“I do when I’m not feeling smothered or stuck.”
“Okay. Well, you know you’re safe here, and you’ll be okay here. My place is off the beaten path in this town, and I keep it that way for a reason.”
“So none of your one-night stands come knocking on your door?” I asked.
“Among other things. I’m being chased by the Mafia too.”
I giggled and shook my head before I sighed. “I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you sooner.”
“I’m just glad you’re telling me now,” Nikki said. “I was worried about you. Very worried. And when I pulled up and heard you guys arguing, I was two seconds away from busting in the window and crawling through.”
“Did you bring a brick? That seems to be a popular choice.”
It was Nikki’s turn to laugh, and she took full advantage of the situation.
“Look, even if the super-spooky Mafia is hunting Andrew or Cameron or whatever his name is down, there’s no way they know who you are. You’ve only been in his life for a little while, and half that time, he was gone anyway, holed up in his cabin or something like that, which means they definitely don’t know who I am. As far as I’m concerned, you’re safer with me than with him because they’re tracking him. They’re not tracking me.”
“You have a point,” I said.
“What is it? I know that tone of voice.”
“It’s just … Cameron. He was so upset when I left.”
“Of course, he was. He lost his control on you. His life is spiraling into some sort of endless madness, and he wants company for it.”
“I don’t think that’s it.”
“Even if he is genuinely concerned about you, there’s nothing he can do about any of this. You aren’t safe with him, even though you feel safe with him.”
“I need to talk to him. I don’t like the idea of leaving things the way we did,” I said.
“Just give it a night, Heather. It kills me to say this, but I can tell you care for the man, though I don’t like him one bit. Put some space between you guys. All of this has happened so fast, and I’m worried you're looking at this from the wrong point of view.”
My phone rang from my purse, and I pulled it out. Cameron’s name flashed up onto my screen, and I turned it toward Nikki. She plucked it from my fingers and silenced the call. Then, she turned my phone off and placed it on the table behind her.
“Give it a night,” she said. “And if you wake up in the morning and still want to talk to him, then call.”
“Okay,” I said. “I can do that.”
I watched Nikki bound over to her refrigerator and pull out a bottle of sparkling grape juice. She unscrewed the cap and poured us two glasses full of the stuff. Then, we sat down and began to talk. She filled me in on how work was going and her latest escapades with men. She always had many trysts to talk about after one of her business trips. It felt good not to dwell on things that were happening around me. It felt good to curl up and gossip with my best friend. We turned on her television and caught a Ryan Reynolds movie marathon on television, which forced our hand for the night.
We just had to watch Ryan Reynolds all night. It was our only option.
“You want some more sparkling juice?” Nikki asked.
“Do you have more?” I asked. “I feel like I’ve had an entire bottle to myself.”
“I’m stocked up on the stuff. You know, for when my pregnant best friend comes to visit,” she said.
“We know you’re secretly addicted to the stuff. Don’t lie.”
“It’s so great when marshmallow vodka is added. You have no idea what you’re missing with that.”
“And I’ll have to wait another five and a half—”
A loud pounding at the door made me jump so high, I almost fell off the couch. I looked over at Nikki, and she placed our cups in the sink before she scurried over to her door. She looked through the peephole before shooing me away and my heart rose to my throat. Who was at the door? Had they found us?
Oh my gosh. Cameron was right. They were after all of us.