Flawless Ruin

I sit down to work and reach for the first page. It’s a folded slip of paper, and when I unfurl it, there’s just a line of print, typed in block letters.

Roses are red, violets are blue,if you stray where you don’t belong, there’s no telling what will happen to you.

I drop the page as if I’ve been burned.

I look up, swallowing the bile in my throat. First the flowers, and now this. “Vicki?

Who left this here?” I wave the paper. “Did you see while I was out for lunch?”

She looks over and rolls her eyes. “I don’t know. I don’t spend every minute of my day watching your deliveries.”

Dammit. So that means anyone could’ve sneaked in and put that note there. I sit down and dial security. “Hi,” I say when Carlos answers, keeping my voice low so Vicki won’t hear. “Did you happen to see anyone strange come in?”

He chuckles. “Lady, this is New York. I see strange all day long.”

“I received a… Delivery, and I’m wondering if you have any record on the visitor log. Tenth floor, they would have come in the past half hour, maybe?”

“Maybe?” he echoes, sounding skeptical. “What’s the package?”

“A letter. Would the security cameras be able to pick up on the person who did it?” I ask, feeling a weird shiver of unease.

But he laughs. “You want me to comb through security footage for a letter? I don’t think so, lady. I’ve got better things to do.”

I sigh, hanging up. So much for that plan.

It’s probably just a prank, I tell myself, trying not to get too freaked out. Nursery rhymes, nothing more. But still, I startle at every little noise for the rest of the day, and by the time six o’clock rolls around, I’m wound tight as a drum.

“Ready to get out of here?” Caleb materializes by my desk, his jacket over his arm ad his shirtsleeves rolled up.

“Yes. Please.” I shoot to my feet and grab my things, glad to have him back around again.

I feel safer, knowing he’s here.

“Well, that was a bitch of a day,” Caleb remarks, walking me to the elevator. He loosens his tie, looking tense. “What about you?”

I open my mouth to tell him about the note but decide against it. He already seems stressed enough.

Later.

“Oh, you know…” I say instead. “It had way less gelato and pastries than I’d like.”

Caleb cracks a smile at that. “I can think of a few other things it was missing, too…” he says, drawing me closer as the elevator doors slide shut. Alone, he pulls me into his arms for a searing kiss.

Mmmm….

I sink happily into his embrace, feeling better already. His hands slide hungrily over my body, and I’m breathless and giddy by the time we reach the parking garage. He pulls me down the row of cars until we reach his Porsche. I wait for him to open my door, and he grins.

“You’re driving, remember?”

I laugh in surprise. “Are you sure about that?” I ask, only half-teasing. “It’s been a while since I was behind a wheel.”

“I trust you,” Caleb says lightly, and I freeze. Our eyes lock.

Is that really true?

“At least, I have excellent insurance,” he adds smoothly, getting inside.

I climb behind the wheel, wondering if I could be so easily protected.