case Leo had doubled back. Mason and Lucky headed to the Ice Castle. Red, Joker, Gio, and Chip would go down the main street checking every building.
“I shouldn’t have let him go off alone,” Ace said, sighing heavily and shoving his gloved hands in his pockets. The snow crunched beneath their boots, and the icy wind whipped at their faces. Damn, it was cold. He sure hoped wherever Leo was that he was warm.
“It’s not your fault,” King assured him.
“I know. But still. It’s Leo.” It wasn’t that Leo couldn’t take care of himself. It was more that sometimes he wasn’t aware he had to.
