Page 36 of Brat Baby
I frown. My what? I didn’t order anything—yet. I was planning to do that once my daddies arrived, since an earlier check of the kitchen revealed it’s empty of food. Plenty of bottled water, though. Eye roll. “Ah, no. I think you have the wrong apartment.”
“Emery Nicholas, order from Lizotte’s. One large fettucine carbonara. One cheesy garlic bread. One Coke.”
My brain goes a little staticky and my lips suddenly feel numb.
Did he organize this? Did Derek send me food? From his restaurant?
“Could you come down to reception to collect it? I can’t leave the front desk.”
Aiden’s voice propels me into action, and I immediately start patting my pockets for the security card. “Ah, yes. Yep, I can do that. I’ll be down shortly.”
After locating the key and a trip down to the lobby and back, I return to the still-empty apartment with the food I did not order. I empty out the brown paper bag onto the kitchen counter—a takeout bowl of pasta, a tiny container filled with parmesan cheese, a brown, now oily, paper bag filled with cheesy garlic bread, which has my mouth watering. And lastly, my bottle of Coke.
There is no note.
No details about who sent this, but I think I’m right in thinking it’s from Derek. So, what… He can send me food but not show up? What the fuck is that shit?
The moment I take the lid off the pasta, a heavenly smell slams into me. All the creamy, bacony, cheesy goodness that floats up on the steam is almost overpowering.
Knowing I can’t possibly eat all of this, and with the dominant people not being here to force me to, I take half of the food and put the rest in the fridge for tomorrow.
It takes two trips to get it all over to the couch, but eventually, I’m curled up with my feet tucked under me and that rom-com about the girl living in Paris on the TV as I slowly consume the pasta. My thoughts whirl and spin, trying to make sense of everything, but nothing is connecting.
They are still treating me like I’m theirs. Like they want me. Like they can’t let me go.
They are still looking after me.
Maybe me being here tonight took them by surprise? It’s not like I gave them any notice. They could have had plans or something.
And now that they know I’m here, they can come tomorrow. They can get out of whatever they have planned, and they can come and be here with me tomorrow.
Yes. Tomorrow.
I tear a huge bite out of my garlic bread, trying not to moan out loud at the taste.
Tomorrow. We can figure everything out tomorrow.
Chapter 21
Derek
Aiden Kendal:She just left.
I lock my phone, darkening the screen, and reach for the half-empty bottle of bourbon that I purchased Friday morning. My plan had been to keep myself pleasantly—but not overly—numb over the weekend, so the ache of not having Emery in my arms wouldn’t be quite so sharp.
Instead, just as I’d gotten comfortable on my couch, I received a message from Aiden Kendal, one of the security guards for our apartment building. He and most of the guys from Black Ghost Security are also members of Obsession.
Only a few minutes later, I received the picture from her, with my wall of toys in the background. From that moment on, I’ve been camped out in my darkened office, watching the live video feed of the apartment.
We only have one camera in the apartment, placed above the fridge, mostly hidden from view, but if you know it’s there, it’s not hard to miss. We typically turn it off when we are in the apartment.
It was off last weekend, but I have regrets about that now. I wish we had video, not just photos, of our time with Emery. Something that I can replay whenever the urge to go to her is almost overpowering, which has been every waking second for the last few days.
From the moment she left the apartment—if I am honest with myself.
Seeing that kid flirting with her in class on Wednesday didn’t help matters. My exit from the room was for the sole purpose of not leaping the first few rows of tables and putting an end to their conversation. Even now, jealousy curls in my gut at the mere memory.
Although, a significant portion of my thoughts have circled the idea that we should actually let her go. To cancel the conversation with Thanye and let her date people her own age. But even the theoretical concept of her being with someone else makes my inner beast growl.
