thought? That she’d been on the hideous balcony to entertain the scum who lived in the area? Remembering huddling on the cold balcony throughout the night, afraid to go back in the motel room, she started to shake.
She heard a slight buzz and Jake reached for his cell phone.
“This is a text from Brady. He’ll have your car here in twenty minutes. He’ll pick up my bike while he’s here. I left the garage door opener on the kitchen counter.”
He opened the door and headed down the sidewalk.
Lexie stood rooted to the floor, her heart beating so hard she was sure he could hear it. She called after him, “Uh, thanks, Jake.”
He called back over his shoulder, “Don’t mention it. Have a good day, Lexie.”
~~~
Lexie closed the door and slid to the floor. Her legs wouldn’t hold her. She crouched in a ball, struggling to make sense of the emotions crashing over her. She was exhausted and hurt. Too tired to be angry herself, she despaired at Jake’s anger. She longed to hear his voice like it had been. Soft, sexy, funny. Not this stern humorless man who looked at her as though she disgusted him, as though he had given up on her.
She didn’t know how long she sat on the cold floor when she realized the clanging noise was the doorbell, not a distant echo in a dream.
With an effort, she dragged herself to her feet and opened the door. A too late warning flashed through her muddled brain. Never open the door unless you know who is there. To her relief, she saw the man Jake tossed her keys to. Over his shoulder she saw the welcome sight of her Camaro. The guy didn’t look nearly as scruffy as he had at the motel. His clothes were ragged, but he’d washed the grime off his face. His beard shadow and long dirt-blond hair tied back in a ponytail added to his bad boy vibe. It was impossible to miss his dancing green eyes or that damnable rock hard army body. Leslie grimaced. Did they all have to look like they stepped out of the latest Avengers cartoon?
“Uh, come in. I…I was…” She stopped. How could she tell the man with concern etched on his face that she wasn’t sure what she had been doing.
“Hey, there. I’m Brady, the guy who brought your hot car back to you. And I’m still wondering why I didn’t steal it when I had the chance. While I’m here, I’m gonna pick up Jake’s bike for him. Hell, from one rockin’ ride to another. I must have done something right in my life. ”
She tried to smile, but it must not have worked. He frowned and said. “Hey, are you okay?”
She hesitated, then blurted, “No… no…I don’t think I am.”
He looked startled, then nodded.
“Can’t blame you for that, Alexis. Hey, do you mind if I come in? I’ll be honest. You don’t look good. Jake would have my ass if I left you lookin’ like a little puppy dog that lost her best friend.”
He must have seen the pain she felt on her face, because he shook his head and ran his fingers through his scraggly blond hair.
“Damn, I’m sorry. I’m makin things worse, aren’t I? Okay, let me try this again. Mind if I come in and hit you up for a soda or, if there is a god, maybe you have a beer?”
Lexie stepped back and motioned him in.
“I’m not sure what I have. I haven’t had time to…to know what is here or not.”
Brady walked in. He took hold of her arm and led her over to the kitchen table.
“Tell you what, you park that snazzy butt of yours in this chair and let me see what you’ve got in the refrigerator. Knowing Jake, there won’t be a thing you’ve been craving in the last year that won’t be around here somewhere.”
“He’s that competent?”
“Yeah. Without a doubt, the best friend or commander a guy could have. Or, in your case, a beautiful young woman could want.”
Lexie sunk in the chair, grateful that this impertinent, brash man was here. She didn’t want him to leave. Within minutes, he plopped a bowl of tortilla chips, some guacamole and salsa in front of her, along with two beers. Almost as an afterthought, he pulled a fruit tray out of the refrigerator and put it in front of her. Pointing to the chips, he said, “That’s for me. Guy food. But you look like you haven’t eaten in a while. Maybe you should start with this.”
Lexie smiled. “Thanks, Brady. Actually the thing that looks the best is the beer.”
He grinned at her, snapped off the top and saluted her with his bottle.
“Hey, a girl after my own heart.”
They sat quietly for several minutes. Lexie let the cold beer run down her throat. She wasn’t much of a drinker. She’d seen what it did to people, how it changed them. But as she quietly sipped the cold tangy brew, she looked forward to the numbing effect she hoped would come.
Brady stared at her, his concern apparent.
‘You look pale. Sure you’re okay?”
She struggled to smile. “I…I’m just tired. Last night was a rough night.”
He tipped his bottle to her in agreement. “Yeah. It was.”
She looked up at him. “You were there? Did you see him?”
“No, he was there before I got there, while you and Jake were out to dinner. A couple of kids told me that they saw a man come out of one on the rooms on the third floor. Unfortunately, you were the only guest on that floor.”
Lexie trembled. “He… he went through my things. He did something with the papers, the reports, the chief gave me. They weren’t the way I left them on the desk.”
Brady looked thoughtful. ““Did you tell Jake that?”
She shook her head. “No. He wouldn’t… he was too angry with me to talk.”
Brady eyed her. “Hmm. Yeah, I noticed that.”
She peered up at him, afraid to ask, but she had to know. “You…you saw me up there… on the balcony? Doing my …my practice?”
“Yeah, I sure did.” He gave a low whistle. “That was quite a show, honey.”
She felt the heat flood her face. “You… you don’t understand. I couldn’t do it in the room, I couldn’t …go back in that room…”
Brady interrupted. “Hey, kiddo. I’m not being critical. Hell, that’s the last thing I’d be. I’m just damn sorry what you’ve been going through. Christ, I know how hard it’s been.”
Her voice sounded distant, even to her.
“It was cold, so cold.”
He gave an aggrieved sigh. “You slept out there, didn’t you?”
She nodded.
“Yeah, I thought so. Well, if it makes you feel any better, I was there the whole time. From the time you got back with Jake until you went shopping this morning.”
They sat quietly for several minutes. Brady picked at the label on his bottle then asked, “I’m curious. You didn’t happen to tell Jake about all this, did you? That you slept out there, that you knew the guy had been in your room?”
“He… he seemed to know.”
Brady slammed his empty bottle on the table. “Oh man, that explains it. That’s why he’s got that stick up his ass. Hell, in all the years I’ve known him, I don’t think I’ve ever seen Jake so upset.” He looked at her appreciatively. “Whew. Never thought I’d see it. But, honey, you’ve got under the big guy’s skin in a big, big way.”
~~~
After Brady left, Lexie sat at the table for several minutes, then went into the living room. She took some of the kindling from the basket on the hearth and built a small fire. When it was burning brightly, casting a warm glow over the room, she went over to her suitcase and pulled out the stack of things that she’d wrapped in a towel. She knelt before the fire and one by one threw her lacey underwear -- silky bras, panties, thongs, and lace garters in the fire.
She couldn’t bear the thought of them against her skin. She’d seen the way he’d arranged them – in neat piles, all in order, by color.
