Page 74 of Never Forget

“Sorry,” I tell them. “It’s been a really long day.”

They giggle again.

“He’s mad,” one of them says, but the way she says it makes it obvious he didn’t intimidate her. She thinks he’s hilarious.

“Yeah. I was a bad boy and kind of gave him the slip. It’s okay though, I’m going to take him home and make sure he gets a good meal and a nap. He gets hangry,” I whisper loudly. They giggle again, and I let them all give me awkward hugs before I wave and jog after my angry bodyguard.

He doesn’t slow down until we’ve put half a block between ourselves and the plaza. He doesn’t speak as he holds up his hand and hails a nearby car. When we climb inside, he gives the driver the address and continues not to speak to me. Halfway through the drive, I can’t stand it anymore.

“You’re mad.”

Scott lets out a short, incredulous laugh. “You think?”

“I’m sorry…”

“I don’t want to hear it.”

“But–”

“Do you know what ran through my mind when I came out of that building and you were gone?”

I turn to him.

“I really am sorry, I thought I saw–”

“I told you not to move, under any circumstances.”

“I know. And I didn’t set out to disobey you,” I say, my tone getting snarky. “But I had a good reason.”

“I really don’t care what your reasoning was, Naz. For a moment there…” His voice catches almost imperceptibly. “I thought something bad had happened to you. That I’d put you in danger by letting you come with me. I imagined the worst.”

The words settle between us.

He’s angry, but it’s more than that. He was truly afraid.

I look down at my hands. “I’m sorry,” I say again, because there’s nothing left for me to say.

He doesn’t answer.

After another long few minutes of tense silence, I quietly ask, “Are you going to tell me what’s going on?”

His eyes flick up, and I follow his gaze to the rearview mirror. The driver’s eyes fall back to the road.

Scott gives the smallest shake of his head. “Later. I need to cool down first anyway.”

I sigh and lean back against the seat. “Alright.”

The rest of the drive passes in silence. By the time we pull up in front of Will and Ari’s condo building, the sky has darkened to a deep, stormy blue, and the moon is blocked by more rain clouds. It’s all very ominous.

The doorman greets us the moment we step inside. “Good evening, gentlemen.” He smiles warmly until his eyes land on Scott. The smile falters. “Is everything alright?”

Ignoring the pleasantries, Scott heads straight for the elevators. They open immediately, and I hurry to get inside with him. I pull an exaggerated wince that earns me an amused chuckle from the older man just as the elevator door slides closed.

Next to me, Scott is anything but amused. He doesn’t even look at me, just stands there, radiating tension.

The elevator ride is mercifully short. When the doors open, we’re greeted by enough shouting and laughter that it sounds more like a college dorm than a luxury condo. It seems AJ, Dez, and Monty all had entirely too much fun pretending to be rockstars for the day.

“Yo, even the doorman bought it,” AJ insists excitedly. Behind him, Alonso rolls his eyes good-naturedly.