And then she’d disappeared. And she hadn’t texted to say where she was, and she hadn’t replied to any of his texts asking her where she was, and he couldn’t call her because he was in the car with his staff right now, and he still had no idea where the fuck she was or what that look on her face had been about and why she wasn’t answering his texts.

Maybe she was at his house right now. Maybe she’d needed to drive her friend home and had forgotten to text to tell him so. She had a key; maybe she was already there waiting for him. Maybe she was in his bed right now, waiting for him. Oh God, he hoped so—it felt like forever since he’d had her in his bed. He couldn’t wait to slide into bed with her tonight, and kiss her, and make love to her, and then wrap his arms around her and never let go.

Andy pulled up in front of his house, and Max thanked him for the great event before he raced into the house.

“Olivia? Olivia, are you here?” he shouted as soon as he walked in the door.

No answer.

Maybe she couldn’t hear from his bedroom. Or maybe she’d fallen asleep there, waiting for him.

He ran up the stairs and burst into his bedroom.

“Olivia.”

But his bedroom was silent, his bed empty. And he realized what should have hit him as soon as they’d pulled up to his house: her car wasn’t there.

Okay, seriously, where the fuck was she?

He called her, once, twice, but she didn’t answer.

He thought back to that frozen look on her face. Now that he thought about it, had she avoided his eyes for the rest of the town hall? He’d looked at her a few other times, but she’d always been looking at a random corner of the stage, definitely not at him.

He grabbed his car keys off the hook by the garage. Thirty minutes later, he banged on her front door.

“Olivia? Are you there?”

Her car was there, at least, so that was a good sign.

He rang her doorbell, then reached for his keys to let himself in. But before he could, her door swung open.

“So is your goal to let the whole world know exactly where I live, on top of everything else?”