Fuck friends. I need more enemies.At least they admit they don’t like you.
-Wiz Khalifa
Day Number Six…
Every preconceived notion that I had of my place being off limits is thrown out the damn window when I arrive home to a package in front of my apartment door. One of the neighbors must’ve thought they were doing me a kindness by letting whoever delivered the box into the building. I hope they didn’t break into my apartment while they were here, but it wouldn’t surprise me if they did. I don’t have to look at the return info to know it’s from him.
Taking a deep breath, I grab the gift and head inside. My door’s still locked, so that’s a good sign, not that it means anything. Glancing around, everything looks the same, but I doubt I’d know it if they’d been here if they didn’t want me to. This man seriously needs to stop screwing with my head.
I don’t know whether to be excited, scared, irritated, or what.
Setting my keys, the knife he sent me, and my purse on the entry table, I lock the dead bolt behind me and head to the table where my letter opener is. Taking a seat, I set out to open yet another box. This one’s about ten inches long by ten inches wide and four inches deep.
I’m not going to even attempt at guessing what’s inside. Thaddaeus has caught me off guard each day, so I doubt this’ll be any different. On the plus side, he didn’t yank me into a scary, dark alley to give it to me, so there’s that.
Peeling the cardboard open, I nearly choke on my own spit when I see it’s a cell phone. A brand new S7 too. These things cost a ton of money as I’m sure his other gifts have as well, but that’s not the point. The thing is: It’s a phone—finally! Could his number be listed in it? A way for me to reach him, finally?
Wasting no time, I power the phone on and let it load up. It’s quick, being a new model with only the factory apps installed. The contacts tab is on the main page, so I tap it.
T.M. Is listed at the very top of the list, along with my own new number right below it.
You’d think that I’d won the lottery and I leap out of my chair. I jump up and down a few times, excited to finally have a cell number for him. I can’t believe it. I can call him!
But what do I say? I’ve had so much building up inside, that now I have no idea what to bring up. I know for certain I want to let him know that shit he pulled yesterday is a no go for me. He needs to keep his hands off and not try to frighten the life out of me.
Is it insane that I’m excited to hear his voice again? I feel like we’ve been through so much this last week, yet we haven’t even spoken. How can you start to form a relationship with someone when they haven’t been around you, yet they’ve been present in a way every single day?
Part of me hates him already, while another piece wants to know everything there is to know about him.
Thaddaeus’ gifts have said so much about him, but did he mean for them to or were they just simply presents to him? Either way, I need to tell him to take them back. I don’t want him to think I’m ungrateful, but I have to put my foot down. After the alley, I’m scared to be alone with him, so dinner’s out of the question now. Everything’s out of the question with him. I want it all to just disappear and my life to return to normal and boring.
Oh hell, what do I have to lose by calling? I press the phone icon next to his name. It asks if I want to call or text, so I hit call.
“Bella?”
Shit, I wasn’t expecting him to answer the phone. I was thinking this conversation would most likely be by voicemail where I could rant and not get a reply.
“Hi, my name’s…umm...Grace.”
“I know.”
Of course, he knows; he’s been sending me stuff every day for nearly a week. Shit. What did I want to say to him again?
“I got the phone you sent.”
“So I hear.” His reply sounds amused, and thankfully, he can’t see my cheeks color with heat.
Fuck, I don’t know what to bring up and I sound like I’m babbling already, making up random shit that means a whole lot of nothing to either one of us.
“The gifts have been unexpected, but I should return them to you.”
“No you shouldn’t.” His reply is firm. “They have meaning; just wait.”
“I get that, but…”
“No buts, once I’m finished sending them, if you want to know more, I’ll explain them to you.”
“There’s more?”
“Of course. Patience, cara. On the tenth day, I’ll call you.”
“Okay.”
I should say so much more, argue with him perhaps, but I just want to keep him talking. The low, rich, timbre of his voice has goose bumps covering my skin. It’s not only my cheeks heating up, but my stomach as well. He sounds divine, like a creamy scoop of your favorite ice cream or something even better, like chocolate mousse. You know the kind, where you order it at a restaurant, and when it finally arrives, you can only take like five bites and then you’re finished? You want to eat more, but the flavor’s so potent that your taste buds can’t handle it, so you suck the little remaining bits off the fork… Yeah, that’s what he sounds like.
“Only call me if you’re in danger.” It’s an order, not a suggestion. Fuck, he sounds even sexier when he demands shit.
“Why would I be in danger?”
“Oh, sweet Bella, I know you’ve looked me up online. Always watch the shadows and remember that you’re on my mind.”
There’s that creepy reminder again. He had to bring it up. What can be so terrible that he has to warn me of repeatedly? Does he want me to be scared to death of him or just cautious in general? This type of stuff doesn’t happen to me; my life’s so blah, and now he’s speaking of danger and me needing to be careful. This isn’t some exciting James Bond movie; this is my life he’s meddling in.
“Okay, I—“
“We’ll speak soon. Goodnight.”
Thaddaeus ends our conversation abruptly, interrupting me yet again. The man’s infuriating. And bossy. And annoying. And fuck my life, so damn enticing. The sense of danger makes him even more alluring if that makes any sense.
“Night.” I respond, completely enraptured by his voice.
How can he have this effect on me over the phone? The line’s silent, telling me that he didn’t even wait for me to respond to his order; he just hung up after speaking his last words. He’s sort of a dick when I think about it. I bet he was spoiled growing up and used to getting his way in whatever. That’d make total sense with him being so damn domineering and assertive.
I think he may be ruder than I am. And I pretty much got nowhere with that phone call.
Me: This is my new number.
Kaleigh: Who is this?
Me: Grace.
Kaleigh: You got a new phone?
Me: Yep.
Kaleigh: What happened to your other one?
Me: I’ll fill you in later, about to jump in the shower.
Kaleigh: Okay. XO
Me: XO
I’m such a horrible freaking friend. With that thought I make myself go take a shower; that way I’m not lying to Kaleigh. I’m just not divulging the whole truth.
“Cage, did you set up the delivery for tomorrow morning?” He’s another friend of mine that’s in our small group. There are four of us total, that are usually together—sometimes five. When it comes down to me needing something, they work for me. They’ve been around for years, all gravitating my way for various reasons.
“Yep. You going to tell us what you sent her this time?” His dark eyebrow rises as he sits down at my home bar.
They all live here with me. It keeps things much more convenient when I need to go somewhere. I learned the hard way by losing my younger brother to a hit from a rival, that it’s always good to have backup with you. My brother didn’t deserve to die, but he was unprepared. I refuse to make the same mistake.
In a way, these men are like my brothers now and they’re enjoying themselves way too mu
ch over my gift giving to Grace. It’s not normal for me and they think it’s prime time to give me a rough go about it. They’ve never had anyone special like Grace come into their lives either, though. I know perfection when I see it, and she clearly stands out amongst the rest.
The minute I stepped into the restaurant and heard her carrying on to her friend, not cowering to my presence like the rest of the customers, I was intrigued. Then with her acting like I was nothing, like I didn’t bother her one bit, presented a challenge that I was instantly obsessing over. I swear her skin was soft as silk. I had to touch her, if even for a moment. And that smart mouth of hers made my cock hard. I wanted to shove it in her mouth to teach her a lesson for speaking to me so rudely. I, of course, had to hold my breath, to control myself, but I gritted through it, while memorizing every detail of her that I could.
She was in violet and sapphires. So fucking beautiful too. Those sparkling eyes screamed mischief, and that little smirk she wore on her lips had me fantasizing about her mouth all week.
Grace is upset over the gifts, which can be expected. I get it that it’s not her norm for men to be sending her random things each day which she doesn’t know the full meanings to. I’ll explain it all to her eventually, and hopefully, she’ll stay after she hears me out. The fact that she wants to give me everything back tells me that she’s not a gold digger. Not that I’d mind if she were; it’d probably make things easier.
She’s never met a man like me and she’ll soon find that out. I plan on showing her how I can be better for her and how she deserves to be treated. I may test her a bit at first, but it’s only to see if she can handle it and handle me. I’m not a timid or boring man by any means. I’m headstrong, demanding, and used to getting my way. Things usually end up badly for others if I don’t get what I want. Right now, that’s Grace.
Sure, the alley incident was a bit crass, but she needed something to jolt her out of her everyday mundane routine. She was a target just waiting to happen. My methods are rough, but they work. They’ve kept my crew alive.
I’ve gotten reports that she’s started taking a cab and watching her surroundings, something she needs to get accustomed to doing if she’s going to be associated with me. Well, not the riding in a cab part, but the switching things up and being vigilant. She should’ve been doing those things all along anyhow.
Bad things happen to beautiful women when they get complacent. They need to protect themselves and be cautious. It’d be too easy to snatch her ass up and feed her to the sex industry or to the streets. They’d eat her up and spit her out, completely tarnished forever. She’ll thank me one day, I know it.
Maximillian thought I’d be furious in finding out that she went to the police force, when in reality I was proud of her. The woman has a bigger backbone than I expected, and it made me want her even more. It’ll take a strong woman to stand by my side in this life and I have to test the waters to see if she’s really the one to do it. I want her to be already. It’s only been a week, yet I want her in my bed every night and alongside of me in the future.
I’ll continue my methods and hope for the best. My grandfather taught me what to do when you find ‘the one.’ He put my grandmother through it, and they lasted a good fifty years together.
“Well?” Cage presses.
“Fine.” I relent and reply, “It was a coat and a pair of shoes.” Taking a drink of my scotch, I wait for whatever teasing comment he can come up with about it.
“Yeah, but what kind? I know you T and you don’t do things half-assed.”
Of course I don’t. What’s the point of doing anything halfway, to just have to go back and fix it? Hell no. I’ll do it once and get it right the first time. “They were Chanel and Louboutin’s. She deserves to wear the best.” Especially if she’s going to be at my side. I want her sexy ass drenched in the best my money can buy or that I can steal. I’m not picky.
“Fuck, Joker. You’re going to completely spoil her and turn her into one of those prissy bitches.”
“No I won’t. Each item has a meaning. Well not the shoes; those were just to make her smile, but the coat has its purpose. You should know that I’ll break her before she acts like an entitled fucking bitch.”
“The purpose of the jacket being to hide a nine millimeter and help protect your ass?”
“If she wants a Glock, I’ll get her one of those too. But no, it’s to keep her warm.”
“No offense man, but you have some weird ideas.”
Shrugging, I finish off the expensive liquor. “The city’s cold. She needs something to keep her warm until it’s me doing the job.”
“I’d fuck her friend, if you needed me to.”
“She’d pass out before you got to touch her. Did you see her clam up when we walked into the restaurant?”
He laughs loudly. “I love when that happens.”
“So do I … so do I.” My smirk’s cruel as I think back to the frightened faces of all the patrons. I should’ve shot someone just for the fuck of it. Showed them what true panic’s all about, because they have absolutely no clue what it’s like on these streets.
They all fear me, but they have no idea it’s me and my crew helping keep most of those fuckwads alive. If it weren’t for us, the two-one-five crew would’ve come through and cleaned this part of the city out. Yeah, I’m fucking evil, but I keep the devils at bay. They just don’t realize it.
Day number seven which happens to be my day off, has begun with me opening my front door to find another large box. Never in my life has a man bought me a coat or shoes before and after seeing the tags belonging to Chanel and Louboutin, I felt completely spoiled. I sent him a quick text, briefly thanking him for the gifts and left it at that. I didn’t hear back from him and the day dragged by at home. I got some cleaning and reading done and ended my day with Chinese delivery.
Monday morning and day number eight rolls around with me wearing my new coat and shoes. Thaddaeus said I had to keep the items he’s sending, so I’m doing what he wants. I may regret it in the future, but for now, I’m going to enjoy the few surprises he’s been sending especially after the shit that went down in the alley. He can grovel a while; Lord knows he needs to figure out how to be apologetic.
I went ahead and got a cab to give me a lift to work. I was not about to walk down the sidewalk alone, dressed in such a gorgeous coat and shoes. He wants me to be more careful, so I’m doing that too. I’m not so sure I’d have been much good out walking anyhow; I stayed up half the night playing on the new phone he sent me. There’s so much memory on it, I could download all my favorite apps and sync my books onto it.
“Hey girl.” Keisha perks up as I step out of the elevator. She does a double take, smiling widely, “Wowee, you look hot! Did you go shopping on your day off?”
“Not exactly,” I reply, not being able to hold my grin back.
“Noooooo! He sent those as well?”
Nodding, I beam a wide smile. “Yesterday, they kind of showed up at my door.”
“Are you kidding me? They’re gorgeous! He definitely has good taste. Do you know who it is yet?”
My excitement falls. “Yes. I figured it out.”
“Anyone good?”
“It depends on your definition of the word.” I already told her before that I wouldn’t use that word when it comes to him, and I definitely wouldn’t now knowing what I do about him.
“Oh lord, I need to see this one, if that’s your answer. He’s gotta be hot, if you’re looking like that. Or wait, is he a creepy basement lurker?”
Chuckling, I shake my head and walk into my office. She doesn’t need to see him. No one around the office does by the sounds of his reputation. I wouldn’t so much as call him a basement lurker—maybe an alley or shadow stalker. Like that’s any better.
I need to move past what happened. He didn’t hurt me, and he’s clearly sorry if the knife and quote was any indication.
These shoes are gorgeous. I’ve never known what
the big deal was about them though; what exactly made them so great? Well, now I know and it’s official; I’m addicted. They’re the most comfortable, sexy pair of heels ever. And the coat is soft as silk inside. Not only does it feel luxurious, but it kept me completely warm walking into work today.
I’m not one hundred percent comfortable knowing that they were gifts, but I am grateful for the nice things. However, that’s just what they are—things. It gives me no idea about the man behind them, besides the assumption that he has a bank account large enough to afford them. Thaddaeus has my complete attention now. I only hope that when I do finally get to talk to him in person, that he’s not as terrifying and corrupt as the internet portrays him to be.
As I work throughout the morning, flutters fill my stomach, tumbling over and over. It’s the eighth day since this all began, which means there’s only two more days away from number ten. He said that would be the last day, so now I’m super eager to see what he has in store, but also a touch sad the surprises will be over with.
They don’t have to be grand gestures or anything like they’ve been, but a note or flower, a candy; that sort of thing every once in a while makes the day a little better. Part of me feels ridiculously selfish for not wanting our little countdown to end. It’s like he’s turned me into a young girl again, anticipating the next surprise coming my way.
In a week’s time he’s completely spun me around in my head; I can only imagine what he’d be able to do in a month. I’d be smitten in no time flat.
Keisha comes into my office—eyes huge; as she swallows. Her normal happy demeanor is nonexistent, which is strange. Our customers enjoy her savvy personality and usually look forward to seeing her when they come for an office appointment. “Grace, you have a visitor,” she shares quietly, glancing backward.
“Um, okay, sure. Is it a walk in or an existing client?” I don’t normally see clients without an appointment, but I’m not busy now so no big deal.
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