Chapter 2
Nicole
In the two weeks since I’ve been home, I’ve managed to pack up Tressa’s office, her bedroom, the living room, the kitchen, and most of my bedroom. Since the half bath in the hallway was only ever used for guests, I’ve also stripped it down to the bare essentials — toilet paper, soap, and a hand towel.
“What on earth?” I say as I walk into the house and see most of the boxes torn open, the contents that’d been sorted and packed strewn all over the place.
Fear and then anger engulf me as I look around at the damage someone caused. As far as I know, I don’t have any enemies that I’m aware of, and neither does Tressa. I mean, we’re both homebodies at heart. Couch potatoes that enjoy sitting and reading a good book as opposed to going out and partying. She works from home, and I work outside of it, but who could I have pissed off enough at my menial bookstore job? Sighing, I pull out my phone and call the police to report the break in. I doubt they’ll do anything, not much they can do outside of filing a report at this stage, but at least there’ll be a record in case anything’s been stolen, and we have to file a claim on our renter’s insurance.
As I pace and wait for them to arrive, I casually look through the other rooms and see that pretty much every box in three of the rooms was opened and emptied. All of my hard work dumped on the floor. I stomp my foot in aggravation and whimper. It’s going to take me ages to get things back to rights. A knock on my door has me sprinting over, and peeping through the tiny hole on our door. Anxiously, I fling it open to see two uniformed police officers standing there with bored expressions on their faces.
“We understand you had a break in?” the male officer asks, looking around to take in the mess.
“Yes, apparently so. I came home to this,” I reply, waving my hand through the air at the disaster that’s readily apparent.
“Can you tell if anything was taken?” the female officer questions, putting on a pair of latex gloves.
“Not until I go through everything,” I admit. “But I didn’t want to touch anything in case you were able to dust and get fingerprints.”
“That was a good idea. Let me see what I can find, okay?” she asks.
“Okay.” I sigh, feeling defeated. I’m not a fool, I know that if the perpetrator used gloves himself, it’s a lost cause.
I mean, what else can I do? While she’s dusting everything and trying to get fingerprints to lift from the surfaces of our apartment and moving boxes, the male officer continues asking me a variety of questions. Some make sense, some don’t. Like, why would it matter if anyone saw me carrying boxes inside? I did mention that a few times I felt as though someone had been inside the house, which he wrote down.
It wasn’t anything concrete, of course, but the night I first got home from my trip to the clubhouse, I could’ve sworn my bed was neatly made. I always make my bed, yet it looked like I had rolled around and slept in it! Another night after work, when I came in, the remote was on the couch and I distinctly remembered putting it on the table next to the couch. Both times, I was freaked out, then convinced myself that it was possible that I didn’t put it where I thought I had since I was trying to get so much stuff done at once, I might have just forgotten. Now, I’m beginning to suspect I was wrong, and there has been someone coming in and out of our home like they own the place when I’m not here watching over everything. I wish the landlord had let us put in an alarm system; at least then, I’d feel like I’ve got something protecting me while Tressa’s gone, but the jackass, he refused, even though we told him we were going to pay the installment and monthly fees.
Thirty minutes later, they’re both done and thanking me for my time. I want to cry when I think of the hours it’s going to take me to reorganize, and pack everything back up. Sighing, I head into my bedroom to change into my packing clothes, grateful that I’m off work for the next two days so that I can hopefully catch back up to where I was before this disaster happened. It’s going to put me behind schedule, but hopefully, I’ll get caught up again and make a little progress. I want everything ready to be loaded when Tressa, Chaos, and some of his brothers come to get our things collected and moved.
As I’m changing into comfortable clothes that I can breathe in, so I can start repacking and going over the inventory, my thoughts wander then sway to Stealth and whether or not he’ll be one of the brothers that comes. Not that it would matter; there’s no way a man like him would ever be attracted to me. He’s cover-worthy material, and I’m… not.
“Except he’s not fully man, he’s a shifter, a yummy wolf, and you know how the books say they find their one. Their true mate,” my brain whispers.
“Shut up,” I mutter out loud, back talking myself. There’s absolutely no sense in getting my hopes up. Too many of my dreams have been crushed for me to ever believe that anything good like that could or will happen to me.
* * *
“This is for the birds,” I mutter, taping another box closed and making sure it’s marked to go into the right room. So far, I haven’t seen anything obviously missing, but I’ve only made it through half of the ones that were stacked in Tressa’s office. “Time to take a break and relax. This shit will be here tomorrow.”
And thankfully, I’m off tomorrow since there’s still so much to do. Right now, I’m going to grab a shower, then put in an order for Chinese food while I watch my favorite movie.
Beauty and the Beast , the live version, not the animated Disney movie we all loved as a kid. I’m not sure if it’s the music, the story, or all the books in the Beast’s library. Giggling to myself, I pick up the last box and place it in the stack against the wall, making sure it’s labeled appropriately.
“Of course, it’s labeled, you nerd,” I say out loud in admonishment. “Your OCD wouldn’t let you just pack boxes without making sure the inner contents were clearly noted! Who are you trying to kid now, Nicole?”
Shaking off my obstinate thoughts, I check to ensure the door is locked, making a note to get a chain lock to add to the deadbolt and turn lock that’s already on the doorknob. If nothing else, it might be a deterrent if the person who broke in tries to gain access again. Of course, the cops didn’t see any signs of forced entry either. As I head into my room to get comfortable lounging clothes together for my shower, my phone rings. Seeing it’s Tressa, I hurry up and answer it, then head into the kitchen for something to drink before going back toward my bedroom.
“Hey, what’s up?” I ask once the call’s connected.
“Does anything have to be up for me to call and talk to my bestie?” she retorts, giggling. “I haven’t talked to you today, and since I didn’t feel like going for a run, I thought I’d call you instead.”
“Where are you at?” I ask her, visualizing the clubhouse.
“On the back deck with Nonna. She says ‘hey’, by the way,” Tressa says.
“Tell her I said hello back, please.”
“So, what have you been doing? Did you turn in your two-week notice yet? Were they okay about it? About you leaving? Have you started packing? Are you okay being there alone?”
She fires off questions left and right, not giving me a chance to get a word in edgewise before asking another one. I start laughing because this is typical Tressa. When she runs out of steam, I’ll answer.
“Okay, I think that’s all I have right now,” she states through my giggles.
“Let’s see, I’ve been working, of course. They didn’t have an issue with me turning in my notice of resignation, although I halfway thought they might tell me to just go instead of putting me on the schedule almost every day. Tomorrow’s the first day I’ve had off since I got back!”
“That means you haven’t had a lot of time to pack. Maybe I should tell Chaos I need to come early to help,” she muses, making me laugh again.
“I’ve been able to pack, woman! In fact, your office, the half bath, your room, the kitchen, and the living room are done and dusted,” I retort. “In fact, I’ve got a lot done in my room as well!”
“Well, damn, Nini, that’s freaking awesome! I still feel bad that I didn’t come home with you to help,” she muses. I can almost hear her cog wheels turning.
I’m shaking my head in response even though she can’t see me. “I know there’s probably a difference between what we’ve read about shifters and the reality, but I couldn’t see Chaos letting you just take off when y’all are newly mated.”
She snickers and I can see the blush on her face even though we’re not connected on FaceTime. A lot of her confidence, which her step-monster demolished, is coming back now that she’s got a mate who worships her. I know he loves her which makes my heart happy. Maybe someday, I’ll have a love as heartwarming as hers, but I’m not holding my breath. Jeremy did a number on my psyche; I thought we were building something unbreakable, and was happy that he didn’t care that I’m curvy as hell. Well, actually, I’ve got a fuller sized Rubenesque figure if I’m being totally honest with myself. I tame my rolls and muffin top with shapewear, which makes it hard to breathe sometimes. Oh well, no use crying over spilled milk, as my granny always said when I’d cry to her over something.
“You make a good point,” she finally says, pulling me out of my thoughts. “Oh! I was going to tell you, I’ve just about got your suite of rooms in the clubhouse ready!”
“What do you mean? I was going to rent an apartment,” I stammer.
“No, no. This place is big enough and each room is very cozy. You have a small kitchenette, plus a sitting area complete with a fake fireplace. Well, I think it’s fake, it might be one of those gas ones. I’ll ask Chaos to be sure. A huge bedroom, double-sided closet, and an en suite bathroom.”
“Okay… how much is my rent going to be?” I ask. “I have to find a job when I get there, but I’ve got my savings.”
“Silly, you don’t have to pay rent!” she exclaims. “Don’t worry about any of that right now, alright? It’s all going to work out the way it’s meant to.”
I shake my head because she’s been all over the place as usual. “So, what about our furniture here?” I question.
“We’ll figure out what we’re going to bring back when me and Chaos get there. I know my bedroom furniture can be donated to a good cause since I don’t need it any longer.”
“Good point. Should I place a call to one of the charities and have it picked up?”
“No, wait until we’re there. It’s not like we’re going to arrive, load up then hit the road again. We’ll be there a few days and may have more things we can just donate.”
“Okay, that makes sense to me.” Starting over may be what we both need.
I don’t tell her about someone coming into our home and going through the boxes already packed, nor do I let her know that I’ve had that sensation of someone watching me. It’s probably my imagination, at least the part about being watched. I have the physical proof in the form of a police detective’s card with the police report number on the back to prove that someone did come into our home. There’s no need to worry her, even though I’m a bit skeeved out right now.
“Good, so we should be there late next week, I think,” she says.
“Whenever y’all get here will be soon enough,” I tease. “Are you sure about me living at the clubhouse? I don’t want to impose. I know I probably made a poor first impression on the crew with how bossy I was.”
“Oh, you made an impression alright,” she replies, giggling.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” I ask in alarm.
“Well, let’s just say a certain sergeant-at-arms has been all grumbly since you left,” she teases.
“No way, Tress. I’m not his type,” I rebut.
“Yeah, you are, Nini,” she softly replies. “Jeremy was a stupid douche canoe who didn’t know how good he had it when he had you in his life. His loss is Stealth’s gain, especially since these guys take their responsibility of being someone’s mate seriously.”
“I. Am. Not. His. Mate,” I bite out between clenched teeth. “Shit like that doesn’t happen for me, and I’m okay with that, Tressa. It’s enough that you and I will be living with each other.”
“Fine, have it your way, but I’m telling you, you’re about to have your mind blown in a good way.” Her taunting has me getting huffy. I wish she’d stop making me daydream about probabilities that won’t happen. What’s the luck that two besties would be mated to two club brothers? None, that’s not plausible.
“Whatever. Let me run, I need to shower so I can settle in for the night, okay?”
“Love you, Nini. Don’t work too hard, we can help wrap things up when we get there.”
“We’ll see, Tress. Love you too. I’m sure we’ll talk tomorrow at some point.”
“Bet on it.” She’s gotten so damn sassy!
* * *
I’m at the part in the movie that makes me cry every single time when I think I hear a noise outside. My heart racing, I pause it, then quietly stand on wobbly feet and go to peek through the slats of the blinds. When I don’t see anything, I return to the couch and restart the movie once again, getting lost in the sheer beauty of the story itself. I may or may not sing along to the various songs, but by the time it’s over and the credits roll, I’m drowsy and ready to head to bed.
Tomorrow is another day, after all, and it’s one day closer to a whole new world.