Aubree stayed in her seat alongside Jessa. Solana kissed me once more, then followed Juelz out through the entrance doors.
Vinny tugged my sleeve.
"Duke. The doctor is waving us over."
I looked up. He was standing at the doorway, waiting.
"Let's go," I said, and we walked toward him together.
Juelz pulledup in front of Sugar Kissed and I wanted to drop to my knees and kiss the ground. This man drove like the rules of the road were a personal suggestion. The moment he stopped and kicked down his stand, I was off the back of that bike like the seat had caught fire.
“How has nobody taken your license yet?” I asked, pulling my helmet off.
I was bent forward with my hands on my knees trying to remember how breathing worked.
Juelz waved me off and kissed his teeth.
“You’re being dramatic. That’s the actress coming out.”
I laughed in spite of myself and straightened up.
“Anyway. I’m going to run inside, grab a few things, and I’ll be right back. Actually, you know what, I’ll drive us back.”
“It wasn’t that bad. And I’m waiting right here. You got ten minutes. If you’re not back down, I’m coming up, so leave the door unlocked.”
“He got to you, huh?” I asked.
“He doesn’t play about you. And we all know about the stalker situation. So yeah, I’ll be right here.”
I smiled, then turned to unlock the shop door and let myself in.
I moved through the kitchen and toward the back staircase. Then stopped.
The faucet was running upstairs.
My mind told me to turn around immediately. But my feet kept moving. One step at a time, slow and deliberate, while I ran through every possible explanation in my head. Maybe I’d left it on. Maybe I was just hearing things. I had to be.
Except Henderson knew where I was.
But it couldn’t be him. It couldn’t.
I reached the top and slid my key into the lock. It turned. If someone had broken in, they wouldn’t have locked the door behind them. At least I didn’t think they would.
I twisted the knob and stepped inside.
I went completely still.
The apartment looked exactly like my house in California had, except these pictures were recent. Current. Me in Rose Haven. Me at the bakery. Me with Duke. Every wall was covered and my belongings had been thrown across the room like someone had moved through it in a rage.
And there was a man standing at my kitchen sink, washing his hands like he had all the time in the world.
Every nerve in my body screamed at me to run back down those steps and get Juelz. But another part of me, the part that was bone tired of running, planted my feet.
Juelz said ten minutes. All I had to do was keep this man talking. I couldn’t let him walk away this time and spend the rest of my life waiting for him to appear again. I needed this to end tonight.
“What the hell are you doing in my house?”
I said it loud enough to startle him, or at least I tried to.