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No…no, I couldn’t have misjudged the situation that badly. It was Eli that mentioned us moving in together. He’d wanted this, but I’d been the one to show some hesitation. I remembered the disappointed look on his face when I’d laughed nervously and then told him moving in might be rushing things. I was right with my decision.
I had to be right with my decision.
The elevator dinged, indicating we’d reached the Penthouse floor. Everything felt strange, like time stood still or, at least, slowed way down. In slow motion, the doors opened. In slow motion, Baker and I stepped into a spacious and elegantly decorated hallway. Straight in front of us was a huge set of glass doors that led to a roof-top entertaining area, including a large swimming pool, a waterfall jacuzzi, and a large outdoor bar. It was spectacular…yet dread blossomed in my chest.
“Wow, this is nice,” Baker said. “Maybe you’ll invite me over. I love to swim.” He laughed softly as he peered through the spotless glass and admired the view.
Apparently, all his apprehension had vanished while mine had amped up to a dangerous level. I drew in a shaky breath and tried to calm my nerves. It didn’t work. It didn’t feel like a panic attack—more like a python wrapping its slithery body around me, coiling tightly to prevent the flow of oxygen.
“Oh no, Mr. Bigshot, don’t be getting cold feet on me now,” Baker said while giving my shoulder a hard squeeze. “Everything will work out, Ari. I’m sorry I worried you. I shouldn’t have said anything. It wasn’t fair to base my comments on mine and Seth’s early relationship problems. You and Eli clearly handle things differently, and you’ve both known each other a long time. It’ll be fine.” He looked to the other two doors in the hallway. There was one at the end of the hall to our left and another door at the opposite end. The living spaces wrapped around the building in opposite directions. “Which one belongs to Eli?”
I forced myself to snap out of my scaredy-cat trance. Looking to the right, I said, “According to my excellent computer hacking skills, this one belongs to Eli.” With slow steps, I moved in that direction.
“I guess it’s safe to assume you hacked the code to get into the apartment too, right?”
“Of course.”
After those arrogantly spoken last words, everything switched back to slow motion. From behind me, I heard Baker’s cell phone ring. Another step. I heard him answer it. Another step. Even from where I stood, I could hear Seth’s voice booming from the other end of the line. When Baker told him where we were, I heard a scuffle and then Eli’s voice yell that we not go into his apartment. Another step. There was no stopping me now. In my heart, I knew it was going to be bad, but I don’t think anything could have prepared me for what happened next. Just as I reached for the keypad to punch in the code, his apartment door opened and a gorgeous man, dressed in an expensive, tailored grey suit, stepped across the threshold.
I looked down at my ratty skinny jeans, Vans, and Lady Gaga T-shirt. It took me a split second to realize that I didn’t belong in this world…in Eli’s world. Clearly, this man did. Everything about him screamed perfection, wealth, and, worst of all, maturity. Oddly colored grey eyes scrutinized me for a few seconds, raking over me before drifting toward Baker. While I might have felt inadequate after the gentleman’s scrutiny, Baker was the opposite.
“Who the fuck are you and what in the hell are you doing in Eli’s apartment?” Baker demanded.
The man chuckled softly. “He invited me. Whatever are you boys doing here?”
I felt my world crumble. This time, it wasn’t in slow motion. It crashed like a tsunami, destroying my heart, leaving nothing but devastation in its path.Chapter TwelveEli“What did Baker say? Where are they?” I asked Seth as soon as he was finally able to get Baker on the phone. Something was going on, and I didn’t have a good feeling about it. “Ari said he was going home to work on his latest assignment.”
“They’re at your apartment, Eli. I have no idea why but…”
“No!” I roared in horror. “Tell Baker to get Ari out of there!” This couldn’t be happening—not after all the progress I’d made with wooing Ari!
“What? Why?” Seth asked in confusion, staring at me like I’d lost my mind.
“Just tell Baker that they aren’t to go into my building—under no circumstances whatsoever!” I grabbed my shit and ran toward the elevator. When it didn’t arrive fast enough to suit me, I sprinted for the door leading to the stairs. I felt Seth breathing down my neck, matching me step for step.
