Chapter Seventeen
Thursday, July 21, 2022
“Have you heard from Logan this week?”
Luke hadn’t even managed to get through the front door of his house when Sierra pelted him with the question. He knew from the glint in her eye and the way her fists rested firmly on her hips that his answer was going to play a huge part in how the rest of the evening went.
He thought back on the last couple of days. “No. Why?”
“He’s gone,” she exclaimed, and it was then he realized her eyes were wild, and there were lines pulling at her mouth. The only time she ever looked like that was when she was stressed or anxious, and usually only when it pertained to the kids.
He managed to shut the door, then set his keys on the table beside it. “What do you meangone?”
Sierra threw her arms in the air and spun on her heel, marching toward the kitchen. “I meangone, Luke. What else could I possibly mean?”
All righty then.
Following behind and wondering when Cole would be home so perhaps he could take the brunt of Sierra’s mood, Luke braced himself for more of her frustrations. He ensured his tone was smooth and even when he joined her in the kitchen. “Maybe you could start from the beginning.”
He headed to the refrigerator, pulled out the pitcher of iced tea, and turned to the island.
Her tone simmered somewhat as she perched on one of the center island stools opposite him. “Sam called me today. She said Logan left on Monday. Didn’t tell her he was leaving.”
That didn’t sound like Logan. The man wasn’t prone to running scared. However, now that Luke thought about it, a lot of Logan’s actions these days had seemed uncharacteristic for him. The constant brooding, the sour mood, keeping his distance from Elijah.
“Has she talked to him?”
Sierra shrugged. “She said he texted.”
“And where did he say he is?”
“Chicago,” she snapped, speaking the word as though it was blasphemy.
“Well, that’s not completely out of character for him,” he said, grabbing a glass out of the cabinet and returning to the refrigerator for ice. “XTX has a branch in Chicago.”
“That’s not the point, Luke,” she insisted, her eyes flashing with fury. “He left without telling her!”
Well, at least now he understood what was really bothering his wife about the whole thing. And it made sense. Kinda. Luke couldn’t imagine leaving town without giving Sierra and Cole a heads-up. He recalled a time when Cole had pulled a stunt like that, disappearing in the middle of the damn night. Luke had been furious. Enough that he’d gone after the man and all but dragged him back by his hair.
As he poured his iced tea, he felt Sierra’s gaze on him. He looked up to see she was glaring daggers in his direction. Clearly, she wanted him to do something about this conundrum. On a good day, Luke wouldn’t mind being Sierra’s knight in shining armor. He rarely got to play that role. But when it came to Logan, he wasn’t sure there was anything he could do. Orshoulddo.
“Why don’t I call him?” he suggested, dragging his phone out of his pocket.
He dialed Logan’s number, waited as it rang. The entire time, Sierra stared at him as though boring her gaze into him would make Logan answer the phone.
It didn’t work. Logan didn’t answer.
Luke set the phone down, took a sip of his drink. “I’m sure he’s busy, probably wor—”
“He went to Dichotomy,” she spat.
“Then you know he’s all right if he went to—” He frowned as her words processed. “Wait. What?”
“Dichotomy,” Sierra repeated slowly, clearly for the imbecile in the room. “Sara texted me, said she talked to Trent, and he mentioned seeing Logan on Monday. At the club. In Chicago!”
Son of a bitch.
“You have to do something, Luke,” she insisted.
