Page 19 of My Brother’s Locksmith Friend

“Ma’am,” Hendrix gives her an assuring smile. “We are calling the police, but we want to be sure he’s going away for a while. We don’t want them wasting time tracking a petty criminal like Roy for him to get locked up and released in a few months.”

“Yeah,” Hayden says. “And I have some friends of mine looking into warrants he may have in other counties and states. I’m sure if he’s done it here, he’s done it wherever else he’s lived because his history only goes back four years in Conklin.”

Hendrix takes control of the conversation again. “I think he served time when we were young and then got himself caught up on a federal charge that took him to Texas.”

Hayden laughs, “So much for not thinking about karma, right?”

Hendrix shrugs, “Just because I haven’t beaten the man into the cement doesn’t mean I haven’t thought about it. Besides, I have someone very interested in keeping me out of prison. Not you, Hayden.”

Hendrix’s eyes shift to me with a slight lick of his lips that makes me remember my initial plan for today—think about him and all the sex we’re going to have. It makes me look at his brothers, wondering if they can sense the tension between us.

“That’s all well and good,” Lucille speaks up. “What are we going to do to trap Roy?”

Hendrix looks around and says, “We’re going to box up most of this apartment. You’re going to tell Roy that Miss Bradley is moving.”

“I’m moving?” I ask him.

His gaze pierces into me with an honesty I can’t ignore. “Eventually, yes you are, baby girl. For now, it’s just going to be a setup. We’re going to pack up this apartment and Miss Lucille’s going to tell Roy that Havana’s trying to skip out on the rest of her lease. She’s then going to ask Roy to come in and make sure the apartment is in working order because you two had a big blow-up about raising the rent or whatever landlords and tenants argue about.”

“What happens when Roy gets here?” Lucille asks. “I don’t want to be alone in the apartment with him.”

“No worries, ma’am,” Hendrix tells her. “We’ll have Hudson in the apartment as a mover, and we’ll be watching the security cameras. Hayden will be outside, making sure the guy doesn’t try to make a run for it when we corner him.”

“When is all of this supposed to happen?” Lucille asks.

“I’m thinking me and my brothers can take some time to put the apartment in order tonight. Miss Lucille, if we can have some boxes and crates you might have lying around, we’d be appreciative. Baby girl, how about you grab us some food?” Hendrix says, turning to me.

I don’t mind at all. Hendrix pulls out his wallet to fish out a few bills and hands it to me.

“What are you guys in the mood for?” I ask them as Hudson and Hayden begin making plans for moving furniture out of my apartment. There’s a feeling washing over me that I can’t quite pinpoint.

I know this is a part of the plan, but this feels too real, like I’m ending a portion of my life and speeding into the next phase. Is that what’s happening?

I look at Hendrix, who’s still motioning to different pieces in my tiny living room. I think my entire apartment fits into his bedroom. When he catches me staring at them, he approaches. Lucille is silent, stewing on the plan no doubt.

We walk into the hallway where anxiety begins to take over. I don’t know what to do with this energy, but Hendrix takes me into his arms. The strength of him holding me around the waist makes me relax. He makes me feel safe, sure that everything is going to go to plan.

“You’re okay with this, baby girl?” he asks.

“I am. I just wish there was another way to catch Roy in the act and get him locked up.”

He nods. “I get that. We can take our suspicions to the police and let them handle it.”

“What are they going to do about what we tell them?” I ask him.

He shrugs. “Honestly, I don’t know. Just playing devil’s advocate, Roy hasn’t committed a crime we can prove.”

“He stole my necklace, and who knows what else from the other apartments he’s bullying his way into.”

“How do we prove that, baby girl?” he asks me. His tone isn’t condescending but genuinely seeking answers.

Hendrix tilts my face up to his and kisses me so tenderly, I melt against him. His tongue slips effortlessly into my mouth, softly probing as if he can taste the depths of my fears, instantly soothing them.

When he pulls away from me, I want him to simply take me away back to his house where we can relax and forget about all of this. His eyes have this way of pulling me into him and drowning out the world around us.

“I don’t know,” I admit.

“Havana, if there was a way to speed this up, I would do it for you, baby girl. The cold truth is we don’t have enough to bring to the police without Roy having a way to explain it as a misunderstanding. He can say it’s retaliation for a plumbing bill or anything.”

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