Best Friend's Ex Box Set

If you refuse to welcome me back into your life, then you will have no life at all, and neither will the loser who thinks you love him.

Loving you always,

D.

As I read the note, I felt sick. Dominic was obviously delusional, and reading his rambling thoughts on how our “relationship” needed to be rekindled made me simultaneously outraged and disgusted.

“Ava, are you okay?” Brian asked as he watched me read the note for a third time.

“Fine,” I said absently. “I’m fine.”

“You don’t look fine,” he pointed out. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

I looked up at Brian and threw my hands up in the air. “How do I even counter his inability to live in reality?” I asked helplessly.

“Ava, we need to go to the police,” he said quietly.

“No! I told you, we can’t do that!” I cried.

“But I’m starting to wonder if he’s lost it,” Brian said. “And if he has, then I might not be able to protect you from his psychotic break. This is about your safety, Ava, not your father’s ego.”

“Stop it! I know that!” I yelled. I was panicked because I knew that this note was not a good sign, but I also knew that notifying the police would set off a reaction from my father that might end with Brian being fired and me never seeing him again. I couldn’t stand the thought of not being with him or feeling him touch me ever again. I looked up into his eyes and willed him to understand what it was that I couldn’t say.

“Ava, we have to do something,” he said as he reached out and cupped my face. “We can’t sit around and wait for him to make his move. It’s not safe.”

I nodded as I folded the note and put it back in the envelope. I had no idea what to do next. How could we protect me from Dominic’s imagination? What would he do to me? What would he do to Brian? The thought of Dominic harming Brian made me ill, but I had no plan for how to protect him.

“I don’t know what to do,” I admitted. “And I’m scared…”

“I know,” Brian said as he wrapped his arms around me and rested his chin on my head. “We’ll figure something out. Together.”

*****

“Ava, we’re going to have to move out of here for a while,” Brian said. “You know that you’re not safe here, don’t you?”

I nodded and fought back the rising panic that threatened to swallow me. The thoughts raced through my mind: Why do I have to move? Why can’t Dominic just leave me alone? Why is my life such a mess? Brian held me tight as I fought to get my bearings, and once I’d calmed down, he began making plans to try and shore up my security.

I began packing a bag as he sat on the couch and tapped out text after text, arranging for us to move out of the dorm until Dominic could be located, questioned, and, hopefully, locked up. The sound of Brian’s phone ringing broke the silence and he stepped out into the hall to answer it.

I continued sorting out my clothes and trying to decide what would be necessary and what would simply be an unnecessary burden to carry with me. Then I went into the bathroom and began gathering my things. I wanted to leave the room looking like I was still living here so that when the dorm housekeeper came in to collect trash and dust, she wouldn’t notify the RA who was supposed to be keeping watch over us all. The last thing I needed was to have the university involved in this mess since my father sat on the executive advisory board and would most likely turn the place upside down if he found out they’d been harboring a criminal who was after his daughter. I was tired of being the outsider everywhere I went; tired of being seen as either the poor little rich girl or the stuck-up snob. I was neither of those things, and I wanted a chance to solve this problem on my own.

Besides, the problem with Dominic was entirely my fault. I knew that for certain, but I couldn’t tell anyone—not even Brian.

“Alright, we’ve got a place to stay and we’ve got a team in place to help us move without being seen,” Brian announced as he reentered the room with a smile on his face.

“Uh huh,” I nodded as I tossed a small cosmetics bag into my duffle bag that was already stuffed to the gills.

“Ava, we’re just going across town, not to another country,” he joked.

“I know, but I want stuff that’s familiar,” I said in a choked voice. I was trying so hard to keep it together that I feared one wrong word and I’d lose it.

“I’m teasing you,” he said gently as he crossed he room and put a hand on my shoulder. “It’s all going to be okay, Ava. I promise. I’ve got friends who are going to help me flush out Dominic and get him to where the police can track him on their own.”

“I just…just…just…” I stammered as I turned and looked up at him, my eyes brimming with tears that threatened to spill down my cheeks.

“I know, and it’s okay,” he said softly. “It’s all going to be okay.”

I nodded as I turned back to the bed and zipped my bag. I didn’t fully believe that everything was going to be okay, but I was choosing to believe Brian—for now.