Page 106 of Sweet Heart

Tears spring into my eyes, and I bury my face in the crook of her neck.

“Oh… okay…” Cat whispers, but tightens her hold around me. “What is happening, amor?”

“N… nothing,” I gasp.

Because how can I explain the vastness that just opened up in my chest at how normal it is for my partner to know that I am going out for coffee with her mother?

“I just love you,” I whisper, and she squeezes even tighter.

“And I love you.”

Chapter 38

Mary

A weird sensation washes over me when I unlock the door to my apartment. For the first time since I’ve lived here, it doesn’t feel like coming home. Instead, it feels like visiting a place where a good friend once lived. A little old, a little dusty, scattered with beautiful memories that became the bones of a new life, but no longer containing my essence. It flares through my chest like a dull ache and makes me pause.

“Hey, Marilouise,” Phill suddenly drawls from behind me, his voice dripping with sweetness.

I jump a little at the sound and turn to face him, not sure if I am more creeped out by how quietly he snuck up on me or by how he addressed me.

To this day, I still don’t know how he found out about my birth name. Everyone in this building simply knows me as Mary. No last name, no background, like a freaking rock star. Except for him.

“It’s Mary.”

“Hm, we both know better.” His lip curls up in something predatory as he draws his gaze over me. “You look even more gorgeous than usual, Marilouise. Are you going out again?”

My heart hammers against my ribs for all the wrong reasons, but I jut my chin out regardless. His smirk widens as his eyes drop to my shaking hands, and he takes another step toward me.

“I’ve missed you, you know. Where have you been off to, princess?”

“I’m not your princess, Phill,” I snarl at him. “And where I’m off to is none of your business.”

My jaw clenches, and I curl my hands into fists. For a moment, I don’t know what to do. I want to rush inside, but that means I’ll have to turn my back to him, and I don’t trust him. If I push past him, he’ll get a chance to grab me, too. But I can’t show him that, right now, I’m rooted in fear. He’ll be on it like a shark smelling a drop of blood.

Phill glances past me toward the keys in my door as he slowly draws closer. I instinctively step back, pressing my back against it. He immediately plants his hand firmly next to my shoulder and leans in so close that I can smell the alcohol and inflamed gums on his breath. I almost gag, but refuse to give him that satisfaction. I glance around the hallway. There is no way out. I am all alone.

My brain races through the few options I have, given the way he has me cornered. Cat would never let this happen to her. She would… she would… My head snaps up, and I bore my gaze into his.

“Move,” I say, my voice cold as ice even though everything inside me is twitching.

“Don’t be coy with me, Marilouise,” he says in a soft, low voice as he tries to pin me with his gaze.

“I said move.”

“Make me.”

I flinch as he steps closer, and the flow of air feels constricted. He smirks, and something in me just snaps. I shove him back as hard as I can and cry out.

“Mrs. Alfonso?”

My suddenly loud voice booms through the hallway. Phill flinches and quickly glances over his shoulder, his face faltering slightly.

“Come on now, Mary. There is no need for that.”

“Mrs. Alfonso, are you home?” I holler, even louder now.

There is the click of a lock, and the door next to my apartment opens up. Phill reacts as if he has been burned, and he jumps back another two steps, his hands up in a defeated gesture.