Page 50 of Battle with a Billionaire

“Hey, Juju,” he said, his voice sounding defeated. “Do you have a minute?”

“For you, I always have time. What’s going on? Everything okay with Ally?”

“No, it’s not,” he said with a sigh.

Julia’s stomach clenched at the words. “What happened? Did something happen? Is she sick? Hurt?”

“No, no, nothing like that. She’s just…has she talked to you lately?”

Julia licked her lips as she considered her response. “We talked last night.”

“So, you know?”

“That you two had a fight? Yeah. Ethan, it happens. All couples have them.” Except those who are contractually obligated not to.

“No, this is different. And now…”

“Now?” she prompted.

“I can’t find her. She’s gone.”

“Gone?” Julia’s heart skipped a beat. “As in missing or what?”

“I can’t get a hold of her. I came home, she’s not here, she’s not answering my calls, she’s not answering texts.”

Julia’s panic built.

“As a cop, you know where my mind goes immediately.”

“Ethan, I think you’re jumping the gun, but let me call her and call you back. Maybe she’s just still mad? Or maybe she went for a hike. Cell service in the park is terrible.”

“I know but…yeah, just…can you call her?”

“Absolutely. Let me see what I can find out.”

Julia ended the call and ran a hand through her hair as she blew out a long breath and scrolled through her contacts to find her sister. She pressed the call icon and waited as the line trilled. By the third ring, her dread ramped up. What if she couldn’t get a hold of her sister?

A second later, her sister’s voice answered. “Hey, Juju.”

She blew out a sigh of relief as she pressed her hand against her chest. “Whew, oh, Ally, thank goodness you answered.”

“Why? What’s wrong? Are you okay?”

“Ethan called. He said he couldn’t get a hold of you. He’s panicked.”

“Yeah, well, he ought to be.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means I’m sick of playing by his rules. I’m going to play by my own from now on.”

“Ally! What is going on here?”

Alicia sighed on the other end. “I’m fine. But Ethan goes out when he wants. He gets a call, he’s out. He needs to run somewhere, he’s gone. With me? Where are you going? How long? Let someone else get that call.”

Julia rubbed her forehead as she listened to her sister’s grudges in her marriage. “I assume he’s just interested in protecting you, not keeping track of you.”

“Well, is it too much to ask that he allows me do the same?”

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