Page 6

I couldn’t get my mind to stop thinking about last night and Alexandra.

The longer I stayed near her, the more I wanted.

Walking her to her car and watching her drive away had been hard.

I’d asked her to text me when she got home so I’d know she made it.

Even when she did, I couldn’t stop worrying about her.

Strange for someone I hadn’t known a day, but it was the truth.

When I got home, I got into bed and tossed and turned most of the night because I kept thinking of her and dreaming, which resulted in me getting up early.

On my days off, I usually slept past eight.

During the week, I was up at five o'clock to work out, shower, and eat before going to work.

Despite the late night, I woke up this morning at 6:30 and went to work out first.

After sweating and not clearing my mind, I tried breakfast, mowing the lawn, and then a shower, but they didn’t help either.

So here I was, with almost my entire weekend’s worth of chores finished, including laundry, and I was restless.

The thought crossed my mind that I should call Cady and see if she was doing anything.

If not, we could meet up and chat.

I was dying to find out what else she knew about Alexandra.

Even as I thought of that, I hesitated.

Did I want my sister to know that her friend interested me?

Being five years older than her, growing up, none of her friends interested me.

After we became adults, and our age difference wasn’t as significant since everyone would be classified as adults, there were one or two that I found attractive but stayed away from since they were her friends.

I didn’t ever mess with her pals, just as she had never dated any of mine.

It left you both without them if or when they broke up.

It was impossible to be friends with one person but not the other.

We hadn’t wanted the mess.

But if I didn’t ask Cady about Alexandra, how would I get the crucial information I wanted? Was she involved with someone outside of Lustz? We hadn’t talked about that last night.

Having one person coming to the club to play and having a regular partner or significant other on the outside wasn’t unusual.

People outside the lifestyle often didn’t get how that could be possible and not cause issues such as jealousy and hard feelings.

The truth was, some did, but many times, the kink lover was at Lustz to get their desires and needs fulfilled because their partner couldn’t or wouldn’t do it for them.

And many knew that it was happening.

It was consensual non-monogamy, essentially.

It was highly likely that she did have someone outside of the club, which depressed me.

How could a woman like her not be attached? However, how she’d effortlessly gained my attention last night made me want to find out.

And if she was, and the relationship wasn’t strong, I’d be willing to pursue her.

Short of her being in a happy marriage, I wasn’t opposed to trying.

If all she wanted was a play partner, I might be willing to go there, but deep down, I felt I’d desire more from her if she were willing.

I was struggling with the situation when I got a call.

Picking up my cell phone, I saw Cady calling.

Had she read my mind? I pressed the call button. “Hello, sis. What’re you up to today?”

“Hello, Carv. Are you busy? Did I catch you at a bad time?”

“No, you didn’t get me at a bad time. What’s up? Is everything alright?”

She didn’t sound like her usual self. I could hear she was upset. Had she and Hoss had a fight? If so, why would she call me rather than Tajah? She wouldn’t. It had to be something else.

“No, everything isn’t alright. I’m pissed, and I need to talk. And before you ask why I didn’t talk to Tajah, I did. She was the one to call me. Now, I’m alone, panicking, and worrying while Hoss and Mikhail are off checking on Lexi.”

I snapped to attention when she said Alexandra’s nickname. “Whoa, hold it right there. Why are they checking on her? What happened? And why are the two of them doing that? She’s you and Tajah’s friend. Shouldn’t you be the ones to do that?”

“She is our friend, but it involves Lustz, so it technically falls under Mikhail. Reuben isn’t available, so Mikhail asked Hoss to go with him. Even if he doesn’t work for him anymore, Mikhail confers with Hoss. Tajah and I wanted to go, too, but they didn’t want us exposed to anything dangerous. I can understand not letting Taj go. She’s pregnant. But I’m not,”

she huffed.

Sometimes, I wanted to pull out my hair with her. She could dance around the topic until you were ready to scream.

“Cady, focus. Tell me where they went, what’s potentially dangerous, and what it has to do with Alexandra.”

It was hard not to yell it.

“Calm your nuts, brother. Yeesh. It seems Lexi called Tajah to ask who she needed to talk to at the club about someone potentially stalking her. She wasn’t sure if that was something she should tell Reuben, Mikhail, or someone else. Tajah put her on with Mikhail. She didn’t get the details before Mikhail left, and my man was meeting him, but the gist is that someone at the club has Lexi worried.”

Immediately, my mind went to the guy she upset last night. “Do you think it’s Reef from last night?”

“Personally, yeah, I do. I tried to call her, but she didn’t answer. She sent me a text saying we’d talk later. I don’t know what I should do. I think, as her friend, I should be there. What do you think?”

“Do you know where they’re at?”

“I do. They’re meeting at her place.”

“Do you know where that is?”

“Yeah, she had to stop there once to change her clothes when we went shopping.”

“Here’s what you need to do. I think you should see if she needs support, but if the guys think it might be dangerous, don’t take Tajah, and you can’t go alone. I’ll go with you. It’ll take me a while to get to your place. And where does she live?”

“She lives in Mt. Juliet, but you don’t have to worry about coming to get me. I can be at your place in five minutes.”

“How the hell can that be?”

“Because I’m parked a few streets over. I hoped you’d say I should go, and I figured if you did, you’d say I shouldn’t go alone. I was hedging my odds.”

I rolled my eyes. “You’re gonna make me tear my hair out one day. Get your ass here, then. Grrr,” I huffed.

She giggled. “You’ve been saying that all my life, and still have a headful of sinfully thick and gorgeous hair. I’ll see you in a few. Love ya,”

she called out right before she hung up.

Instead of thinking about how she aggravated me, I went to get my wallet and keys and put on a pair of shoes. Her timing was perfect. By the time I was backing out of my garage in my car, she was pulling in next to me. She hopped out and over into mine. She smiled at me as she fastened her seatbelt.

“You’re such a pain. Tell me the address,”

I muttered.

She rattled it off but assured me she’d navigate for me. I knew her skills when it came to that, so I put it in my phone to be safe. She sighed but didn’t say anything. I’d gotten lost with her on more than a few occasions when I let her navigate for me.

It wasn’t far from my place and Alexandra’s. We were there within twenty minutes, and that was due to weekend traffic. Everyone seemed to be out running errands and going places. We ended up in an apartment complex. We had to search for a parking spot. Once we had one, Cady led the way to Alexandra’s unit. She lived on the third floor of one of the three buildings that made up the community.

“I should’ve lived out here rather than in Nashville,”

Cady muttered.

Her old apartment was decent, but didn’t look this nice outside. I wondered what the insides were like. Sometimes they’d sucker you with the exterior being nice. When we stopped outside an apartment door, I was the one who knocked on the door.

Less than a minute later, the door swung open, and we were faced with a scowling man. He was my height but far bulkier, with tattoos all over his arms. Fuck, I guess she did have a man. But why did she need Hoss and Mikhail to come over if she did? This guy should be handling it.

“Hey, Alex, is this him?”

he hollered over his shoulder.

Before I could tell him who I was and why we were there, he was joined by Alexandra. Her face showed her surprise. I gritted my teeth when her hand came up to rest on his arm. She patted it as she smiled up at him.

“No, that’s not him, Sawyer. This is my friend Cady and her brother, Carver. It’s alright. They can come in.”

He moved out of the way so we could enter. As we did, I felt his gaze on us. When we got inside, we saw Mikhail, Hoss, and a woman I didn’t know. Hoss broke away and came over to my sister. His arms went around her.

“What are you doing here, Cady Cat? I told you it might be dangerous. You were to stay at home,”

he softly growled at her.

“I know, but I couldn’t do it, honey. I was stressed about Lexi. So I called Carver, and he offered to come with me. I know that I broke a rule, but I had to. I’m sorry.”

He gave her a headshake. “We’ll discuss you breaking one later. Right now, since you’re here, say hello. As you can see, she’s fine.”

Cady slipped out of his hold and went to hug Alexandra. While she did, I glanced over at Mikhail. He had an amused expression on his face.

“She was coming whether I did or not. I thought this was better,”

I told Hoss.

“I know. Even when I left her at home, I figured she might break and come. It’ll be fun to discipline her for not listening,”

he said with a smirk.

I knew, in theory, what my sister and her man did together. I’d never been into brat handling or taming, so I had no firsthand experience. However, it seemed Hoss knew her and had used this to his advantage. I kept forgetting he was wickedly brilliant and somewhat devious. I snorted, then cut it off, acting like it was a cough. I had the feeling Cady would be equally happy and unhappy by morning.

My attention was diverted to Alexandra when she stopped hugging and whispering with my sister and started smiling at me.

“I’m sorry you got dragged into this, Carver. I didn’t think of what it would do for me to call Mikhail and then not explain why to your sister and Tajah. Let me introduce you. This is Sharlena and her brother, Sawyer. Guys, this is my friend Cady and her brother, Carver. I told you about them earlier.”

I noticed both eyes widened, and they were checking the two of us out more closely. I was about to ask what she’d told them, but Sawyer interrupted me.

“Alex, I need to finish the security check. You can stay out here with your friends. If I need you, I’ll tell you. All I have left is your bedroom.”

“Sure thing. You know where it is,” she said.

Having him know where her bedroom was and how she smiled at him made me want to snarl. As he walked off down the short hall, she gestured to us.

“Have a seat. It’s kind of crowded, so you may need to move a chair into the living room. I’ve never had this many people over at the same time. Can I get you something to drink? I have water, soda, or tea.”

“I’ll have tea, but I can get it. You don’t need to wait on me. Carv, water?”

my sister asked.

“That would be great,” I said.

While they and Sharlena got them, I took a seat after I moved a kitchen chair to the living area. Mikhail and my brother-in-law joined me. Mikhail was shaking his head as he grinned. I had to ask. “What?”

“You can lie to your sister, but I know why you’re here,”

he said softly.

“Oh, and why is that?”

“Because a certain Domme caught your interest last night. You want to get to know her,”

Mikhail said.

I didn’t say a word in reply. Hoss nodded. “Yep, you’re right, Mikhail. I can see it. He sure didn’t like seeing Sawyer here.”

“Can you blame him? He’s out to have her for himself, and then he finds that man in her apartment,”

Mikhail stated.

“It’s enough to cause him or any man to leave dejected and disappointed,”

Hoss added.

I could see the women were coming our way. “Shut the fuck up. They’re coming,”

I uttered in a whisper.

Thankfully, they did, but they kept the smirks on their faces. I took my glass of ice water from Alexandra. Her fingers accidentally brushed mine, and a jolt of heat swept through me. I had to work to keep my features schooled in a pleasant smile. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,”

she said as she took a seat.

Leave it to my sister to get to the point for once. “Lexi, tell us what’s going on here. Tajah said you thought someone was stalking you. Who? What happened?”

“First, let me say that I don’t know for sure that he is stalking me. It could be that it was purely by accident, and he told the truth.”

“Lexi, we highly doubt it. The chances of that are damn slim,”

Hoss stated.

She sighed. “I know, but I keep hoping I’m wrong. If I’m not, that means he followed me, and I don’t know if he has been for a while or if this was just today. And that could mean he knows where I live. Hence, Sawyer is checking everything out.”

“Speaking of Sawyer, who is he? You’ve never mentioned him or his sister,”

Cady blurted out.

“Sharlena is my guardian angel. She helped me get out of a sticky situation earlier. I guess I should start at the beginning, or it’ll make no sense.”

She took us back to her grocery run and run-in with Reef. I clenched my fists when she said his name. I knew it! She continued, and we discovered how she met Sharlena and her brother. I was slightly relieved that he wasn’t the man in her life. However, how he’d been in command and protective of her when he answered the door made me wonder if he might not want to be. Alexandra was a gorgeous woman. Any man would be crazy not to want her. By the time she was at the end of her explanation, Sawyer was back. He was slightly frowning and had his phone out.

“I don’t want to scare you, Alex, but your apartment could stand to have the safety tightened up on it. You have a good lock on the door. Deadbolt is the way to go. The alarm system is standard and gives you the minimum, which is it’ll alarm if you have it on and the door or windows are opened.

“However, let’s talk about those windows. Yes, you’re on the third floor, but it doesn’t mean anything. Anyone can get in the one next to your front door. For the windows in the back, if you are agile, someone can use the balconies below you to get up to yours. The slider is my biggest worry there. It opens into your bedroom. And the windows are easy to pry open. I did it. If it were me, I’d put a sensor on the balcony. If no one is on it, it wouldn’t be tripped. For the windows, they slide open. Thick dowel rods cut to length and placed in the tracks will stop them from being opened. It won’t prevent someone from breaking the glass, which leads to my next question. Do you own a gun, and if you do, do you know how to use it?”

As he talked, I watched her grow pale. When he was done, I had to say something.

“I thought you said you didn’t want to scare her. Christ, you make it sound like someone will break in at any second, and she has to be prepared to kill them,”

I snapped.

“I’m being realistic. Is it likely? Probably not, but she’s a woman living alone. I did the same for my sister when she got her place. This is what I do for a living. If you want her to be safer, even if this Reef guy doesn’t do anything, she needs to let me add some things to her security. I understand that since it’s an apartment and you don’t own it, nothing can be wired and added that way. However, there are wireless alarms that can easily be installed. The dowel rods merely take a run to the home store and someone to cut them to size. The bigger one is the gun. If you have one but can’t shoot it, get rid of it. It poses a bigger risk to you than without it if you aren’t comfortable firing it. If you have one and know how to shoot it, keep it handy and loaded with a bullet in the chamber. I’ll gladly teach you if you don’t know how to shoot but would like to learn.”

I was opening my mouth to object to him doing anything for her, especially teaching her to shoot. If she wanted to learn, I could teach her. She was the one to stop my words.

“Sawyer, I appreciate you doing this. And I’ll definitely take you up on those ideas. I can get the rods cut at the store. As for the balcony alarm, how much does that cost? I’m willing to do it myself if it’s not crazy expensive. My landlady doesn’t need to know that I added it. As for a gun, I don’t have one. I learned to shoot when I was young, but I haven’t shot one in years. It’s a good idea to brush up on those skills and see what it takes to have one legally.”

She glanced at me.

“Here in your home, it takes nothing. To carry it outside the house, you need a concealed carry permit. There are people who teach those classes all over. I can get you some names of the best,”

I interjected.

“No need. I happen to teach them. You wanna learn, I’ll teach you,”

Sawyer offered.

“No offense, but she just met you today. She doesn’t know you. As her friend’s brother, I’ll help her,”

I told him.

“If it’s a case of wondering if I’m trustworthy, here is the card for the security company I work for. I not only install security systems, but I also work in physical security, including bodyguard duties. In addition, I can give you the name and number of police officers who know me and can vouch for me,”

he stated smugly. He was taking two cards out of his wallet.

I debated whether punching him in the face would upset Alexandra and how badly I might lose the subsequent fight with him. I wasn’t afraid to fight, but I only did it when it was important, or I was protecting those who mattered to me. That made me think of my sister.

I was still sore about finding out how many guys in Cady’s past had put their hands on her, and she never told me. When I discovered it from Hoss, I confronted her, asking why. Her answer was that she didn’t want to put my career in jeopardy. I told her I didn’t give a fuck about that. She was my sister. Even when we might not agree with each other or aggravate each other, she was my sister. I would always stand up for her. She’d bawled when I said it. Something Cady hadn’t done in my presence since she was a kid.

“Thank you both so much for offering,”

Alexandra said.

“Yes, it’s great, but this is a matter for me to handle,”

Mikhail stated.

“Why you, Mikhail?”

she asked, mystified.

“Because it was at my establishment that you met. Clearly, there is something in his personality that would make him do this. You simply telling him no after a few meetings shouldn’t have him following you. I checked while you were talking earlier. He doesn’t even live in Mt. Juliet. He could’ve only met you in the store if he knew you were there.”

“Mikhail, there’s no way you could’ve known he’d do this,”

I objected. Alexandra and Cady were saying the same thing.

“I could have had a better idea and possibly never admitted him. That’s it, Hoss. I’m doing it,”

he muttered.

“Doing what?”

Cady asked.

“Implementing a mental health questionnaire for all new prospective patrons, those already patrons, and staff to complete it, and have a qualified professional analyze it. It might not catch all potential bad apples, but it’ll help to eliminate a bunch.”

His answer surprised me and the others. It led to a ten-minute debate about how answering questions would help, especially if the person lied. He assured us that several questions were phrased more than once in slightly different ways so that skilled mental health professionals could tell if the person was lying. Early in my career, I had experience with court cases that relied on the testimony of such professionals to determine if a defendant was competent to stand trial. It would be interesting to see how they would help eliminate people he might not want in the club.

As soon as that debate died, we returned to where we’d started. Who was doing what for her? And until it was done, she shouldn’t stay here alone. “Whoever does the work, she can’t be left here alone. There’s no way to know if or when he’s nearby. She’ll have to stay with someone until those things are all in place,” I stated.

“Oh no, there’s no need for me to do that. I can stay in a hotel. It shouldn’t take long, should it? The extra alarm is the main thing. As for brushing up on my shooting, I’d need to arrange that and practice. It’s not as crucial. With the windows unable to open and the sensor to detect if anyone is on the balcony in place, I’d feel much safer.”

Cady jumped in, offering her a place to stay with them even after Mikhail said she could stay with them in Culleoka or at the apartment above Lustz. I had to hold myself back from offering her my place. The reason I didn’t was that we were practically strangers. There was no way she’d feel comfortable alone with me. That didn’t mean inside, I didn’t want it desperately.

She argued with them for a bit, but in the end, she compromised. She wouldn’t stay with Mikhail and Tajah or Cady and Hoss since they were newlyweds and needed their privacy. She did agree to stay a couple of nights at the Lustz apartment. It would be more than secure, especially on the third floor.

With this out of the way, that left only deciding who would do the work. Mikhail won this round. He agreed that if Sawyer checked out, which he would make sure he did, Sawyer could do the job, but Mihail would pay for it. This got Alexandra back to refusing, but he wore her down. Finally, she conceded. She thanked all of us for taking time out of our weekend to deal with this ridiculous situation. Everyone assured her it wouldn’t be ridiculous if it made her safe.

Sawyer and Sharlena were the first ones to leave. Alexandra thanked them profusely, which they said wasn’t necessary. I didn’t mind when she hugged Sharlena, but I disliked it when she did the same to Sawyer. It seemed to me that he held onto her too long.

“Now that we have a plan, I’ve got to get going. Tajah is undoubtedly anxiously waiting for news on what is up. Alexandra, I’ll be in touch to let you know if I find anything else. If you pack your things, I can escort you to Lustz,”

Mikhail told her.

“You need to get back to Tajah. Cady, I assume you’ll be riding home with Hoss. I can watch over Alexandra while she packs and then escort her to Lustz. I don’t have anything on my agenda or anyone to update or, uhm, do other things with.”

I cast a knowing look at Hoss and my sister. She turned slightly pink. Hoss merely raised a brow. She knew I was referring to her punishment for not listening.

Mikhail grinned along with Alexandra. However, she did object. “Carver, thank you for saying you’ll do that, but are you sure? I hate to impose. Besides, how likely is it that Reef would show up here in broad daylight? Even if he did, he couldn’t break in without being seen. I’ll be fine.”

“It’s not an imposition. Why take chances? I’ve got the time. I insist.”

She subsided, allowing her to thank and say goodbye to the others. Cady told her to call her later after she was settled so they could talk. When the door closed behind them, I felt a slight unease. Wanting to make her comfortable, I smiled as I picked up one of the kitchen chairs. I returned it to the table as I told her, “You go pack. I’ll straighten this out here. And before you say you can, I know it, but I need something to do while you get ready.”

“Thank you, Carver. I appreciate it. It shouldn’t take me long. I’ll be out shortly.”

I smiled and nodded so she knew I was good with her timing. She left the room. After I returned all the chairs, I straightened the pillows on the couch that got smashed. I hand-washed the few dirty glasses and left them to dry on the rack next to the sink. Wanting to stay busy, I wiped down the counters and table.

I was staring out the front window when she came out with a suitcase. I went to her and took it from her. I was surprised she only had one. Most women would pack enough for months. “Is this everything?” I asked.

She laughed. “Thank you. You seem surprised. Let me guess, you think all women pack ten suitcases just to stay for a couple of days. Well, I hate to disappoint you, but that’s not me. This will be more than enough. I just need to walk through here to see if I missed anything.”

I watched as she went through the living room and then into the kitchen. She looked at me, surprised.

“You didn’t have to do the dishes, but thank you. Everything seems good in here, and I have all that I need. We can go.”

I opened the door and let her precede me. She locked it since I had her suitcase. In the parking lot, she led me to her car. After putting the suitcase in it, I opened the door so she could get inside. I pointed down the lot.

“That’s my car. Give me a minute to get in, then I’ll follow you there. The private parking is around the back. There’s an entrance to a garage. Then we’ll get you upstairs and situated. Do you have the access key Mikhail gave you?”

“Yes, it’s in my purse. I’ll wait here for you to get your car.”

Smiling, I shut the door and hurried to my car. As I did, I scanned the parking lot. I wanted her to go first because I wanted to keep an eye out for any vehicles following her. If Reef were spying on her right now, he would be unable to resist seeing where she went.

The drive to Lustz was longer than to my house, mainly due to the Nashville traffic. Even on the weekend, it was busy. She found the private garage. After parking and exiting our vehicles, I showed her where to scan the card when we got on the elevator. This mode took us straight to the third floor without stopping at the other two.

She had to use it again to get into the apartment. It was so quiet when we entered. It was a bit eerie. I followed her to the hallway with the extra bedrooms. I understood why she wouldn’t want to stay in the one Tajah and Mikhail used occasionally. It wasn’t as if the others weren’t beautifully done and had no en suite bathrooms.

“You can put the suitcase there. I’ll unpack it later,”

she said, pointing to the bench at the foot of the bed. After I did, we went back to the living area. She went to the windows overlooking the city.

“This is an incredible view to have. And this is an amazing apartment. I can’t imagine what their house is like,”

she said in awe.

“I haven’t been to that one, but I understand from Cady it’s gorgeous. Tajah said they built one different from what was there the first time.”

“First time?”

she said, puzzled.

Shit, I guess they hadn’t told her why they built a house. I hoped I wasn’t telling something they didn’t want her to know, but I couldn’t see why they wouldn’t.

“Yeah, Mikhail had a house out there for several years, but hadn’t lived there. When he got with Tajah, they eventually went to spend a weekend there. Unbeknownst to them, a Lustz employee was obsessed with Mikhail. She went off the deep end, knowing they were together and that he was sharing that special place with Taj. She followed them and ended up setting fire to the house while they slept.”

Her hand came up to cover her mouth as she gasped. Her eyes were huge. “Oh my God, are you serious?”

“I am.”

“Christ, I hope she’s rotting in jail for that. How cowardly. They’re lucky they escaped.”

“They are lucky. Tajah was the one to wake up, but Mikhail got them out in time. As for the woman, she’s been committed to a mental institution. It doesn’t sound like she’ll ever get out. If she does, it won’t be for years. Okay, enough about that. Don’t let Tajah know I told you. She probably doesn’t want to recall it. I think that’s why they went with a different house plan. It wouldn’t remind them as much of what happened. I was out of town when they moved into it a couple of weeks ago.”

“She told me they live in Culleoka. I haven’t gotten there in my exploration, but it’s on my list since they live there. I’m slowly getting familiar with more of the area.”

We wandered over to the couch and sat down as we talked about the house. I wanted to keep the conversation and my time with her going. “There are a lot of places to see, not only right around Nashville but further out, like Culleoka. I know you’ve been here a short time. Have you seen Belle Meade, where my sister and Hoss live? There are several suburbs to explore. You’re in Mt. Juliet. I live in Hermitage, which is northwest of you.”

“I haven’t gotten to those two yet, either. I understand that Belle Meade is an old and affluent area.”

“It is in many parts of it. Hoss owned a mini-mansion on a large property when he met my sister. They live there. It’s stunning, both the house and the land.”

“What about your place in Hermitage? What’s it like?”

I chuckled. “It’s nothing like what Mikhail and Hoss have, I warn you.”

“It doesn’t have to be in order to be lovely. Are you in a house or an apartment?”

“It’s a house. I like it. The neighborhood is nice. Family homes surround me. I have a yard which I like. It’s large for a single person, but when I bought it, it was an investment, and I hoped to have a family one day. So far, that hasn’t happened, but the size allows me to have an office, gym, and a guest bedroom in addition to my bedroom, so I can’t complain. It’s increased in value, so it was a sound investment.”

“You’re fortunate. I would love a yard where I could plant flowers and putter around. It’s one of the things I hate about living in an apartment: no yard. However, being alone, I don’t need the cost of more than what I have. One day, I’ll find a house and take the plunge when I do. Living in a neighborhood would be nice.”

“But you have neighbors around you.”

“I do, but they don’t socialize. I might pass them coming or going, and we say hi, but that’s it. Are your neighbors like that?”

I was happy that I could tell her no. “Actually, no, they aren’t. They hold community events and invite everyone to attend. Kids are outside playing all the time. One of my neighbors watches my house when I’m gone, and I do the same for him when he is. He and his wife like to travel now that they’re retired. They go visit their grandchildren a lot and vice versa.”

She sighed. “That sounds perfect. Maybe one of these days, you’ll have to show me where you live. Maybe I should consider moving to Hermitage when I finish my time at my apartment.”

My heart skipped when I heard her say that. I wanted to shout, we could do it then, but I held back. There was no need to scare her and make her think she had two creeps after her. Instead, I smiled and calmly responded.

“I’ll be happy to show it to you one day. It is a nice area, although Nashville is lucky to have several. Do you have a period you plan to stay in the apartment for?”

“My lease is for a year, but originally, I thought it would be longer. Now, I’m thinking of finding a different spot.”

“Because of Reef,”

I said in disgust.

“No, not due to him. I was already thinking that before this happened today. However, if he does know where I live, it is an incentive for me to find a new place. However, until my lease is up, I can’t. I have about four more months. Listen, I don’t want to talk about him. And I’ve taken enough of your time. I bet you have things to do. Please, don’t feel you have to stay. I’ll be fine here alone. No one can get up here.”

I wasn’t ready to leave, but I took it as her hint that she wanted to be alone, so I took it. “I do have one thing I should probably do today. I’ll go if you’re sure you’re alright and don’t need me. You have my number if you think of something or just want someone to talk to. Don’t hesitate to call. I’ll be checking in on you. You're as safe as can be here, Alexandra.”

“I know I am, and I can’t thank everyone enough for what they did. I never expected it, but it was wonderful. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

I was driving away reluctantly several minutes later. I had a lot to think about regarding Alexandra, her situation, and how she made me feel. Should I pursue something, or would it be too much on top of Reef?