Yep, as expected he got some push back. “Because I asked nicely?”
Marie rolled her eyes, but her lips quirked up and her blue eyes sparkled in the late afternoon sun. “I’m sure it’s for some security reason, so on this occasionI’ll concede, but don’t expect me to always be this malleable.”
Isaac clamped onto the insinuation that there might be a next time. After running into her again, he hoped there would be a lot ofnext times.“Thank you.”
He waited for a car to pass before he opened his door, closing it quickly. He leaned back against the car and surveyed the street, not noticing anyone lurking in the shadows. Or a slow car approaching them.
Once he reached her side he had the door open in seconds. He reached out a hand, and was pleased when he felt her soft one take it. Isaac kept her close to his side as they made their way to the building. He stood behind her, protecting her six as she inputted the code to allow them access. All the while watching for anything that would put them in danger.
“Afternoon, Ms. Hughes,” the doorman greeted them.
“Hi Felix. Is your wife okay now?”
Felix grinned wide. “Yes, thank you. I appreciate you coming to see her last night to check her over after she fell.”
“I’m glad you called, and it wasn’t a hardship. Just make sure she keeps off that ankle for a few more days, and she should be okay. But if it does get worse, make an appointment with your primary care provider to do further tests.”
“I will. Have a good rest of your day.”
Isaac took in the whole interaction. With one small gesture, Marie had garnered the complete adulation and trust of the doorman. Felix would make sure Marie was looked after, and Isaac bet he wouldn’t let anyone up that wasn’t known to him.
“Thanks, and this is my friend, Isaac Warner. You can add him to my approved guest list.”
“Will do.” Felix looked him over, and Isaac reluctantly let go of Marie’s hand so he could shake the other man's.
“Good to meet you, Felix.” Their encounter was brief, but Isaac made a mental note to talk to the man after he’d seen Marie safely to her apartment.
The journey to her floor didn’t take long, and soon they were standing out the front of her home. Marie fiddled with her keys, before inserting one into the lock. “Thanks for seeing me up. As you can see, nothing bad happened. You can go now.”
Her brusqueness didn’t put him off, he fully expected it. “I’d like to check your apartment if you don’t mind.”
“Whatever for? As you can see, no one can get up without getting buzzed, or using a code to get into the building. If anyone had been looking for me, Felix would’ve said something. Whatever happened outsideMom’s building was one of those freak things that happens.”
Isaac placed his hand on the door frame above her head. The action brought him closer to her. “There’s every chance that you might be right, but all through my time undercover I learned to trust my gut. To trust the feeling I got when things weren’t what they seemed. Nine times out of ten, those feelings saved me from getting killed.”
“Is there a point to why you’re telling me that?”
“Yes, there is. I have a feeling that not everything is what it seems about the attempt to take you today. Something is off. How did they know where you were? That you’d ordered that particular ride.”
Fuck, I should’ve given her phone to Cass to scan for anything that shouldn’t be there.
“That’s…” Marie swallowed. “That’s ridiculous. I think you’re making too much of it.”
Isaac stroked a finger down her cheek. “What if I’m not? What if there is someone after you?”
Marie pushed against his chest, and he took a step back. “That’s enough. I don’t know why you’re trying to scare me, but it stops now.”
She had the door open and had stepped through before he could say anything. From his vantage point he could see that there were taped packing boxesscattered in the living room. The curtains were drawn across the windows.
There were plenty of places for someone to hide. Everything in him wanted to charge into her apartment and haul her behind him while he checked every nook and hiding place.
Yet he remained at the door, because he wasn’t going to invade her private space without an invitation.
“You want to come in and check everything, don’t you?” Marie had deposited her bag on one of the boxes.
“Maybe.” He tried a casual shrug of his shoulder, but he wasn’t sure he succeeded with the way her lips quirked up a tiny bit.
“Fine, come in. I don’t want to be the reason why you can’t sleep tonight because you’re worried about me.”
