The flight was just over an hour, with a glass of wine and a small snack I was feeling very relaxed by the time we landed. First-class meant we got off the plane first and by the time we made it outside of the airport, we had a car waiting for us. It wasn’t my first time in Denver or a big city, but it always caught me off guard how noisy and busy the city was.
“Mr. Silva,” our driver said, opening the back door for us. “Hello, ma’am.”
“Hey, Mark. This is Iris. How’s it going?” Beau shook his hand and I said hello.
“Great, the Mrs. is almost due,” the driver said, taking my bag as Beau helped me into the car.
“That’s great. I promise not to keep you too long,” Beau said.
I slid into the big SUV hearing them chat, feeling like I didn’t even know who Beau was. He had this entire life here in Denver and in Sterling Ridge, I felt I only knew what he wanted me to know. Beau slid into the backseat with me, grabbing my hand and threading his fingers through mine.
“I know we said we could pick up food, but can we pick up something first? I just need to get something. You can wait in the car,” he said, distracted by his phone.
“Ok,” I said warily, taking out my own phone.
We drove for forty minutes through hellish traffic, reminding me why I preferred living in small towns. The constant stop and go was agitating, even more so since I was hungry. I didn’t know how people did this on a daily basis. We pulled up to a high-rise in downtown Denver that looked to be close to where Luke lived. I almost told Beau maybe I should go with my brother while he took care of what he needed, but his soft, vulnerable voice told me I needed to be with him.
“I’ll be right back,” he said, getting out of the car. “I shouldn’t be too long, Mark.”
I took my phone out, turning it on to text Nash.
Me: We landed safely.
I sighed, leaning my head back ready for the day to be over. It felt like it had been days since the incident had happened and all I wanted was some food, a shower and a good night’s sleep. Beau probably had some fancy bathroom and an amazing bed. A knock on the window startled me and I didn’t realize I had closed my eyes.
“Lower your window,” a younger man said, knocking on the window again.
I shook my head because there was no way I was listening to him.
“Sir, step away from the car.” Mark lowered the window.
“Who the fuck are you?” he snarled, hitting the window again.
“Sir, step away from the vehicle,” Mark said again, opening the door.
“Who the hell are you?” He hit the window, looked at Mark and then my window, snarling and walked away.
“Are you ok, ma’am?” Mark looked back.
“Yeah, does that happen often?” I continued to watch the man.
“When you're downtown you never know what’s going to happen,” he said, getting into the car. “I’m sorry about that.”
“It’s fine,” I said, checking my phone.
It had been twenty minutes since Beau left and I was getting a weird feeling.
“Mark, is there a sushi place around here?” I asked, figuring I would feel better after eating.
“There is T-Sushi just down the block,” he said, pointing up the street.
“Any good?” I asked, grabbing my purse.
“I think it’s the best,” he said, eyeing me warily.
“Great, I’m starving,” I said, opening the door. “I’m going to order us some food while we wait. I shouldn’t be too long.”
I walked out into the cool Denver afternoon, it was almost five and hopefully the place would be empty enough that I could order and come back quickly. As I saw the restaurant, a feeling of being watched hit me and goosebumps peppered my skin. Looking over my shoulder, I looked for the guy who had hit the SUV window, but I didn’t see him.
