Page 90 of Protecting Bree
Smiley just hoped they’d be able to find an unlocked door. If they were in the hallway when Castillo’s men searched the floors, they’d be sitting ducks. And Smiley would do whatever it took to make sure Bree got away, even if that meant taking a bullet.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Bree’s heart was beating way too fast. She’d been scared more than once in the last few days, but nothing like this. They were trapped. Smiley was being optimistic, but she could see the worry in his eyes. Thirty minutes for his team to arrive seemed like a lifetime. She wasn’t sure how they were supposed to hide from the men coming up the stairs for that long.
But she didn’t voice any of her concerns out loud. It was taking all her control to stay on her feet and keep up with Smiley. As they walked down the dark and dingy hallway that smelled a little funky, he tried each door they passed. They were all locked.
Then, finally, they came to one that opened when Smiley turned the knob.
Looking back at the door to the stairwell, Bree was relieved it stayed shut. She couldn’t help but picture a bunch of men running up the stairs, weapons at the ready, willing to do whatever it took to get their hands on her.
And getting their hands on her meant Smiley would die. She knew better than her own name that the only way he’d ever let anyone take her again was over his dead body. And she couldn’t live with his death on her hands.
Thankfully, the apartment they’d entered was empty. The last thing Bree wanted was to bring someone else into the shitshow that was her life at the moment. The place was surprisingly clean and tidy. The occupants were obviously poor, but they took pride in the few belongings they had.
The apartment was literally one room with a curtain in the corner, which Bree assumed was where the occupants used the bathroom. There was a mattress on the floor against one wall, two chairs and a rickety table, a love seat of sorts that had definitely seen better days. The stuffing was coming out of the cushions and she could see a few springs through a hole in the backrest. But there was what looked like a homemade crocheted blanket folded neatly over the back.
The kitchen area was tiny, consisting of a small sink with rusted knobs. A bucket sat under it to catch the water. Bree had no idea if there was running water, but she guessed not, since there were large buckets of water sitting alongside the sink. There weren’t any cabinets, instead just some boxes of rice and other food items stacked in a few crates to the left of the sink. Dishes were in a box next to the makeshift pantry, and a hot plate was plugged into the wall on a large piece of wood fashioned into a kind of countertop.
It would’ve been a sad little living area if it wasn’t for the personal touches the owners had added to make it ahome. There were drawings done by children on the walls. A few books neatly lined up on another makeshift piece of furniture, a bookshelf. A few photographs were tacked around the space as well, showing a man and a woman, each holding a small child. The thought that four people lived in this tiny room, in this piece-of-crap building, made Bree sad…but at least they weren’t on the roof, having to live in the elements and heat.
Smiley didn’t let go of her hand as he tugged her toward a window in the kitchen, behind the sink. He looked out, scowled, then turned without a word to the only other window in the small space. It was on the same wall as the other window, but closer to the bed.
He made a pleased noise in his throat then turned to look at Bree. “If we need to, we can go out this way.”
Bree’s eyes widened. “What? Out the window? Smiley, we’re nine stories up.”
“And there’s a gutter right outside this window. Piece of cake,” he said, echoing her earlier sentiment.
He was crazy. That was the only explanation for his nonchalant announcement.
Stepping into her space, Smiley took her face in his hands. “Do you trust me?”
That was a no-brainer. “Yes.”
His head tilted as he continued to hold her. “You didn’t even hesitate,” he said softly.
Bree’s hands came up and she grabbed his wrists. “Smiley, you’re a lot of things. Introverted, not a people person for sure, kind of a jerk when it comes to being around others, in fact. But the one thing youaren’t, is reckless. If you say we can get out of this building by going out the window, I trust you one thousand percent.”
He stared at her for so long, Bree began to worry.
Just when she opened her mouth to apologize for her flippant response, to insist that ofcourseshe trusted him, he spoke.
“I didn’t understand what love was. When my teammates fell one by one, I didn’t get it. I was happy for them, of course, but was still cynical about their relationships. And then you appeared…and disappeared. I was consumed with finding you, but I kept telling myself it was only because I wanted to make sure you were safe. But it was way more than that. That short encounter in Vegas made me want whattheyhad. And now, here we are.”
Bree wasn’t sure where he was going with this. “Here we are,” she echoed.
“Trust is hard for me. I was let down by the people I should have relied on most in my life, my parents. My dad because he was an abusive asshole, and my mom because she didn’t get the fuck out of that relationship. She stayed, even knowing how horrible my father was. I slowly learned to trust Kevlar, Safe, Blink, Preacher, MacGyver, and Flash…but that was it, and it wasn’t easy. And then you exploded into my life. I’ve never been happier for someone to know me,trulyknow me, than I am right this second. No matter what happens, I know you’ve got my back, just as I have yours.”
He was making Bree’s heart hurt. “I love you,” she whispered. “And I don’t think I even knew what those words meant until right this second.”
“Same,” Smiley said with a nod. Then he leaned forward and kissed her gently. “When we get home, you’re definitely going to move to Riverton, right? Stay with me?”
“Yes. If you want me to.”
“I want you to.”
They were just four words, but the emotion behind them was loud and clear. Bree loved how confident he was. And he hadn’t saidifwe get home, but when. They were in the middle of a very precarious situation. They could be discovered any second. They were definitely in big trouble, and yet he had no problem standing there having an emotional conversation as if they had all the time in the world.
