Eight Years of Maybe One Day of I Do—Bride Swapped Deal With It novel Chapter 87

Chapter 9

Derek drove home like the house was on fire, weaving through traffic with his foot heavy on the gas.

He owned half a dozen properties across the city, but only one of them actually felt like home. The one he shared with Annie.

Guilt or maybe panic-had him reaching for his phone before he even hit the highway.

He needed to hear her voice. Needed to tell her he was coming back.

The call wouldn’t go through.

He tried again. Nothing.

Just that cold automated voice telling him the number wasn’t available.

Something cracked open in his chest.

He started running red lights, his pulse hammering in his ears.

When he finally pulled into the driveway and saw the lights blazing in the kitchen, the relief was so intense he felt lightheaded.

He’d married Annie for money-he could admit that much now.

His family had needed hers to survive.

But eight years was a long time.

Somewhere along the way, he’d gotten attached to the rhythms of their life together.

Coming home to find her waiting. Soup on the stove. The particular kind of quiet that only existed when she was there.

“Annie? I’m back.”

The living room was empty. He headed toward the kitchen, calling out as he went.

A figure appeared-Margaret, their housekeeper. She looked startled to see him.

“Mr. Connor? I thought you and Mrs. Connor left together this morning. Where is she?”

Derek’s stomach dropped.

“She hasn’t come home?”

He was already moving, checking every room. Kitchen, dining room, office. All empty.

By the time he got to their bedroom, his hands were shaking.

He hit the lights.

The room looked untouched-exactly the way it had that morning.

He went straight to the closet. Her jewelry was still there. Her clothes hanging in neat rows.

Relief flooded through him-until he realized that didn’t actually mean anything.

Margaret hovered in the doorway, clearly worried.

“Why don’t you just call her, sir?”

He was already trying, jabbing at his phone screen with clumsy fingers.

Straight to voicemail. Every single time.

He even grabbed Margaret’s phone to try from a different number.

Same automated message.

Where could she be that her phone was completely offline?

Margaret shifted nervously.

“I’m sure she’s fine. Maybe her battery died. Or she went to see her parents? After everything today-even though the divorce was temporary-those articles online were pretty brutal.”

She was trying to be diplomatic.

Margaret had never approved of the whole situation with Simon, but this morning Annie had seemed calm about it. Like she’d made peace with giving Derek another chance.

Derek’s head jerked up. “Articles? What are you talking about?”

Margaret pulled out her phone and showed him.

He stared at the screen-the tabloid headlines, the photos of him and Nina that made it look like some grand romantic reunion-and felt like he

might throw up.

He’d been so focused on his grandfather and Simon all evening that he hadn’t looked at his phone once.

If Annie had seen this…

A horrible thought hit him.

He took off for his study, nearly tripping on the stairs.

There was a drawer in his desk where he kept all their important documents. Birth certificates, passports, insurance papers. Everything.

He yanked it open.

Half of it was gone.

Every single document with Annie’s name on it had disappeared.

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