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“He could have been calling your father a bitch too?” Neo adds.
“You’re right.” I cross my arms as if deliberating.
“Should we dial the boss and let him know what Paul here thinks of him?”
“I don’t know, Neo… Pops hates being interrupted when he’s busy.”
“Yeah, we probably shouldn’t bother him with this, not when we can deal with it ourselves.” Neo smirks at me before turning to face Paul. “So, I’m going out on a limb here… but I’m guessing you don’t have our money.”
“I’ve got it—well, I’ll have it. I-I swear I’ll get it. I just need more time.”
“That, my friend, is a luxury we just don’t have.” I’m not wasting my breath on this idiot anymore. I point my gun at his head and pull the trigger. “Get a clean-up crew here. I’ve got shit to do.”
“No problem. You headed to Helena’s for dinner?”
“Nah, I’ve already eaten.” I’m not hanging around and giving Neo the chance to ask me the fifty thousand questions he has swirling around in that brain of his. I exit the building and make my way down the street.
As I stroll along the darkened sidewalk, avoiding the glow of the streetlights, Holly’s words from earlier seep into my thoughts:Have you ever felt like you were hidden in the shadows, and you just couldn’t find your way out?
ChapterEight
After a grueling sixty-minute phone call to Reilly, I was left tossing and turning all night. Going over everything that was said in the conversation I had with him. I’ve never met a man I could talk to so easily, so openly. Like I’d known him for years, not mere hours.
Theo had this way of making me feel calm—safe even—which is something I’m not overly accustomed to lately. That was part of the reason for my move here: everywhere I went in Sydney I was looking over my shoulder, waiting for that crazed madman to make another entrance. It’s an irrational fear. I know the guy who shot Bray is no longer able to hurt anyone. But the fear is there nonetheless.
Last night, the initial shock of Theo inviting himself in and closing the door drew that same fear to the surface, to the point that I was considering making a run for the window. Once Theo spoke though, his body language and actions reassured me that I was safe with him.
I could very well be delusional, led into a false sense of security before he shows his true colors. Perhaps that’s still to come. But if I were to judge Theo solely on how he was last night, I would say he’s the perfect gentleman, albeit a little forward.
Okay, a lot forward.I recall him telling me I was his prey and that he intended on making me his. I wonder what that entails exactly, and if beinghisis something I should be wanting at all.
Although I felt safe with him, there was a darkness in his eyes that I couldn’t quite put my finger on. I was drawn to it, drawn to him, but that’s ridiculous. I must still be suffering from jet lag or something, because I’ve never in my life felt a connection like I had with Theo. It’s different from what Reilly and I share, of course.
The kind of connection I felt with Theo last night is the one I’ve been searching for my whole adult life, yet the exact one I’m terrified of acknowledging. I wonder if this is how Reilly felt when she first met Bray. She did not give into her feelings for him easily. I knew she was fighting it, but in the end, they both got their happily ever after.
Is Theo mine? My forever?
Probably not, but that doesn’t mean he can’t be my happily right now. As it stands, I know absolutely no one in New York, so to think at the very least I’ve made one friend is comforting. Maybe this really will be a great year. Maybe I can find the new me here. It may not be with Theo, but damn, I could imagine finding out a lot of new things about myself with that man.
Flipping the blankets off, I decide to jump straight in the shower and make an early start on the furniture shopping adventures ahead of me. I’d love to be able to come home to a couch—a dining table to eat at wouldn’t go astray either.
By the time I get to the sidewalk, the sun is up and people are out on the street mingling around and going about their day. I breathe in the cool air and tighten my jacket around my body. As I walk down the street, I tell myself that I’m going to Helena’s for the amazing coffee I’m in desperate need of. I’m most certainly not going there on the off chance I’ll run into anyone in particular. It occurred to me at some point between showering and getting dressed that I have no way to contact him. Even if I wanted to see him again, I wouldn’t be able to make those plans.
I guess the ball’s in his court; he was insistent that we’d be having dinner again tonight. I’m not opposed to the idea, but I’m also trying to be a realist. I don’t want to get all caught up on this guy, only to have him not show.
Like I did to him last night… Shit, now I feel guilty.
I push through the doors of the café and look around. The place is mostly empty, compared to how filled it was during my first visit.
“Holly, good morning. What can I get for you?” The same lady who was working two nights ago greets me.
“You must be good with names, to remember mine. I’m sorry I didn’t catch yours?”
“I’m Helena.” I’m about to hold my hand out to shake hers when her arms wrap around me in a tight hug. Okay, I guess we’re hugging… I return her embrace, though awkwardly. “I’m so excited. I’m glad you came back. Here, come sit. What can I get you?” She ushers me over to the counter before gesturing to a booth.
“Um, can I just get the largest cup of chai latte you can manage, please?” I ask.
“Sure, won’t be long.”
