by Harley, HJ
I handed Frank back his phone. “This is one bad ass phone you have here, big guy.”
“Top of the line security right there. Uncrackable, untraceable, un... unbelievable. I can’t believe I didn’t think of this last night.”
“Uhhh what?” I shook my head, confused.
“Oh, it’s nothing.” He scowled as he dug through his bag and pulled out a notepad.
I made my way over to the buffet and snuck a peek under one of the tin covers. Yummy, pancakes! I took a plate and put a pancake on it.
“Did you change your house and cell phone number from your house line?” Frank was still scowling.
“What are we talking about?” Nathan joined us.
It took every ounce of self-control not to throw myself at him. He looked so damn sexy in his jeans hanging below that muscle line, no shirt, barefoot, and the “I got laid a few times” hair.
“Frank was just asking me where I changed my phone numbers from. Yes, I did it from the house phone.”
“Jordan, write down your old numbers here, please.” He handed me the notepad. He pulled his cell out of his pocket and speed dialed someone. “Excuse me, you two,” he said when I handed him the notebook back.
“Uh, Frank needs some more sleep I think.”
“Maybe.” Nathan followed Frank with his eyes. Once Frank was out of sight he looked back at me. “Afternoon, love.” He kissed the top of my head and pulled the tie on my bathrobe.
“What are you doing?” I laughed nervously with a mouthful of pancake.
“He won’t be back for a bit. He’s onto something. I know that look.” He slipped his hands around my waist between the robe and my nighty. He went to kiss me but I had to stop him.
“Nathan! I need to swallow my food.” I laughed even harder.
He looked up in the air and tapped his foot jokingly.
“Not here!” I smacked his arm lightly.
“Okay.” He pouted, closed up my robe, and turned to the coffee bar. He fixed a cup of coffee, took my hand, and led me out on to the balcony. It was cold out there but there was one of those heated lamp things that looks like a metal umbrella over to the right. I hadn’t noticed it earlier. He led me over that way and sat down, tugging me onto his lap. “You know what?” His eyes were wide with excitement.
“What?” I answered, just as excited.
“I love you.” He smirked.
“I love you, too.” I leaned into his shoulder, resting my head on it.
“When I woke up and you weren’t there, for a second I panicked. I couldn’t get my bearings straight. But then when I rolled over I could smell you on the pillow and I was calm.” He exhaled loudly and ran his fingers through his hair. “You’re stuck with me, Jordan. I got it bad.” He smiled up at me.
I kissed his neck.
“You’re who I have been waiting for. A week ago, when people asked me where I saw myself in ten years I’d say something silly like eating at the In-N-Out, old, fat, and alone. From now on when someone asks me where I will be ten years from now, I’ll say with the only love of my life and her great kid.” He leaned his head against mine.
If it was at all possible to combust from happiness I would have at that moment. Sure there was some lunatic out there who tore up my apartment and wardrobe, did a profoundly disgusting thing to my undies, and was apparently stalking me. But that blue-eyed gorgeous man had somehow made that all disappear. I knew I was self-sufficient enough that I could deal with the situation if I was alone, but he made it... bearable.
“And maybe a kid or two of my own.” He grinned and derailed my entire train of thought with that one. I gave him a quick kiss, moved from his lap to the chair next to him, and lit a cigarette. Kids. Could you imagine having another kid after all these years? You are too old to be running around after kids. Although, they would be some adorable kids. I bet Nathan would be a great dad. How would Emma feel? All she knows about her father is he held her a few times, went back out to war, and died when she was around one. Would Nathan treat her differently than his own child? Of course he would, she isn’t his kid. Ugh. Just stop.
“Not that we are actually having this discussion one week in here, but I’m too old to have any more kids, Nathan. You should consider that before we take this any further if you want children.” I stared past him out at the view of the city.
“We aren’t discussing this now but if we were, you are not too old to have more kids, Jordan.”
“Yes, I am. I don’t want to be like fifty at my kid’s graduation.” I rolled my eyes.
“Whatever you say, Jordie.” He gave a small laugh.
Frank appeared by the door, putting the kibosh on that conversation. Thank the Lord.
“Excuse me.” He stepped out onto the balcony. “Jordan, would you mind if I met an old buddy of mine at your place today? I’d like to have something checked out.”
“Yeah, sure. No problem. Can you give me like fifteen minutes? I’d like to come with you. I need to start cleaning up. I want to have it finished before Emma gets home tomorrow.” I put out my smoke and stood up. Nathan and Frank exchanged glances. I could have sworn Frank gave a little head nod but who knows. Maybe I was just being paranoid.
“Yeah, fifteen minutes. We’ll join you.” Nathan got to his feet. “Then you can explain whatever it is you have up your sleeve,” he said to Frank as we walked back in.
WHEN WE PULLED UP to my building I sighed at how undisturbed it looked from the outside. Last I’d seen it, there was police tape all around. Now there was no sign of any trouble. There were a few paps out there, including Todd. He stood against the small tree on the sidewalk holding a manila envelope. Frank and Ronnie pushed the eager photogs back.
“Nate, Jordie! You need to see this!” Todd shouted as he waved the envelope in the air. Nathan told Frank to let him up in a few minutes, as long as he agreed to no camera and off the record. I got to my door upstairs, took a deep breath, and unlocked it. When I opened it I was shocked once again.
“Who? How? When?” I spun around to face Nathan and he shrugged nonchalantly.
“I don’t know.” He smirked.
Liar.
The place was immaculate. The pictures were all reframed and hung on the wall just as they were before the break in. Everything that had been scattered around the place was in perfect order. I went inside and stalked into the kitchen. It was as if nothing had happened. I opened the cabinet to find all new glasses and the next one I opened had new dishes stacked neatly.
“Nathan, seriously. How?” I was bewildered.
“Frank called a crew he knows in Staten Island. They worked all day, finished about an hour ago. Jordie, we couldn’t let you do this. It would be too hard for you to...”
“It would be too hard to clean up my apartment? Nathan, honestly, I appreciate this, but it’s too much. This is over the top. How much did this cost? I’m not loaded like you.” Whoops. I sounded like a true ingrate.
He stared at me like I just kicked his puppy or something.
“Ahhhhhh, no, don’t look at me like that, please. I’m sorry. You just need to understand, I’m not used to other people fixing my problems. I have been on my own for so long.” I walked over and wrapped my arms around him.
“So have I, Jordan. I’ve been doing things for myself alone for a long time as well. I want to do things for you. I want to make you happy.”
“You already do make me happy, the happiest I have ever been in my life, Nathan. I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to come off ungrateful.” I crinkled my eyebrows while I attempted to find the right words. “I guess I just need to adjust to not having to do things alone.”
“You know, the money comment wasn’t necessary.” He scowled at me.
“It kind of was. You’re spending an obscene amount of money on security, hotels, clothes, and now this?” I made a hand gesture around the apartment.
He looked down at me. “If it makes you feel any better, I didn’t pay for the apartment clean u
p.”
“Uhh, who did then?” My tone made it clear that I thought he was full of shit.
He bent to whisper in my ear. “Frank did.”
“Oh no!” I tried to back out of his arms, but he squeezed me tighter.
“Don’t, Jordie. I promised him I wouldn’t tell you.”
“What? Why? Why would he do all this for me?” I asked.
“Shhh, because he feels as if he failed, and this is the least he could do to try and make it less stressful for you.” He said it quickly as we heard Frank and Todd coming in.
Todd held up the envelope I’d noticed earlier. “Here, these are some pics I took last night. I stopped in to see Isobel on her break. When we were outside she told me the guy that stole her camera was in the bar just a few minutes prior, but he left. I was just about to leave when we spotted the guy walking back past the bar and she pointed him out. I was going to approach him but he looked... well, he looked fucking crazy, man. So I just stayed back and tailed him and took these.” Todd handed Nathan the envelope. “I kept up with him to the end of the block. When I turned the corner he had disappeared. I looked everywhere. He’d just vanished.”
Nathan handed the photos to Frank one by one as he looked at them. “Get your guy on this, please.”
“He’s already on the way.” Frank’s mouth was set in a straight line.
“Please bill me for whatever this is you are doing,” I said.
Nathan just smiled at me and shook his head. “Okay, Jordan.” His rueful smile told a whole different story though.
“Pick your battles, Jordie. Pick your battles,” I muttered.
“Hola por favor?” I heard Rachel yell from downstairs. The door to my apartment was still open. Rachel had absolutely no clue what she was saying in Spanish, but she said it all the time anyway.
“Hola!” I shouted back. I heard two sets of footsteps.
“Hey, bitch.” Rachel walked through the door.
“Hey, bitch,” Tyler said to Nathan as he walked in behind her.
“Place looks great!” Rachel was all smiles.
“Yes, it does. Thank you.” I side-eyed Frank, but he immediately shot Nathan a look and I think he blushed. “I haven’t gone upstairs yet. Care to join me?”
“Yeah, I have to pee anyways.”
Upstairs was in perfect order. There was a new bed, new linens, and not a feather in sight. I walked over to my closet and it was filled with all new clothes. I sighed and smiled as Rachel came out of the bathroom.
“Ohhh, it’s pretty.” She ran her hand over the new down comforter. “Eh, the asshole did you a favor. It was time you got rid of the old one. This is so cute!” She clapped her hands together as she walked over to my dresser. She picked up a picture frame that I didn’t have there before the break in.
“What is it?”
She flipped it towards me. It was a picture Emma took with Nathan’s phone of him and me.
“Awwww,” I squeaked out like a giddy teenager.
Rachel placed the picture back on the dresser.
“So what is going on with you and Tyler?” I smacked her arm lightly.
A huge non-Rachel smile spread across her face. “I don’t know. We flirted on the phone a bit when he called to see if he could play at the bar. We talked a couple of times more before he got here. Then when I met him last Friday he waited around for me to close up and we hit it off.” She shrugged.
“So that’s where he disappeared to? Nathan thought he took off with Spanx girl.”
“Nope, he was inside at the bar waiting for me.”
“How are things with Nate dawg?” She clearly wanted a subject change.
“Super.” I could feel the dopey grin return to my face. “Even with all this shit going on, I feel... great. Like, all of this is going to be all right because he’s with me. He adores Emma, he gets along with you, he’s the most giving and loving man I’ve ever met.”
“Yeah, I get it, Mushmaster Flex.” She laughed. “But seriously, I am so happy for you. I love you, bitch.” She hugged me.
“I love you, too, skank ho.” We laughed and headed back downstairs.
“I was right.” I heard Frank say to the older guy who had a laptop with a bunch of wires hanging from the phone jack.
“Appears so. Good call,” the guy said.
“What did I miss?” I walked over to where the guys were standing.
Nathan put his arms around me from behind and rested his chin on my shoulder.
“It seems your home phone has been tapped.” Frank pointed to the wires.
“Whaaat the...?” I drew out my words in disbelief. “How? Why? For how long? What about the bar?” I blurted out in one quick sentence.
“No way to tell how long, and I’ll check the bar next,” the man said.
“Jordie, this is Richard Dell. He’s an old military buddy of mine and an ex-FBI specialist.” Frank gestured between us.
“Nice to meet you.” I nodded. “Okay, so now what?”
“Well, I suggest you get the phone company out here to run you a new line altogether. Both lines, home and next door. I’ll come and secure the lines if you’d like.” He looked at me over his glasses.
“Yes, thank you,” Frank answered for me. “Let’s sweep the place for bugs and such too.”
“Sweep the place for bugs? Who the hell is stalking me? James Bond?” I looked back and forth between Frank and Richard. “Really, all this is necessary?”
“Yes, just to be sure. Whoever did this has gone to great lengths to keep tabs on you, Jordie. We’d like to be thorough.”
“If you say so, Frank. I just don’t know who would do any of this to me. It seems so... surreal.”
Rachel and Tyler left, and Nathan and I went to the rooftop while Richard and Frank did their sweeping. When I got to the window I noticed the new ladder first and then something else.
“Is this,” I pointed to a sensor on the window, “for a security system?” I was appalled, forgetting about the new ladder.
“It is,” Nathan said.
“Naaaathaaann,” I whined. “Seriously? These things annoy the shit out of me! They go off for no reason. You can’t get up and pee in the middle of the night without setting it off. Ugggh.”
“Appease me, Jordie, please. Just for a little while until all of this ends.” He sounded genuinely concerned. “I couldn’t stand it if something happened to you and Emma, especially if I could have prevented it.”
“More money.” I climbed the fire escape to the roof. “I’d offer to pay for all of it but seriously, I don’t have enough to cover it unless I dip into my savings and Emma’s college fund. I don’t have a huge disposable income.” I sounded ungrateful again. “Ugh, I’m sorry. It’s just, I feel like I’m taking advantage of you, Nathan, and it’s killing me that I am not as self-sufficient as I thought I was. I’m not with you for your money or your fame or any of that. I’m with you for you, and this makes me feel... bad.” I sat down on the bench. He straddled the bench facing me and kissed my forehead.
“I know that, but you need to just get over it, baby, and as far as you not being self-sufficient, well, that’s absolutely absurd. Look at everything you’ve accomplished, all that you’ve been through, and yet you stand here today, strong and willing to face any shit-storm that’s thrown your way with absolute confidence. That seems pretty self-sufficient if you ask me. You have the greatest kid I’ve ever met and you did that all on your own for eight years. Need I go on?”
“No.” I smiled, because I knew he was right. I had done a great job so far. “How is it possible that I love you this much already?” I leaned in to kiss him.
“I guess it’s just like they say, when you know you know. Me too, baby. Me too.” He shrugged and put his arms around me.
“Nate? Jordie? Can you come down please?” Frank yelled from the window downstairs.
When we got in the living room Richard was packing up the last of his equipment and snapped a case shut.
The look on my face must have given away what I was thinking because Richard answered my unspoken question.
“You never know, Jordie. People will do anything for money.”
Just then Frank’s phone rang. He was quick to answer it. “This is Frank… Yes, hello.” You could tell he was paying close attention to whoever was on the other end. He just listened for a few moments. “I want a copy, and I’ve got some photos I’ll drop off to you when I come to pick it up.” He hung up and looked over at us. “Okay. The lab results are back.”
Damn, that was fast. Less than twenty-four hours.
“And?” Nathan asked anxiously.
“The specimens they collected were not from a human, but from a dog. Whoever it was wanted to send a message but was smart enough to not get caught.”
“I’ll need a copy of that as well, Frank,” Richard said.
“What kind of message are they trying to send exactly?” I asked. “They belong to the freak of the month club?”
“I’m not going to sugar-coat this, kid. This is some serious whacko, and I’d say it’s like he was leaving his mark, or marking his territory.” He looked at Nathan.
“Well, that’s just ridiculous.” I put two fingers against the crease between my eyebrows, trying to smooth it out. My hand was trembling. “There has to be a mistake or another explanation. I don’t know anyone who would think of me that way. Nathan is the first relationship I’ve had since my husband died eight years ago.”
“I’m sorry, Jordie.” Frank looked sympathetic.
“Thank you.” I glanced at the newly framed picture on the wall of Jason, myself, and Emma.
Frank followed my eyes. “He was military, I see.”
“Yes, Army Special Ops.” I took a deep breath and let it out.