Page 80 of Master of My Heart

“Good. Very glad to hear it.”

“What are you doing? You sound like you’ve been running.”

Richard laughed. “I just walked up the stairs to my office. Kathy’s been on me to exercise more, so I started taking the stairs in the mornings.”

“To the thirtieth floor?”

“No. Only the last five. I get off on twenty-five and take the stairs the rest of the way.”

“Ah.” Chase laughed. “Maybe you should come with me sometime. We had a lovely jaunt through the jungle yesterday.”

“How many hours?”

“You don’t want to know.” Chase stared out the window and looked at the green trees just past the hotel’s boundary wall. “But everything went according to plan and everyone is well.”

“That’s what matters. How are you feeling? How’s the foot?”

Chase grimaced. “Aching. I’m gonna be limping for a few days.” He knew he’d pushed himself too hard, but he couldn’t bring himself to slow down.

“You’re back earlier than expected. Did you push yourself too hard?” Richard knew him too well, seemingly having read his thoughts.

“Maybe.”

He chuckled. “Did your mom call you?”

“And Jayson.”

“So you know Sabrina’s here?”

Chase’s heart leapt at the name. “Have you seen her?” he asked, his throat tightening.

“I did. At the donor cocktail party Friday night.”

“And?” Chase’s voice rose an octave, and Richard laughed again. Chase cleared his throat. “Is she okay?”

Richard hesitated, which made Chase’s stomach twist. “Yes. As far as I can tell, she’s okay. There’s...” Richard paused. “She’s scared, Chase. I talked with Jayson. It sounds like she escaped something terrible. He doesn’t know a lot, but whoever had her is dead and she came out here. But she’s still terrified. Jayson said she was doing okay for a while, but something changed and she’s scared again.”

Chase sat down in one of the plush chairs near the window. “Did you talk to her?”

“A little. I saw her looking at the pictures of you and your brothers. She misses you. But, for some reason, she’s scared of you seeing her. I don’t really understand. She’s clearly been abused, and I think she’s afraid you’re going to reject her because of it.” Richard sighed. “I think she may have gotten involved with Aiden Lang in some way, too. She’s frightened of him.”

Chase’s hands clenched into fists at the thought of anyone hurting Sabrina. He closed his eyes and took deep breaths. He would deal with it once he got home. She’d never be afraid of anything ever again. He’d make sure of that.

He narrowed his eyes. “Wait. Aiden Lang? The movie star?”

“He’s playing Drosselmeyer.”

“Can you tell Martin about it?”

“I asked Jayson—she’s staying with him and Liz—but neither of them know anything about her dating anyone. He said Sabrina tends to be scared of people in general, so he hadn’t noticed anything between her and Aiden explicitly. She did stay out all night a while back, but wouldn’t say where she was. I might mention it to Martin. I’m sure he’d want to be aware of anything going on.”

“Okay.”

“Chase, you’re going to have your work cut out for you. I know she’s here, but that doesn’t mean the Elders will extend the deadline for you to get married. If you can’t figure out whatever is going on with Sabrina, you still may have to look elsewhere for a wife.”

Chase clenched his jaw. “She made it to Boston. On her own. Don’t you think it could be a sign that we’re meant to be together?”

“Maybe. I’m not saying it won’t happen, but I can also see that it will be difficult to break through her fears. She expects to be hurt by men. I don’t know if she’s capable of trusting anyone.”

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