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A few hours had passed and Co
“Wow, now I like that greeting.” He smiled as he kissed me. “I thought I was going to get yelled at for not calling you all day. You wouldn’t believe the shit going on at the office right now. I was in back-to-back meetings all day.”
I smiled at him and walked back to the kitchen to take the chicken out of the oven. Co
“Where did those flowers come from?” he asked.
“From someone who thinks I’m the most beautiful and exquisite woman in the world.” I smiled as I set the chicken on the stove.
“Of course you are, baby, but who sent them?”
I turned around and looked at him. “A hot and sexy man sent them to me, along with those romantic texts all day.”
Suddenly, Co
I couldn’t believe how upset he was. This was his game and he had the nerve to yell at me.
“Jesus, Co
As he looked at me, his eyes turned dark. “I didn’t send you those flowers or any text messages today. I told you I was in back-to-back meetings all day!” he yelled again. “Give me your phone!” he commanded.
He was scaring me and I didn’t like it. With shaking hands, I opened the text messages on my phone and handed it to him. As he read them, the look on his face was daunting. He looked at me and then back at the flowers. He picked up the card from the counter and read it.
“When did these flowers come?” he asked.
“I don’t know. They were delivered when I was out with Peyton.”
Co
“He said that when he and Julia got home from the park, they were outside the door.”
“Co
“Why the hell would I send you text messages from a restricted number?”
“I thought you were playing with me.”
He sighed as he paced around the kitchen, ru
I couldn’t stand there and be yelled at anymore. I didn’t know what was going on, so I took off up the stairs and went into my bedroom. After I locked the door, I threw myself on the bed, scared and shaking that someone, other than my husband, was saying those things to me and sending me my favorite flowers. While I was lying there, Co
“Ellery, open the door.”
“No! Stay the hell away from me.”
“Baby, please. I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to yell at you like that. We need to talk about this, so please open the door.”
He sounded like he had calmed down, so I got up from the bed and unlocked the door. With a turn of the knob, he opened it as I sat on the edge of the bed. Co
“I’m sorry. Please forgive me, Ellery. You just have no idea the terrible thoughts that are going through my head right now.”
“You fucking scared me, Co
“I know I did. I’m sorry. It’s just the thought of someone saying that shit to you is u
I lifted my head up and Co
“We need to find out who’s doing this. I put a call into Detective James, the private investigator who worked with me on the Chicago fire. He’s coming over in a while and so is Paul.”
As I nodded my head, I got up from the bed and went into the bathroom. I looked at myself in the mirror and tried to remove the mascara stains from under my eyes. The day that was going so well and made me so happy had all just gone to hell. Co
“Are you okay, Elle?”
“Do I look okay, Co
Suddenly, we heard Julia cry from her crib. “I’ll tend to Julia and leave you alone,” Co
I sighed as I closed my eyes and tried to figure out what the hell was going on. I needed to talk to Peyton, but my phone was downstairs. The last time I saw Co
“Did you throw the roses away?” I asked Co
“You bet I did,” he replied.
The bottle of Jack was already sitting out and so was a shot glass. As I poured myself a shot, I looked over at my husband. “Did you get this out?”
“Yes. I figured you’d be coming down for some,” he replied as he looked down at Julia.
“Thank you,” I said as I threw the shot back and set the glass down. “I’m scared,” I blurted out as I poured another shot.
Chapter 31 Co
I looked over at Ellery and saw the fear in her eyes. I wanted to go to her, but I was feeding Julia. I never should’ve yelled at her the way I did. But when I read those messages and saw the flowers and the card, a fear crept up inside of me that someone was after my wife. Ellery continued to slam a couple of shots as I burped Julia. She had just finished her bottle, so I set her on the floor amongst her toys. Ellery stood behind the bar, and I walked over to her.
“Come here,” I said as I embraced her. “I know this whole thing is scary, but I promise you that I’ll never let anything happen to you or Julia. We’re going to find out who’s behind this and they’re going to pay. I’ll see to that.”
“Who would do something like this?” she asked.
“I don’t know, baby; some sick, twisted individual,” I said as I tightened my grip around her.
The doorman rang up and said that Detective James and Paul were downstairs. I told him to send them up right away.
“Mr. Black, it’s nice to see you again,” Detective James said as he shook my hand.
“I wish it was under better circumstances,” I sighed.
Paul walked over to Ellery and gave her a hug. “Are you okay, Elle?” he asked.
I escorted the detective to the living room and offered him a drink. Paul got up, walked over to the bar, and poured himself a glass of bourbon.
“Detective James, you remember my wife, Ellery.”
“Yes, I do. It’s nice to see you again.”
Ellery gave a small smile as she nodded her head. I sat down beside her and held her hand.
“Your husband has filled me in on what’s going on. Can I see the messages you received today?”
Ellery reached over, took her phone from the table, and handed it to him. As Detective James scrolled through the messages, I got up, walked into the kitchen, and grabbed the card that came with the flowers.
“He sent her three dozen roses with this card attached,” I said as I handed it to him.