He left, got on the elevator, and pushed the button to another floor. He’d admit to himself he was terrified. After he woke up to find her gone, and that note, it took a minute to catch his breath.
There was no way she didn’t love him. She said it to push him away, and he wouldn’t let her. The note was burning a hole in his pocket, and he’d taken it out a few times to read it again.
It was a note that he could have sworn Hannah couldn’t write because of the emotion she put into every letter she’d written. She’d always leave hearts and flowers she drew on the note to make them pretty. Her name would have hearts instead of the As. This was nothing like the things she’d written before.
Cullen made it to the floor his company was working on, got a few problems figured out, and did quite a bit of work before everyone started to clock out for the day.
After putting his tools away, he went to Hannah’s office to find it dark. From there, he headed to Rhys.
“Where is she?” he asked when he walked through the door.
Rhys hung up the phone. “I think she was headed home.”
“You think?” Cullen asked with a sharp edge to his tone.
“Yeah. I can’t get much out of her either. She says she’s not mad at anyone, even you. She just wants to be left alone.”
“I don’t agree with that. You know how littles are. The last thing they need is to be alone. That’s when they tend to get in trouble.”
“I know that. But what am I supposed to do? She’s an adult, and I certainly can’t punish her the way she needs,” Rhys said, exasperated.
“We need to team up. You get her cornered somewhere, and then I’ll keep her under my thumb until she gets over whatever the hell she’s going through.”
“I’ll try. Do you want to come home with me?”
Cullen nodded. “Yeah, I’ll follow you.”
They pulled into the driveway to see the house dark.
“Dammit. She better be here.” Cullen jumped out of the truck and followed Rhys into the house.
“Hannah, are you home?” Rhys called out.
They headed toward her bedroom only to find the door open, the lights off, and the bed made when they didn't hear anything. Nothing was out of place.
He was so close to losing it. “Where the fuck is she?”
Rhys sighed in frustration. “I have no idea. These are the times I wish she could keep a phone. Everyone I bought her in the past, she’s lost.”
“Let’s get in touch with a few of the littles she likes. They might know where she is.”
Cullen stood back as he listened to Rhys talk to a few people.
Rhys shook his head when he hung up. “All they said was she was going out of town for the weekend.”
Cullen’s stomach dropped. “She left town on her own?”
Rhys pinched the bridge of his nose. “This is not like her at all. She would have told me.”
“We haven’t looked for a note. Where would she put one for you?”
Rhys started toward the kitchen. “On the fridge. Got one. Fuck.”
“What does it say?’ Cullen asked but was afraid of the answer.
Rhys,
I am going to be gone for a few days. I’m going to visit a friend I haven’t seen in a while. I hope you take this time to do the things you’ve wanted to do but couldn’t because you were taking care of me. I want you to be free. You deserve that and so much more.