Page 3 of Takedown

I slide under the covers without bothering to remove my clothes and close my eyes, but the phone continues to vibrate.

I’ve never been a coward, and I’m not going to start now, but by the time I reach for the phone, it stops.

The first thing I see is a missed call from Ananda.

My phone slips from my hand when I see the name of the next missed call.

My Husband.

The contact says My Husband, and there’s a picture of me and Adam in the background. I close my eyes and shake my head as if that would erase what I just saw. I’m in the clothes I was wearing last night. I’m on my tippy toes and my lips are on his cheek. He’s smiling happily while he takes the picture.

I open my text messages and there are about a dozen messages from My Husband and a few from Ananda. I text her back, letting her know I’m home safe. As soon as I hit send, he calls again.

2

Just as I expected. I toss the phone on the other side of the bed, more irritated now than when I first woke up and realized I was alone in the king-sized bed. I’ve always been able to fall asleep quickly and stay asleep under any circumstances. My mother always jokes that I could sleep standing up if I had to. She said I was the best baby and slept through the night from the time I was two months old. Getting me down for a nap was never a battle, but now, I wish I suffered from insomnia.

I should have known she’d run. She’s a runner. She has no idea, but I’ve studied her these past two years since we’ve been neighbors. She runs whenever I get too close. She ran from me after what happened between us on New Year’s Eve. She runs whenever her mother comes to visit, and as much as I nose around, I can never get any details about the rift between them.

Now, instead of waking up with my new wife in my arms, I woke up holding a pillow and sporting a hard on so stiff, it was painful. I’ve never been considered naïve, but I wouldn’t let myself believe she just left, especially after she promised she wouldn’t. A quick search around the room proved otherwise, and when I saw her rings on the nightstand and the marriage certificate on the floor, I knew I had been abandoned.

I punch the pillow and call her phone again. Just like before, it goes right to voicemail. As much as I want to smash my phone against the wall, I make another phone call.

“Hey, man,” Dennis mumbles. Dennis is a math teacher at my school, and while he was visiting me one day, he met Ananda. That was less than a year ago, and now they’re married. And since I’m responsible for introducing them, I was part of the wedding party.

“Has Ananda heard from Mellie?” I ask. I hear a loud yawn, followed by talking in the background.

“She got a text from her earlier. She took an early flight home. I guess her brother and sister-in-law need her. Let’s meet in the lobby in one hour. I want to hit one more buffet since today’s our last day.” He ends the call, and I lie back on the bed, still cursing my ability to sleep like the dead.

As happy as I am for my friend, I was even happier for myself. My friend being involved with one of Melanie’s best friends meant we got to spend lots of time together, and I soon learned that my new wife has no idea how beautiful and captivating she is. Her beautiful face and body are the least of it. I almost lost my ability to think when I first saw her. At only two inches short of six feet, she’s taller than most women. That was the first thing I noticed. I envisioned those long legs wrapped around me. Her smile was the second. It can light up the darkest room. When she lets herself go and smiles, it’s wide and shows off perfectly straight teeth. Sometimes she blushes and bats her long eyelashes. She could grace the cover of any magazine with her perfect cheekbones and straight little nose.

She must be the only one who doesn’t realize how beautiful she is. I’ve had to threaten half the men in Boston, but it’s a good thing I’m taller and broader than most men. All I have to do is stand up, and they go running. Unfortunately, Melanie doesn’t appreciate my penchant for scaring men away. Too fucking bad.

And she might be a runner. She might have left New Jersey for Boston to run away from something. She might leave whenever her mother comes for a visit. She can flee from this hotel room and hop the next flight back home, but she can’t run from me. I’ll be home tomorrow, in my apartment right above hers, and she’s going to have to deal with me. There is nowhere she can go where I won’t find her and put these rings back where they belong.

I hold my left hand up and admire the platinum band around my own ring finger, and for the first time since I woke up this morning and realized I was abandoned, I smile.

Yeah, Mellie’s days of running are about to come to an abrupt end. I call her phone again, and since I know she’s on a plane right now flying across the country, I decide to leave a message.

“Mel, it’s your husband. I was hoping to wake up next to my wife on our first full day together as a married couple, but you ran. I should have expected it and planned better. That’s on me. Know this. This is the absolute last time you run from me. See you soon, Mrs. Flynn.” I press end, satisfied with my message.

Having a sudden burst of energy, I hop out of bed and head to the shower.

The harsh northeastern wind smacks me around as hard as Mel’s abandonment. The streets are as dark as they are bare when I finally drive my car back home. Due to a flight delay, it’s past eleven by the time I turn the key into the front door.

I know what I need to do. I need to walk up the stairs to my second-floor apartment and deal with my errant wife tomorrow, but I’ve never been good at waiting. And I sure as fuck am not known for doing what I need to do instead of what I want to do.

I give my wife the courtesy of one more phone call. Like it’s been doing all day, it rings, but she doesn’t pick up, and I don’t bother leaving another message. I shove the phone in my pocket and let out a string of curses. I count to five before I rap my knuckles on the door to the first-floor apartment.

I knock when I want to bang the door down, but they have a toddler, and I’m not a complete Neanderthal. When I don’t hear footsteps, I knock again, only harder this time. I’ve reached the end of my patience, and I didn’t have much to begin with.

Finally, I hear laughter, but it’s not Mel’s, and my nerves are still on high alert. The door swings open, and Jason stands on the other side. I know I’ve interrupted something. He’s shirtless with a sheen of sweat on his chest. He doesn’t offer any pleasantries when he answers the door. He waits for me to speak.

So, I get right to the point. “Is Mel home?” I crane my neck around him to look.

He steps aside and ushers me inside, but his usually friendly demeanor is absent today. He takes a step closer, and because I’m not in the mood for whatever he’s about to dish out, I step back. He’s a tall guy, but I’m taller. And broader. And the fact that he’s a surgeon pretty much guarantees that he won’t hit me. I can take him easily, but I’m not about to fight my new brother or my landlord.

“What the hell went on in Vegas?” I don’t miss the accusation in his voice or the way he takes a threatening step toward me. “Mellie’s been skittish as a cat since she got back.” He doesn’t say anymore, but I know an accusation when I hear one. This isn’t the first time he’s confronted me about his sister, and I admire that in a man. He’s warned me to leave her alone after I chased away a few dates, but other than that, we’ve always been on good terms. I’m a model tenant who pays on time and can do my own repairs. I do repairs in his apartment too since the man is clueless when it comes to fixing things.

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