Worship And Other Love Rituals

Chapter 22

I blinked awake with a start, disoriented in the grey dawn light.

Ethan had already left at midnight. Apparently, he got a call from his staff that one of the large fermentation tanks had begun leaking and they needed his help right away to address the issue before it got worse or affected the rest of the wine production.

So I was left with only his bedside warmth and the cozy sheets.

Rubbing the sleep from my eyes, I turned from my door expecting to find Leo's little body snuggled in his room as usual. But the bed was empty.

A twinge of worry pierced through my foggy head. "Leo?" I called, throwing off his blankets and stumbling to my feet. Silence.

Stepping into the hallway, I glanced into the bathroom. Empty. His playroom, too, was devoid of his happy presence. Even the airing cupboard where he once napped amongst the towels. A cold fist of panic closed tight around my insides.

"Leo!" I shouted louder, hurrying through the house- opening every closet and cupboard big enough to conceal a small boy, to no avail. The house stood still and lifeless around me.

Racing outside, I scanned our tiny yard frantically, calling his name until my voice grew hoarse.  The neighbors must've thought a wild animal had breached the house. Not a sign of those sandy curls or bright curious eyes. My heart began to pound loudly in my ears as terror gripped me fully.

Where could he have gone? He knew better than to wander off alone at this time. Something had to be terribly wrong.

"LEO!" I screamed once more in bitter anguish before doubling over, hands on knees, struggling to catch my ragged breath through surging adrenaline and fear.

That's when I spotted movement through a gap in the old picket fence separating our land from Penny's cottage. There's my boy! Right where no child should wander unattended. A shock of familiar hair bobbing against the dull gray backdrop of early morning.

Breaking into a sprint, bare feet pounding against the frozen ground, I raced around the side of Penny's vacant cottage and skidded to a halt on the muddy bank of the creek behind.

There, sure enough, stood Leo near the icy water's edge, enthralled by dripping icicles. But my panic surged anew at the sight of Mark crouched behind him, one arm snaking around my son's tiny waist to hold him back from slipping closer to the frigid current.

"Take your filthy hands off him right now!" I shrieked, vaulting over gnarled roots and clumps of frozen marsh grass without care for mud-soaked pajamas or bare skin.

Mark released Leo with a lazy smile, rising to face me with palms raised in mock surrender. "Now is that any way to thank the man who found your wandering child before he took an icy dip?"

Yeah, thanks but no thanks, creepo.

I snatched Leo into my arms at once, clutching him protectively to my chest despite his wriggling protests at being manhandled. Over his sandy head, my glare could have frozen molten lava.

I clutched Leo tightly, trying to calm my pounding heart. "What are you doing here, Mark?"

He shrugged, brushing muddy hands on his jeans. "Just taking a morning stroll and happened to run into the little man exploring. Figured you'd rip my limbs off if I didn't intervene."

I shot him a look. "You've got that right."

Leo squirmed in my arms, reaching for a dangling icicle. "Pwetty, Mama!"

Normally his enthusiasm would've made me smile. But at the moment, all I felt was dread sinking in my stomach like week-old cafeteria mashed potatoes. Why did Mark have to ruin everything? Couldn't he leave us in peace to enjoy our weekend without spooking me half to death?