Unlike most of the women, who were only given a first name, Bliss had taken her mother’s last name, too, the same as Winniehad. It was a quiet rebellion Connor respected more than she’d ever know.
His cellphone rang, the tone letting him know it was Reid before he even looked at his screen. Everyone in his phone had their own ringtone, so he’d know who he was dealing with before the conversation started.
No surprises. That was his goal in life. Surprises were for men who enjoyed chaos. Connor preferred control.
Connor answered what he knew would be Reid’s question before he could even ask. “I know. I’m running late. I’m seven minutes out.”
There was a beat of silence that made Connor smile.
“I hate it when you do that shit,” Reid growled through the phone. “Just say hello like the rest of us. And hurry up, we’ve got shit to cover, and Hutch is antsy to leave. Something about getting to Georgia before she joins some women’s roller derby team she had on her bucket list.”
Connor shook his head. Jedidiah “Hutch” Hutchinson worked for Sabre. Like all the men who worked there, Connor counted him as a brother. But brother or not, he needed to keep his Little girl on a tighter leash. That was the only way he was ever going to keep her from pulling all the shenanigans she seemed to live for.
But they seemed to both get something out of it. Hell if he knew what it was though. Georgia’s unpredictability would drive him insane. He loved Georgia to death, so long as Hutch was the one to keep up with her. Truth was, he felt that way about most of his brothers’ Little girls. That and more than a small amount of envy.
No one could deny that they all walked around smiling a lot more than they used to. Like they’d finally found the missing piece they’d been looking for.
Connor was ready to have someone to smile about, too. After their night in Vegas, he’d thought he’d be smiling about Bliss. Right up until he got back to the motel room to find her gone.
She’d shown back in Darling two months ago. Pregnant. And with twin girls. Which confused the shit out of him, since she’d been a virgin. But two babies? Make that three, since she’d given birth to Nori a month ago.
Three babies. Three.
Even though they weren’t hers by birth, she hadn’t mentioned them once during the entire time they were together. He liked kids, he really did. As long as they belonged to someone else. Now, Bliss had three precious reasons for a man to stay away.
Or rethink every damn thing about your life.
She’d said something about loving kids after they’d made love that night in Vegas, but he’d been so dog-tired he could barely stay awake. Yeah, passing out while she was talking wasn’t his smoothest move.
He’d felt like a dick the next morning. On their drive back to Darling, he’d planned on talking to her about it more. But then she’d pulled her little Houdini act on him, and that was the end of that. They’d be having words about her disappearing act when he saw her again.
He’d almost had a heart attack when he’d gotten back from grabbing some boxes of cereal and milk from the hotel office, only to find the room empty. She had to have snuck out the second he was out of sight because the bed was cold. Her bag was gone. It was like she’d never been there at all.
Oh, but she took his shirt with her, now didn’t she?
His grip tightened on the steering wheel at the memory. If he’d been able to get his hands on her then, she’d have had a hard time sitting comfortably on the long drive home to Darling.He still had no idea how she’d managed to lose him so fast, and on foot.
“Con. Are you still there?”
Connor blinked. He’d completely forgotten he was talking on the phone. Apparently, Reid wasn’t done.
“Yeah, sorry. I zoned out there for a sec. What do you need?”
There was a pause before Reid answered. “I need you to keep an eye out for Bliss on your way. She was supposed to be here almost an hour ago to pick up Nori and the twins, but she hasn’t made it yet. We’ve tried calling her, but her phone goes straight to voicemail. Winnie’s worried.”
Connor’s heart rate kicked up a notch. A familiar spike of adrenaline shot down his spine. Obviously, Winnie wasn’t the only one worried. Reid wouldn’t have called if he wasn’t worried, too. And his brother’s voice was tight.
What the hell was Bliss thinking? She should know better than to turn her phone off. She should also know that, after everything Bliss had gone through in the past year, Winnie would be worried.
Bliss could be impulsive, but he’d never known her to be thoughtless. Then again, with the Society and now the Lawless Warriors MC added in, he couldn’t be sure one of them hadn’t seized the opportunity to snatch her again.
“I’m sure she’s fine,” he said. Because she probably was. But theprobablyhad him worried. “I’ll keep an eye out. Did you call Ivy?”
“Of course, I called Ivy. Do you think I wouldn’t call her boss? The daycare line goes to voicemail, and if Ivy has a personal number, it’s unlisted. Sawyer’s working on it.” As Sabre’s computer guru, Sawyer probably found out everything without talking to Ivy at all. Reid sighed. “She probably had to stop for some diapers or some shit like that, but keep an eye out just in case.”
“You got it.” Connor disconnected.
His eyes automatically scanned the area for her car. Nothing.
