“Gotcha,” he says, finally smiling at me like he always does.
But then I realize Brax is going to haul Lucas downstairs, and Mr. Williams is going to have a lot of questions.
“Mr. Williams, do you remember Lucas?”
“Your ex?” he asks.
I nod. “He broke in to my apartment tonight, and my boyfriend is upstairs dealing with him. I don’t want you to panic,” I say just as he’s reaching for the phone, probably about to call the police. “He’s taking care of him and will remove him from the building. I just wanted you to be aware of the situation.”
“Do you want me to call the cops?”
I shake my head and walk up to his desk, leaning against it because my heart is going so fast I’m scared I’m going to faint. “No. We have it handled.”
“Do you need your locks changed? I can have that done for you tomorrow.”
“Please,” I say, hanging my head to take a few deep breaths. “He obviously still has a key because the door was locked when I got home tonight.”
“It’ll be done, Ms. Iris.”
I smile at Mr. Williams. He’s always been such a huge help, and I don’t think the building would be the same without him.
The elevator doors close in the lobby, and I know exactly where they’re headed. Mr. Williams and I stand in silence, staring at the spot where the doors will open and hopefully Brax will have Lucas under control.
“Come back here, Ms. Iris,” Mr. Williams says, motioning in my peripheral vision for me to get behind the desk. “We don’t know what’s going to be behind those doors.”
Shit. He’s right. I assume Brax is going to have Lucas, but what if he doesn’t? What if Lucas runs out and Brax is nowhere to be seen.
I hold my breath as the elevator dings in the lobby and the doors slide open. Brax has Lucas over his shoulder, and he’s knocked out cold.
“I got him,” Brax says as I rush toward him. “I’m taking him out of here.”
“Where?” I ask.
“The less you know, the better,” he replies, leaning forward to kiss my lips.
His right eye is red and there’s already a bruise forming, but it looks like Lucas got the worst of it.
“Are you just going to dump him somewhere?” I push, wanting to know more.
“Something like that,” he whispers.
“Let me get the door for you, sir,” Mr. Williams says, rushing around his desk to grab the giant glass door to the building.
“Are you coming back?” I ask Brax before he has a chance to carry an unconscious Lucas out of the building.
“Hopefully,” he says without a second look.
19
BRAX
“Where is he?”Iris asks as I collapse into her bed, exhausted from the last few hours.
Nothing about the night went how I’d planned. Did I have a nice evening with my girlfriend? No. Did I get to bed at a decent hour curled up with her? Absolutely not.
“I don’t know,” I tell her, wishing I could make the last few hours disappear.
Iris looms over me, still dressed with her makeup on. “You don’t know?”
