I lead her into the living room, the same place where I’d bandaged up her leg what feels like a lifetime ago. “Are you okay?”
She shakes her head. “I… I think I’m in shock…”
“Sit. I’ll go get you something warm to calm your nerves.”
Leaving her on the couch, I walk down the hall into the kitchen that adjoins the dining room. Once I’m out of earshot, I call Vincent.
“Well?” I ask the moment he picks up.
“Ratimir and I are looking, but so far, there’s nothing.”
“No package?”
“Not yet. Ratimir is looking in her bedroom now.” It’s annoying how much that bothers me that Ratimir is in her bedroom and I haven’t been. “We’ll do a full sweep of the place and let you know if anything noteworthy pops up.”
After I end the call, I brew a cup of tea and take it to Alyssa in the living room. She’s not on the couch where I left her. She’s pacing in front of the bow windows. The pacing stops abruptly the moment she sees me.
“Tea?” I offer without commenting on her obvious anxiety.
“Y-yes, thank you.”
She accepts the teacup but she doesn’t take a sip. Instead, she looks back out through the bow windows. “You had a breakin last night?”
“Why do you think I was so fast to catch you scaling my fence?” She frowns and glances down at her tea. But again, she doesn’t so much as take a sip. “Drink. It’ll calm you down.”
Her frown gets deeper before it disappears altogether. She sits back down and brings the cup to her lips gingerly. But I’m pretty sure that, even though her lips touch the rim, she doesn’t take a sip. She definitely doesn’t swallow.
Suspicious.
My phone starts vibrating silently in my pocket. I check it subtly when she’s looking out the window again.
VINCENT: We’ve checked the whole house. There’s no package.
Fuck me. How can that be? I know she has it. There’s no other explanation for her skittish behavior or the fact that it’s disappeared into thin air over the only border of my property we happen to share.
“When do you think I’ll be able to go back home?” she asks.
I get to my feet. “Stay put. I’ll go see what’s going on. I’m sure they have the situation under control.”
Vincent and Ratimir are both waiting for me by the kitchen entrance. “Nothing?” I ask as I approach.
“We might have to do a more thorough sweep of the place,” Ratimir says apologetically. “We need more time for that.”
I nod. “I’ll buy you more time.” My gaze shifts from Ratimir to Vincent. “Or rather—Vincent will.”
8
ALYSSA
I am shitting my pants right now.
Why did I think this would end any other way than this? When will I learn? Nothing good comes from casual sex. Or unadulterated lust. Or handsome, rich, tech tycoons who can move the earth with just one snap of their fingers.
I keep fiddling with the Z charm on my bracelet. Uri’s eyes have gone to it a few times now which makes me think he’s probably clocked onto how I only touch it when I’m nervous.
I make myself drop my hand back to my side, because more than anything right now, I need to play it cool. I need to stick to my story. And most of all, I need to be strong.
That means no more wine. Definitely no more ogling. And absolutely, under no circumstances can I afford to display any more weak knees every time Uri says or does something halfway decent.
Just to play it safe, I stare at nothing but the tea in front of me. I’m tempted to try it, for no other reason than I’m parched. But I’m nervous to, just in case it happens to be drugged or something. That sounds crazy at first blush, but then again, it sounds crazy to say there’s a bloodied, severed finger in my freezer right now, too, and we all know that’s true.
There’s also a squadron of cops crawling over every inch of my house. That’s heart-attack-inducing in its own right. What if they find it? What if I’m incriminated? What if I go to jail for a crime I didn’t commit?
And all because I wanted to avoid being embarrassed in front of my hot neighbor.
Idiot.
“Alyssa.”
I jump a foot as Uri enters the room. This time, he’s not alone. The blonde cop who showed up at my door is with him. Oh, God, is he here to arrest me?
Uri fixes me with a piercing look. “Didn’t mean to startle you.”
“I-it’s fine… Officer? Is everything alright?”