She types out a text. “There. Now I guess we wait?”
I blow out a breath. This sucks. I’m so amped, I can barely stand still. I walk from the kitchen to the living room so I can pace. “I hate waiting.”
“You have to figure out what you’re going to say to her.”
I pause and glance over my shoulder. “You’re not helping.”
“I’m serious,” Selene says.
“I’ll figure it out when I see her,” I say.
“Tell you what,” Selene says. “Stay here tonight. Who knows when she’ll answer. As soon as she does, we’ll … do whatever it is we’re going to do. But in the meantime, let’s watch a movie or something so you don’t wear a hole in my new rug.”
I take a deep breath and rub my hands over my face again. I don’t think I’ll be able to relax until I see Kylie, but there’s not much I can do about it right now.
***
I roll over and almost fall off the couch. Fuck, I fell asleep out here. I should have gone to bed, but I didn’t think I was ever going to drift off.
I get up and run a hand through my hair. I don’t see any sign of Selene, but her phone is on the coffee table. Her message notification blinks. I swipe my thumb across the screen, but she has a fucking passcode. Damn it.
I haul ass up the stairs and knock on her door. “Selene. What’s the passcode on your phone?”
I hear a muffled reply through the door.
“Selene, get up. You have a message.”
She comes to the door, tying a belted robe around her waist. Her hair is a mess, and she rubs her eyes. She grabs the phone and makes a little triangle across the screen with her thumb.
“Is it Kylie?” I ask.
“Yeah,” Selene says. Her brow furrows. “All it says is, ‘Sorry I missed your text. Been busy. Catch up soon.’ But it’s timestamped at 3:27 am. Why was she texting me back at three twenty-seven?”
Busy? At three in the morning? What was she doing?
Fuck, was she with someone?
“Call her,” I say.
“Braxton, it’s six o’clock in the morning. If she was up a few hours ago, she’s probably—”
“Just call.”
Selene stifles a yawn behind her hand and calls. She puts the phone to her ear but shakes her head. “Voicemail.”
“Did it ring?”
“Nope,” she says. “I bet her phone is off.”
“Fuck.”
“Come on, Brax, it’s early. Go back to bed for a few hours. We’ll call her later.”
I head to my room, but I know I won’t be able to sleep. Instead, I shower and put on clean clothes. Selene is still in her room when I come out, so I quietly leave through the front door.
I drive by Kylie’s place, and see her car. I almost go up to her door, but I decide to wait—partly because there’s something I want to do first, and partly because I’m half-terrified she’s not alone.
***
“Where were you?” Selene asks when I walk in the door a few hours later.
“I had to take care of something,” I say. “I drove by Ky’s. Her car was there.”
“Did you see her?” Selene asks, her voice excited.
“No, it was still early,” I say. “And fuck, Selene, what if she was with someone last night?”
A flicker of pain crosses Selene’s face. “I know, I thought of that, too. But she probably wasn’t. Let’s not get all freaked out until we know what’s going on.”
“Has she called?”
“No,” Selene says. “And I tried again a couple times. Straight to voicemail. She’s going to think I’m a psycho when she checks her missed calls.”
“Let’s just go to her place. If she’s got someone there…” I can’t even think it. “I don’t know, but I can’t sit around waiting for her to turn on her phone.”
We pull up outside Kylie’s place. Her car is still there, parked in her usual spot. My heart thunders as we walk up to her door. Selene and I both have keys, but I knock.
Nothing.
Selene looks worried. She pulls out her phone and checks it again, as if she’s hoping we might magically have a message from Kylie.
I knock again. We wait.
No answer.
“What the fuck?” I ask.
“I hate to say this, but maybe she didn’t sleep here last night,” Selene says.
My gut twists. I know Selene is right. If she was out with someone, he could have picked her up, which is why her car is still here. And if things went well, she might have gone home with him.
“Let’s check inside,” I say, and pull out my keys.
“What? No, we can’t go in.”
“Why not?” I ask.
“This is basically breaking and entering, you realize that, right?”
“I have a key.”
“This is a bad idea,” Selene says. But she still follows me inside.
Kylie definitely isn’t here. Everything is spotless. No dishes in the sink, no random crap left out on the couch or coffee table. I glance in her bedroom. The bed is made and there’s no sign she’s been here recently.
It doesn’t look like she slept at home last night.
My chest feels hollow again, the emptiness taking over. I’m too late.