Page 104

Sam

I’m losing my fucking mind. I’ve been driving for hours, tearing through the city like a lunatic. I checked her house. Empty. I drove to the hospital and bribed a security guard so I could check her office. Not a trace of her. Her phone goes straight to voicemail on the first ring. That means she either blocked my number or threw her phone off a cliff. Either is a fair possibility.

Desperation cloys over me like a second skin. I know she wanted space. And I get it. But we’ve been keeping important things to ourselves for decades. We’ve already lost so much time together. We need to get all of our cards on the table.

That, and I’m going crazy knowing she’s hurt and confused.

I slam my car into park in Sebastian’s driveway, jumping out before the engine even stops idling. Taking the front porch steps two at a time, I practically beat the ostentatious front door off its hinges once I reach it. I’m certain he knows it’s me. I’ve only called his house every hour on the hour to see if he has any clue how to find her.

The door swings wide. Sebastian stands there all smug, wearing a dad sweater, a coffee mug in hand. He looks infuriatingly unbothered. Bas takes one look at my disheveled hair, my rain-soaked jacket, and the wild, frantic look in my eyes, and doesn’t miss a beat. “I knew this moment would eventually come.” Sebastian casually takes a sip from his mug, stepping back and nodding toward the foyer. Slurp.

“Is she here?” I bark, my voice raw as I stride past him. “Sebastian, I swear to God, this is not the time for your jokes. If you’re hiding her⁠—”

He lets out a comical chuckle. “No scavenger hunt this time, little bro.” Slurp. “She’s not here.” He closes the door behind me. “But you need a better battle plan if you’re going to finally get your girl. Follow me.”

He ushers me down the hallway and straight into his home office. The furniture has been pushed to the perimeter of the room. Standing right in the center is a very familiar whiteboard.

Ah, jeez. Really?

I’m worried this is payback for when I sequestered the most important people in Sebastian’s life around it years ago, initiating an intervention to shake him out of his funk. It seemed like the only way to knock some sense into him. We gave him the tools to get Bella back when he thought all was lost.

Sebastian pulls out his phone, taps the screen, and speaks into the speakerphone. “The eagle has landed. I repeat, The eagle has landed.”

“Fuck sake,” I mutter, raking my hand through my already tousled hair. “What the hell is this?” I snap, pacing back and forth like a caged animal. “Sebastian, I don’t have time for your weird⁠—”

A door in the distance opens and shuts with a heavy bang. Heavy footsteps echo down the hall. Seconds later, Austin and Gavin burst into the office. Gavin looks slightly disheveled, but his face is set with unusual seriousness. Austin, on the other hand, carries a stack of legal pads and three different colored dry-erase markers.

“Uh oh,” Austin says, slapping the markers down on the desk.

“What?” I ask, confused. I mean, my mind is already spiraling from my efforts to locate Lexi. Now I’m in bizarroland. “Uh oh, what?”

“I forgot snacks.” Austin bolts out of the office door.

I roll my eyes. This night is literally going to be the death of me.

All of a sudden, Shep walks in, looking entirely too comfortable among this cast of crazy characters.

“What is happening here?” I ask, staring at everyone in absolute disbelief.

Before anyone can answer, the door opens again. Cassidy steps into the office, followed closely by Bella. “We came as soon as we could get here,” Cassidy announces, crossing her arms over her chest and eyeing me critically.

“And not a moment too soon, from what I hear,” Bella blurts. “Sounds like you have a real mess on your hands, Sam.”

Good Lord. Like I need them to enlighten me on this.

“I know,” I splutter, throwing my hands up in the air. “I’d finally pledged my eternal love to my wife, begging her to ignore our contract and stay married to me, when my mother walked in, announcing that she had proof I get fifty million dollars if Lex stays married to me for another year.”

And with that word vomit, I have announced to everyone that my marriage, in fact, is a sham. I look up to find each of the members of my family, as well as my groomsmen, staring back at me wide-eyed.

Yeah. The hits just keep on rolling.

“So, there was a marriage clause?” Bas asks.

My head falls forward in shame. “Yes. But Aaron Sterling warned that if anyone could prove the marriage wasn’t real, the funding would all be forfeited. Alexis and I wanted to keep it between us. For fear one wrong slip-up and Sutter Creek would be no more.” My face scrunches. I hate that I’ve lied to them all. “Listen. I might have entered into this marriage to save Pop’s vineyard. But I love her. I would marry her all over again if I could.”

“I know,” Sebastian says. Slurp. “Pop insinuated as much years ago.”

“Wait, what? I thought you said it was just a rumor.”