Stalked – Curvy Women Wanted

“There must be some mistake. I already have your rent, Emily. Please, keep the money.”

“That’s not possible. I haven’t paid it. I don’t think I’ve ever paid the correct rent to you. I appreciate you helping me out after my parents, but please, I want to pay. I’ve already made the changes at the bank, but I want to pay you the money I owe.”

Yeah, crazy woman. You want to pay a bill even though said person doesn’t want to take the money. You’re so smart, Emily.

“Emily, honey, he pays for your apartment and always has.”

“What? Who?”

“James Stork. He’s been paying your rent since you moved in here—the money you pay, it doesn’t cover anything. I offered you the place because of him. He takes care of you.”

She held the envelope to her chest. “James has always been paying?”

“Yes.”

“Oh.” She stared down at her check. “But it’s my apartment.”

“I know. He pays for everything you need.”

“How do you mean he pays for everything?” she asked.

“Emily, this is a simple apartment. I own this very building, and I rent out all of the places to people who can afford them. I also provide assistance when maintenance is required, certainly extensive changes to said apartments.”

She felt her face heating up. When she first moved in, she hadn’t really liked the place, but it was better than her home, which had been sold to pay for her parents’ funeral costs and outstanding debts.

It had been a hard time all around, and she missed home.

“James took care of all of my bills? Including the redecoration?”

“Yes.”

“Oh.” Now she felt a little … out of sorts. “He didn’t need to do that.”

“Emily, I think it’s time you realized James has been taking care of you for some time now. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything. I know you’re upset, and it wasn’t my intention. Keep your money, honey.”

Mr. Cole closed the door, leaving her in the darkened corridor.

Staring down at the money, she looked back up at the door and folded up the envelope, shoving it into the back of her pants.

Stepping outside, she went to her car and paused.

There had been work done on her car, extensive work. Pulling out her cell phone, she did a quick search to see the price of repairs, as some of them she remembered. Emily nearly dropped her cell phone as she saw the price of each repair.

Climbing into her car, she drove toward the mechanic shop. Billy was there, working on one of the cars, and he stopped when he caught sight of her.

“Hey, darlin’, didn’t expect you back so soon.”

“Did James pay for all my repairs?”

Billy’s eyes went wide. “Sweetheart, I think you need to take that up with him.”

“I’m asking you.”

“And I’m really uncomfortable talking to you about this. It’s between your man and yourself.”

“He did, didn’t he? All this time, I thought … how much do I owe you?” She pulled out her rental money.

Billy held up his hands. “You don’t need to be paying me. James takes care of everything. Whenever you bring the car in, I’ve got instructions to call him with regards to the price. He pays the bulk of it, and we settle on a sum for you to pay.”

“But this is my car.”

“And he’s your man.”

“You’re talking about before I became his, Billy.”

“Emily, you’ve belonged to James for a long time. He’s only taking care of you is all. You were a mess, and you needed someone. He was the only one who stepped up. I don’t think you should be mad at him.”

She spun on her heel and climbed back into her car. She didn’t know how she felt.

Chapter Six

Full beer deliveries always required a lot of work. On a Friday morning, the bar was running on empty, and he didn’t want to have to advise his customers to drink soda because he hadn’t ordered enough.

Three of his security and barmen were always available to help.

Lifting up twenty-four cans, huge drums, and bottles upon bottles of spirits and wine, they each took them down to the basement cellar beneath the bar. Each time they did, Nancy was there to tick the item off.

He didn’t want the woman lifting too much. He’d already offered her a raise and a bonus for her help in drawing Emily closer to him with a full apology for the way he spoke to her. He had no right to be mean.

Wiping the sweat from his brow, they had all stopped for a break. He drank the lemonade and watched the approaching car.

The moment he saw Emily, he knew something was wrong.

Just then, he recognized his cell phone vibrating. He’d turned it to silent as he got to work. There were missed calls from Mr. Cole and from Billy. Shit. And from the look on Emily’s face, he knew she knew.