Page 26 of Beastly Mr. Buchanan
“I asked if you had somewhere else you could stay?”he repeats.
“Oh, um…”
My brain blanks.I don’t understand why he’s asking me this.Aren’t I coming back here?I don’t want to, but this is my current address.Why wouldn’t I come back?
Before I can force my mouth to respond, guilt and shame curdle my insides as the neighbors’ whispers carry in from the hallway.
Even though I did nothing wrong, they’ll condemn me first.I’m the newcomer.They’ve known Brad for years and he presents as an amazing guy, so of course the rumor mill will turn against me.
If I call Matthew now, then involving Declan was pointless.My best friend and his fiancé will still feel guilty.If I can just find a cheap place to stay for a few days until I pay for a new apartment, they’ll never have to know, except I already put down a large deposit for a full year on this lease.That, along with my half sister’s medical bills, and I don’t have the liquidity to find a new place that isn’t in the slums.I could camp out in my office, but the building swapped their security company and I don’t trust the new guards yet.
I rub my forehead and swallow the emotions lodged in my throat.
Declan joins us and saves me.
“Yes, she has somewhere she can stay tonight,” he says.
I swallow and crane my neck to meet his eyes.
He’s offering to let me stay at his place.
It should be an emphaticnofrom me, but I nod and sag against him.He cups my shoulder and holds me to his side.
Realizing we’ll need to go to the police station and file a report, I fight back tears.It’s barely early afternoon, but after having strangers—aka Declan’s tailor and his aids—gawk at me all morning, only to then find Brad hiding in my closet, I’m not sure I can handle much more.
The policeman assures us we can take Declan’s car to the station, but when I grab my suitcase to pack some clothes, he taps his foot impatiently by the front door.
Declan slides a hand across the small of my back and blocks my view of the cop with his body.
“I’ll send movers over tomorrow to pack all your things, so just grab a few essentials.I’ll take care of the rest.Okay?”
I nod again and abandon the suitcase, electing to take just my laptop, briefcase, and work bag.This means the only clothing I’m taking is an emergency set of panties hidden away at the bottom of my work bag, but at least I’ll have my prescriptions, so nothing else really matters.
An odd numbness falls over me.After discussing our story on the way to the station, I give my official statement then sit in silence as Declan waits for them to take his.
He spends longer in the interrogation room than me but emerges without an ounce of tension in his body.After thanking the officers, he ushers me into the car.
I mentally check out until he parks the car and opens my door.
When he offers me his hand, I accept.All my senses wake in a sensual rush.The cool air wafts over my skin as he leads me through the brightest parking garage and into the nicest elevator I’ve ever stepped foot in, and I wine and dine with New York City’s finest.
He presses a button for a floor near the top of the building.
“What, no penthouse?”I joke.
He slips his hands into his trouser pockets and leans back on the wall with a smirk.My stomach somersaults.
The doors open.I step out expecting posh hallways to a handful of high-end apartments and instead stand in a lavish seating area.
“The elevator only stops on this floor with a code.This is the foyer.Grandmother’s suite is the right half.Mine is the left,” he gloats.
For a moment, I hate him for his success.A matchmaker could never find this level of wealth.
I shrug away the negativity.Even in middle school, I knew he would make it big.He always saw the world differently than I did, and the few times he opened up, he was always down to earth and ready to put in the effort.
Ready to build everything except a relationship with me.
A familiar sense of melancholy sweeps over me, and I don’t need to look up to know a storm cloud gathers over my head.
