Surprise Delivery (Page 42)

Just – not tonight.

A couple of hours later, I finally leave Alexis’ place, bounding down the stairs with a smile on my face and an extra spring in my step. I’m feeling good – better than I have in a very long time. After we had sex, the two of us just laid there, curled up together on the couch, relishing the warmth and affection between us. We talked and opened ourselves up to one another – I opened myself up to Alexis in ways I never thought I’d open up to anybody.

It’s terrifying to be that exposed, but when it’s with somebody who feels so right and so connected to you, it feels so right at the same time.

Pushing open the door, I step outside into the chilly evening air. At this time of night, the foot traffic has thinned, but there’s still quite a crowd milling around her small neighborhood. I pull my coat around me tighter as I turn and head for my car. I didn’t want to leave – I would have preferred staying there with Alexis all night – but I know it’s for the best.

We’re going to take things slow and see how they develop. For me, I already know she’s what I want. The chemistry between us is just too powerful for it to not be real. I want Alexis in ways I’ve never wanted a woman before in my entire life. She lights me up in ways nobody else has. And it’s not just because she’s beautiful – though, she’s drop-dead gorgeous in my book.

But I’ve been out with more beautiful women than I can count. Women who have Hollywood-leading-lady good looks. And none of them have ever filled me with the sort of feelings Alexis inspires within me. She really does make me feel alive in ways I’ve never felt before. All of those dull, fuzzy lines that made up my life before her are sharp and in clear focus now.

Deep down in my soul, I just know – she is what I’ve been searching for my whole life. “Hey.”

I turn at the sound of the man’s voice to find Brad emerging from a small cluster of people. His face is dark with anger, and a frown tugs the corners of his mouth down. I look around and give him an amused smirk.

“You out here waiting for me?” I ask.

“That’s not –”

“Oh no, that’s right,” I interrupt. “You were standing across the street watching her apartment building like a fucking creeper and I just happened to come out. My bad.”

Brad glares at me, and it doesn’t take a mind reader to know that he’d like to kill me where I stand. His entire body is tense and there’s a snarl upon his lips.

“So, what are we doing here, Brad?” I ask.

“That’s my question, actually,” he snaps. “I told you to stay away from her. Told you she’s mine –”

“Yes, you did. You most certainly did,” I interrupt, sliding my keys back into my pocket. “But here’s the thing, Brad – you lied.”

“I did not lie.”

I laugh. “Actually, you did. You stood in front of me and told me that you and Alexis were together.”

“We are.”

“In your mind, maybe,” I say. “But, to hear her tell it, she wants nothing to do with you. Never has. And now you’re stalking her because she won’t take your calls.”

“I’m not stalking her,” he snaps.

“No? Then what are you doing hanging around outside of her building?”

His face darkens, and he narrows his eyes even more. “You just think you’re a god among men, don’t you?” he sneers. “You think because you’re rich, good looking, and a doctor, that you just walk on water.”

I shrug. “I don’t know about that,” I reply. “But what I do know is that I’m better for her than you could ever possibly be.”

Brad steps up, his nose just inches from mine. It’s taking everything in me to not haul back and punch him square in the face right now. He scowls at me, the hatred in his eyes more than clear.

“I warned you to stay away from her,” he hisses.

“Yes, you did,” I reply calmly. “And what are you going to do about it if I don’t?”

His anger is tipping him toward the irrational and I’m kind of hoping he does something stupid. I’m hoping he gives me a reason to take him down. Maybe even have him arrested. I think spending a couple of days cooling his heels in jail may be just the sort of wake-up call Brad needs.

Alexis just wants him to leave her alone, and I think it’s going to take some sort of dramatic scene to get it through his thick head. I really don’t see him getting it any other way.

“What, you think because you’re bigger and stronger than me that I’m afraid of you?” he asks.

“Actually, I do,” I say. “I think you’re terrified and I also think you’re jealous because I’m getting something you’re never going to get, no matter how many nights you spend out here watching her apartment.”

“Fuck you,” he shouts, loud enough to draw the attention of people passing by.

I laugh softly and shake my head. “Is that it, Brad?” I ask. “Is that all you’ve got?”

Brad is apoplectic, and his breathing is ragged. His eyes are wide, filled with rage, and he sounds like a two-pack-a-day smoker who just ran a marathon. It takes a Herculean effort on his part, but Brad finally manages to compose himself again. The look of hatred in his eyes is no less intense, but he is at least calm enough again to speak.

“Last warning, Clyburne,” he says. “Stay away from Alexis.”

“Or what, Brad?”

A menacing smirk touches his lips. “You may be physically stronger than me, but you’re not smarter,” he sneers. “And there’s more than one way to – dispose of – one’s enemies.”

I rub my jawline, the stubble making a dry, scratchy sound. “Sounds ominous.”

“Final warning,” he says. “Stay away from her or pay the price.”

“Good thing I’m rich,” I say. “I can probably afford it.”

With one last sneer, Brad turns and melts away into the foot traffic on the sidewalk again, leaving me shaking my head as I look after him. I know that something’s coming with him and whatever it is, it’s not going to be good. He blames me for Alexis wanting nothing to do with him. And that’s fine. I’d rather have him focusing his rage onto me, than onto her.

But that means I’ll need to be vigilant.

There’s a loud, sudden banging on the door. It startles me at first. I glance at the baby monitor and breathe a sigh of relief that the racket didn’t wake Aurora. Duncan probably forgot something and had to come back for it. I throw the locks and open the door, ready to scold him for knocking so loudly, when I feel the blood in my veins turn to ice. Brad is standing in my doorway, looking none too pleased. His breathing is labored, and his eyes are burning with a wild, angry light. I do my best to quell the fear flooding into me, not wanting to give him the slightest hint that I’m scared.

“What are you doing here?” I ask.

“We need to talk.”

He pushes his way past me, striding down the hallway and into the living room. The surge of fear in me only gets stronger as I listen to his footsteps banging on the floor inside as he paces the living room. I need to get him out of here – away from my daughter. And the best way to do that is to calm him down and talk to him since he’s clearly agitated.

Taking a deep breath, I let it out slowly as I close the door, careful to leave it unlocked. If the opportunity presents itself, I’m going to grab my daughter and get the hell out of there, then call the police. Brad clearly isn’t in his right mind and it’s terrifying me. Even though I get the sense that he wouldn’t hurt me, I just don’t know for sure – and I’m not willing to take that chance. Not with Aurora just in the other room.

“What do you want, Brad?” I ask as I sit down on the loveseat.

“Why was he here?”

“Keep your voice down,” I scold him softly. “And stop stomping around. If you want to talk, sit down and speak to me like an adult. I’m not going to put up with your temper tantrums.”

Brad stares at me for a long moment before finally giving in and sitting down on the couch. He leans forward, clasping his hands in front of him, and closes his eyes as he does his best to get himself back under control. After a couple of minutes, he opens his eyes again and doesn’t look quite so psychotic.

“Now, what do you want, Brad?” I ask. “I thought I was pretty clear –”

“You haven’t been returning my calls.”

“No, I haven’t,” I say. “And you know why I haven’t.”

“I’ve left you voicemails, sent text messages, and you’re just fucking ghosting me,” he growls. “Why are you ghosting me, Alexis? Because of him?”

“You know perfectly well why I told you to leave me alone,” I tell him. “And it has nothing to do with Duncan.”

“Why was he here?” he asks again, his eyes boring into me.

“What makes you think he was here?”

“Don’t insult my intelligence, Alexis. I’m not a fucking moron,” he snaps.

“Oh, right,” I say. “Because you were outside on the street watching my building again.”

He fidgets with his hands, picking at his fingernails. “Somebody has to keep you safe,” he says. “Somebody has to protect you.”

“I don’t need your protection, Brad.”

He looks at me and I briefly see that psychotic flash in his eyes again. He manages to get it back under control quickly though. It’s then that I really see Brad for the first time. What I see is disturbing. He’s a fastidious man by nature – always clean, groomed, and well-kempt.