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“Not really. Brad had already left. He was living his best life, getting over me and moving on. I was the one stuck in the past, trying to hold on to him and the life we could have had. No, I was reckless. Lock was right to want to keep me away from his brother. Sometimes I think back to the shit I used to do and shake my head. I was so fucking stupid back then.”
“I don’t see it like that,” I noted softly. “From the stories you told us, if you would’ve hesitated for a fraction of a second, Noelle might not be here with us. If you hesitated and thought further before calling the FBI, again, Noelle wouldn’t be here. I think you could have told your brother to go fuck himself instead of meeting him, though.” I gave her a pointed look. She smiled. “But again, in order to help your friend, you didn’t hesitate. I think in those instances you needed to go in feet first, without thinking about consequences. It’s what Lock and his team do all the time. Yeah, there are times when they stop and think. But I bet you there are times when they don’t have that luxury. I think about Brady. Remember, he went upstairs, by himself, to my hotel room. He had no clue how many were up there or what he was walking into. He didn’t think twice or hesitate.”
“Yeah, but that could have been catastrophic for him too,” Noelle spoke up.
“You’re right, it could have been,” I agreed. “And I’m sure he thought of the scenarios too. But… all that did was make him hyper-aware of the job he had to do. He checked the stairs, made sure they were clear. He had his gun out checking his back and his front, clearing the floors as he moved. He listened for any sounds of someone creeping up on him. And I know for a fact he wouldn’t have entered that room without backup if he sensed danger.”
“How do you know this?” Noelle asked.
I laughed and took a sip of my half melted daiquiri. “Because I asked him. Girl, I felt the same way you did and called him on it. He explained that he had been trained by the best sergeant and detective he has ever worked with and for, his words of course.”
“Oh of course,” they both said in unison before rolling their eyes.
“Point being, he was trained and prepared. He knew what to do and how to handle this situation on his own.”
“Apparently, so were you.” Ayana voiced. “Whether it was by circumstance or by the army. You knew there was trouble, and you saved all of our lives.”
We clinked our glasses together, smiled and took sips of our drinks.
Minutes of comfortable silence passed between us as Bobby Brown crooned his heart out to us through the speaker in front of us. I closed my eyes and rocked back and forth humming to myself.
Ayana was the first to break the peace. “Have you heard from Reed or Garrett?”
I opened my eyes and looked up at the night sky. “Nope. I texted them both letting them know I was well. No response.”
“Damn, that’s fucked up.” Ayana pointed out, but Noelle said something that had me sitting up in my chair.
“I’m not surprised.”
“Why?” I asked frowning.
“What do you mean, why?” She countered. “Don’t you know?” she asked me, and I naturally gave her a shake of the head.
But it was Ayana that answered. “Oh, I know. You chose Lock over them.”
I scoffed and waved them off. “No, that can’t be the reason. That’s absurd.”
“Yeah, but it’s true,” she countered. “You have to realize men are worse than females. They gossip more than we do, they get attitudes worse than we do, and they take rejection worse than we do. Like it or not sweetheart, you rejected them big time, in front of people too. Now Garrett, I think he’s a bigger person than Reed, but he’s loyal. Reed… No, that motherfucker is a bitch. He’s taking this personal. If he drove past Lock’s house and let’s say it was on fire and you were in there begging for his help, he might not help you.”
My eyes widened with that bit of information. “Seriously?”
Ayana nodded. “As a heart attack. I know it sounds crazy, messed up even, however, the big baby is all in his feelings. You picked Lock over him. Crawled in that man’s lap, but when Reed tried to touch you, you recoiled. Plus. I’m a hundred percent certain Reed has feelings for you, but you ignored him and went with the guy he hates.”
I raised a finger and pointed at her shaking my head. “No, no. Reed doesn’t have feelings for me.”
“Yes, he does.” Both Ayana and Noelle agreed at the same time.
In complete denial and not ready to admit what I knew in my heart was true, I argued, “No, he doesn’t, but never mind that. What is this business about me recoiling from Reed and picking Lock over him? You can’t be talking about me going with him to the “safe house” because that decision was already made for me.”
“Okay,” Ayana began, turning more in her chair to face me. “Do you remember anything once we made it back to the bar from your floor?”
“I don’t remember past getting back into the elevator. It plays like a dream, bits and pieces, and I don’t know what’s real or what’s not.” I confessed.
Ayana stood up, turned her chair around so she could face me and Noelle, her back to the yard.
“Okay, so we got back downstairs and you collapsed into yourself. Let me tell you, first, it was the scariest shit I had ever seen.”
I let out a long sigh, feeling guilty for scaring them. “I’m sorry I put you two through that.”
