Ditched (31 page)

“It wasn’t exactly tiny,” I sighed.

“Regardless, I know he’ll be back to set things right. He’s probably out blowing off some steam. I wouldn’t worry about a thing. Maybe he’s with that friend of his. What’s his name? Dominic?”

“Darren,” I supplied. I grabbed onto that idea. “Actually, you might be right.” I changed my tone to one of faux-relief because I didn’t want to worry her any more than I already had. “Actually, I can’t believe I didn’t think of that. I bet that’s where he is.”

We disconnected with a promise to call if either of
us heard from him. After that, I immediately slipped my shoes on and quickly covered the distance to the café. I didn’t realize how late it had gotten until I reached the front doors. Walking around this late wasn’t a habit of mine but I was desperate.

With the way my luck had been going, I hadn’t expected Darren to be there. I blew out a sigh of relief when I saw him. Then my heart sank and I realized a small part of me had thought that
just maybe Max was here just hanging out.

“Hey, Darren,” I said when I walked in.
“Have you seen Max?”

He glanced up at me and grinned. “Nope.”

“Not at all?” I pressed. “I mean, did he come in earlier to eat? Or have you talked to him at all?”

“No, Holly, I haven’t seen him. Oh, hey,” he said when he saw the look of disappointment on my face. “You really don’t
know where he is?”

Would I be walking around in the dark, looking for him if I did
? I wondered. I bit back that response and said, “No, that’s why I’m asking you.”

“
Did you try calling him?”

“I have his phone.
He left without it. He just…we had a fight.”

As I was throwing together a condensed version in my head, Darren threw his arm around my shoulder. “What did a sweet little thing like you do to Max? I’ve known him a long time and I can’t ever remember him being pissed off about anything.”

I couldn’t deny it because he was right.

“I was going to go back to Chamberlain,” I admitted.

His eyes widened and his expression darkened. “Damn, yeah, I could see why he wouldn’t be happy about that. He hasn’t said it but I think he was thinking things might be going somewhere with you two.”

I squirmed out from under the weight of his arm. “He’s right. They are. Or at least they were. I didn’t go. I changed my mind at the last minute. When I got back to the beach house, his car was gone. But I found his phone on the kitchen counter.”

“Huh,” he said. “Okay. But no, I haven’t seen him or heard from him. I’ll let you know if I do. Or if I see him, I’ll tell him you’re looking for him.” He paused and a smile snaked up onto his face. “Better yet, why don’t you give me your number and I’ll call if I see him around?”

I didn’
t hesitate. We exchanged numbers and I left, feeling more discouraged and more frantic than I had before.

I went back
home, the sun had set and it was dark by the time I returned. I paced around and then I tossed myself onto the couch. I spent the next few hours wondering if I should call the police, bother his grandma again, or just…I didn’t know what. And that was the problem. I was slowly going insane wondering where he was. He didn’t know anyone else in town.

Except Tori.

I blasted that thought out of my head the moment it made an appearance.

And then I paced. And pretended to watch television. And I paced some more. And then, when my nerves were so frazzled I couldn’t take another second of wai
ting, I burst into tears. I had long passed worried and had barged on into terrified. I didn’t know where he could possibly be. Out of desperation, I called the local hospital. I contemplated calling the police but he was an adult and it hadn’t been even close to twenty-four hours. Wasn’t that the rule? And we’d had a fight. Isn’t that the kind of thing they always pointed out on TV?

I had no choice but to wait it out. I decided I’d call
Villette first thing in the morning. If I hadn’t heard from him by then.

I was so
sure
I’d hear from him by then. I continued to tell myself that he would show up any second. He was probably driving around. He loved his car. He needed to cool off. Maybe he took off and went further than he meant to and now it was taking him longer to get home.

It wasn’t likely but it was the only possibility that I could scrounge up that didn’t leave me
ready to burst into another round of tears.

A little after midnight, my phone rang. Relief soared through me, thinking it just had to be M
ax borrowing someone’s phone. It wasn’t. It was Darren. We spoke briefly as he told me he’d driven around after his shift, looking for Max at a few of the places they used to hang out. There had been no sign of him. He assured me that I was worrying for nothing. Though I was sure I heard an edge of unease in his tone.

This wasn’t like Max at all. And we both knew it.

I jumped up from the couch and wandered through his room again. I wasn’t sure why because he was obviously not in it. I guess maybe it just made me feel closer to him. As nighttime crept closer to morning, my exhaustion finally won out. I already knew from earlier in the summer just how exhausting a crying jag could be. I’d had one after another tonight.

I crawled into Max’s bed. Not only did the scent of his sheets bring me a little bit of comfort but when he came home, I’d know.

I had just settled into his bed. I was reaching for the switch on the lamp when I noticed a small, shimmery, silver box tucked behind it. It had been out of sight from every other angle. It was wrapped with a bright pink bow. I knew I shouldn’t open it. But I’d had a horrible, horrible night. I needed something positive to cling to.

I carefully lifted the lid. Inside, spread out against cobalt blue velvet was a charm bracelet. I ran my fingers over each
of the delicate charms: a sun, a seahorse, a sand dollar, an ice-cream cone and last, a tiny bottle of wine.

Tears burned behind my exhausted eyes.

“Max where are you?” I whispered into the empty room. I settled the lid back on top and put it back where I’d found it. I switched off the lamp and then buried myself deep under his blankets.

I didn’t think I’d fall asleep. But I did. In the morning my heart slammed in my chest immediately when I awoke, flooded with memories of the night before. I threw the covers of
f, hoping just maybe he’d fallen asleep on the couch. It would be just like Max to not want to accidentally wake me up.

As I wandered into the living room, I knew he wouldn’t be there. It didn’t stop me from looking anyway. I stood there a moment, knowing I probably needed to call
Villette. I leaned against the door frame for just a moment then decided I needed to do
something
. So I called my mom.

She gave me an update on Collin. If all went well, he’d be released in a
few days.

She noted I sounded upset and assumed it was about him. I hadn’t told her about Max and me yet. I didn’t want to do it then, not under the circumstances. Not after we’d had such a huge fight and he hadn’t come home. I could only imagine what she
would think of that. I couldn’t deal with any more negativity right then so I listened as she prattled on about Collin.

Once we hung up, I reached for the box with the beautiful bracelet. I lifted the lid, taking in the charms one by one. I let my mind drift to the me
mory that each charm stood for. I loved them all. A tear slipped out as I realized how much of an effort Max had put into buying me something meaningful. The sun was my favorite. To me, it signified my old life ending the night I’d first seen it slip under the horizon. Every day since then had been full of promise and new expectations.

As I was running my finger over the tiny ice-cream cone, my phone rang. I swiped it up from where it was resting next to me on the bed.

It was Darren.

“You sound like crap,” he told me. I didn’t bother pointing out that I probably looked and felt even worse than I sounded. “I guess that means you still haven’t heard from him.”

“No. I’m really worried,” I said. “Do you think maybe he’s with Tori?” I couldn’t think of anyone else in town that he knew. Maybe they were just…hanging out.

“Nah, she’s gone already. Her classes start a week earlier than ours. She headed out the other day.” He hesitated then tacked on, “
Do you want me to come over?”

“You don’t need to do that,” I said. I didn’t really see the point of it.

“I know. But I thought maybe I could pick you up and we could drive around or something. I didn’t see him last night but it was dark. A car like his, it stands out. Maybe if I drive and you keep an eye out…?”

It wasn’t a terrible idea.
I didn’t know what to think. Maybe he was somewhere in town and we’d spot his car. I was becoming more convinced by the minute that something had happened to him. Maybe he’d been in an accident and his car had gone off the road somewhere. Where would we even begin to look?

I was still tossing Darren’s
idea around when my phone alerted me to an incoming call. I pulled it away from my ear to look at it. It was a number from back home. One I didn’t recognize.

“Darren, I’ll call you right back.”

Chapter 24

I wasn’t sure who I expected to be on the other line. Maybe
someone was calling from the hospital?

When I answered, I was met by Max’s voice.

“Where are you?” he asked. He sounded terrible.

“I’m
at home. Where are you!?” I cried as I jumped up from the bed. He didn’t say anything. “Max?
Are you okay
?”

“Do you want to try again?” he asked. “Just…tell me where you are. Are you with Collin? Because I know you’re not at home. I’m here Holly. I’m at your house. There’s no one here, including you.”

“You’re in
Chamberlain
?” Relief and confusion slammed through me. “I waited up for you all night! I’ve worried myself sick over you!” I said as my voice cracked and the dam holding my tears broke.

“What do you mean I didn’t come home?” He paused a beat. “Are you still in
California
?”

“Yes, I came back and you were gone. I found your phone on the counter. I’ve been so worried! I had no idea where you were. I thought something happened to you!” I sobbed. “I was so worried! When you didn’t come home, I just, I was so
worried
!” I said again because I thought it was worth repeating. I was hysterical with relief.

“Holly,” he said quietly, “I’m fine.
Are you really
that
upset?”

“Max, I called the hospital looking for you. I was
that
worried,” I sniffled. “So yes, I’m upset but really I’m so glad you’re okay. How did you end up in Chamberlain?”

“I’m really sorry,” he said and I could tell by his tone that he was. “I didn’t mean to scare you.
After you left I realized how stupid I was being. I couldn’t get a decent flight because yours was the last one. Your plane was boarding when I got there. I ended up needing to make a connection in Colorado. Only my first flight was late and I missed the connecting one. I spent half the night in the airport. I didn’t have my phone so I couldn’t even call you,” he emitted a loud, frustrated exhale. “This whole thing, it’s been a nightmare. I had to beg some lady to let me borrow her cell phone to call Mike. At least he was able to get me at the airport when I got here. I took his truck and I took his phone and I went straight to your house. But like I said, no one is here.”

I cringed, if Mike didn’t hate me enough before, he was sure to now. Yet, I wasn’t going to concern myself with him. Not just yet.

“My parents are probably with Thomas and Gwen. But you’re okay? I had started to think maybe you were lying in a ravine somewhere,” I admitted.

He let out a soft
, apologetic laugh. “No, I’m fine. Missing you like crazy, but I’m fine. What made you decide to stay?”