“My ex,” she said. “I had to leave my apartment where he wouldn’t be listening in.”
“Please tell me he’s not coming around again. I thought I had made myself perfectly clear,” I said. That man made me angry at the mention of him.
A heavy breath filled the line. “Me too. But apparently, he figured out that we weren’t really a thing.”
“I wish you had let me kick his ass before,” I growled. “It would have felt so freaking awesome.”
When things first happened between Cadence and her ex, I confronted the guy. He didn’t seem at all bothered that I had threatened him. In fact, he gave the impression that he was amused by the idea. But I had eventually gotten through to him. All without laying a finger on him, per her request. He backed off, and I thought that was the last Cassidy would have to deal with him.
It would appear I was wrong.
“Yeah well, as they say… hindsight and all,” she said.
“Where are you?” I asked.
“In the stairwell,” she said. “He’s been following me, and I think he’s bugged my place again. Which is why I had to get the new phone and plan and everything in between.”
I would have encouraged her to reach out to the police, but they wouldn’t have done a damned thing. They never had. I squeezed my phone tighter, wishing it was the guy’s neck in my hand instead.
“You’re fucking kidding me,” I said.
“No, Guy. I’m not,” she said, voice coming out flat. “I wouldn’t joke about something like this.”
“It was a rhetorical question,” I said. “Did you change the locks?”
“That’s next on my list of things to do. Including adding an alarm system,” she said. “Outside of that, I don’t know what to do. Even with the changed locks, phone plan, and everything in between, he will find a way around it.”
“Let me think about what I can do from here. I’ll call you back later,” I said.
“Okay,” she said, breathily.
I sucked in a shuddering breath. I felt so bad for Cassidy. “I’m sorry you are going through this. And if anything happens to you, I swear that guy is going to be unrecognizable once I’m through with him.”
My appetite was gone. My anger had taken control. I was seconds from charging out the door and hunting the man down.
“Don’t do anything stupid,” she said. “Remember you have your lady to think about now.”
“That’s true. I’m making breakfast right now,” I said. “I should probably go and finish this up.”
“Actually, I want to hear more about your lady before we hang up,” Cadence said. “If you don’t mind.”
“What did you want to know?” I cracked some eggs, imagining them as her ex’s head, and smiled sadistically. I chuckled. “This is fun.”
Cassidy and I continued talking, reminiscing, and teasing each other as I continued making breakfast for Cadence. It was nice to have the talk with her, and it was also good to get my mind off of Cassidy’s ex. There wasn’t much I could do anyway. So, putting my focus into breakfast for Cadence was what I did, and I felt better for it.
11
CADENCE
Some hours later, I peeled my eyes open to my brother’s room, blurred from sleep. It was still darkish, with long, deep shadows that stretched across his walls, but there was enough light filtering in from the windows to let me know that it was daytime. I smiled to myself, feeling rested and restored. Much more than I had in a very long time.
I stretched my arms over my head and thought about staying under the covers for a little while longer. The air had an icy bite to it, and the idea of leaving the bed that changed my life didn’t sound like all that great an idea. Besides, it was warm and comfortable, and I didn’t want to move yet.
I wondered what Guy looked like sleeping and smiled to myself as I thought about rolling over. I waited until the curiosity was too much to bear. And when I did roll over, Guy was gone. I also found a severe lack of his warmth. His side of the bed had long grown cold.
I frowned as my fingers brushed along the chilly sheets, when they hungered and searched for him. Maybe he decided not to sleep with me? No. That didn’t seem right. Of course he did.
Another option occurred to me… maybe he did sleep with me, and he was just an early riser. Well, he could have left the bed for any number of reasons. Regardless of why, I missed him.