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Shipley made sure another doorman was manning the front desk and ushered us back to the security room. After a few moments, he pulled up some footage of the lobby. Thankfully, the building hadn’t been cheap on the security cameras, so the resolution was good.
The video clip showed a tall, lanky man holding an Amazon package coming into the building. He had his head down, but another camera angle caught his face. He didn’t look familiar, but we had the ability to see who he was.
“Send us a screen capture of that,” I said. Shipley nodded and quickly did so, sending it to our secure email address. “Keep going.”
The man tried to walk right by the front desk without checking in, and Shipley stopped him. They exchanged a few words, the man with the package getting agitated.
“Basically, he was saying he had permission to deliver this package straight to Miss Bailey,” Shipley said. “I told him that couldn’t have been the case, and he got upset. I threatened to call the police, and he left.”
Cody’s frown deepened, and he ran his fingers through his hair. “Thanks for stopping him. Does she know this happened?”
“No. I didn’t want to alarm her when all of you weren’t here,” Shipley said.
“Okay. We’ll go check on her now,” I said. “Thanks again.”
A sour taste filled the back of my mouth as we went upstairs. I was glad that Shipley had stopped this guy, but someone coming into where Taylor lived was the last thing we wanted. Not only had someone figured out where she lived, but they knew her apartment number and were very hellbent on getting up to see her. To do what? Kidnap her? If the guy had to figure out a way to get inside using a disguise, he’d have to find a way to get out with her undetected, a huge hurdle.
So, was this guy just coming upstairs to hurt her?
We reached her door and texted her to let her know it was us. She came to the door moments later, wearing leggings and a cropped t-shirt. Her face lit up when she saw us, but her smile faded when she saw our somber expressions.
“Everything all right?” she asked.
“No. We need to talk to you about something.” I came inside. I wanted to pull her into my arms and not let go, but instead, I walked past her to where she liked to work when she wasn’t in her office. “Someone tried to get up to your place. Shipley stopped him. But we’d still like you to take a look at these photos to tell us if you know this man, okay?”
Her skin paled. “Okay.”
We sat down around the table, and I opened the photo that Shipley had sent of the intruder. I slid my phone to her.
“Do you recognize him?” I asked.
She studied the photo and frowned. “I don’t know his name, but he looks kind of familiar? Like I’ve seen him a few times but haven’t directly interacted with him.”
I exchanged glances with Cody and Ethan. Her noticing him around wasn’t good. New York City was filled with millions of people, so it was hard to keep track of every single person who was in contact with her. I kicked myself for not noticing him first, but then again, being a regular somewhere didn’t mean he had ill intent. But trying to get up to her apartment with some bullshit story was.
“Okay, thanks,” I said, taking my phone back. “If someone knows where you live and might have ill intentions toward you, we should probably be around more.”
“I trust Shipley to do his job, but we can’t take any risks. I think we should actually be here twenty-four seven,” Cody said. “Your bedroom is in the back, and all the guest rooms are between the front door and your room. Someone would have to come through us to get to you. And there wouldn’t be a time where you’d be vulnerable, even with all the locks.”
Taylor swallowed, her eyes wide. “You’re sure?”
“I agree with Cody. And I’m sure Harrison does, too,” Ethan said, his tone even more serious than usual. “We could brush it off as some random guy, but brushing off potential threats could lead to huge mistakes.”
I did agree. But I also knew that living with Taylor—when I knew how she felt when she came around my fingers and how she tasted—was going to be hell.
Then again, the idea of losing her was more difficult than keeping it in my pants.
“We’d only move in with your permission, of course,” I said, trying to keep my voice gentle to ease her nerves.
“I want all of you here,” she blurted. “As soon as possible. Please.”
“All right, then,” I said, looking at my partners. “We’ll go pack our things in shifts, so you’re never alone, and come back here.”
“Thank you.” Her shoulders relaxed, even as her eyes grew damp.
Moving in with her would not be easy, but it was going to make it easier to keep her safe. I had to keep that at the forefront of my thoughts.
CHAPTER10
