Dane

​​

He had to take the car to the office by himself. Lila had stayed at the Penthouse all weekend, but she'd also stayed angry. They'd barely touched. He was so on edge, torn right down the middle between needing her, and needing her to be safe, that when she told him to go ahead, that she was running late and would follow in her own car, he'd frozen on the spot. She just stared and challenged him with her eyes.

He'd nodded and said, "Fine."

Then he'd spent half an hour organizing the team, halfway hoping she'd be ready before he was done so they'd have an excuse to travel together. But she hadn't and finally he'd had to leave. He was already late.

"You tell me the second she's on the move, and you give me point by point until she's in her office," he glared at Josh. The poor man just nodded and told him not to worry.

He was a wreck for the full hour it took for her to arrive at work. John had called at 8:40 to say they were leaving and Dane had been reduced to pacing his office, waiting to hear the elevator ding.

It dinged three times before it was her. He'd wished he was a smoker.

Now he sat in his office, with a white-knuckle grip on his phone, trying to convince himself not to walk down to her office and make sure she was okay. He knew she wouldn't appreciate him hovering. But what else could he do?

He wasn't going to be able to do this every day, that was for fucking sure. He had to find a way to get her back in his arms, back on his side.

He had to get her to forgive him.

A gift. That's what he needed. A present. A gesture. Something to make her smile and let him talk and ask her to put up with him. Let him touch her again.

But what? Woman always wanted things he didn't expect—and Lila was different to everyone he'd ever had any kind of relationship with.

And she was his wife.

He needed help. Tish. He needed Tish. She seemed to know everything about everyone. He'd have laid money she had an idea how to make Lila happy. Then he frowned. It was Monday morning and after ten and he hadn't seen her yet. That was unlike her. She was usually in his office in the first hour he was at work, filling him in on his calendar and making sure she knew what his plans were.

He went looking for her immediately—checking her office, which was next to his, though much smaller. She was hardly ever there it seemed like, so that wasn't uncommon. He headed down to Reception and waited for the sub, Mariah, to get off a phone call.

"Hello, Mr. Daniels," she said as she hung up the phone, smiling and blinking what seemed like a lot. "How are you? How was your weekend?"

"Fine," he said. Massive understatement. "Have you seen Tish this morning? Do you know where she is?"

Mariah frowned. "No. I haven't seen her at all. I just assumed she had the day off. She hasn't called in."

An ice cube slid down Dane's spine, but he didn't let it show on his face. Just thanked her and started back towards his office, pulling his phone out of his pocket and stabbing Chris's quickdial.

"Hello, asshole."

"Where's Tish? Have you seen her or talked to her since Saturday?" he snapped without answering Chris's sarcastic jab.

Chris hesitated and the ice cube on Dane's spine became an ice spear in his chest. "No… I mean, I got her back to her place on Friday night. Her roommate was there… I didn't…"

He'd dropped the ball. Because of Dane and the drama this weekend.

"Find her. If she's not home sick, you get a team on this NOW."

"It's done. I'll call you in a few minutes."

Dane trotted back to his office, intending to open the tracking they had on all staff phones and check for himself, but then he remembered.

Lila.

*****

Lila

She was at her desk, on the phone, when the door swung open so quickly it startled her. Dane stormed in, wild-eyed and scanning the room, his broad shoulders swinging as he turned a full circle, as if he was searching her office for something.

"Uh, Rod, something's come up here. Can I call you back in a little while?"

The journalist she'd been speaking with was unflustered. She thanked him, and hung up.

Dane didn't even wait for her to speak. He'd turned to close the door, then rushed over to her desk. "Tish is gone," he said in a dead voice.

"What?!"

"No one's talked to her since Friday. She's not here. She hasn't called in. Chris is on his way to her apartment to see if she's just sick but…"

Lila covered her mouth, then reached for Dane who was pacing next to her desk, his hands in fists.

"It's going to be okay, Dane. She was really drunk on Friday. She probably got alcohol poisoning or something—"

He shook his head. "She was in a car accident once. She texted me from the hospital. Saturday, maybe, if she was really out of it. But… something's happened, Lila. I know it. I have an instinct—"

"Calm down, Dane. Let's wait until we hear from Chris before we decide what we know, okay?"

"Do not patronize me, right now," he growled as she got up and took his arm. "This isn'nt me overreacting. I've been through this before—"

"I know, I know. I'm sorry. I wasn't… I just hope it isn't what we think. That's all. Dane, look at me." She put a hand to his face. His cheek was buttery smooth this morning. She kind of missed the rasp from the weekend when he'd gotten lazy about shaving. He smelled divine, and she swallowed back the surge of desire. It wasn't the time.

When he met her gaze, his eyes still too wide, and darting, she just held his face. "Breathe."

He nodded and stopped trying to move.

Lila put her hands to his chest and he put his to her waist. But his brow was lined and he was breathing too hard—and not for the good reasons.

"Breathe, Dane," she said again. "Chris knows what he's doing. He'll find her."

Dane nodded, but his fingers closed at her waist. "The first thing I thought of, when I realized… it was to come and make sure you were here. That he hadn't…"

"I'm fine, Dane. Look. I'm right here."

"I know. I know. I just wanted you to know. I know you're angry with me. I know yesterday sucked. But… I love you Lila. It's all because I love you."

"I know," she sighed. She pulled him into a hug and they both let go of heavy breaths. "I'm sorry I was so cold last night. I just… you can't just make these decisions without me, Dane."

"I… I try not to," he murmured, then kissed her temple. "I'm just so scared, babe."

"I know, I know." They stood that way for a few minutes, just coming back to each other. Then Lila turned her face up to him and was about to ask him for a kiss, when his phone rang.

They both startled. It was Chris.

Tish wasn't at the apartment.

****

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