If he couldn’t take her pain, he’d at least bring her comfort.
So he grabbed his bubble coat, pushed his socked feet into his Timberland boots, and left his place en route to hers.
But first, he stopped at a few places to grab some of the things he noticed she liked.
Like the lemon-mint tea blend he always loved the smell of whenever she enjoyed it in her mug—which was rare, since she loved drinking coffee more than tea.
And some fresh jasmine flowers he noticed she liked to keep by her bedside.
Xander finished his errands picking up the tacos he introduced her to years ago at a food truck alley.
The food truck owners had created a fundraiser to pony up money to rent out a brick-and-mortar location, which was where Xander now patronized to get Rylee’s favorite tacos.
With everything secure in bags, he drove them to the brownstone, holding everything in hand after parking and stepping out of his truck.
At the front door, he knocked twice.
And when he didn’t get an answer, he rang the bell twice too.
Rubbed his lips together when both attempts didn’t get an answer.
He inhaled a deep breath when he dropped his attention to the bushes by Rylee’s trash.
Xander set the things down on the stoop and jogged down the stairs to those bushes.
Stuck his hand into the rough bristles, feeling for the fake rock Rylee kept there.
After he admitted to finding the spare keys, she revealed to him that she kept the keys there after misplacing her keys at a Mommy and Me meetup at Brooklyn’s Botanical Gardens.
Xander teased her about it, saying it was bold of her to do that—living in New York City, behaving like she was in Pleasantville and leaving her keys accessible for home intruders.
But in that instance, he was happy he discovered the spare, especially with her not answering his calls, his knocks, or the ringing of her bell.
Xander didn’t hesitate to push the keys into the locks.
Didn’t give it a second thought when he opened her door and stepped inside.
All of the lights were off in the brownstone, the air quiet and still.
Of all the years he and Rylee had been together, the house had never seemed so still, so eerie.
Its energy gave Xander goosebumps and sent a chill racing down his back, making him shiver.
He thought about calling out her name but decided against it.
Instead, he stepped out of his Timberland boots, placed the food and items down for only a moment to remove his coat, then went searching for Rylee.
He checked the living room and kitchen, of course, and when his search came up empty, he climbed the steps to her room.
Knowing the children were at her parents’ home, he knew she wouldn’t be in their bedrooms, so he went straight to the master bedroom.
And when he turned the doorknob, he opened the door to see Rylee curled up into a ball on the large bed.
Xander’s shoulders sank instantly.
His heavy sigh made her stir in bed, and not wanting to startle her he spoke softly. “Snoop.”
Rylee gasped, lifting her head then moving the covers out of her eyes to see him standing there.
