Page 41 of No Small Sin

There was a window to the side of the house that I knew I'd be able to see inside through, but I wasn't even sure if it led to whatever room she was in. I just had to do anything to make sure she was at least safe, regardless of whatever sketchy shit she was up to.

I sprinted across the street and lifted myself onto my tiptoes, attempting to make out any semblance of what was happening inside.

There was not enough bleach in the world for what I forced my own eyeballs to witness, and unfortunately, this was one of those cliché times when the scene before me was like a bad car accident. I didn't want to see it, but I couldn't look away.

Thankfully I only caught the tail end of Andi straddling some coked-out…drug dealer?His pupils were blown the size of dinner plates, gazing over her shoulder into oblivion while she rode him like her own personal pony.

Apparently, coke dick was not yet an issue for this one.

When she climbed off of him, very obviously unsatisfied with the experience, his head lolled to the side. He was on the verge of an overdose-level high.

Which meant that he had no fucking clue what was happening when Andi wasted no time rifling through every corner of the room, collecting whatever he had of value—cash, drugs, and all else she could find—stuffing them into her pockets and bra before bolting out of the room without a second glance behind her.

I heard the front door creak open. Her footsteps sounded down the front steps and onto the sidewalk before she hurried off into the night the same way she'd come.

What in the cinnamon toast fuck had I just witnessed?

I released the breath I’d been holding, fully aware that I’d been holding it all the while unable to force it from my lungs.

I dropped back down to level footing and inched backward, my body colliding with a solid chest.

I jolted and let out a short scream before a calloused hand hooked over my mouth to muffle my cry for help.

Sheer panic.

"Cuore mio,calm the fuck down." Beck. Relief flooded through me as he turned me to face him.

He searched my eyes with his own and ran his hands up and down my arms in a soothing motion. "Jesus, you're as white as a sheet and shaking all over. What the fuck are you doing here?"

Once my heart stopped trying to escape from my chest, I found it in me to answer. “I…” I was almost embarrassed to explain myself.

Ugh. Why did I have to be such a freaking busybody? I guess if anyone knew that about me, it was Beck. It wasn’t like I had anything to hide here.

He jerked me into him. “TK…”

I didn’t like for him to call me that now. It made me want to pout. I scrunched up my nose at him and refused to speak again.

He sighed. “You scared the shit out of me sending me your location like that with no context. Fuckingspill.”

“I… followed Andi,” I said the last part as quickly as possible.

“You what? Why?” He looked at me, confused.

“She was acting all weird and not herself at work. She didn’t speak to me all night! Not even once! And then I felt like she was avoiding me all together toward the end.”

He stared down at me, incredulous. “What a fucking welcome change that would be were I in your shoes,” he said flatly.

I huffed and shoved away from him, walking back toward the street. He caught up to me and grabbed my hand, holding it as we walked back to LC together in the dark.

I felt much safer with him by my side.

I told him everything I’d seen, all about my accidental voyeurism, and he didn’t seem surprised at all. “Sounds like she’s hard up for cash.”

“Hard up enough to do something like that? To get into someone’s house under the guise of fucking them, and then rob them blind? She could get into some serious trouble. And I don’t mean with the cops.”

He locked eyes with me. “Sounds like he won’t even remember she was there. I wouldn’t worry about it. And even if it does lead to trouble for her, it’s the consequences of her own actions. Nothing you can do about it.”

“I know I haven’t known her for very long, but this just doesn’t seem like her to do something like this, Beck.” I shook my head.

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