There was a long silence on the other end. “No, she hasn’t been in since…well, since before.”
He clenched his teeth. “So, she didn’t come into work today?”
Another pause. “No,” she replied, a note of panic in her voice now. “I haven’t seen or heard from her since before. I just…”
“I’ll find her,” he snapped, then ended the call. He wondered if he should call the woman back and apologize for his rudeness. It was what Pepper would want, what she would demand of him. But where was she? Pepper had left here, telling his housekeeper that she was going into work.
So if she wasn’t here, and she wasn’t at work, where the hell was she?
He walked out of the penthouse, grabbing his keys on the way. He completely forgot about the dinner that Tony had carefully packed for them. He couldn’t think beyond getting to Pepper and making sure that she was okay.
He drove through the still-busy streets of New York City towards her loft and parked. Getting out, he was only mildly relieved to see the light on in her place. Racing up the stairs, he pounded on Pepper’s door. “Pepper? Are you in there?”
Silence.
Damn it! She was hurt! He could feel it! “Pepper! Open the door, meli!”
More silence.
Knocking again, he braced his arms on the doorframe, searching for the words that would get her to open the door. “Pepper, just open the door. I know that you’re in pain, agape.” Let me help you.”
The door opened and Pepper looked out at him, those wondrous blue eyes of hers filled with pain. “I’m fine, Dimitri,” she told him, her beautiful lips healed, but still barely moving. “I’m just working on some designs.”
He pushed against the door and stepped inside, closing it behind him. She quickly stepped back, but he wouldn’t let her get away. After his panic, he needed to hold her and assure himself that she wasn’t hurt.
She was stiff in his arms, but he didn’t care. “Pepper, don’t ever do that to me again!” he growled, then kissed the top of her head. “I got home and was worried about you, agape. You told my housekeeper that you were going to work but you weren’t at your office.”
“I’m fine,” she whispered and he felt her lean into him for a moment. Squeezing his eyes closed, he savored the moment. Her arms slipped around his waist and he wanted to scoop her up and carry her to the sofa where he could hold her more completely. He wanted to feel her wrap her body around his like she used to, needing to have as much of her body touching him as possible. He’d loved those moments and wanted them back, damn it!
But too soon, she sniffed and pulled away. She wiped the tears from her eyes and lifted those luminescent blue eyes up to him. “I’m sorry for worrying you, Dimitri. I just wanted to work here. There’s a lot to get done since I’ve been out for so long.”
He sighed with frustration, running a hand through his hair. “Okay, honey. That’s fine. I understand needing to work. Just…let me know where you are next time.”
“I will,” she replied, smiling weakly, but that smile didn’t reach her eyes. They were still blank. Still not the vibrant, happy eyes that he loved so much.
And yes, it was love. He’d tried to convince himself that he wasn’t completely in love with her. But after almost losing her, he knew that he was completely, irrevocably in love with Pepper.
“Are you okay?”
She shrugged and he again noticed how much weight she’d lost. He didn’t like it. She was still gorgeous, but Pepper had lost that lushness that drove him wild.
“I’m fine,” she replied and he knew that it was a complete lie. “I just really need to get some work done. We’re behind after…” she trailed off, her eyes clouding.
“Okay, well, I’ll get you dinner.”
She shook her head. “I’m fine. I’ve already eaten.”
He looked around, but saw no evidence of any food. “What did you eat?”
“A bowl of cereal.”
He knew she was lying, but wasn’t sure what to do about it. “Pepper,” he started, moving closer, “I think you should see your doctor. I don’t think that you’re okay.”
Quickly, Pepper backed away. “I’m fine. No pain in…well, I’m fine.”
Weeks ago, she would have grinned up at him, slid closer and offered, “Wanna make sure?” Dimitri would have chuckled, then done exactly that. Thoroughly!
“I don’t think you are. I’ll make an appointment with your doctor. Just give me her number.”
“No, I’m fine. I just really need to work,” she said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear as she turned back to her drawing board. “Thanks for your concern, but I’m…fine.” Her voice cracked on that last word.
He watched her carefully, feeling defeated. “Okay, I’ll leave you to it then. Just…” he sighed, not sure what to say. “Come home when you’re done.”
Silence. She’d picked up her charcoal pencil and started drawing. He had no idea what she was about to design, but he turned and left her alone. Maybe being back in her loft with all of the bright colors and warm brick walls would help her.
Chapter 13
Something was different. Pepper lifted her head and looked around her loft with only mild interest, but nothing seemed to have changed. Her loft apartment was silent, the curtains drawn. Glancing at the clock, she realized that it was nearly nine o’clock in the morning.
Normally, that wouldn’t be an issue if someone were to find her sitting at her design table. Nine o’clock in the morning was when most of the world was at work, so there wasn’t anything wrong with her sitting at her drawing board, sketching out the designs
