“Miss me more?” she replied. There was still that part of her that wanted to fight back, still that small part of her that was just a tad prideful where she didn’t want to admit to any vulnerabilities. She had done that in the past with Aaron, and he had used her secrets against her. She refused to do that again. But maybe with Alec…
She stepped back. No. Noah had to remember that she and Alec were just pretend – a ruse used to win the public’s affection, so everyone would fawn over Alec and his talent. So they wouldn’t write him off as some womanizing hack. Feelings were not supposed to happen, especially not between them. The sex was physical release that cumulated because of attraction. Alec might get on her nerves, but he looked good doing it.
“I’ll miss you a reasonable amount,” he said, his lips curling into that patented smirk.
Except, the look in his eyes hinted at more than that. At something that maybe meant more, too.
But that was crazy. Just because there might be something didn’t mean there was. This was Ale Sinclair, after all. He put the sin in Sinclair, and there was nothing anyone could say that would get him to settle down. Plus, it was highly unlikely that he would want to settle down anyway.
He gave her another quick kiss before he turned around and left. This time, she didn’t stop him. Lily was actually going on the trip with them – traveling separately, of course – which meant Noah would be alone. Which was both thrilling and a little bit exciting. Being free and alone gave her the chance to show herself what she was capable of. She wasn’t a victim, and she didn’t need anyone telling her what to do.
Having said that, being on her own made her feel much more vulnerable than she liked. Especially since Aaron could get to her at any moment and there would be no one around to stop him.
19
Alec
Alec wanted to mind his business. He did. But as he left the apartment building, he happened to glance over at the parking lot and happened to notice a strange car sitting in front of the complex. There was no one inside of it, at least from where Alec was standing. Something churned in his gut. He clenched his jaw, looked away. His car was parked in the lot nearby. He should go to it. The plane was waiting. He had to catch it before he left for his job.
And yet…
He blew out a breath. He clenched his jaw again. The gesture did nothing in terms of helping him figure out what to do. It caused his temples to pinch and rooted him in the moment. He glanced down at his hockey bag and decided, at the very least, he could put it in his car. He knew he was already running late but his gut refused to leave him alone. There was something that didn’t sit right with him, and he’d be remised if he didn’t at least check it out.
It could be prospective residents, he thought. It could be guests of some of the residents here. It could be anyone.
And yet…
He walked to his car and placed his bag and his sticks in the trunk. He knew he should mind his own business. He knew he should leave. If Alec returned and found Noah on the couch, watching television, embarrassed wasn’t going to cover how he would feel. Regardless, he wouldn’t be able to live with himself if he didn’t at least look into it, make sure Noah was all right, and then he would leave.
“Goddammit, Sinclair,” he muttered to himself, shaking his head as he slammed his trunk shut. “You and your goddamn feelings.”
When he finished, he locked his car and shoved his keys into his pockets before heading back to the apartment. He tensed his body, ready for any sort of attack. He wasn’t sure what to expect from Aaron – if that car even belonged to Aaron in the first place – and he wanted to be ready.
Of course, it was more likely that he was setting himself up for nothing, that the car was just a random car, that Alec had done enough to rid Noah of Aaron forever.
But he had to be sure.
Alec reached the apartment door and glanced around. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. He leaned forward and pressed his ear to the door, holding his breath. As far as he could tell, there was no screaming, no thumping, nothing that would indicate a struggle was taking place at that moment.
He knocked on the door and waited. He could have gone in. His keys were pressed in his pocket. All he needed to do was pull them out and go in. But he wanted to make sure Noah had warning that he was there, that he was back. He didn’t want to startle her. Although, now that he thought about it, someone coming to the door and knocking might be more suspicious than the scrape of a key unlocking a door.
At that moment, the door opened and there stood Noah, wide-eyed, head tilted to the side, clearly confused.
“I thought you were –“
“I’m sorry,” he said. He could see the fear in her eyes and he realized he was acting stupid. He didn’t need to do this. He didn’t need to start getting so paranoid that he scared her. “I saw this car in the lot and I thought –“
Before he could finish his sentence, someone shoved him from behind, hard. His body flew forward, knocking into Noah. The two fell down together. His arm wrapped around her waist, managing to break her fall before she could hurt herself.
The door slammed shut. Whoever it was – and Alec didn’t need to turn around to guess – was inside with them. Before Alec could unravel his arm from around Noah, a foot struck his ribs and he
