Would I ever get used to the adoration and desire aimed at me? Based on the way my stomach was flipping from his touch and intense stare, I wasn’t sure I ever would. But I totally liked it, and craved so much more of it.
“I guess we should go get an update,” he added as his lips formed a tight line.
“Probably.” Although I questioned if I wanted to know.
He stood, helping me up, and we headed toward the common area. Once we stepped into the room, the guys all spun to look at us. The silence as everyone stopped talking at once was jarring. They glared at Adam with annoyance, except for Zack who had a smirk on his face.
Jay crossed his arms over his chest. “Next time there’s a fire in your apartment building, shoot us a text and let us know if you’re going to leave the scene.”
“Sorry.” Adam flinched. “I told Ethan what my plan was.”
Zack smirked. “He updated us…eventually.”
“It was a bit chaotic.” Logan shrugged. “He had to deal with a drunk idiot who refused to evacuate, and then Dylan showed up.”
If Dylan was there, that meant it wasn’t an accident. I waited for the news I sensed coming, still not sure if I wanted to know or not.
“So… not a simple dryer fire?” Adam asked.
“Definitely not.” Seth shook his head with a frown. “Trash can.”
“Maybe someone was smoking and threw the cigarette in there.” At this point I was grasping onto whatever I could. Anything that would indicate it was an accident and not malicious intent.
All eyes turned to me with sympathy, and my hope vanished.
“Not likely,” Jay finally said. “Dylan and Ethan found evidence of forced entry into the vacant basement apartment.”
“Fuck,” Adam gritted out.
“Good news is it didn’t do any real damage.” Zack’s cheerful tone stood out among the seriousness of the rest of the room. “You should be able to get back into the apartment tomorrow afternoon.”
I swallowed down a gasp. The idea of staying in Adam’s apartment by myself caused my heart to hammer in my chest.
As if Adam could sense my dread, he reached out and ran his hand up and down my back. “Don’t worry, we’ll stay here for now until I can figure something out.”
I nodded. Was it too late to take him up on the offer to leave town?
Zack’s brows pulled together as he studied us, then the corner of his lips lifted into a smirk. “I’ll call my parents. I’m sure they’ll let you guys come stay at the lodge. It’s gated, plenty of people and security.”
I’d almost forgotten that his parents owned a small resort in the mountains only thirty minutes away. Would we be safe there? The apartment building had plenty of people too, and look how that turned out.
“That’s not a bad idea.” Adam pulled his phone out of his pocket. “I’ll call Dylan and see what he thinks.” He glanced down at me, his hand still rubbing my back. “I’m going to make a cup of coffee. You want one?”
“Sure, thanks.”
Adam walked over to the coffee maker, and I sat in one of the chairs, slowly starting to relax. Maybe the lodge would be safe. If anything, it made me feel better than going back to Adam’s place.
Chapter Twenty-One
ADAM
“I hope a queen room is acceptable.”Zack’s dad paused his task of setting up the key cards and looked up at me over the check-in desk.
Speechless, I stared at him, trying to understand what the alternative would be. I’d been here enough growing up to know all the different room layouts. There were three as far as I knew—king suites, queen suites, and double queen rooms.
“I really hoped I could get you two into one of our king suites,” he continued, “but they’re all booked for the next week.” His lips lifted into a smirk. “But I think you’ll be happy with the queen suite. It has a jacuzzi tub and fireplace.”
“Suite?” I swallowed.
