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“No, I bought an entire apartment building because you had a leaky faucet.”
“And the Porsche?”
“You needed a car.” He knocked on the door. While they waited for it to be answered, Eden tried to detangle her brain. It probably meant nothing. Billionaires bought things all the time on just a whim. Except it hadn’t been just a whim. It had been because of her leaky faucet and broken Volvo. And there was only one reason he would concern himself with her broken things.
A smile blossomed on her face to match the smile blossoming in her heart. “You like me, Nash Beaumont. And you liked me long before last night.”
He turned and studied her for a long moment. “It would appear that way.”
Her smile got even bigger. “Good. Because I like you too.”
Before she could gauge his reaction to that information, the door opened. A man who looked about the same age as Eden’s grandfather stood there in zippered coveralls and house slippers, holding a little dog that yapped at Nash and Eden in an earsplitting bark.
“Hush now, Scamper,” the man said, “or I’ll close you in the bedroom.” The dog must’ve understood because he shut up.
“You must be Rudy Garcia.” Nash held out his hand. “I’m Nash Beaumont, your new landlord.”
Rudy refused the handshake, and his eyes narrowed. “Are you the one who got me the new toilet and fixed my window?”
“Yes, sir,” Nash said. Eden was surprised. She had thought that she was the only one Nash had helped. Her heart swelled, and she smiled at him as he continued. “And if there are other things that need fixing, I hope you’ll let Hank know. He should be stopping by every couple weeks to check.”
Rudy scowled. “So I guess this means that you’re raising the rent.”
“No, sir. The rent will stay the same.”
After only a second’s pause, Rudy held out his hand. “In that case, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” After shaking Nash’s hand, he glanced at Eden. “Aren’t you the girl who lives with that full-figured girl in 3C?”
“Yes, sir. I’m Eden Huckabee,” Eden said. “Have you seen Madison today? She wasn’t there when I got home this morning, and I’m starting to get worried.”
Rudy nodded. “I saw her leaving with some guy when I took Scamper out for his morning constitution.”
“Was he driving a black SUV?”
“That would be the one.”
Before Eden could panic and race back to her apartment to call 911, Nash took her hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. “Would you say she was being abducted, Mr. Garcia?”
“No. It looked to me like she got in the car of her own free will.”
“Thank you for your time.” Nash headed for the stairs, pulling Eden behind him.
“So what are we going to do now?” Eden asked on the way back to her apartment.
“We’re going to call the police.”
“But like you said before, what good will it do?”
“We won’t have them looking for a missing person. We’ll have them looking for a prostitution ring.”
“But I don’t even have Zac’s last name or his address… or even the name of the escort service.”
Nash waited until they were inside her apartment before he spoke. “But I do. I have the name and the phone number.”
Eden’s eyes widened. “You can’t give them that information, Nash. They’ll want to know how you got it, and if word gets out about you hiring escorts, your name will be plastered all over the newspapers.”
Nash pulled out his phone. “I think Madison’s life is worth more than a little bad press.” But before he could make the call, Eden looped her arms around his neck and kissed him.
“Thank you,” she said.
