Page 17 of Heal Me, Love Me

“If you’re interested, I’d like to bring you on with Elevate.”

I should’ve felt the excitement that everything was moving forward exactly the way I’d planned. Instead, my mind was split between this moment and something else entirely. Still, I didn’t let that show.

“Yeah.” I nodded. “I’m interested.”

Everything after that moved quickly. After signing a mountain of paperwork and shaking hands with what felt like half of the agency, I officially became Elevate Sports Management’s newest client.

On the wayto the airport after my meeting, I couldn’t stop checking my phone.

Still nothing.

Not a text.

Not a missed call.

Nothing to tell me where Rowan actually was or why he hadn’t said a word to me.

By the time I arrived at the departure gate, I was no longer worried or upset. I’d moved firmly into pissed-off territory.

If he thought he could just ignore me, he had another thing coming.

The flight homefelt like it took forever.

It wasn’t delayed, and nothing had gone wrong, but my patience was wearing thin with every minute we got closer to landing.

Rowan was in Sacramento—at least, that’s what he’d told Mason—which meant when I walked into our house, I’d finally get answers.

We landed just after noon, and the second we pulled into the driveway, I forced myself to play it cool. I didn’t rush or call his name when we stepped inside. Instead, I mentioned needing a shower and headed down the hall as if I were going to my room, passing Rowan’s closed door without looking at it or slowing down. The last thing I needed was one of the guys noticing how anxious I was.

I kept going until I reached my room, then stepped inside and shut the door quietly behind me. For a second, I just stood there, contemplating what I’d say when I finally saw him.

My gaze drifted to the bathroom that connected our rooms.

I crossed the space in a few quick steps and pushed the door open. The bathroom was dark, but I didn’t stop. I reached the other door and opened it without knocking, bracing myself for whatever waited on the other side: Rowan pacing, Rowan pissed off, or Rowan ignoring me completely.

It was empty.

No Rowan or anything that belonged to him.

My heart sank. Where the hell was he?

4

Rowan

The smellof bacon lingered in the air as I headed to the kitchen.

My mother was at the stove, and when she heard me enter, she turned. “Morning. Breakfast is almost ready.”

My stomach growled. “Morning.”

She looked me over, taking in the T-shirt I’d slept in for maybe two hours, my sweatpants, and my bare feet. My body felt like shit after the fight, the flight, and moving my stuff out of the rental, but I’d pushed through worse. Sore muscles were manageable, and bruises faded.

Everything else was the issue.

“Coffee?” she asked.

“Please.”