He takes another step back, his hands shaking.
“Don’t you say another word about her.” I point my finger at him. “Do not speak about her or to her unless you’re saying hello or goodbye. Understood?”
He nods. “Understood.”
I leave him there as I turn around and walk out with the bouquet of flowers in my hand knowing that when I come back to this building my life won’t be the same.
CHAPTER FIFTY
Sebastian
“I did it,”Matilda exclaims as I step into our apartment. “I really did it.”
I know what she’s talking about before the words leave her perfect pink lips. She cooked dinner for me. She fucking cooked me dinner.
I can’t tell what it is, but it smells incredible.
I look over at where she’s standing next to the dining room table with two wine glasses in her hands.
There’s a bottle of red on the table, uncorked.
“Will you do me the pleasure of pouring our wine so I can toast to tonight?”
I stand frozen in place staring at the woman I’ll never get over. I’ll never forget the taste of her lips, or the softness of her every curve.
I’ll hold onto the memory of her voice for as long as I live.
“Matilda.” I swallow hard.
“I know, I know.” She places the wine glasses down. “You got busy with a case. That’s why you didn’t make it home first. “
No, that’s not why.
I spent three hours with my lieutenant, running over every detail of the last two times the mystery son-of-a-bitch sent roses to women I love.
Christine tried to reassure me that this time was no different from the last, or the time before that.
She assigned security details to my mom and Nyx for weeks after they received their bouquets.
Forensic tests were run on the bouquets and cards. They came up empty.
The only other alarm that was sounded was when Nyx received a series of calls at her shop from someone asking for me.
It concerned us both enough that she moved into my apartment for a month. She took my bed. I took the couch and my roommate at the time, Brad, hit on her once before she shut him down.
She moved back to her place when she got sick of me telling her everything would be okay.
I didn’t believe my own words, but she did.
Christine pulled the security details eventually and even though I’ve always kept my guard up, I felt reassured by the silence.
Until today.
I’ve made too many enemies to count since I joined the force. Some are locked up on Rikers Island, others have already served their debt to society and are now out looking to even the score. A few were never convicted and I’ve run into them on the street.
The threats are always subtly implied.
Not one has been followed through, but that’s not a gamble I’m willing to take. Not with Matilda. I won’t risk her safety.
